Ultra X Dragon's Back Race
Six days down the mountainous spine of Wales, Conwy Castle to Cardiff Castle.
380km
236 miles
16,400 m ascent
43 m per km
Nobody has reviewed this one yet
No reviews of the Dragon's Back Race, and nothing on what people wore. Both are things no organiser publishes and every runner wants before they enter — how it actually went, and what was on your feet.
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The course
What you’re in for
Six days down the mountainous spine of Wales, Conwy Castle to Cardiff Castle: 380km with 16,400m of climb, the Carneddau, Glyderau and Yr Wyddfa on day one, the Rhinogs, Cadair Idris, Plynlimon, the Elan valley and the Beacons on the way south. From 2026 it follows a single mandatory route rather than free navigation, but the organiser still calls it navigationally demanding, and it is unmarked. Camp each night, a daily cut-off, and a finish rate that has historically sat around half the field. There are two-day versions — the Fire from Conwy, the Tail into Cardiff — for people who want a piece of it. September.
Terrain and trail
Everything Welsh mountains do: rock and scrambling on the Carneddau and Glyderau, the boulder and heather of the Rhinogs, which have broken more people than anything else on the route, grassy whaleback ridges in mid-Wales, bog on Plynlimon, forest road and lane in the valleys, and the Beacons' ridges to finish. Full mountain kit carried, and feet are the thing that ends most races. A fell shoe with grip, and two more pairs in the bag.
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Cut-offs
Six stages, with a daily cut-off window of 06:00 to 22:00. Ultra X publish no race-wide time limit.
How to enter
No date announced for the next running yet. Ultra X’s site ↗ is where it will show up first.
Common questions
- The Dragon's Back Race is one distance: 380km (236.1 miles).