I first ran this race as my first marathon in 2017. It was an experience then as I didn't know what to expect, apart from the hills.

For the full marathon they supply a bus to take you too the start and registration point. It's busy, but we got through the queue in about 5 minutes, so no drama. The question for the toilets can build up, so I wouldn't leave it until the last second for that nervous wee.

The start point is at a college and uses their grass running track as start point before you head out of the grounds and climb up to the South Downs. The views along the ridges are amazing and well worth the effort. The route is split into four distinct sections which are separated by steep descents with the dreaded climbs out of them. Apart from the large climbs the route is pretty undulating, but beware the last six miles as there are some cheeky climbs along that section when your legs are tired.

I feel that the event is organised well and they do advise you as to where the water stops are. I plan my own hydration, so only took a bottle of water at 20 miles, but the stations looked well stocked and they supply bins 400m further along the route for your rubbish. The only thing that disappointed me this year was the amount of gel wrappers I saw dropped by runners along the way.

Overall I would recommend this race in itself, but it is also a good training run for the "Race to the king" which follows the same route, but on to Winchester.

This was my first time running this race, and whilst I know the area well (its on my doorstep) I wasn't really sure what to expect.  Pre race info was a little sparse.

The race itself was scenic but challenging, with the heat really having an effect in the latter stages. I ran the half distance, with hills at 6ish and 9 ish miles particularly energy sapping.

There were a good number of marshalls about, with good signage, and the provision of bottled water a help. As another reviewer had noted, a slightly earlier first water stop may have helped, as potentially would an earlier start.

Would I run it again? Not sure, not because of the race but whether I'm prepared to take on those hills again.

If you're not feeling up to a trail marathon, then the relay at the South Downs Marathon is a great event!! There's nothing like a bit of teamwork to complete a hilly and difficult race!!

The relay consists of a team of 4, running legs between 5 and 7.5 miles. Each runner completes a leg, holding the baton which contains the chip and passes this onto the next teammate at each checkpoint.

The course itself is beautiful. I ran the first leg of 7.5miles which is predominantly uphill, and the views at the top are amazing! On the day I ran, it was the hottest day of 2017 so far, and even starting at 9am it was really really hot! My teammates enjoyed each of their legs and the day was great fun for everyone!!

Everyone in the relay team receives a medal and a goody bag including a t-shirt (and a jar of pasta sauce??).

The only faults I have with this even were:

1. The race information was flawed as some of the checkpoints did not include Postcodes. Checkpoint 1 was also missed by a number of people due to the way the instructions were written. Luckily a marshal corrected the teams and sent them to the correct checkpoint!!

2. At Checkpoint 2, the parking situation was flawed - parking was available down a lane only wide enough for one car. This same lane was part of the race course so cars were trying to navigate up and down the road whilst runners were trying to reach the next checkpoint.

I would recommend this race, it was great fun to race as part of a team and afterwards everyone meets at the finish line and watches the rest of the teams and the marathoners finish! 

This is the fourth time I've run this race and it is a really beautiful route. There are lots of flat sections with only a small number of particularly challenging hills. There is lots of car parking available at the start and the route is well signposted so nice and stress free.

It was a really hot day this year but there was one less drink station than advertised than there had been in previous years. The first drink station was 5.5 miles in which on a boiling hot day was far too late and had I have known I would have taken a water bottle with me.

Marshalls also need to be told what to do when a runner needs help as they didn't seem to know. A runner collapsed near the end and I told the nearest marshalls who gave me no confidence they were even going to attend to him. Another runner had to run a further few minutes up the course to let St. John's Ambulance know.

There were other cutbacks this year with race numbers not being posted out and I would recommend getting there early to collect your race number to avoid a long queue.

The medal was ok although of lesser quality than previous years and doesn't specify what distance you ran.