The Howgill Fells will provide a test of fitness and navigation skills
A series of trail races is being launched, aimed at runners who want to step up to ultrarunning.
The Montane Ultra Trail 26 series is a sequence of three 26-mile races being held in the North of England.
The races are organised by the team behind the successful Lakeland 50 and 100 events which are some of the toughest ultrarunning challenges.
The venues for the Ultra Trail 26 events are Grizedale Forest in the Lake District; Rivington in Lancashire; and the Howgill Fells in Cumbria.
Organisers said the purpose of the series is to provide trail runners who hope to step up to ultra-distance the opportunity to progress steadily towards the Montane Lakeland 50 and similar distance events.
They said it also provides great opportunities for seasoned ultra-trail runners who are searching for shorter events to help develop their speed.
“They are great training opportunities, without having to spend too long recovering after the event,” they said.
Marc Laithwaite, organiser of the Montane Lakeland 50 and 100 said: “We’ve had a great opportunity to develop a series of events which are manageable by everyone.
“The Montane Lakeland 50 and 100 have already been huge successes, but we’ve found that many runners are stepping up to the 50-mile event having never run further than half marathons on road and they have little experience of the navigation required.
“The 26 series is a great opportunity for those people to progress towards the 50-mile event.
“I sense that there’s a growing number of short distance trail events and ultra events but there appears to be a lack of those in the middle, between 20 and 30 miles.
“We also hope that the seasoned ultrarunners will treat these events as an opportunity to race faster, shorter distances between longer ultra distance type events.
“Ultimately we aim to bring the same legendary atmosphere which is found at the Montane Lakeland 50 and 100 to these 26 milers. It’ll be one big party.”
Paul Cosgrove, Montane’s brand director, added: “We’ve had a great relationship with the team who organise the Montane Lakeland 50 and 100 and we’re really excited about the Montane Ultra Trail 26 series.
“We’re keen to reach out to all trail-runners and encourage them to step up to the longer distances, while experiencing the great outdoors.
“We think the 26 series provides trail-runners with the perfect balance between the regular, shorter distance events and the growing number of ultra-distance races.”
The Grizedale Forest race takes place on 18 November; the Rivington event on 24 March, and the Howgills race on 26 May.
More details are on the Ultra Trail 26 website.
