THE LAND'S END TRIAL

THE MAIN TRIAL ROUTE

The three start locations, Cirencester, Popham and Launceston converge at Bridgwater & Albion Rugby Football club in Somerset where hot refreshments and a mandatory rest await competitors. The 95-mile ‘night run’ to Bridgwater is a throw back to the original London start and though its something of a prelude to the main event, it gives competitors the opportunity to check over their vehicles and familiarise themselves with the club’s written method of navigation. Class O joins the trial here if the 95-mile remote run isn't undertaken.

The bustling camaraderie of the rugby club soon dissipates to isolated silence as competitors skirt the coastline of Exmoor by moonlight (always a full moon), with only the rocky section of Felon’s Oak (1955) offering any human interaction. Some classes will attempt the mile long track at Porlockford, while others will climb the incredibly steep Worthy Toll Road, dating from Nepoleonic times. Refuelling is undertaken at Barbrook Filling Station, where the staff keep the pumps working throughout the night and volunteers serve tea, coffee and cake in the nearby village hall.

Next up, the test of Beggars Roost (1922), always a formidable challenge with the addition of a restart for most classes making it more so! Then the traverse over the top of Exmoor watching out for any animals appearing out of the inevitable fog.

The climb of ‘Barton Steep’ used to be a challenge to competitors in the 1930s, but now that its tarmacked. it is still included in the route as a nod to the past.

After leaving Exmoor via Molland Cross, competitors must undertake the loose stone climb of Riverton (2002), refuel at Wicketts Garage and then tackle Sutcombe (1964) and Darracott (1933) providing little respite for the weary competitor with sharp bends and loose rock that can sap momentum and reduce traction. Cutliffe Lane (1967) can catch out the unwary. All these sections are county highways. Visibility improves from Darracott onwards, though most competitors will witness a spectacular sunrise over Widemouth Bay, just south of Bude. Class O will skip the most damaging sections, but there are still plenty of sections to challenge. All competitors are checked that they are following the correct route by hidden passage controls, the location of which aren’t mentioned in the route card!

Crackington (1936) – the first true daylight section – is famed for inexplicably being doctored with slurry shortly before the event. Colourful speculation of the cause is legion, but local farmers short of amusement remain the likely culprits. Expect spectators! Then on the Tresparrent Post for the first Timed Test.

A cooked breakfast awaits competitors at Wilsey Down Hotel where another mandatory rest stop enables vehicle fettling and/or a nap. Some competitors, unable to complete the full night run, join the event here. Another timed test follows at Ruses Mill, an incredibly narrow and steep lane first used as a section in 1932. The following Warleggan (1968) is a mixture of rock slabs and stony dirt, where traction is often decided by the weather – while the new section at Pendavey is the track bed of a long abandoned railway line with 50 years worth of leaf mould. A liberal coating of rain is enough for any of them to become a ‘stopper’. Competitors must climb Trevithick and Lambriggan, before arriving at the final fuel stop at Perranporth. This sets competitors up for the crown jewels of the Land’s End Trial – Blue Hills (1936). These two sections are located on private, clifftop land owned by the MCC and attract hundreds of cheering spectators, phones in hand. Don’t forget to sign off at the finish, after (if running to time) nearly 21 hours in the saddle or seat!

Look out for yourself online in one of the videos taken at Blue Hills or Crackington, and either head back to Blue Hills to watch your fellow competitors attempt that most spectacular of climbs, or head off to the celebratory meal in Newquay for a well earned drink and refuel!