Calverley Chase
Matthew Holt completed Wednesday evening’s Calverly Chase run in Leeds, a 6.5 mile mainly off road trail route through surrounding woodlands and parks, with approx 700 ft of ascent. The race was organised by Farsley Flyers, and to avoid lots of runners having to cross a busy road within the first 300 metres, they adopted a staggered start. Basically every minute, a group of about 4 to 5 runners would set off, you decided what time to start.
Another difference was the route was completely unmarked and unmarshalled, with a large container of bottled water at 3 miles providing ‘help yourself’ refreshments. This meant runners were issued with written instructions to follow with their race numbers. Running while trying to read instructions actually proved easier than I thought, and I finished 23rd out of 172 entries (I think most of the good runners got lost) in 57 minutes 10 seconds.
These events are usually held at local pubs, and are only £5 to enter (entries on the day) with £2 a drink purchased if you give them your race number. Great events and worth a try if you want something a bit different.