A stunning coastal trail marathon with breath taking views along the Dorset coast The seaside town of Swanage, flanked by the steep Purbeck hills, makes for a fantastic race base for this relatively low key race. One of my favourite routes to run this race is beautiful and tough in equal measure. At 27 miles this is “more than a marathon” and with 3000ft of elevation on a mostly trail route you can expect a hard day of running. This year was a dry warm day and the fastest finish times were 3:00 and 3:35 for men and ladies winner respectively with mid pack times around 5:30. If you are strong then the entire route is runnable but for us mortals expect some walking, especially from mile 21 – 24 when it’s pretty much uphill onto a ridge above the finish. Race registration is a simple affair, a small table, some friendly marshals, give your name, collect your number. Drop your bag if you like and they’ll transport it to the finish which is about 0.5mile from the race start. Swanage town crier gets proceedings underway and before you know it you are off running, straight up a slope and along the South West Coast Path heading West. The route hugs the undulating coast line for the most part, heading inland to take in some hills before heading back out onto the coast until you begin to loop round and inland towards the finish. The route takes in fields, sleepy Dorset villages, ancient ridgeways and one of my favourite back drops for a race Corfe Castle. Drinks stations and marshals are well spaced but don’t expect buffet style aid stations. Water is never in short supply but you’d be advised to carry your own nutrition. Most of the route is exposed so dress accordingly, it can be hot in the sun as it reflects up off the chalk paths and windy up on the ridgelines. A medal, t-shirt and goodie bag await those who finish. At £38 for the marathon this race is not expensive, especially considering all profits are for charity. To date they have raised £28000 for local good causes. If the marathon doesn’t do it for you then there is a 16mile race also.