Great Glen Ultra Marathon
The Great Glen Ultra is one of Scotland’s toughest running challenges. Set amongst some of Scotland’s most stunning scenery, you have to run the 72 miles from Fort William to Inverness along the historic Great Glen within a time limit of 22 hours. The terrain is a mixture of canal towpaths, forestry paths and tracks, and a little time spent on roads.
The event is for solo runners and designed to be run unsupported. There are marshaled checkpoints approximately every 10 miles along the fully marked route. The race starts at Corpach and heads towards Loch Lochay before climbing up to give stunning views over Loch Ness. For the most part, the race route follows the waymarked Great Glen which has distinctive blue posts. You are following those all the way to Inverness. The race takes the High Route along the Great Glen which offers even more incredible views. The High Route is clearly signposted as an official Great Glen Way option.
The first 30 miles or so are undulating then the major climbs appear after Fort Augustus.
Checkpoints
When coming into a checkpoint, please shout your number to a marshal. The following cut-off times are there for your own safety. These times have been based on runners’ times from previous years. Please remember that this is a running race, not a walking one. When enforcing these cut-off times, the marshals will use their own judgement and take the other race-day factors (for example, extremes of weather…. where a runner has stopped to aid a fellow competitor etc) into account when making a decision. The times below are when runners must arrive into each checkpoint:
- Clunes – 10.5 miles – Cut off 2 hours, 45 minutes
- Laggan Locks – 20 miles – Cut off 4 hours, 30 minutes
- Fort Augustus – 31 miles – Cut off 7 hours, 30 minutes
- Invermoriston – 40 miles – Cut off 10 hours
- Drumnadrochit – 54.5 miles – Cut off 14 hours, 30 minutes
- Loch Laide – 62 miles – Cut off 18 hours
- Finish! Inverness Athletics Stadium – 72 miles – Cut off 22 hours
Checkpoint distances are approximate as both the course and the checkpoint locations may vary slightly year to year depending on what work is occurring on and around the race route.
Road Crossings
You must remove earphones at road crossings and listen to instructions from marshals. The same applies to any section where you are running on a road. There are some sections of the route which run on very quiet B roads, but please take care when running on them. Remove your earphones so you are aware of any cars approaching from any direction.
Runners will be required to carry mandatory kit which will be confirmed in the race briefing sent out 3 weeks before the race. Check the race rules below for an idea. This will include a small first aid kit for running repairs. Runners are reminded to read and understand the full race briefing and should ask any questions if they are in any doubt about any information. “I didn’t know” is not an excuse and will lead to disqualification.
The race fee includes a race memento, goody bag and a technical race t-shirt or vest.
