Haltwhistle Challenge

Haltwhistle Challenge - our 4th

*May 19th 2012*

The third Haltwhistle Challenge took place in near perfect weather conditions: it was cool and cloudy with a light breeze. The rain held off until about 6.30pm, by which time everyone had completed the course.

The organisers are delighted to report on a successful event. Nearly everyone who started was able to finish the course.

Well done to all entrants.

Both runners’ and walkers’ times have been posted. Please let us know if there are any discrepancies.

The full photo album is here. Click on the arrow (top right) and a slide show will start. The photographers tried to capture everyone, so we hope you can find yourself somewhere in the album.

There was a happy and cheerful atmosphere all day (although a few people were a little downhearted when they discovered that the route had been extended since last year........)

Soup and sandwiches at the end were welcomed. (The chocolate muffins were also a great hit!)

Kevin Forster, gets ready to start the Challenge

Our starter - Kevin Forster

Kevin is a retired long distance runner with an impressive CV.

He represented Great Britain at the 1988 Summer Olympics in the men's marathon, finishing in 33rd place and was the fastest English marathon runner of 1988.

Kevin won the Enschede Marathon, the Toronto Marathon and the Stockholm Marathon during his career and had two silver medals from the London Marathon (1984, 2h 11min 41s and 1988, 2h 10min 52s)

Smiling for the photographer, even after the climb at Caw Gap

189 people entered for the Challenge. On the day, 134 walkers and 30 runners took to the field. All but 2 walkers completed the route (and they did a very creditable 21 miles).

A Satisfaction Survey was completed by 83 participants. This was a good response considering that some people submitted one survey on behalf of their group. All 83 said they would recommend the Challenge to others.

The feedback was encouragingly positive. There were a number of very helpful suggestions for next year. In particular, the runners would prefer to start 2 hours after the walkers and this change will be made.

The winner of the draw from the completed survey was Traviss Wilcox, who received a refund of the entry fee. Congratulations Traviss!

Nearly 60 volunteers were involved in the organisation of the Challenge, so many thanks go to each and every one of them. Especial thanks go to Marie Miller and Tim Patterson who jointly headed the organisation of the Challenge this year.

William Horsley led the pack

Of runners from early on

In the Challenge

His finishing time was 3hrs 37mins

Booking for the 2012 Challenge opened on August 8th

The route will be similar to 2011 but there will be further improvements based on feedback from participants. Walkers will start at 0800 and runners at 1000

The entry fee is unchanged at £15

The Challenge will start at Haltwhistle Community Campus. There will be refreshments provided: water and snacks at checkpoints; soup and hot drinks at Greenhead; sandwiches, soup and goodies at the end of the route. Everyone who completes the Challenge will receive a certificate

Go to details of Challenge, entry instructions and online entry form