RACEKIT - OUR EXPERIENCE

 

Starting with the Mappleton Bridge Jump, this is one of those New Year's Day events that seems like a good idea at the time, but at 9am on a bitterly cold Peak District morning, well... just doesn't.  Teams of two raft down the River Dove, haul their craft ashore, climb onto the parapet of Mappleton Bridge, jump off, then swim ashore and run to the pub finish-line.  Mandatory kit is short and t-shirt (no wet-suits allowed), but the soup's hot and the pub's still open...

 

Staying with the pub theme, Edale's barrel race was founded when the landlord of the Nag's Head ran out of a certain type of beer and challenged grumpy locals to fetch some from the famous Snake Inn.  The race was on; every autumn, teams of eight strap 112lb beer barrels to various contraptions (ladders are the favourite) and haul them up and over Kinder Scout to Edale - a long, LONG climb, followed by the legendary peat bogs of the Five Minute Crossing, a 30% grade downhill (keeping barrel "under control", according to the rules), and the final eyeballs-out run to the pub. 

 

First prize?  You've guessed it... contents of the barrel. 

 

PS - after a few years as the winning team at both events, we retired undefeated from Mappleton, but have our work cut out to retain the Barrel Trophy after Team Gladioli (named as a jokey alternative to a team from TV's 'Gladiators' who were supposed to contest the first-ever race, but didn't turn up - so we've been explaining 'Team Gladioli' ever since!) were beaten by three minutes in 2009.  UPDATE!!!! :-))))) September 10th 2011, Team Gladioli re-take the trophy by a 28-second margin, ending Dark Peak's three-year winning streak!

 

It doesn't have a website, but to read a spectator's view of the Edale Beer Barrel Race, click here.