I entered this race as it gave me the opportunity to complete an Ultra whilst also allowing my family to enjoy the event, participate in a lap with me and enjoy all of the other activities that Ratrace put on over the weekend.

Its billed as a 'family festival', and I can see this being a great family event... if the weather plays game. Unfortunately in 2019 the weather was atrocious which meant that a lot of the extra family activities (inflatables, segways, climbing wall, nerf guns etc) weren't operating most of the time due to the high winds and rain. Of course this isn't the festival organisers fault, however it did restrict the amount of fun my family had at the event.

The race itself is a 5k trail course with a few small hills. Virtually all offroad across fields and through woods, which can get very muddy if the weather is bad but I would imagine would be very compact in 'normal' June weather. 

You get to run as many laps as you like in 8 hours and can pay an extra fee to 'go ultra' by completing 50k (10 laps) and getting an extra medal and unique t-shirt. Note there is nothing to stop you doing 50k or more without paying extra... you just wouldnt get the additional bling and tee. The standard medal is pretty good anyway!

The course can get pretty monotonous after a number of laps, as any multi lap event would, and most ultra runners skipped all of the 'obstacles'.

Whilst the obstacles may be fun to entertain the younger kids for a lap or 2, I wouldn't really call this an obstacle race... more a trail run with a few distractions on the way round. The 'obstacles' consisted of a fun fair (toss the hoop over the peg / ball in the bucket style games), a few different inflatibles, inflatible water crossing, cargo nets, monkey bars, some logs and seesaws and a 'laundrette' (basically a large crate filled with bubbles), all evenly spread out through the 5k course.

Whilst there is little food / drink stations on the course (1 water stop midway round), you can access a 'transition area' to access your own food / drink at the start / finish area (if you have paid to 'go ultra') or can leave a bag with supplies at a seperate bag drop just off from the main course start / finish.

Ratrace do put on good entertainment at their events. There is a good camping area, even allowing you (for a fee) to park next to your tent / campervan. Then they have a very large merch / beer / food / shelter tent and put on a band in the evening.

If you are looking for a challenging or scneic ultra then this propbably isn't for you, however if you want to combine some ultra running with a family festival then its potentially a great event... assuming the British weather is kind!

I have taken part in this event twice now with my family.  The first year running 20km (I was getting back into it) and in 2018 I ran the 50km ultra. This is one of the few events you can actually take part in alongside your children, doing the same obstacles with them and fosters a fantastic family team spirit.  My girls have loved doing it both times and it has been a catalyst for getting them into indurance sports.

The whole event is very well run.  It is very expensive, however it is such a well run event, you can see where your money goes.  Despite the cost, we've entered again for 2020.

Runstock is a great concept, its 5k laps over 8 hours with obstacles.  It's open to familys and serious ultra runners, there is a challenge for runners to run 50k if they choose to.

The course is tough, it is very hilly however it's very manageble (dependant on experience) in 35/40min per lap.  The atmosphere around the event was very relaxed, runners dropped in and out of the course as they wished for breaks, there are activities for kids in the event village.

Overall a well managed event but very costly.  Race entry is £59 which is more expensive than a decent marathon, £20 for the ultra attempt upgrade and £30 for camping - that's all before travel and food.  The site isn't the easiest to reach without a car, I got a taxi to the train station and it was £15 each way.

My full blog is at https://autisticrunnerjohn.wordpress.com/2018/06/10/ratrace-runstock/ 

This was my first attempt at running ultra distance and I thought that the lap based course (5km laps) would be the best way for me to start, as even if I didn't reach the 50km I was planning I would still finish the event. 

The cost of registration now appears to be rather steep, especially after adding on the camping fee, upgrade for the ultra attempt (more on that) vest and parking. We arrived on the Friday in order to register early to prevent delay on the race day, but an issue with the chips meant we still had to queue again to get these and the ultra wristbands, these were to give us exclusive access to a separate pit lane for drop bags, this wasnt the case as anyone was able to use this area for their bags. 

On the course, the views were nice, and the route was well marked meaning very few marshals were needed or evident. There were a few treacherous parts were tree stumps were causing a few falls and nettles were blocking the route, but this was a trail course. There was one small water point on the course, which was usually crammed full of participants, and the only toilets required leaving the course and going through the race village.

The race village was pretty well stocked, however the pizza stall had a 1 1/2 hour wait which they were failing to tell patrons.

Overall, I wouldn't recommend this event to anyone wanting to run seriously, the added cost for the ultra attempt were ridiculous for no added benefits, and the food/water provision was inadequate for the amount of runners in my opinion.