Saturday 6th December 2025, East Dean Village Hall, Eastbourne, BN20 0DR
8am: Registration opens
9.15am: Registration closes
9.30am: Race start
9.30pm: Race finish
Race HQ will be in East Dean Village Hall. Race registration will take place here and it will be the start/finish area. There is plenty of free parking on Gilberts Road outside the Hall and also in the large fields opposite the hall which we have hired for the event. The field location can be seen here
There is also plenty of parking available in the public carpark directly outside the hall. Eastbourne train station is 10 mins away. There will be toilets available throughout with free hot food and drink also after the race for runners only.
Race numbers will not be sent out in the post but, must be collected at registration along with a GPS tracker.
Please make sure that all the information you have given us is correct and updated if it has changed since signing up. This includes Next of Kin details, your mobile number, any medical issues and medication you are taking. This is all very important if a situation arises during the race. You can update this by going to your Eventrac account or if you don’t have one, then the confirmation email you received when entering will enable you to manage your entry. If you can’t find this email, then please get in touch and we can send you another.
On race weekend we will be using the App What3Words. We ask that all runners please download it to their mobile phone if possible and make sure the location setting is switched on. All runners will be wearing a GPS tracker however, if for any reason this stops working or signal is lost, then this app will allow everyone to give us their exact location if lost, or in an emergency. It’s very easy to use and could be very important.
https://what3words.com/products/what3words-app
Most of the emissions created by events are from road vehicle travel. The environmental impact of travelling by road is massively reduced if the vehicle is full so please do your best to car share with others where possible. The closest train station to the start is Eastbourne and runners are encouraged to travel by train and then pick up the shuttle bus we will provide to East Dean and back again after.
Please be sure to download the GPX file as close to race day as possible. This can be found below. There have been a few small adjustments made already to the route recently, and there is always the possibility of more diversions popping up beforehand. If you have downloaded it already, then please do so again and do it as close to race day as possible. Route GPX
The start/finish location is situated in East Dean Village just to the west of Eastbourne. There are a few accommodation choices in or near to the village but also many more on the seafront in nearby Eastbourne where there are a number of options. Eastbourne is also the closest train station to East Dean.
There will be a bus option available to collect runners in Eastbourne on Saturday morning and take them to the start. This can be booked when signing up for the race or via the link below. After the race there will be a regular shuttle bus taking runners back to Eastbourne. This does not need to be booked but will leave outside the hall every hour or so.
There will be 4 very well stocked aid stations along the route which are listed below. Aid stations will carry a wide range of food and drink. They will cater for everyone’s needs including vegan, vegetarian and gluten free.
All runners must be finished by 9.30pm so will have 12 hours to complete the race.. There are no cut off times for this race along the route other than at the last aid station in Jevington where everyone must have left by 8.30pm.
All runners will be provided with a tracker which must be always worn during the event. This is purely for health and safety reasons and will enable us to know exactly where you are always. It will also allow friends and family to follow you during the race. There will be a link provided on the website and social media to access this in the week before the race.
It is very important that runners always keep their mobile phone on, with the volume up and we ask please no earphones. If you do go wrong, or stop for a period, we will be aware of this and will call you to let you know you are off track, or to see if everything is ok.
If you must drop out of the race at any time and feel you cannot continue, then please do all you can to make it to the closest aid station where you can inform the aid station captain that you wish to stop. At this point you must hand over your race number and GPS Tracker and will be officially taken out of the race. If you are attending the race by yourself, without friends or family, and feel that you cannot continue and make it to an aid station, then it is essential you call the Race Director. If you are injured or unwell, then please contact the Race Medic. In an emergency always call 999.
If you feel you want to drop out while not at an aid station and are collected by friends/family or want to make your own way home, then it is again essential that you make your way to the nearest aid station to hand in your number and tracker. If you leave without informing us, and handing these in, you will be classified as lost, and this will result in the initiation of Search and Rescue which you the runner will be charged for.
There will be no crews at this event. We have decided to go with this option in order to keep landowners and the general public along the route happy. We did have the option to allow crews, but in terms of putting the future of the race in jeopardy we decided against it. With regular aid stations along the route, having a crew is not necessary for this event. Please contact us if you have any dietary needs on the day and, we will do our best to make sure they are available for you throughout.
No pacers will be allowed to accompany runners at any time during the race.
