I will be completing this bearing a full load out of 35lbs plus at a minimum 5 litres of water and enough food for the +4hr hike (approximate total weight of 20kg).

Starting at the iconic old red phone box next to the Storey Arms the 24km race goes vertical from the off, with a demanding climb around Corn Du up to the summit RV (Checkpoint 1& 3) of Pen Y Fan, whose outline is said to be engraved onto the heart of every SAS man. After descending the south facing slope, the race passes through the aptly named Windy Gap junction onto the Roman Road, a rough dirt and stone track that ends at the edge of Taf Fechan forest.

A narrow water crossing at the foot of a gully guards the way onto the narrow forest path, which leads to RV Two (half way check point), located at Torpentau, the highest point and last stop on Brecon Mountain Railway line, still serviced today by an old steam train.

We then take the route in reverse, with the long and gruelling return leg back up the Roman Road before the battle for the Jacob’s Ladder, a brutally steep and unrelenting path back up to the summit of “the Fan,” which is by far the hardest and most dramatic part of the march. Before a faster downhill finish back towards the Red Phone Box.

Full details to be found here:

http://thefandancerace.com/