TRY AN
ADVENTURE
RACE
ernardSmyth,
Quest
dventure
eries*regular
ndUltimate
Conditioning
rainertellsyou
howto prepareforthebigday‘I
f yourenthusiasm’swaningforrunningtraining
andevents,whynottrysomethingdifferentto
boostyourmotivation?Adventureracesinvolve
doingmultipledisciplines,triathlon-style,inthe
wild,area full-bodyworkoutandloadsoffun!
‘Therearelotsof differenttypes,butQuestWales’beginner
course,forexample,involvestrailrunning,roadcyclingandlake
kayakinga 23kmroute(therearealso38kmand50kmroutes).
Youdon’tneedkayakingexperience,buta practicesessionor
twowouldhelp.Doublekayaksareprovided,soyou’llpaddlewith
someoneelseforthissectionof therace,andyoucanhirea bike
if youdon’thaveyourown.’TRAINING TIPS
‘Beginnersshouldstarttheirtraining 12 weeksbeforethebigday,
withtwo15-minuterunsanda 40-minutebikeride(Spinning’sfine
fornow).Don’ttrainmorethanfourdaysa week.Thefourthday
canbeupper-bodystrengthworkto helpwithpaddling.If youwork
outtwodaysin a row,restfor 24 hours.Fromweekfive,do“brick”
sessions,goingstraightfromcyclingto runningto getusedto it.
Weeksixshouldbea restweek,whereyoudoverylighttraining.
‘Astheeventdrawsnear,doplentyof off-roadrunningand
hillyroutesonyourbike.Easebackin thelasttwoweeksof
trainingsoyou’refullof energyforeventday.Fora fulltrainingplan,
logonto questadventureseries.com,anddon’tforget– training
witha friendis a greatmotivator.’WORDS: Emma Lewis PHOTOGRAPHY: iStock *Quest Wales takes place on June 20, 2020 in Snowdonia National Park. The Quest Adventure Series also includes several events in Ireland (questadventureseries.com)1
RACE THE
SUN BRECON
BEACONS
(June 13)
Round up a team of
four and start at dawn to
complete this race before
the sun sets. The event
begins with a 60km cycle
along country roads,
before a 10km hike up
Pen y Fan and then a 2km
canoe along the River Usk;
findarace.com.2
ARTEMIS
GREAT
KINDROCHIT
QUADRATHLON
(July 4)This one’s for serious fit
buddies. Pair up and run
or hike, kayak, cycle and
possibly swim more than
50 miles. Learn more at
artemisgreatkindrochit.
com.3
COAST
TO COAST
(Sept 12-13)
Run, cycle and kayak
the 169km from Nairn
on the east coast of
Scotland to the Isles
of Glencoe on the west.
Tackle it in one day, or
two and camp in between;
ratracecoasttocoast.
co.uk.Finda UKeventtosuityourfitnesslevelADVENTURE RACES TO TRY
RUNNING CLINIC
‘Ease back on training in the last two
weeks, so you have energy for event day’