Silkin Way 50k | Ultra Marathon | April 2021 | Race Review and a bit of a VLOG

The Silkin Way 50km Ultra Marathon.

I have ran this race a few times before and absolutely love the route, the event and also 'How Hard Can it Be Events' that put this race on! You will see on this video that I had a great day and met some wonderful people along the route

There was a staggered start with just a few runners starting every 15 minutes, I started at 8:30am . The staggered start meant that there was never any more than a handful of people at the start/finish and everyone respectfully maintained social distancing, wore face coverings and used the hand sanitiser available.

The route of the Silkin Way 50km Ultra Marathon inlcudes 509m (1670ft) ascent so its a relatively flat and fast route, mostly on hard surfaces with only a couple of miles where you might get muddy feet. That means road shoes are perfectly fine and recommended for this event.

The weather was cool and clear, 5°C (39°F) at the start increasing to around 10°C (50°F) later although it felt much warmer with the sun out and barely any breeze.

The route is relatively easy to navigate but it certainly helps to have some local knowledge. The route is well marked with chalk arrows on the ground all the way around the route, but you do need to stay alert to make sure you don't miss any! I usually follow the maps that I have uploaded to my Garmin Fenix 5+ but didn't bother today as I know the route quite well. I highly recommend that anyone that has the tech to use .gpx (map files) on their watch or phone does so as it can really help to stay on track.

Checkpoints are at 7, 13 & 20 miles and are well stocked with drinks and snacks, served hygienically and safely. I carried 500ml of water with me in a bottle held in my Salomon Pulst belt and consumed a some orange flavoured SIS isotonic gels on the route. https://amzn.to/3mko0h9

There is a choice of a 50km Ultra marathon distance and also a Half marathon. This race was held originally to coincide with the birthday of the Silkin Way when it was 50 years old. The route and takes runners from the south side of Telford by The River Severn, to the northern side in Brockton. Once refuelled in Brockton, runners travel back through Telford, before turning west towards Coalbrookdale and Ironbridge.

Thanks to Chris Richards for the drone footage :)

Matthews GPS Watch | Garmin Fenix 5+ | https://amzn.to/3ief4bf
Lauras GPS Watch | Garmin Vivoactive 3 | https://amzn.to/2K4d7kN
Childrens GPS Watches | Garmin Vivosport | https://amzn.to/3i6CZcj
Matthews Jacket | OMM Kamleika | https://amzn.to/39n8UkY
Matthews Running Pack | Salomon Adv Skin 12 | https://amzn.to/3nwCTvS
Lauras Running Pack | Salomon Adv Skin 8 Womens | https://amzn.to/39oeXFF
GoPro Hero 8 Black | https://amzn.to/38vOuqH