Sunday 22 November 2026. A relay and a solo ultra along the Hereward Way, from Peterborough to Ely. Hosted by March Athletic Club, sponsored by Knowles Transport, and run under UK Athletics rules.
First run in 1998 with fourteen teams, and as many as 117 in 2018. The race follows the Hereward Way as closely as it can for over 39 miles, across bridleways, fields, bridges and tracks — which also makes it unsuitable for wheelchair users. A relay team is three or four runners covering four stages between them. Anyone after a harder day can run all 39 miles solo.
All entries are handled by our timing partner, Sublime Timing. There is no entry form on this site, and there are no entries on the day.
The four stages
Read your stage directions before race day. Marshals and some arrows are out on the course, but the route is not signed end to end and the rules are explicit that you must not rely on signage to navigate. Print what you need or save it to your phone — there is no signal in places.
Stage 1 — Peterborough to Whittlesey · 6.9 miles
Stage 2 — Whittlesey to March · 10.6 miles
Stage 3 — March to Welney · 11.5 miles
Stage 4 — Welney to Ely · 10.7 miles
- Stage 4 directions (2026)
- Stage 4 map
If Welney Wash floods, stage 4 is run as stage 3 in reverse, back to March. That decision is the Race Director’s and will be made as late as it has to be.
On the day
| Registration opens | 07:30 |
| Hereward Ultra starts | 08:30 |
| Relay Teams and Pairs start | 09:00 |
| Start | Embankment Athletics Stadium, Bishop’s Road, Peterborough PE1 5BW |
| Handovers | Whittlesey, March and Welney |
| Finish | Ely, adjacent to the Ely Leisure Centre |
| Distance | 39.7 miles over four stages — 6.9, 10.6, 11.5 and 10.7 |
Stage 1 runners must check in with the Race Director before the start. Any stage 4 runner still waiting at Welney at 1:30pm sets off with the rest of them, and those team times are adjusted afterwards.
Facilities along the way
Water at or near every handover and at the finish. Toilets at Whittlesey, Welney and the finish, with public toilets close to the March handover. Refreshments to buy in March town, at Welney and at the finish.
The March handover is beside the public car park. At Whittlesey and Welney you will be parking on residential streets — please be considerate and do not block driveways.
Before you run
The full rules are below and you are expected to have read them. These are the ones people get caught by:
- A hi-viz bib with reflective strips is compulsory, for every runner on every stage. Your number goes on the front, over the top of it.
- No headphones. Including bone-conduction ones. Parts of the course are on open road.
- Navigation is yours. Marshals and some arrows are out there, but you must know your stage. Cutting the course, deliberately or not, is disqualification at the Race Director’s discretion.
- Carry a phone. Recommended for relay runners, required for ultra runners.
- Minimum age on race day is 17 for every relay stage, and 20 for the ultra.
- Club vests unless your first claim club has said otherwise. No dogs with ultra runners. No third-party pacing.
- Dropping out? Tell the Race Director or a Stage Manager, in person or through your captain. Please don’t just go home.
Medical cover is provided on course by M&D First Aid, supported by March AC’s own first aiders, with roving marshals linking back to them.
How to enter
Hereward Relay Team — £80
Three or four runners covering the four stages between them. Categories are Open (any combination), Ladies (all female), and Mixed (two men and two women). Teams may mix clubs and unaffiliated runners, with the first claim club’s permission.
Hereward Relay Pair — £80
Two runners, two stages each.
Hereward Ultra — £50
All 39 miles solo, on the same course and the same day. Limited to 30 runners, with stage cut-offs and a maximum of 8 hours 45 minutes.
The race is limited to 470 runners in total.
Affiliation
The £80 team and pair fees assume every member is affiliated to an England Athletics club. Unaffiliated runners are charged a balance of £2 each once the line-up is confirmed.
Transfers and refunds
Entries may be transferred to another participant up to midnight on Saturday 21 November. Entries are non-refundable and cannot be deferred to another year. Team changes can be made up to the organisers’ deadline — there are no official changes on the day, and a team changed on the day is not eligible for prizes.
Race rules
Read the rules for your event before entering. It is each runner’s responsibility to know them.
Prizes
The first three teams, plus the first ladies’ team, the first mixed team and the first pair. Cash prizes to the first man, first vet man, first lady and first vet lady on each stage, and the first man and first woman in the ultra. Everyone who finishes gets a memento as they come in.
Results
2025 — 23 November
Stage 1 · Stage 2 · Stage 3 · Stage 4 · Teams · Stage winners · Ultra
2024 — run in January 2025
Stage 1 · Stage 2 · Stage 3 · Stage 4 · Teams · Ladies’ teams · Ultra
2023
Stage 1 · Stage 2 · Stage 3 · Stage 4 · Teams · Ladies’ teams · Ultra
2022
Leg 1 · Leg 2 · Leg 3 · Leg 4 · Teams · Ultra
Every result since 1998 · Records and roll of honour
Runner details collected for the race are used only to work out and publish these results.
Records and history
Every winner since the first race in 1998, the four stage records, and how the course has changed. March AC has hosted this race for twenty-eight years and keeps the only complete record of it.
The fastest relay ever run here is 3:40:30, set by Sleaford Town Dream Team in 2011. The biggest field was 142 teams, in 2005.
March AC members — no team?
If you would like to run but do not have a team, put your name forward. Tell us which of the four legs you could run, how many legs you are willing to take on, and whether you would consider a Pair.
The board shows teams that are short and runners who need one. If a team has a leg open, you can claim it straight off the board — it needs the members password. Lost the private link to your own entry? There is a box on the names page that sends it again.
Volunteer
A point-to-point race over 39 miles needs marshals at every changeover. If you are not running, this is the best way to be useful — and the best place to watch from. Email races@marchac.co.uk to offer a few hours.