Running Challenges (Keri Wallace) – book review

Running Challenges, by Keri Wallace is a recently published book from Vertebrate Publishing. They sent me a copy to have a read through and review on the website.

Running Challenges: 100 of the best runs in England, Scotland & Wales

The full title is “Running Challenges: 100 of the best runs in England, Scotland & Wales” and is a list of such routes which the author feels are worthy of consideration by others.

What is a running challenge?

The book prefaces with the concept of a running challenge, and highlights the very subjective nature of this term. A “challenge” for one person may not be appropriate for another in that it might not be of interest, or that it might be too much, or too little of a stretch to fire that individual into taking it on. And this aspect can change even within one person’s running life depending on a myriad of factors.

Structure of the book

Following the above preface, the book is then broken down into three sections covering the routes in England (34 routes) , Scotland (36 routes) & Wales (30 routes).

For each of the 100 routes the author provides a short paragraph giving an overview of the route , plus useful metrics such as the distance, elevation, time needed, plus accessibility/logistics i.e. can it be done with public transport, whether there are parking options etc.

The author also highlights whether the route is a part of something longer such as a National Trail plus whether there are any organised events on the route.

The routes are broadly arranged in increasing levels of difficulty i.e. the easier ones are to the front, getting gradually more difficult as you work through each section. For example the later ones require a good level of navigation ability and being confident on fell terrain, whereas the simpler options tend to be on well marked trails.

The author stresses that while it is good to set yourself a challenge which stretches you, it is important to know the limitations of your experience and therefore not take on something which is way beyond your capabilities.

Scope of the book

All the route choices given are as brief overviews, with the author taking the view that if it’s something you’d be interested in then you should go away and do your own planning. So you won’t find detailed maps, instructions or GPX files to download. Whether or not this is sufficient for your needs is very much up to the individual. Whilst it might fire up the creative juices for some, it might not provide enough information for others to use as a basis of creating a new challenge.

It’s worth noting that with the routes being spread across the UK, the likelihood of a selection of the listed routes being on your doorstep is quite low. Whilst there are a cluster of options in the Lake District and around Snowdonia, on the whole the options are spread far and wide.

You can obtain your copy of Running Challenges from the Adventure Running website by following this link.

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