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Man v Machine: Runners take on steam train
Hundreds of runners attempted a unique challenge on the Isle of Wight, where they had to finish a race before a steamtrain.
This year’s ‘Race the Train’ was one of the most successful so far thanks to the good November weather, with it being much dryer than the prior two years.
The train and the participants start at the same time, however the runners cut through a 5km path which makes up the ground for them to get to the station before the train.
The train takes roughly a half hour to get to the finishing stop, and it was well beaten by race winner Michael Thompsett who only took 19 minutes to get there.
Charlie Whyter (2nd) on the left, Michael Thompsett (1st) on the right,
“I wasn’t really sure how long the train was going to take, but it was always in the back of my mind,” said Mr Thompsett.
More than 70% of the people running managed to beat the train, which is an improvement on prior years.
The Steam Railway has been struggling in recent years as most of the island’s stations have closed, but money raised from events like these keep the railway strong, and well-maintained.
Duty manager Stuart Duddy was very pleased with the turnout.
“It’s great to see a lot more people coming this year, the last couple years we have suffered from the weather, but this year it’s turned out pretty good.”
“Race the Train” is set to return around this time next year, so keep your eyes peeled for updates from the Steam Railway website.