You Don’t Have to Conquer the Dragon
This morning, something rather extraordinary begins at Conwy Castle.
Runners taking part in the 2026 Dragon’s Back Race will set off on a journey down the mountainous spine of Wales towards Cardiff.
The full course covers 380 kilometres over six days, with around 16,400 metres of ascent.
The organisers describe it as one of the toughest mountain races in the world, and looking at those numbers, I am not particularly inclined to argue.
There is something wonderfully Welsh about naming an already formidable mountain race after a dragon, presumably because “quite a difficult jog” didn’t sound sufficiently threatening.
But watching people undertake challenges like this always makes me think about our rather complicated relationship with achievement.
We are surrounded by extraordinary stories.
Someone climbs the mountain, runs the ultramarathon, swims the channel or completely transforms their life. They are inspiring precisely because they represent the outer edges of what human beings can achieve.
The danger comes when we start believing that only the extraordinary counts.
Most of us are not running 380 kilometres this week. Some of us consider retrieving something from upstairs after we have already sat down to be an endurance event.
And that is perfectly alright.
Welsh Government figures show that 59% of adults had participated in some form of sport, fitness or outdoor pursuit during the previous four weeks, while 35% said they would like to do more physical activity. Walking remains particularly accessible: 52% of people in Wales walked for active travel at least once a week in the latest published survey.
Perhaps the lesson from the Dragon’s Back isn’t that we should all attempt something enormous. It is that everybody’s challenge is different.
For one person, achievement might mean crossing Wales.
For another, it might mean walking around the block.
And within naturism, courage can look different again.
We sometimes forget how enormous a seemingly ordinary step can feel to somebody else. Attending a first naturist gathering, walking through the door alone, joining a conversation with strangers or simply deciding that your body does not need to meet somebody else’s standard before you are allowed to enjoy your life can require its own quiet determination.
That connects rather beautifully with something we explored previously in What Is a Naturist? Naturism isn’t reserved for people with particular bodies, extraordinary confidence or adventurous personalities. It is an ordinary way of living built around authenticity, acceptance and respect.
Read: What Is a Naturist?
At Naturism Wales, Every Body Matters has never meant every body must achieve the same thing. Acceptance also means recognising different starting points, abilities and ambitions.
There is another lesson in today’s race too. Even something as apparently individual as ultrarunning depends heavily upon other people. The Dragon’s Back provides overnight camps, support teams, checkpoints and GPS tracking. The runner covers the distance, but a community helps make the journey possible.
That feels familiar.
The best communities don’t drag people towards somebody else’s finish line. They encourage them towards their own.
So I will happily admire the remarkable people setting off from Conwy today. I hope they have an unforgettable journey through our extraordinary country.
But perhaps the rest of us can borrow just a little of their spirit.
Take the walk you’ve been postponing. Try something unfamiliar. Speak to somebody new.
Come along to something when you’d normally stay home. Take one small step beyond wherever your comfortable boundary happens to be.
You don’t have to conquer the dragon.
Sometimes it is enough simply to wake yours up.
What is one small challenge you could set yourself this week — naturist or otherwise — that would take you just beyond your usual comfort zone?
Sources and further reading
Dragon's Back Race — Official 2026 race information — Details of the six-day event running from 7–12 September 2026.
Dragon's Back Race — The Route — Official route information confirming the 380km distance and approximately 16,400m of ascent.
Welsh Government — National Survey for Wales: headline results 2024–25 — Statistics on sport, fitness and outdoor participation in Wales.
Welsh Government — Active Travel: National Survey for Wales 2024–25 — Current published statistics on walking and cycling for everyday journeys in Wales.
