The ‘Hodgson Brothers Mountain Relay’ is a fell running relay race that started life as the ‘Ian Hodgson Mountain Relay’. It is set in the heart of the Lake District Fells and takes place every year in October. For the first time in the history of the race 2024 sees a change of day to the first Saturday in October, rather than its usual Sunday date. It is competed by around 70 teams from across the country, but mainly the North of England. It is the longest-running mountain relay in the country.

The race is a tough one, with four legs each throwing up their separate challenges, including hard climbs and steep descents on difficult terrain. The route requires careful navigation especially in bad weather, with no GPS allowed, so it is imperative that clubs only enter if they are confident that all 8 runners have the ability & experience to cope with these conditions…. it is not a race for novices wanting to enter their first fell race, or for runners who cannot read a map. The race also represents one of the highlights of the fell running calendar with keen racing across some magnificent mountain terrain, and is always a great social day out ending with many stories & shared experiences.

Each of the four legs is run in pairs (so 8 runners per team) and teams compete in Open, Ladies, Mixed or Vets categories.

Clubs enter via SiEntries on a pre-selection basis and will be notified shortly after the closing date of Friday 23rd  August 2024 if they have been successful and how many teams they have been allocated. No money will be taken in advance but payment is required as soon as a place has been allocated to complete the entry.

Entry is limited to 70 teams and we make no apology that there is a certain amount of vetting if we exceed this number (which has happened every year). Preference is given to Clubs that have historically supported the event but we do encourage, and accept, entries from other clubs. New Clubs should not enter more than one team as you will not be successful, but we do try and take at least one or two new Clubs each year. Priority will be given to Clubs, with proven fell experience, who have previously been unsuccessful in trying to enter the race.

Clubs who ran last year will usually (but not always) be given the same number of teams in the following years race. Do not enter additional teams as they will not be accepted and it just creates extra admin for the organisers. We hold a 'Waiting List' so you may be offered a place late in the day if you think you can still get a team ready to run.

The Entry Fee is £130 per team which enables us to use SiEntries online entry and SPORTident result services and make donations to the local community. We are very dependent on the support of the local community. Please see our Community page for more information on the local charities we support.

Please note that once your entry has been accepted and your Entry Fee taken it is non refundable, as always any surplus race funds will be donated to the local Charities.

The following criteria apply to each team category (please note that you cannot enter more than one team in any single category e.g. 2 x Open Teams):

Ladies Team – 8 ladies

Mixed Team – 4 men and 4 ladies (can be split across the four legs in any way you want).

Vets Team – 8 runners that must all be aged 40 or over on the day of the race (any mix of male or female)

Open Team – anybody else!

There is a minimum age limit of 18 yrs old apart from Leg 1 on which one 16 yr old may run, providing their partner is over 18 yrs old and that written consent is given by their parent or guardian. See the Event website for a full list of Race Rules

Teams will be required to enter their individual leg runners on-line via SiEntries by MIDNIGHT on Wednesday 2nd  October 2024.

You will find all the information you need to enter the race, details on each leg, and important bits of info for all competing teams on the Event Website so please take a look around and hopefully we’ll see you on Saturday 5th  October 2024.

Many thanks

Chris, Scoffer, Jon & Sara

View the Event Disclaimer / Terms and Conditions.

View the Event Cancellation / Refund Policy.

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