Seaton's famous Grizzly Race to return for 35th year next month

Seaton's famous Grizzly Race will return for its 35th year next month, with more than 2,000 runners set to take on the gruelling challenge.

Now known as the South West's premier mixed-terrain running race, the Grizzly will take place on Sunday, March 5, covering the trails, tracks, fields, lanes, roads, pebble beaches and thigh-deep bogs of East Devon.

Runners will negotiate a terrific 20-mile course from Seaton to the furthest reaches of Branscombe and back.

This year, the official race name is 'I Fought the Claw', and artwork has already been appearing on the windows of local cafes and businesses in Seaton as they prepare to welcome runners and their supporters to the town.

The biggest event in the calendar of host club Axe Valley Runners (AVR), the Grizzly – and a shorter nine-mile race called 'The Cub' – attracts competitors from across the region, country and the world.

Clubs from as far afield as Germany and the Netherlands regularly send groups of runners. Competition for places can be intense, and this year's event sold out in under an hour. 

Once voted the third best running race in the country by Runner's World, with the London Marathon in top spot, The Grizzly has as a well-earned reputation as serious challenge, but it also puts a smile on the face of competitors and spectators alike, with thousands of people lining the streets to cheer runners on through Seaton, Beer and Branscombe.

Drummers, singers, bagpipers and bands provide much-needed encouragement along the route, which even goes through the beer garden of the Fountain Head pub in Branscombe, where there's a carnival atmosphere on the day. 

One of the most poignant parts of the race route is the Memory Tree, which is annually set up on Branscombe Beach. Here, in a serene setting, runners can pause for a moment and tie a ribbon on the driftwood tree to remember someone close to them who has passed.

This year the tree will have extra significance to a lot of AVR members and Grizzly regulars, who will mark the recent loss of Phil Bayliss, who played a major role in getting the race, and the running club itself, started over three decades ago, and who was on the Grizzly organising committee for many years.

There will be a special memorial to Phil at the tree, and the race will also mark the passing of Stewart 'Rambo' Bondi, a well-known character and Grizzly legend. 

Since it began in 1988, the Grizzly has raised more than £425,000 for charities. This year the race will financially contribute to dozens of community groups, who volunteer on food and water stations along the route, as well as making a sizeable donation to the SWCPA, an charity organisation that maintains the South West Coast Path.

On Saturday, March 4 the Grizfest will take place in Seaton, with 11–15 year olds taking on the 4km Junior Grizzly, over 8s tacking a 2km course and people of all ages doing a fun run.

Then, on Sunday, runners doing The Cub 9-mile race and the full Grizzly will get going from Seaton seafront at 10.30am.