The organisers of the UK's first 24-hour non-stop mountain marathon, Marmot24, have announced that the inaugural event will be held in the Lake District this August.

Marmot24 combines elements of the familiar and predominantly British mountain marathon type event with aspects of something called rogaining, a more international affair where competitors have to visit as many checkpoints as possible within a given course time. Mountain running and navigation are of course at the heart of the event. 

Race Director Shane Ohly described the competition area: 

'From our central event centre the competition area spans 360 degrees and includes approximately 300 square kilometers of the finest mountain running terrain in the UK.'

'To the north are the remote Northern Fells guarded by the imposing flanks of Blencathra. To the south, Clough Head marks the start of the Dodds ridge running towards Helvellyn and ultimately Ambleside. There are also interesting yet rarely visited fells to the east and west. The terrain is perfect for a 24-hour non-stop mountain marathon, with laser fast ridges and valleys linking remote and trackless areas that contain complex contour features.'

Competitors will have a choice of three courses, giving them either 24, 12 or 6 hours to visit as many checkpoints as possible on a score format course. 

Marmot24 takes place on the weekend of 2-3 August. For more info see the website.