My weekends are generally spent crawling through mud, climbing walls or wading through rivers. What you may not know is that I just love running full stop, so when I was given the opportunity by Human Race Events to take on the VitalityMove Running Festival over in Chatsworth, I leaped at the chance. Sometimes it feels great to lace up and just run, especially if you have a PB you want to beat.
The Event Village
The setting alone was brilliant and the day itself couldn’t have been better for a run; 24 degree heat next to Chatsworth House! The entire event had a very family feel to it and the feeling that everyone there should be involved regardless of age or ability, which is always great to see. The fact that Jessica Ennis-Hill helped organise the event probably had a massive influence on that. As for the runs themselves, there were Music Miles, which as the name suggests were a 1 mile loop which you could do throughout the day gaining a different wrist band for each one you completed (7 all together), a 5km and 10km. The event village was packed with food stalls and activities for the youngsters which included a sports zone. My initial aims of the event were to get a PB on the 10km run, get a picture with Jessica Ennis-Hill (fan boy) and complete as many music miles as possible to collect each wristband.
My first plan was to kick off my running with a warm up Music Mile! Just before this kicked off, I spotted Jessica Ennis-Hill walking around the event village. I missed the chance to meet her at a Adidas event earlier in the year so I leaped at the opportunity. She took photos with everyone and was as friendly as you would think. After I finished my grinning from ear to ear, I was ready to get back in the game for the first Music Mile of the day which I thought I may as well take it easy to get warmed up. What was really great was that the host DJ of the day Trevor Nelson (another legend…perhaps not in sport or fitness, but definitely in music) was also taking part in the first run; not sure how planned that was, but he got involved regardless.
Racers lined up and the faster people got to the front of the pack so that they could take off. I shuffled ahead of the kids and was side by side with Trevor Nelson at first. The moment we got the word to go, I was off! I had never taken part in such a short run, but this was a warm-up right? Well as I was running my mind had a different idea, and I took off. With only 2 people ahead of me, I completed the short and flat loop to return to the main stage where I picked up medal number 1 (I didn’t even know I would get a medal for that; great surprise). Along with my medal I received a short interview on stage by one of the hosts for being the 3rd person to complete the race. Chuffed isn’t even the word! The idea of giving out medals for the mile run was brilliant because all you saw were over the moon kids and adults who felt as if they had accomplished something. Thats what its all about right?
The audience were kept alert and excited by the main stage festival vibe. Before the 10km there was a on stage fitness professional conducting the warm up, which almost resembled a 80s dance class. Everyone was laughing and really enjoying themselves, even though we may have looked a little silly. The key was that we were warming up and getting race ready! I’m confident with my 10km running pace, so I had an idea how I was going to tackle this race. My personal best to beat was 52:32 so I hit the dirt trail pretty quickly out of the gates. I was amazed at the variety of participants and even seeing 10 year olds whizz past me gave me the kick up the backside I needed. So after about half a km you hit the hardest part of the run: a very infamous HILL!
Before we all took off, we were all told how there was an elevation climb which had 7 levels to it. They weren’t lying! Some people found the hill quite difficult but the children were unfazed! The most amazing thing about this hill that no one seemed to like was that it literally brought everyone together. The camaraderie was great. As I’m no stranger to an incline attack, I was able to handle the elevation, I just wished I had my trail shoes rather then my road ones. What I initially thought would be a very flat event became more of what I was used too in terms of forests, loose ground and trail running. It was brilliant!
After the initial elevation climb, it was all down hill for the rest of the race, which was probably to the taste of all competitors. The views that we all got along the course were beautiful and it was a really enjoyable route through the countryside around Chatsworth House. For me it was a chance to catch up the time I had lost climbing the hill, but it was also a chance to really enjoy the run. I love trail running and this was a perfect example of that without copious amounts of mud or water (even though there were a few small lakes I would have loved to have jumped in because of the heat). The route was well marked and well managed all the way through, with very friendly and encouraging volunteers. There was a clear distinction between the 5km and 10km paths also, which I have seen cause problems in other events of this kind before. After taking in the views, I remembered I had a PB to beat. The event village was in sight again so I really knuckled down and sprinted to the finish line to get my 10km medal! My finish time was 54:43 which I was pleased with bearing the elevation of the course in mind. My favourite part of returning to the stage was meeting Trevor Nelson. I congratulated him on his earlier Music Mile and took a quick chance to rehydrate and stretch out before the 5km which was 7 minuets away from starting!
Being absolutely shattered from the 10km, I quickly jumped in the 5km wave. There were more children in this wave, but that only made it seem like I wasn’t moving quick enough; they were fast! I really did use this as a chance to loosen up and cool down, even though I did need to tackle that hill again! The great thing about the 5km route was that it was mostly in the shade of the forest trees which was very welcome in the heat. As I was taking it easy, I even managed to strike a few conversations as I was running. Took my tired mind off of the run and put it on just moving forward with like minded people. It wasn’t long before I came back around to the finishing stage where I was well and truly finished! My finish time for the 5km was 29:30 which is by no means my fastest but it led me to my third medal of the day!
This event was probably one of my favourite non-obstacle races to date. It was well organised, open to all to enjoy and just a huge amount of fun. The special guests were so friendly and open to meeting everyone and there was so much in the event grounds to enjoy even if you weren’t running. I would like to thank Human Race events for giving me the chance to get involved in such a great festival and I would love to return next year!
Did you attend the VitalityMove Running Festival in Chatsworth? What race did you take part in? What were your thoughts? Let me know in the comments below.
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