TWELVE hardy Llandudno athletes set a blisteringly hot pace during a unique ultra-distance race despite the scorching conditions on Sunday.

North Wales Road Runners Club (NWRRC) competed in the third Builth and District 15-hour relay challenge with the aim to run as far as possible from 5am to 8pm.

NWRRC covered a total of 96.12 miles as Steve Poupart ran a one and half hour slot, Ben Hudson for two hours, while Helen Hannam completed a remarkable two and a half-hour trot from 2.30pm, probably the hottest part of the day.

Rachel Morris is still recovering from a serious injury but completed a brilliant 4.4 miles in an hour. Other impressive performers included Sarah Fergie Hudson, Vicky Taylor, Kevin Higgins, Rob Fryer, and Charlie Owen as each team member played a vital role in the unusual challenge.

They survived the exceptional heat with each athlete recording between four and 14 miles during their allocated time zones.

Sarah Fergie Hudson, NWRRC captain and organiser, said: "There were some amazing runs, and I was glad to have done my run at 5am.

"It was awesome running by everyone, especially in this crazy North Walean heat wave."

Sarah’s husband Ben ran the longest distance, completing a total of 14.18 miles in just over two hours. Helen Hannam and Steve Poupart each ran 11-miles, and Stuart Culverhouse ran 8.4 miles.

After completing her run over a gruelling two and a half-hour period in soaring temperatures, Helen said: "I felt quite strong for the first eight miles, but then heat exhaustion kicked in, so I had a 15-minute pit-stop in a friend’s garden, and then walked the last three."