Rat Race report
14 September 2025
Rat Race 2025
Race report by Andy George.
First of all not really a race! More of a painful and joyful experience!
Rat race coat to coast is either a one day or two day event where you run, bike and kayak from Nairn on the west coast to Glencoe on the east coast, a total of about 162 km. I’d opted for the two day event.
This still entailed having a rucksack with you containing emergency equipment for the mountain about 10kg worth
So after a 12 hour drive up to fort William and a stay in an Air B&B on the Thursday, it was off to race’ finish’ at Glencoe to drop my car off. Once park in a muddy field I traipsed over to Glencoe hotel where my bike was loaded onto a truck then alone with about 200 others we were taken by coach to race transition in Cawdor Castle on the West Coast. 3 1/2 later we arrived racked our bikes and got our GPS trackers issued in case the weather turned on the mountain.
After a quick taxi drive to Inverness and another night stay at another air B&B it was race morning with me being picked up at 6am.
The morning started beautifully with the sun cresting the horizon but unfortunately that didn’t last and at 730 when the two day eventers set off, the heavens open like a biblical storm! However I was pleasantly surprised the run was flat through wooded parks on shale stones and sticky out tree roots and I spent most my time following the runners in front so it was difficult to gain places but it was fine and I entered bikes transition feeling good.
After a full change and strapping my trainers to my rucksack which now weighed over 12kg what with my now sopping wet running kit I set off.
The bike was on undulating and about 85km in length nothing out of the ordinary, what I hadn’t banked on was the stops to take photos the pain in my back due to the rucksack and the fact I was on a gravel bike! It made for a whole new experience and then there was the hill!
The only way I can described it was was like sculpture hill but about 4km in length its was intense but being rat race things are never easy, after 70km on road it was 12km off road with a hill that made sculpture look like a downhill !!! I wish I was exaggerating – throw in some technical downhills with loose rocks and tree roots my quads and heart were both solid and pumping like no tomorrow, however, the day ended nicely at the campsite.
Setting up my tent then showering in basically a communal ‘shinty’ changing room I set about getting some food, which consisted of a van on site which sold chips and burgers not the best food but it went down very quickly. As it wasn’t party central and we were in the middle of nowhere I went to bed ….well collapsed on a blow up mattress and sleeping bag surrounded my smelly kit and tried to get some sleep.
After about 4 hours sleep I gave in and got up at 5am to get ready – once kitted up and having had a bacon sandwich and double espresso I set off at 740 (the start time was from 730-1000).
The bike was an easy 44km some off road and some trails and it was truly magnificent- I loved it, nothing too technical some fast downhills and me and the bike (now Christened ‘Bobby’ after a past girlfriend) performed well with only a few climbs that didn’t rival anything in Sussex.
Then it was into a local school sports centre and after fuelling on crisps – coffee – jelly babies – bananas – snickers- biscuits- a bag of nuts and some water melon I set off at a slow jog as I was feeling the previous days exertions on my legs and cramp being an issue I wanted to take it easy.
Well that after about 1km on the flat in Fort William I entered the wild lands and the first hill which was a gravel track.
It started and went on and on and on and in total a total of 5.3 km uphill with so many switch backs it made the rides it Italy and France look like a meander!
Not to be disheartened though I was then faced with constant loose-stones, large rocks small rocks loose and water soaked Heather and to finished the 25km run off was a 6 km walk along a thigh sucking bog of sodden peat and Heather quickly followed by a 300 m elevation gain over 1.5 km and to top it off the descent was a wild scramble along a sodden path, personally I fell 6 times with my knee saying ‘no I’ve had enough’ it was bit like the cheese championship In Gloucester with people pin wheeling and falling everywhere!
Finally onto the kayak I had to wait as I was a solo and everyone had ‘friends’ with them but I was lucky and a Dutch guy who was racing with his two sons said his son could join me- poor lad I don’t think he was expecting the pace and I pushed him hard to get it done so much so he had to wait about 10 minutes for his dad and we overtook about 6 other kayakers obviously not using my arms and shoulders for the last two days paid off.
I crossed the finish line to a self congratulatory birthday message to myself that at 57 I can still do it, even if you have sore knees, and a buggered shoulder.
It wasn’t pretty, it wasn’t fast and this event is not for the faint hearted – you have to be organised and of a mind set that it will hurt.
Riding and running on a gravel bike with a rucksack is different from a Sunday bike ride, but saying all that I enjoyed I pushed my body to some of its limits and I could feel that but would I do it again ….. nahhh got the medal and the T-shirt now !
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