Hullavington Half Marathon

When I noticed there was an actual ‘in person’ race going ahead in these strange times I signed up straight away and was very glad when fellow Allrunner Lisa signed up too!

Even before the day it was easy to see how much organisation had gone into making the event Covid friendly and secure. Location maps were sent, staggered start times were published and thankfully we were updated frequently to say the race was still going ahead! 

Lisa and I arrived around the same time and headed towards the start. We were sent on our way by Lisa’s husband Tim with Eddie (a canine friend who some of us have been lucky enough to run with) and Harry (Eddie’s dad, who knew!!) 

I must say there are a couple of reasons I could get used to a staggered start, for one the toilet queue was pretty short as everyone arrives at different times and starting in a group of just 6 is much less daunting. The staggered start times did slip slightly but as it was chip timed it didn’t really matter, we were moved forward in a group of 6 and off we went.

The course was beautiful, we weaved along country lanes, across bridges, past fields and through lovely quaint villages. Thankfully the weather was on our side too, a crisp autumn morning. There were three water stops along the route and the volunteers were very friendly. A few villagers were out to support and the majority of drivers fairly considerate. The highlight of the course for me was running through Grittleton, the village was lovely including the giant manor which I believe used to be a school. 

We kept a consistent pace the whole way round and in true Allrunner style snuck past a few people on the hills. We finished in just under 2:05 which we were both super pleased with. It was also Lisa’s first half marathon … who knows what’s next?

The cake was a great bonus at the end and the medal is great bling with a spinning spitfire in the middle! All in all I would really recommend this race and socially distanced racing in general. You can find out about the Hullavington Half and other races organised by Stampede Sports.

Sophie Berry