Royal Parks Foundation Ultra Announced

Seems good, but I think the £750 is a bit too steep for some people. It's not easy to raise that kind of money!
Posted: 13/04/2012 at 11:15

I agree - £750.00 is very steep. It's for this reason I am saying no deal but good luck to all those who take it on!
Posted: 13/04/2012 at 12:26

£750?! Are they kidding. I can understand the charity aspect but that should be an optional extra not a forced requirement.
Posted: 13/04/2012 at 13:24

Tempted but raising £750 is a hard task these days
Posted: 13/04/2012 at 21:27

I thought the race was perfect for my first ultra, but given I have already raised lots of money for the many marathons I have done it is just too much to force us to raise £750 and not to have a choice on the charity we raise for.  I think a higher entrance fee, or perhaps a £100 minimum would have attracted more runners.  I'm really disappointed by this.
Posted: 15/04/2012 at 09:54

This is just what I've been looking for. Just signed up. The route looks great and I hear the royal parks half is well put together. Now just got to get in training!
Posted: 15/04/2012 at 21:33

Hi everyone, the Royal Parks Foundation have partnered with Scope to create an Ultra to raise vital funds in these tough times.  Although raising £750 can seem like a lot we can support people along the way to help them achieve this target.  Experience has shown us that the tougher the challenge the better the platform to raise funds from.  We know there is a world of ultra runs out there for people who enjoy long distance running but this is something a little different.  We believe this is the start of a new age of charity challenge.
Posted: 16/04/2012 at 09:04

Sally Barney wrote (see)

 We believe this is the start of a new age of charity challenge.

"the start of a new age of charity challenge" or another chapter in the dreary history of corporo-bollocks-speak?

Posted: 16/04/2012 at 09:52

I love to run/love to raise money for charity and combining the two is great - however its getting harder and harder to do the fundraising bit and having set amounts to raise is pushing to bar too far. I realise charities are feeling the pinch but if we are 'forced' to raise money then its not really charity is it?
Posted: 16/04/2012 at 11:08

I thought the run sounded fun, but I'm already in the middle of raising money for charity and that's for three challenges lasting until August. No way I'm starting another load of fundraising, and for that sort of amount.
Posted: 16/04/2012 at 22:07

Too many trips to the well already from previous fundraisers, simply uping the ante to an ultra will not mean anything to average jane/joe who already have put their hands in their pockets for marathons, halfs etc....

Wish the event well but I almost jumped out of my chair when I saw that it was minimum sponsorship of £750, London Marathon is bad enough with its 2,300+ minimum for charities...

Besides when I did not run for an official charity for LM, I felt compelled to raise funds for a local charity without the pressure of a minimum level and the donation was gratefully recieved as they could not afford the LM charity gold/silver costs per place....

Posted: 17/04/2012 at 15:39

This is a crazy and unreasonable sum of money and has meant that I can‘t enter this race, much as I would have loved to.  I've asked my friends and family to donate for too many previous marathons and I don't feel I can ask again.  Shame on race organisers for taking advantage and putting off keen runners like me who have raised a considerable sum for charity in the past.
Posted: 27/04/2012 at 17:23

I agree, I've raised money for my last half marathon (Sept) and marathon (April) and doing the same for the TR24 in July (not to mention other non-running charity events!). There are only so many times during a year people will give to the same person for charity.

I would have loved to have done this and would gladly have paid circa £100 to enter with optional charity fundraising (which I could probably have mustered up a couple of hundred quid) but £750 is just not likely for me. It's not just charities feeling the pinch!

Posted: 12/05/2012 at 15:50

I agree with all here. I would like to run this race as I am stepping up from marathon to ultra distance but £750 is a ridiculous amount of sponsorship to ask for. 
Posted: 28/05/2012 at 19:16

i ran the royal parks ultra and it was great - fantastic organisation, supportive marshalls all the ways and an almost flat course ( apart from richmond park).

i was worried about the level of sponsorship required and did not raise the £750 limit - managed just over £400.  the organisers have chased me a couple of times for the extra but i have politiely explained it was too high a limit and they have left me alone.

this was my first ultra and i am really tempted to do it again in 2013. they are offering £200 entry fee with no sponsirship this time ......................

 

 

Posted: 28/11/2012 at 06:04

200 is still very expensive for a run that is only just longer than a marathon. It's not like it's in the middle of nowhere or in the mountains where costs could be more to organise. Think I'll scrub this one from my list.
Posted: 28/11/2012 at 07:57

I suppose as long as they call it a charity event and not try and sell it as an ultra then they are fine...I su[pose they will be enough London based people with money in their pockets to make it work for them....but to me that might well lose the appeal of the ultra because to me most of it is the great time you get meeting fellow runners out there....if its all corporate places then it might well have a different feel to it

 

Posted: 28/11/2012 at 08:07

It's their race so they can set their price.

Plenty of cheaper races to do.
Posted: 28/11/2012 at 08:37

I thought I heard a review of this on Talk Ultra the other day and there were a few pros involved. Sounded like it was a " proper" race.
Maybe I was getting it confused with another event.
Posted: 28/11/2012 at 22:47