10th Annual Royton Trail Race
I'm a total fan of local races and due to my love of all things muddy, I particularly love a trail race. This one was no exception. Today was Royton Road Runner's 10th anniversary of their now locally famed trail race yet it was my first time of running it.
Like all other local races it's exceptionally well organised, welcoming, friendly and suitable for all levels of runners. Plus, being a trail race it takes in beautiful scenery and you don't even notice the time going by because you're too busy concentrating on not falling over!
If you've never tried racing before and you're thinking of having a go, local races, like this one, are a great place to start. Not only are they cheap (less than 9 quid to enter AND they had chip butties and sandwiches AND it finished outside a pub!!), but they're a great opportunity to meet the amazing people that make up our local running communities. And, if like me you already know a lot of those people, it's a great place to catch up and find out what everyone's been getting up to over the past year! All of which is just about enough to make up for the slightly excessive number of hill climbs!
If you fancy having a go there's 2 great ones coming up at the end of July in the Manchester area - Black Knight Charge (free pie) and Millbrook Monster (free chips) - with both on the same day, maybe it's best to pick by which post-race meal you prefer?!
Or, how about trying out one (or all) of the Lakeland Trail series - thanks Louise for this suggestion! - beautiful scenery, accessible to all and no pressure.
Which races do you recommend near you?
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