Organised by the publisher of Ultra Magazine, The Hangman is a 54km (33.5 miles) trail race. It starts in the village of Longparish, Hampshire and follows the Test Way to the Combe Gibbet, where you turn around and head back to the start.
The organisers had restricted entry numbers, so with only 45 runners we had the joy of a mass start in the recreation field next to the village hall. It was fun to get back to real races after so many virtual events, or staggered start / time trial events.
At 9 o’clock we were set off, and I soon found myself running in a small group of 5 just behind the leader. I stuck with the group up the first couple of climbs, but lost touch on a slippery downhill section through the woods, and arrived at the first checkpoint in 4th place, just as the three leaders left.
The climb up to Long Barrow was steep, but thankfully not too long, and then I was running along the ridge crest to the Gibbet. At this stage the three leaders passed me heading back down the trail, while I checked in at the aid station.
I pushed hard for a few miles on the downhill section trying to catch them, while greeting the runners coming up behind me, but they were racing each other for the win, so moving too fast to catch.
Nevertheless I was happy with a 4th place finish and 1st M50
Results – Male
1. Andrew Classey 4:43:59
2= Jon Drake, James Hassan 4:55:21
4. David Barker 5:00:29
Results – Female
1. Harri Washington 5:46:57
2. Jay Hairsine Wilson 5:56:50
3. Emma Bird 6:16:4
David Barker