Any runner who lives in the north of England, Wales or Scotland can easily access areas of open moor, hill, fell or mountain. If you enjoy outdoor activities, then fell running and fell racing may be for you. The chance to run, or race, in some of the most challenging and beautiful scenery that the country has to offer is hard to resist. It is important, however, that you take some basic steps to ensure your safety, even if you are planning only a short run in the hills. The equipment that you need is basically the same as you would use for fell or hill walking, but because you are going to be moving faster, and probably running further, you need to travel light. This is OK as long as you keep moving, but if you get tired or injured you need to have enough equipment with you to ensure that you survive.

Basic clothing and equipment for a fell runner:

• Vest/singlet/base layer
• Thermal top/gilet/lightweight fleece
• Shorts/tracksters/tights

What you wear when you set off will depend on the weather and the weather forecast, but you should remember that temperatures fall as you climb higher and that mountain weather is very changeable (always assume it will change for the worse).

• Socks (you can get waterproof socks if the weather is very cold & wet)
• Fell or trail shoes
• Bum bag (or back pack) containing:
• • A drinks bottle (water bladder)
• • Hat/balaclava/buff and gloves*
• • Waterproof (at least windproof) top and over trousers*
• • Compass*
• • Map of the area*
• • GPS (but you should still carry a map and compass in case of systems failure or damage to your GPS)
• • Whistle*
• • Mobile phone (it’s surprising how many remote areas have a signal)
• • Food (fruit, energy bars, gel packs & sweets are the favourites)

NB: *Mandatory items for fell races.