The South Downs 100km is a figure of eight loop race around the trails of East Sussex. Starting and finishing in the seaside town of Eastbourne, runners will begin over Beachy Head and the famous Seven Sisters before continuing on along some of the best trail running the U.K has to offer. The views are spectacular, and the course is a combination of grass trails, farm tracks and woodland paths. There is over 8000 ft of elevation to navigate, but the route is generally very runnable and best described as rolling hills with some longer, steeper climbs also. Beautiful but challenging!
This race will also form part of the new South Downs Triple Crown if you wish to enter.
https://www.ukultra.co.uk/south-downs-triple-crown
Our permits are granted through the ARC. Permit Number pending.
Entry & Qualification details
Entries are available on a first come, first served basis and once they are full, they will be closed. No waitlist will be in operation. In order to qualify you must have completed at least a marathon distance race within the last four years within the cutoff time of that race. This preferably should be a trail marathon, but it is not mandatory, and runners should also have experience of trail running in general. Runners can enter before achieving this qualifier but it must be updated before race day. Please get in touch by emailing neil@ukultra.co.uk if this applies to you. Entries will close 1 week prior to the race or once entry limits are reached.
A qualifier can come in many forms but essentially you must have ran 26.2 miles or more in a race format where results can be viewed online. Any road or trail marathon is fine as is a marathon completed during an Ironman. Please get in touch via the above email with any queries regarding what counts as a qualifier.
Refund, Deferral and transfer Policy
Any time up until March 2nd 2026 you are entitled to a 50% refund. After this time no refunds will be given. The only exception to this is pregnancy. In this case if you inform us before the race you will receive a full refund.
If you can no longer make the event, there is the option of deferring your place to 2026 or transferring it to another runner. Deferrals to the following year can only be made up until two weeks before race day as can transferring to another runner, not after. Deferrals can only be made once and there is a small fee to pay as there is a cost to us in allowing the change.
Pregnant women will be able to defer their place to 2027/28 if they wish and for a further 2 years if they fall pregnant again within that period. Please email neil@ukultra.co.uk if you wish to do either of these.
Elite Entries
We want highly competitive races at the sharp end of the fields and, welcome elite runners to come and compete. We do reserve places for elites and have packages in place to help. These are decided on an individual basis by the Race Director. If you are an elite runner and would like to take part then please email neil@ukultra.co.uk.
- A fantastic run along a truly stunning, fully way-marked and, signed course in the heart of the South Downs National Park.
- Male and female winner trophies
- Prizes for all male and female winners in Vet categories 40+, 50+, 60+ and 70+
- Bespoke UK Ultra finisher medal
- Live chip timing to track runners progress and times
- 7 well stocked and volunteered aid stations
- Free downloadable, high resolution race photos
- 4 ITRA points
- This is a UTMB Index race
- First Aid and medical cover
- Event insurance
- Free shuttle bus from finish line to local hotels and local public transport stations
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