Join Ben Poole and his epic challenge of the Dragon’s Back Ultra in Wales. Dive into his experience, from the gruelling preparation to overcoming the relentless demands of one of the world’s toughest mountain races, and learn how he conquered both the terrain and his own limits.


"The Dragons Back Race is considered to be the toughest mountain race in the world. Starting in Conwy [North Wales], it follows 380km of mostly pathless trials with ~16500m of elevation gain down the spine of the country, finishing in the infamous Cardiff Castle down South. It runs over a 6 day period, taking in some of the most challenging terrain imaginable. From super exposed, gnarly ridges to boggy and relentless pathless countryside, it really does test the runner in all aspects.

Of course, anyone looking to take on this huge challenge needs to be prepared both physically and mentally. Within this preparation comes the fuelling strategy. At a base level, effective fuelling for an event like this could be the difference between completion and failure. At the next level up, it could be the difference between completion and high performance.

My personal goals going into the race were of course completion, as to ‘assume’ this is simply foolish. But my real aim was to perform to the best of my ability and push to be as high up that leader board as possible. I knew to do this, my fuelling strategy had to be spot on, using high quality products designed specifically for the purpose. Thats where STYRKR’s energy gels and energy bars came in.

Nailing this strategy started way before I stood on that start line in Conwy. Given the nature of run specific energy gels and bars, it can sometimes be tough for our bodies to effectively digest and absorb these products whilst on the move and working hard.
Hence it took lots of practice during my long training sessions to dial in a strategy that I was both confident with and that worked well for me. Some of my personal preferences are for things to be as simple as possible, to not have to rely on liquid calories, and to have some variety in flavours and textures. STYRKR can provide all 3 of these and some, and is a key reason as to why I chose to fuel my battle against the dragon with STYRKR products from start to finish.

When it came down to race week, I was confident in my plan and knew I could focus on the job at hand! My final strategy, whilst a simple one, was effective. 100g of carbs per hour, consisting of both gels and bars. The STYRKR GEL50 and BAR50 were my primary products, and I planned on taking them in the below fashion;

On the 30, 60 and 90min mark I would consume 1 x GEL50. And then every 4th ‘feed’ / on the 120min mark I would switch to a BAR50. I would then repeat this cycle for as long as needed.

I found that this gave me adequate carbs per hour [100g] and along with alternating between flavours throughout, gave me the variety in texture I needed for things to never get ‘old’. Also, with both products being carefully designed to be consumed during long efforts, they contained key ingredients that would aid in me going the distance.

The BAR50 is made up of all natural ingredients and formulated for quick release energy, couple that with its great taste and easy to consume consistency it was genuinely something I looked forward to every 2hours.

The GEL50 is created to be gentle on the stomach whilst providing maximum energy with minimum ‘faff’. And that it did, time and time again. The easy to rip opening was a god send 8hours deep on day 5… the natural flavourings meant it never got ‘sickly’ and the balanced pH levels meant my stomach was happy throughout.



With a race like the Dragons Back, ups and downs are inevitable. So rather than trying to avoid them, planing how you will deal with them is often going to be your best bet. One thing I had full control over from the start to finish was my fuelling. Making a concerted effort to fuel every 30min was something I knew for a fact would have a positive impact on my race, so that is what I did.

I am super stoked with how my fuelling went. Proudly not missing one single 30min ‘eat’ alert on my watch throughout the 55hours I was running. Something that I am fairly confident would not have been possible without STYRKR’s science driven innovation process. Never have I been able to fuel so consistently with gels + bars made specifically for running.

So all in all a successful week. I am proud of my performance, coming in 6th place overall out of ~125 finishers and roughly 375 starters. A result that relied hugely on my ability to consistently consume carbs.

So I can say with confidence, STYRKR absolutely helped me go further."