With Coach Alexa, Online Running Coach and in-person coaching in South Oxfordshire
Rain After Dry Spells: What’s Really Happening?
We’ve had a bit of rain recently, which is a bit of a shock to the system after at least six or seven weeks – certainly down here in the balmy southeast of England – of pretty much no rain at all.
You might think, particularly after yesterday, when it rained quite a bit overnight, off and on through the day, and again last night, that the ground will have magically softened up.
Surface Looks Wet, But the Ground’s Still Hard
This video is just to explain that unfortunately, that’s not quite the case.
Because we’ve had such a long stretch of dry weather, different layers and depths of soil have dried out. Normally, with a couple of hot, dry weeks in summer, just the top portion dries out. Underneath, it’s still moist and has a bit of give.
A bit of rain re-moisturises that surface and everything functions normally again.
But with longer dry spells, the soil dries out from the top down, and the dryness reaches much deeper. So even with recent rainfall, we’ve only rehydrated the top layer. Beneath that is still a much deeper layer of really dry soil.
What It Means for Runners
Even though it’s been raining, there isn’t as much give in the ground as you’d expect. On hard-packed trails that are used often, it’s less obvious. But on open access areas, chalk downland near me, or moorland-type terrain, the ground still feels very firm.
That’s because only that thin surface layer has reabsorbed moisture—underneath, it’s still dry and solid.
How Soil and Weather Work Together
In areas like mine where there’s a lot of chalk, we’ve got quite a thin layer of soil on top. That topsoil drains well, so while it may have regained some moisture, it’ll also dry out again very quickly.
So, the recent rain – although welcome – isn’t enough to bring us back to typical underfoot conditions for this time of year.
Thinking Ahead for Summer Trail Events
Some of my runners have longer summer trail events coming up – races over hills, moorland, and other varied terrain.
We’ve been having ongoing conversations about what underfoot conditions might be like for those races in the next month or two. While the weather could still shift things, we’d need a lot of consistent rain from now onwards to restore that deeper soil moisture and get back to normal July trail conditions.
What You Can Do
So what can you do?
Other than keeping an eye on the weather forecast, here are some tips:
- If your event is in a different part of the UK and you’re unsure of local conditions, join regional running Facebook groups or race-specific groups.
- Runners local to the area might be out on the trails more regularly and can give updates.
- If possible, recce parts of your race route, even just walking small sections a week or two before the event to assess the terrain.
One of my runners went up to the Pennines last week to recce part of the Summer Spine and, despite some recent rain, found conditions were still bone dry and very solid underfoot. That might change, but for now, the ground is still hard.
Final Thoughts
So gather as much local insight as you can. If you can get out for a short walk or recce in the weeks leading up to your race, it will help inform your shoe choice and expectations for race day.
Hope that’s useful.
Happy running!
