Dark Downs - 50km
- Total distance: 50 km
- Location: Lewes
- Race Date: 3 Oct 2027
- Finish rate: 100%
- Navigation: Fully Waymarked
- Nearest Station: Plumpton (1.5 km)
- Aid Stations: 4
- Night Running: 100% in darkness
- Pacing Complexity: High (52/100)
Dark Downs - 50km
- Distance
- 50 km
- Total ascent
- 1,391 m
- Cut-off
- 12h
- Town/Village
- Lewes
- Date
- 3 October 2027
Overview
No overview text has been written for this race yet.
Quick Facts
- Entrance Cost: Unknown
- Organiser: UK Ultra
- Start Town: Lewes
- Dogs Allowed: Unknown
- Start Date: 3 Oct 2027
- End Date: 3 Oct 2027
- Start Time: 6:30 PM
- Final Cut-off: 12h
Navigation
- Type: Fully Waymarked
- Closest Train Station: Plumpton
- Distance from Start Line: 1.5 km
Eligibility
- Minimum Age: 20 years
- Gender Eligibility: All genders
- Minimum Entry Criteria: Unknown
Toilets
- Hand Washing Beyond Sanitiser: Unknown
- Period Products Provided: Unknown
- Female Only Toilets: Unknown
Family & Spectators
- Baby Changing at Start: Unknown
- Family Friendly Spectator Areas: Unknown
- Flexible Deferral or Cancellation: Unknown
Safety
- Marshalls at Isolated Areas: Unknown
- Safeguarding and Reporting Policy: Unknown
- Can Hide Location from Public Tracking: Unknown
Terrain & Elevation
The course covers a genuine mix of surfaces, with gravel (39%) and trail (33%) being the most common and neither clearly dominating. The terrain is highly fragmented, switching roughly every kilometre. This demands constant mental engagement and limits the ability to build a sustained rhythm from surface consistency alone. Climbs are mostly on gravel, though the surface varies across the ascents. Downhills are spread across a mix of surfaces, with gravel most common.
Dark Downs - 50km has 19.7 km of gravel / track, this is in the top 35% of all our races.
- Gravel / Track39% · 19.7 km
- Trail / Path33% · 16.8 km
- Grass15% · 7.8 km
- Paved Road13% · 6.1 km
Distance
52.3 km
Ascent
1391 m
Descent
1391 m
High Point
243 m
Compared against 29 other races of a similar distance, Dark Downs - 50km has more total elevation gain than 62% of them, and more elevation gain per kilometre than 62% of them — hillier than most races of this distance.
Source: GPX Data
Gradient
6.71%
Average climb gradient
Do you have experience of moderate climbs like Dark Downs - 50km's, which average 6.71%?
Dark Downs - 50km's climbs average 6.71%. If your training never rehearses sustained climbing at that gradient, race day will be the first time your legs meet it.
4.22%
Average descent gradient
Do you have experience of gentle descents like Dark Downs - 50km's, which average 4.22%?
Dark Downs - 50km's descents average 4.22%. If your training never rehearses sustained descending at that gradient, the downhills will empty your quads long before the finish.
Source: GPX Data
Climate
Pacing Complexity
Dark Downs - 50km scores 52/100 for pacing complexity, rated high.
Similar-distance races score a median of 44/100 (5 races compared).
Dark Downs - 50km is among the more pacing-complex races at this distance. The challenge is not just the total distance or ascent — it is the repeated need to change effort level. A fixed pace target is unlikely to work here. The dominant source of complexity is terrain type changes, which means preparation should include training runs that deliberately mix different intensities in sequence.
Source: GPX Data
Aid Stations
Stations
You'll need to keep an average pace of 4.2 km/h between aid stations to make the cut offs.
Stations
| KM | Name | Gap from Prev | Cut-off | Water | Cold Food | Hot Food | Hot Drinks | Gels | Medic | WC | Bags | Crew |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9.7 | 9.7 km | – | ✓ | ✓ | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| 24.1 | 14.5 km | – | ✓ | ✓ | – | – | – | – | ✓ | – | – | |
| 35.4 | 11.3 km | – | ✓ | ✓ | – | – | – | – | ✓ | – | – | |
| 45.9 | 10.5 km | – | ✓ | ✓ | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
None of the aid stations on this course are confirmed to offer vegan food, so vegan runners should plan to carry their own nutrition.
Source: Not recorded
Night Running
Dark Downs - 50km starts at 18:30 local time, with sunset around 18:34. Based on the median finisher time of 7:03:24, a runner at that pace would finish around 01:33 — after dark, spending around 7h 03m (100% of their race) running in darkness and covering roughly 51.9 km of the course after sunset.
Shaded stretches are expected to be run in the dark
Are you ready for Dark Downs - 50km?
Compare it to a race you've already run, or connect Strava and see the three biggest gaps between your training and what this course will ask of you.
