Horses and runners compete in cross-country challenge

The event saw 100 runners taken on 54 horses in a race across Somerset's Quantock Hills

Two horses have beaten around 100 runners in a 23 mile (37km) race across Somerset's Quantock Hills.

The Man v Horse endurance race, which was first held more than 40 years ago in Powys, Wales, saw the crowd of runners given a head start of only 15 minutes.

Only four competitors have ever beaten a horse in the history of the race, with the last Somerset event ending in a tie between a human and a horse at three hours and 11 minutes.

The race raised around £4,000 for Equilibrium Coaching and Therapy, a community interest company providing equine therapy for children who have experienced trauma in their lives.

Organiser Phillip King told BBC Somerset that the idea for the race came about after he and fellow organiser Jon Dolphin were in the pub one evening.

"We thought that would be a really amazing and slightly quirky idea. So that's where we went with it.

"It's entirely possible over a long enough distance for a human being to catch up with a horse," he added.

The event began in 1980 after a chat in a pub about which would be fastest crossing mountainous terrain

The sprawling course covered open upland moorland, deep wooded valleys and forestry, with a climb of 1,000 metres.

Mr Dolphin said the turnout was "fantastic," with double the number of attendees than when the first Somerset event was run in 2023.

"Once the runners are away, the field separates out quite nicely over the glorious hills," he added.

Mr King, who is a psychotherapist, said the money raised would help his therapy work.

"We work in the outdoors, in the woods as well, and these are young people who who find it really difficult to engage in traditional therapy.

"It has amazing effects, horses are wonderful animals for children to work with and they just find that affinity and bond with them," he said.