04-05-2025
Maldon mud race runners slip and slide their way around world famous course
Hundreds of competitors from across the world have been taking part in a famous charity mud race that dates back more than half a century.
Held in Promenade Park in Essex, the Maldon Mud race attracted 350 fund-raising entrants, all willing to brave the slightly cooler temperatures and cake themselves top-to-toe in mud!
A number of charities benefit from the day, including the Essex and Herts Air Ambulance, the Fairleigh Hospice in Chelmsford, and Essex Wildlife Trust.
Organisers say in 2024 they distributed over £35,000 to various charities, and they were hoping to beat that target this year after the event sold out to competitors in January.
'We have some regulars who want to beat last year's times, but most are fun runners," said race chairman Brian Farrington.
"People think it is really easy because it is only 440 metres and the winner will do it in under four minutes, but the loser will do it in 45 minutes because they will crawl round, literally crawl round.
'Last year we saw nearly 20,000 people attend the event, so we are hoping to raise even more money for the charities," he added.
The event started in 1973 as a dare from an Essex resident to the landlord of a local pub, challenging him to serve a meal on the saltings of the River Blackwater dressed in a dinner jacket.
