Snowdon Twilight – A Race Into the Elements
It’s 6 pm on Friday 27th June. The UK is gripped by a heatwave flirting with 30 °C, but at the Llanberis Path start line the mountain isn’t playing along. Gale‑force winds lash raindrops horizontally around me and 57 other hardy souls. With conditions deteriorating, organisers have cut the route short, runners will turn around just before Alt Moses. This season‑adjusted “training” outing serves as a perfect rehearsal for the bigger Snowdon International Fell race in July.
The Twilight event marked its 10th anniversary this year, and in that decade it’s seen fair weather only four times—proof that it’s built on grit, not sunshine.
Stephen Edwards, race director (and long‑time head of the Snowdon International / Ras yr Wyddfa), pours hours into community preparation and local engagement, weaving sponsors, volunteers and Llanberis locals into the fabric of the event. He routinely thanks the Snowdon Race committee, Snowdonia National Park Authority, volunteers, sponsors like Castell Howell and SCOTT Sports, and the Llanberis community for making it feel international yet rooted.
Though implemented on the “easiest” ascent, the Llanberis Path is unforgiving when wet and windy. The shortened route still demands disciplined pacing: push too hard early and the steep Hebron climb bites back. Every stride must be measured, strong knee drive, planted glutes, rhythm amid unstable slabs and scree. In the rain-swept final approach to Allt Moses, true uphill fitness is revealed.
Sadly, the Twilight may have had its final running. Loss of sponsorship and dwindling numbers threaten its future, despite its status as a perfect preview to the International race and a rare chance to feel the mountain’s pull under training conditions.
In its time, the race delivered a unique opportunity: a taste of Snowdon’s slopes, community spirit, and elite level challenge, all in a compact uphill only format on a Friday evening. It brought Llanberis and runners together, reminding us of the mountain’s magic.
As the Welsh proverb says:
“Heb waith, heb fudd” (no gain without effort).