Eastnor is a great place for outdoor action with woods, hidden valleys, hills and open parkland inviting the adventurous and energetic to organised events. We have had mountain bike races and triathlons as well as local cadet forces and others training on our land. The first major outdoor event was probably a Scout Jamboree in 1937, which was attended by Lord Baden Powell himself and is commemorated by a grove of oaks planted in the Park.

Two weeks ago, our colleagues from D3 held the first Eastnor Mud Runner challenge, a gruelling 6 mile race in a winding and heavily undulating course through the estate. We knew off-road driving in the mud worked for Land Rover: would it also appeal to athletes? A muddy face on the leaflets and posters seemed to have remarkable appeal, and by the big day we had over 300 entries.

That was all good news. The organisation was good and everyone turned up at the right place. But there was a concern, after a month without rain, that there would not be enough mud and we would disappoint our contestants. In the event, all went well.

The springs in the woods were still working and a final section across a shallow part of the lake ensured that there was lots of mud to be hosed off afterwards when the contestants finished in the castle courtyard.

A local team won more prizes than the rest, and we are looking forward to hosting another event like this next autumn on 17th October 2010 …. and possibly one earlier if we can.

Start training NOW if you are interested!                 JH-B

Mud Runner:  Eastnor Castle 11 October 2009

Cross country runners with a competitive spirit who don’t mind getting muddy are being offered the chance to run in a new race at Eastnor Castle on Sunday 11th October.

For the very first time Land Rover Experience have generously opened the tracks that are used to develop and test the worlds best all terrain vehicles for Mud Runner.  This is a unique chance for intrepid athletes looking for the ultimate challenge, the course is 6ish arduous cross country miles around the Eastnor Estate over a variety of terrain and conditions from rolling grassland to mud, wet mud and sticky mud.  The course includes hills, water filled pits, muddy banks and more mud, runners will ultimately get very wet!

David Littlewood, Assistant General Manager for Eastnor Castle said; “We are really excited about Mud Runner which is a new event at Eastnor, that will offer a unique opportunity for cross country runners to run on tracks designed for vehicles, but at the same time the chance to explore hidden areas within the Eastnor Estate albeit muddy ones!  We are getting lots of interest and it is also a great opportunity for competitors to run for their chosen charity”.

One of the competitors signed up is local man Kester Wilkinson from Pixley, Nr Nr Ledbury who is no stranger to adventure races and has taken part in some of the world’s toughest challenges.  From a 65mile run to France - to the Marathon Des Sables, a 150 mile staged race through the Sahara desert he is looking forward to taking part in Mud Runner and is hoping that the mud will slow up some of the faster runners and for once he won’t be at the back.  He says “I am keen to take part in this muddy race although stupid, it should be a lot of fun and a good thrash through a long muddy puddle”. Kester will be joined by his wife Zinnia for the run and will be raising money for the Hereford Haven charity.

More information can be obtained from the website www.mudrunner.co.uk.

We have an exciting new event to tell you about which takes place on Sunday 11th October 2009 on the Eastnor Castle Estate.   Mudrunner is an off road run over a variety of terrain and conditions from rolling grassland (well a little bit anyway) to mud, wet mud and sticky mud. The course includes hills, waterfilled pits, muddy banks and did we mention mud. You will get very wet! 6ish arduous country miles around the Eastnor Estate using the same tracks that Land Rovers have been tested and developed on.

The course will be marked and we will let you know the halfway point, other than that it’s 6ish miles in length and brilliant fun.  In addition to the prizes for the first five individual finishers in a variety of categories there are also prizes for the fastest teams of three.

The first two teams to enter are from the Eastnor Castle Estate with the talented all male team “Rocket Ron’s Allstars”  (Simon Foster, David Littlewood and Nick Robinson) taking on the all female team “Dickie’s Delight” (Sarah Littlewood, Sarah Bullock and Caroline Brazington).

As Simon Foster (Castle Manager) explains “this event provides a great opportunity for us to compete amongst the office and also develop some (hopefully) friendly rivalry and teambuilding”     SB