Welsh Castles Relay 2022 (11-12 June) – Runners needed!
We are looking for a few more runners to join us for the Welsh Castles Relay in June, so that we have a team to take part. What’s better than a weekend visiting Wales with your club mates, whilst running, cheering and seeing the Welsh countryside? Read on to find out more…
What is the Welsh Castles Relay?
The Welsh Castles Relay is a two day event taking place on Sat 11th and Sun 12th June. It starts in Caernarfon, North Wales, on Saturday morning and ends in Cardiff on Sunday afternoon. Most runners will leave London on Friday afternoon 10th June (at about 4pm) in mini vans, with the option to travel up Saturday morning as well.
The race involves 20 stages (10 stages each day) run mainly on rural roads over a range of terrain from flat roads to mountain passes. Everybody runs one stage, with stages varying between about 12km and 21km. If you’re targeting something specific, we can try find a stage that suits you best.
Each stage starts as its own race so you’re sure to get a good competitive run out of it, with individual Stage Winner’s t-shirts and trophies up for grabs. The times from each stage are then added up to determine the overall winning team. As well as running you get involved in marshalling, handing out water and we need a few minibus drivers too.
You will also get a great dry-fit Welsh Castles Relay T-shirt provided by the race organisers.
Pace Guide
Note that due to the requirement for the race organisers to close roads, they recommend a pace guide of approximately 9 min/mile or 5:30min/km, so runners should be capable to completing the distance in under the cut off time.
The Serpentine Team
With 14 Serpie runners already registered, we currently have 6 guaranteed places remaining (and hopefully a few more as reserves in case of late injury drop-outs). We need to fill those places, as otherwise we do not have a team to take part. So please sign up soon – this will also help us plan logistics and stage allocation soon.
2022 Costs
The club covers the Serpentine team race entries (£30 per athlete) and other administrative fees, and also subsidises some of the overall costs.
Costs per runner for 2022 are expected to be:
1) Each participant will pay £50 deposit at the time of signing up.
2) Final payment of around £100 (to be confirmed), to cover transport and accommodation costs for Friday and Saturday night (which includes breakfast).
3) In addition to the travel and accommodation costs, other own costs for each athlete include:
- Evening Saturday meal arranged for the group (estimated around £20 for 3 courses TBC).
- Own food and drink purchased along the way.
Mini Van Drivers
We travel from point to point in minibuses and would like eight drivers to make the weekend an "anhygoel" success. If you are able to drive for us (you'll be able to take part too of course!), please volunteer your amazing self. The Serpentine team will refund part of your deposit as a thank you.
How do I sign up?
Sign up here to register your interest.
For more details and registration, please visit our Welsh Castles webpage, and also contact the organising team.
Hope to see you in Wales!
The Welsh Castles Organising Team (Glenn, Mike, Kristin and Hans)
Submitted: 21 April 2022