My friend is, allegedly, preparing for a triathlon. But he’s being so half-hearted about it that I’m wondering whether we should swap places.

Still, I want him to chalk up at least one day of training before he quits. So I’ve brought him to a long, north-facing ridge.

“Sorry. Don’t fancy the walk,” he says after I’ve jumped out of his motor in a National Trust car park. Already, from here, the view across the vale just north of us is superb.

“We won’t be walking,” I tell him, pointing out our route. “We’re running up that road. Then, we’re running up that hill.”

And we won’t be the only ones running near the top. A creature up there has been at it since the late Bronze or early Iron Age.

I’m champing at the bit to see it. But Friend bridles at the idea. So I try to inspire him with thoughts of a king, born in a town six miles east-northeast of the hill’s summit. He had a mountain to climb after his kingdom was first invaded, more than 1,150 years ago.

“Great,” Friend sighs. “Now I get a history lesson too.”

All right, what about the singer (mother: Hannah) who shot a music video on the hill in the 1980s? Singing another of her songs will give us plenty of oomph.

Friend mutters something about taking inspiration from a different hill.

“Where is it?” I ask.

“It’s not an it,” he says. “It’s a he — and he worked for a company just north of your town.”

Then he revs his engine and races off.

The winner and guest will stay for two nights, B&B, in a suite at the five-star Xara Palace, in the former Maltese capital, Mdina. This Relais & Châteaux hotel occupies a 17th-century palace on top of the city’s historic walls — and is home to the Michelin-starred de Mondion restaurant.

Inside, there’s a sense of grandeur, with the chef Clint Grech’s innovative and locally sourced cuisine deepening the sense of luxury. The meticulously restored Palazzino Belvedere has recently become the hotel’s grandest accommodation. For more on the hotel and the de Mondion restaurant see xarapalace.com.mt.

The prize includes one Taste of Malta dinner for two at de Mondion (excluding drinks) as well as a total budget of €500 for return flights to Malta for the winner and guest. It must be taken before December 20, 2026, subject to availability and excluding public holidays.