Spectators are very welcome to come along and support their runners throughout the day. It is however very important for the future of the race that they behave in a sensible manner throughout. Spectators must not attend at any of the aid station locations. This gets said every time and still they try to turn up at aid stations. If they turn up at these locations we will disqualify the runner. This is due to landowner requests, so it is very important to abide. Runners are responsible for their crew and supporters, so it is down to you to pass this Information onto them. There are also privately owned car parks along the route that can become overcrowded very quickly, and spectators must take it upon themselves to follow the rules of any certain car park. Not following these rules by parking on grass verges and in places that are not official parking spaces etc just because they are there to watch the race will not go down well, and could put the future of the race in jeopardy. If a certain car park is full, then please just move on to the next one. Spectators must not attend at any of the aid station locations.
Runners will also have the option of leaving a finish line bag at registration. This is limited to one bag per runner. The bag will be kept at the finish line area safe and ready for your collection. Please ensure the bag is clearly marked with your name and bib number. We will not post or hold any bags that are not collected by the end of the event.
The course is predominantly on easy going trails with small road sections as well. At the time of year the race takes place, the ground should be dry and hard, we therefore suggest that both road running and trail shoes are suitable. Runners must carry the following equipment with them at all-times and will be disqualified for failing kit checks. Inspections will take place before, during, and after the race.
It is not mandatory, but we do suggest you bring a foldable cup to drink from as the race will be cup less.
We ask all runners to please not wear earphones during the race. This is purely for Health and Safety reasons when crossing roads, if we try to call and hearing instructions from Marshall’s. As mentioned, if we need to call you for any reason during the race then it is important you can hear your phone.
A large part of the route will be on the South Downs Way and on these sections there will be South Downs Way, way-marker posts showing the Acorn sign symbolising a National Trail. However, large parts will also not be on the SDW. We will mark the entire route mainly with UK Ultra arrows but also, UK Ultra ribbons and ground flags. A map and compass are not necessary at all although, never a bad idea.
Even though the course will be thoroughly marked, it is the runner’s responsibility to navigate it successfully. We do however suggest you try and recce the route as much as possible, and it is mandatory to download the GPX file onto your GPS/mobile device. The markings should be more than enough for everyone to navigate the route however, unfortunately, sometimes markers do get removed by members of the public or turned in the opposite direction and visibility during thick fog can sometimes be tricky. Even though we will mark the route as thoroughly as possible, please don't rely on this. Having the GPX downloaded will save you a lot of hassle in this situation as it is very accurate, and you can easily navigate the route with this alone if markers are tampered with or visibility is low. We will also have recce runs available throughout the year that runners can join in to see the route. For Information on these recce runs then please head the the Trail Run Explorers website. This is a small local company that take the guided runs for us. https://trailrunexplorers.com/
There are several road crossings along the route, some of which are very busy and potentially dangerous. It is your responsibility as runners to always navigate these road crossings safely. Please pass along and cross these as you normally would by using the Highway Code and staying on the righthand side against the flow of cars when on country lanes. A few small sections will entail running on country lanes without pavements, so please stay on the right and be cautious. There will be marshals at some of these crossings however, the majority will be unmanned, so please take your time and be sensible when navigating them.
There are also small carparks along the route that can potentially be dangerous. Please be cautious of vehicles when approaching and passing through these.
Please be aware that the race route follows trails, paths and fields that will be shared by other members of the public and livestock. It is very important to be polite, courteous, and kind at all times. Just because you are in a race does not give you priority over them. Please be cautious when running through fields with livestock. Please approach and pass them slowly and cautiously.
The route backs onto homes at many points during the race, but please be especially considerate at nighttime and in the early morning where the race passes through residential areas. There must be absolutely no littering along the course. Anyone seen doing so will be disqualified. There will also be times where the race passes through farmers’ fields with livestock in, and it is essential that all gates are please closed after using them. Failure to do this will obviously mean livestock can potentially escape.
Please be sure to read through these beforehand. Race Rules
There will be an experienced team of race medics available to runners before, during and after the event including first aid teams, response cars and ambulances. There is the possibility due to some locations on the course that the medical team might take some time to reach you. In this situation you should call 999.
We have teamed up with Mick Hall Photos to cover the event. These images will be FREE to all runners and will be available a few days after the event.
Please do not get in touch asking when they will be ready immediately after the event. This has nothing to do with us and the photos will be ready once the photographer has had time to process them all. As soon as they are ready they will be made available on the website and sent out via email.
The Winter on the Downs 50k is a UTMB Index Race and has been awarded 2 ITRA points. Results will be sent to UTMB, ITRA and DUV about a week after the event has finished so please be patient with this. If you would not like us to share your results with any of these three then please let us know.
There will be an experienced team of race medics available to runners before, during and after the event including first aid teams, response cars and ambulances. There is the possibility due to some locations on the course that the medical team might take some time to reach you. In this situation you should call 999.