THE Pumsaint trail half marathon is a scenic, hilly half marathon set in the beautiful Cothi valley.

It is one of the races in the Sarn Helen stable and annually attracts a large field of runners to take on the challenging course.

There was only one single entrant from Aberystwyth Athletic Club this year due to clashes with other races, but when that runner is Owain Schiavone, there is a good chance of silverware.

That was certainly the case here as Owain led the 130 strong field home in a time of 1.26.08 and taking the treasured Pumsaint crown.

He said: “It is incredible the number of runners Sarn Helen attract for their various races but I suspect the different and challenging terrain offered by races such as Pumsaint is the appeal.

“This race is renowned for some tough hills but that suits me fine with my training at the moment.

“Race Director, Carwyn, has been on to me about doing this one for a while so I was happy to be able to do so this year and delighted to come out on top in such a strong field."

Over the border in England and the Equinox24 is a very different kind of race and is held in the grounds of Belvoir Castle in Grantham, Leicester.

Neil and Lynsey battling the elements at Equinox24
Neil and Lynsey battling the elements at Equinox24 (Photo supplied)

The idea is to do as many laps of the 10k course as you can in 24 hours.

This is the favourite event of the year for Aber AC coach Neil Gamble and partner Lynsey Gamble and between them managed 15 laps in the 24 hours.

The weather however did offer problems as Lynsey explains: “When we started at 12pm we needed strong sunscreen as it was blue skies above and scorching hot.

“But on completion of our third lap the skies had darkened and this is when the torrential rain started and that was followed by thunder and lightning.

“The ground turned to a mud bath quickly and we were both completing our laps soaked through.

“But we battled on and completed a very decent 15 laps by the end of the 24 hours. Will we be back? Of course we will!”

Moving slightly further afield to the Swiss Alps where Aber AC’s Balázs Pintér was ready to take on a 113km race, the longest race of the Wildstrubel 2024, UTMB World Series including 6,600m of elevation.

Balazs in the snow before starting his race
Balazs in the snow before starting his race (Photo supplied)

Having started the race the runners were then called back as Balázs explains: “The wintry weather had come in sooner than expected so the organisers called us back to restart a reduced distance race of 73 km with 3,800m elevation.

“This was for the safety of the runners so everyone understood the decision. We were still running over a few beautiful mountains, and I very much enjoyed running a lot in the snow. It was a great route.”

If you would like to hear more about Aberystwyth Athletic Club and join in its activities visithttps://aberystwythac.wordpress.com/or find the club on Facebook.