Dumyat Hill Race still a sure bet for runners even after half century

Hundreds of athletes turned out last week for the 50th edition of a very special Stirling hill race -which all kicked off due to a £1 bet.

- STUART MCFARLANE

The Dumyat Hill Race, organised by Stirling University, has become a regular fixture in the athletics calendar, with the 2025 edition bringing a field of 450 runners based across Scotland to complete the 8km, 418-metre ascent and descent.

It has become a prominent fixture in the hill-running calendar and is a highly competitive event which sells out every year and sees the fastest runners complete the gruelling run in just over half an hour.

The history of the race also adds to the unique spectacle.

While standing in the university's Gannochy Sports Bar in 1971, Stirling psychology lecturer Dr Ranald Macdonald laid a £1 bet claiming “no member of the university could, without mechanical assistance, do the return trip from the Gannochy to Dumyat in less than an hour”.

On graduation day 1971, intrepid researcher John Evans won the wager - completing the run over a rocky, rough terrain with three minutes to spare.