The 2022 edition of the Tortola Torture will take place on Saturday, April 9, with 38 runners competing. Thirteen men and six women will be competing as individuals. They will be joined on the course by one 2-person, and six 3-person teams.
Sam Thompson and Tash Ruscheinski will be returning to defend their 2021 titles. However both are running the course in reverse the day before as a fundraiser for the spaying and neutering non-profit PAW BVI, so their winning times of the previous year are probably in doubt.
This could leave the top podium spots open to a number of people including the three overseas runners. Tortola Torture veterans, The Champion Lion Hearts, (Jermaine Ricketts, Julius Farley, and Rosmond Johnson) are strong contenders for the top 3-person team, but there are some new teams with unknown pedigree.
The Tortola Torture is open to individuals, two-person, and three-person relay teams. It’s a 33.74 mile (54km) ultramarathon that circumnavigates Tortola with only 22% on the flat, the rest is on hot and humid hills with 12,000 feet of elevation change. The steepest gradient is 33.33%. It has 6,587 feet of climbing over 12.8 miles, and 13.1 miles of descending. There is only 7.5 miles of flat running for the entire course.
This view-laden race starts in Road Town, the capital of the British Virgin Islands, and winds its way clockwise around Tortola.
Avery Collins from Colorado set a new record in the 2018 Tortola Torture. With a time of 4 hours, 35 minutes and 47 seconds, Avery took a handsome 9 minutes and 18 seconds off Eric Senseman’s 2016 record-setting time (04:45:05).
The Tortola Torture continues its ban of disposable bottles on the race course this year. By using reusable 5-gallon jugs and coolers, organisers eliminate the use of over 1,200 half litre bottles.
VISAR (Virgin Islands Search & Rescue) provides medical on-course medical support with three roving teams.
Mourant, platinum sponsor, is a leading offshore law firm, advising on the laws of the BVI, the Cayman Islands, Guernsey and Jersey. Teneo, another platinum sponsor, provides full-service financial advisory, with a specialist expertise in cross-border restructuring and insolvency assignments.
RiteWay is the official food and beverage supplier, and gold sponsor. Nora Hazel Point, a luxury private estate on Tortola, is also a gold sponsor.
