Bennachie, United Kingdom · Saturday, October 10, 2026

Fixed Distance 50K

Bennachie Ultra Marathon

1 day to go

50 km Distance

5,000 m Climbing

10.0 Grit · Elite / extreme

57.2942° N, 2.5608° W © OpenFreeMap © OpenMapTiles Data from OpenStreetMap

What the course asks

Climbing rate 100 m / km Vertical. Extreme verticality. This is a technical mountain course with sustained steep grades.

Field size ~67 Mid-sized. Company early, well spread out by halfway.

DUV results for the 2023 edition (31mi) — finishers only. Starters are not published, so the field was at least this big and no finish rate can be given.

Typical conditions, October

Daylight 10 h 53 m of light

Results history

Year	Race	Finishers	Men's winner	Women's winner
2023	31mi	67	Jonathan Gamble · 04:17:10	Harriet Cross · 05:12:28
2022	31mi	94	Robert Simpson · 03:56:23	Anwen Darlington · 04:55:53
2021	31mi	79	Allan Christie · 04:13:35	Jana Vidis · 05:19:10
2020	31mi	110	Robert Simpson · 03:45:56	Meryl Cooper · 04:29:12
2019	31mi	75	Kyle Greig · 04:22:31	Siobhan Killingbeck · 04:53:56

The field shrank 29% between 2022 (94) and 2023 (67). 18% of the 2023 field were women.

DUV results for the 2023 edition (31mi) — finishers only. Starters are not published, so the field was at least this big and no finish rate can be given.

Course notes

terrain This is a vertical course. Poles are highly recommended for the sustained climbs.
gear With trail terrain, choose a shoe with moderate cushioning for optimal performance.

Gear for this race

Chosen for 50 km of trail with 5,000 m of ascent.

Trail Running Shoes 100 m of climb per kilometre — grip and rock protection before cushioning.
Race Nutrition 50 km of self-supported fuelling between aid stations.
Hydration Vests Pole attachment and chest-strap stability on steep ground.
Trekking Poles 5,000 m of ascent to walk up.
GPS Watches Battery life first — a 50 km day outlasts most full-GPS modes.

New Balance

Terrex Speed Ultra

RunRepeat found the Adidas Terrex Speed Ultra to have a grippy outsole and great lockdown, while iRunFar noted that the shoe works on a variety of trail conditi…

★★★★★ 4.5

Spring Energy

Awesome Sauce

Real food gel with 180 calories. Rice-based with natural flavors.

$4 ★★★★★ 4.6

Nathan

VaporKrar 12L

12L race vest co-designed with ultra champion Rob Krar, with insulated bladder pocket.

$170 ★★★★★ 4.6

Black Diamond

Distance FLZ

Lightweight folding trekking poles with FlickLock Z adjustment. 340g per pole.

$170 ★★★★★ 4.7

Suunto

Vertical

Titanium GPS watch with solar charging, offline maps, and 140-hour GPS battery.

$630 ★★★★★ 4.5

All gear guides →

Overview

The Bennachie Ultra Marathon is a 50k trail race taking place in Bennachie, United Kingdom. The course features 5000m of elevation gain, which means an average of 100m of climb for each kilometer of the race. This makes it a challenging event in the 50k distance category.

This race has been held 5 times, with the first edition in 2019 and the most recent in 2023. The 2023 edition had 67 finishers. The field size is bigger than 67% of 50k races, but smaller than 32% of its peers. The next edition is scheduled for October 10, 2026.

Similar races

Other 50K trail ultras, closest in distance first.