300 Dutch to run, bike and kayak across Scotland

Holland is famous for its flat territory – and 300 of them are in for a shock in Scotland this weekend.

This Saturday and Sunday, Rat Race Adventure Sports will stage the Healthy Fest Coast to Coast, a specially commissioned 105 mile adventure challenge in the Highlands of Scotland for the Dutch athletes.

The event is based on Rat Race’s hugely popular Coast to Coast multi-sport endurance event which is staged annually in September with at least 1000 multisport enthusiasts taking part.

Over the weekend the Dutch adventurers will run, bike and kayak on a 105-mile point to point, East to West journey along the Great Glen from Nairn Links to the Isles of Glencoe Hotel, Ballachulish, one of the most beautiful, mysterious and varied landscapes in the world. However, the brave weekend warriors will break things up with an overnight camp at Fort Augustus on Saturday night.

The Healthy Fest Coast to Coast was inspired by a former marketing director of Dutch TV network RTL who took part in Rat Race’s annual Coast to Coast challenge in 2016, loved Scotland and loved the event. He saw the massive potential in recreating it for the many adventure enthusiasts in Holland.

The Healthy Fest Coast to Coast has all the same features as the annual Coast to Coast event that has been staged by Rat Race Adventure Sports since 2007. It is a fully supported and way-marked endurance challenge in unforgiving terrain.

The route, which includes a total ascent of 10,840 feet, takes in stunning lochs, brooding glens, enchanting forests, rugged mountains and the most fantastic views imaginable.

It also features many evocative landmarks and locations that are steeped in generations of history, folklore and legend. These include Cawdor Castle, Loch Ness, Fort Augustus, The Great Glen, Fort William, Glen Coe and Loch Leven.

Jim Mee, MD of Rat Race Adventure Sports, provider of the largest selection of mass participation multi-sport events and challenges in the UK, said: ‘When it comes to adventure tourism, we have always made the very best of Scotland’s top quality urban and wilderness adventure playgrounds.

‘Our events fully embrace the country’s potential as a world-class destination for adrenaline fuelled and achievable adventure challenges, whilst at the same time matching customer demand for exploring the real Scotland.

‘Since our first event in Edinburgh in 2004, more than 500,000 people have taken part in our Scottish events, 65% of whom have been visitors to Scotland. Our participant numbers for our Scottish events have doubled in the last five years with more than 20,000 entries and at least 75% of those have come from outwith Scotland.

‘The Healthy Fest Coast to Coast provides us with another fantastic opportunity to bring another 300 enthusiastic athletes, this time from Holland, to not only immerse themselves in one of our most popular events, but also to experience, first hand, one of Scotland’s most stunning wilderness landscapes, together with its often challenging weather conditions.’

Since Coast to Coast was first staged in 2007, more than 10,000 intrepid adventurers have taken on this magnificent challenge. As many as 8,000 of those participants have travelled to Scotland from outwith the country, from as far a field as New Zealand, the USA and Europe, to experience the true beauty (and sometimes brutality) of the Highland terrain and its everchanging weather.

Marketed and promoted in Holland by RTL, The Healthy Fest Coast to Coast will see 300 multi-sport adventurers fly into Inverness and Aberdeen Airports from The Netherlands on a number of charter and scheduled flights on Friday 05 April. From there they will be transported to a camping village at Cawdor Castle to prepare for a number of start waves early on Saturday morning.

The Dutch athletes, with live GPS tracking, will begin with a seven-mile trek from Nairn to Cawdor Castle. This will be followed by a 48-mile road cycle along the edge of Loch Ness and a half mile run (that includes a 500 metre kayak on Loch Ness).

They will then transition again into a 21 mile off road cycle and a 13.5-mile road cycle through the Great Glen to Fort William, where the bike is replaced by running shoes and they will take on a 14 mile trek / trail run to Loch Leven. The adventure challenge finishes at The Isles of Glencoe Hotel in Lochaber with a one-mile flat water kayak.

The brave weekend warriors will break things up with an overnight camp at Fort Augustus. With a good rest, refuel and recharge the challenge becomes more achievable and allows participants to enjoy a cracking weekend out.