Why I Started Hellfire
By Ryan Castle, Founder
Since an early age, I wanted to be an entrepreneur.
But because of my dyslexia — mainly issues with working memory — I could never seem to match my ambition with reality. I had loads of ideas, but staying focused and turning those ideas into action just never clicked. And as a result, I ended up doing nothing. I didn’t follow my dream. And because of that, I started to feel depressed. Really depressed. I couldn’t understand why I wasn’t happy.
I had the perfect life — two amazing children, a wonderful, caring wife, a house, a dog — you get the point. But it just wasn’t enough. It felt like someone else’s dream. I didn’t feel like a man. I felt like a disappointment.
It got so bad that one day, I was driving my truck — a job I never wanted, but just fell into because it was convenient — and I found myself uncontrollably crying and punching myself in the face. As you can imagine, driving a large goods vehicle like that at the time wasn’t a wise move. But that was my breaking point. That’s when I knew I couldn’t carry on like this. Something had to change.
I knew I had to follow my dream and create a business. I’ve had loads of business ideas over the years, but I needed something that would make me happy — something that would stick. I decided to mix my love of running with starting a business.
At the time, there weren’t many trail running events in Dover. So I created one — around my local Napoleonic-era fortress, the Western Heights.
It just so happened that this was the first running event in its history.
The event was a massive success. And that’s when Hellfire Events was born.
Since then, we’ve hosted multiple Western Heights Trail Races as well as The Governor Backyard Ultra — the world’s first and only Backyard Ultra inside the high walls of a prison.
But really, the story started much earlier than that.
I was sent to a special secondary school. From the age of 11, that’s where I began learning the alphabet. That’s when I learned how to spell my own name. While other kids were flying ahead, I was starting from scratch.
And it was there — at that school — that I also learned something else:
how to disguise my academic abilities.
How to make people think I was intelligent.
How to talk my way through things. How to fit in.
I think it was at that point that this deep desire to feel enough, to feel special in other people’s eyes, really began. It’s probably followed me my whole life.
My idol was — and still is — Richard Branson. He’s dyslexic and he’s a successful businessman. So I thought, Why can’t I be like that? But that way of thinking can be really dangerous if it goes unchecked — because I’m not Richard Branson. I needed to stop chasing someone else’s version of success. I needed to find my own path.
And looking back now, I honestly believe my two young children saved my life. Just having them around kept me here when I wasn’t sure I wanted to be. The depression used to come in waves. Sometimes it would stay for months. Other times, just hours. But it always came.
I’m so thankful for the support network my wife unknowingly built around me.
I just wish I’d been more honest with her about how I was feeling.
So yeah… that’s how Hellfire started.
Not from a clever business plan.
Not from confidence or momentum.
Just from a moment where I realised I couldn’t keep living like I was.
I’m still figuring it out.
Some days, I still feel like that 11-year-old trying to catch up.
But I’m proud of this. Not just the races, but what it stands for. It’s something I built from nothing. Something that’s mine.
I’m not Richard Branson. I never will be.
But that’s okay.
Because this is my version of success.
If you’ve ever felt like you’re drifting…
like you’re not enough…
like you’re living someone else’s life…
You're not alone.
And just remember:
Your version of success is always earned, not given.
What Will Hellfire Become?
Honestly? I’m still figuring that out.
Hellfire started as a way to save myself — something real I could build when everything else felt like it was falling apart. But now, it feels like it could be more than that. Bigger than just a series of races. I don’t know exactly what it’s going to become… but I know it needs to be a force for good.
I want Hellfire to help people.
Not just runners. Not just those who cross the finish line.
But anyone who’s trying to find their way — just like I was.
Sport has a power to it. Not just for mental health, but for behaviour, routine, purpose. It can shape positive habits. Create structure. Bring people into communities. Give people something to fight for when they feel like giving up.
Maybe one day Hellfire will become a charity.
Maybe it’ll be something completely different.
I don’t know. But I do know this: it needs a purpose.
It has to do good.
It has to help people — directly or indirectly — and make lives better, even in small ways.
And lately, I’ve been meeting more and more people who believe in that too.
People who want to build something meaningful. Something with heart.
Right now, I feel like we’re just getting started.
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