On 20th September, an intrepid team of Fairhurst staff from Westhill, Aberdeen, and Inverness laced up their trail shoes, donned their signature “FairBeast” T-shirts, and took on the formidable Beast Race — a gruelling 10km obstacle course through the stunning but unforgiving terrain around Knockburn Loch in Aberdeenshire.

This year’s brave (or perhaps slightly mad) team, pictured above before the start line, included:

(From left to right): Jason Collie, Thomas Little, Luke Munro, Finlay Hilditch, Craig Riddell, Neil Goodbrand, Ewan Thomas, and Edgaras Popovas.

The Beast Lives Up to Its Name

Participants faced a relentless series of challenges — scaling man-made obstacles, hauling logs, sliding through thick red mud, crawling under barbed wire, and plunging into icy loch waters. The most dreaded of all challenges however, was The infamous “Bog”: a chilling, seemingly bottomless mire that demanded competitors pull themselves through deep, clinging mud using ropes submerged just below the surface.

Despite the punishing course, we’re delighted to report that all Fairhurst team members returned safely (physically intact – well almost) to the support van albeit muddier, wetter, and a little more battle-hardened than when they started.

Incredible Performances

A huge congratulations to the entire team — completing the Beast Race is a serious accomplishment in itself. However, some individual performances deserve special mention:

🏅 Thomas Little — an outstanding 5th place finish out of 2,071 competitors with a time of 56:12
🏅 Edgaras Popovas — an impressive 13th place overall
👏 Finlay Hilditch — unfortunately had to withdraw a few kilometres from the finish due to a knee injury, but we commend his effort and grit.

Thomas Little, 5th place finisher

Special thanks to Finlay Hilditch and Craig Riddell, who stepped up at the last minute to complete the team following late withdrawals.

The bar has now been set very high for any future Fairhurst colleagues brave enough to take on the Beast. If you think you’ve got what it takes, we’ll see you at the start line next year — just don’t forget your FairBeast shirt and your sense of humour!

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