, as the locals turn out in force to cheer some 1,100 runners round the undulating, two-lap traffic-free course. Well established on the north-east racing agenda, this year marks the event’s 20th anniversary, and a concurrent 3K race for 11-16s and a beginners

Country Half-Marathon (West Midlands, July 15)Crown Classic Telford 10K (Shropshire, July 20)Northumberland Coastal Run (Northumberland, July 15) Not your average day at the seasideDespite its humble beginnings – starting out as a challenge among 12

at the course’s PB potential, given the downward elevation of the opening mile, and nothing more testing than a couple of slow gradual inclines thereafter. More 10-mile highlights...Stebbing 10 (Essex, November 11)-->Stortford 10 (Hertfordshire, November 18

of the historic city. Don’t feel ready to tackle the half-marathon distance? Then sign up for the Race4Each 5K option, also starting and finishing in Norfolk Showground.Bedford Harriers Half-Marathon (Bedfordshire, December 2) The last 13.1-miler in the UK racing

breaking down. It'll do it anyway. – SlowboyUse a scoring system to keep things in perspectiveMy advice is to rate pain on a scale of one to 10. Anything up to three or four and I'd train as normal providing it starts to go away within a week. Five to six

-changed after record temperatures rendered the course one of the driest reported in the event’s 13-year history.More off-road highlights...Jog Shop Jog 20 (Sussex, October 14)Tough Challenge Marathon (Essex, October 14)SIS Sandhurst Poppy Trail 10K (Surrey

's biggest half-marathon), a further 1,000 runners will be tackling the same distance in a distinctly different location: the market town of Macclesfield. Unlike the urban landscapes of its Tyne and Wear counterpart, Macclesfield's location on the western

will see you flying home for lashings of hot grub back at race HQ.More hardy half-marathons... Steyner Stinger Half-Marathon (Sussex, March 2) Midsummer Munro Half-Marathon (Surrey, June 21)Yorkshire Off-Road Half-Marathon (West Yorkshire, September 14)1000

picking up the pace and eventually the walking breaks went. A few years on, I'm now a marathon runner and gone from a size 14 to between an 8 and a 10. So stick at it, it's worth it in the end. Oh, and by the way,you'll burn a lot more calories outside

™ led the male veteran field (MV50) home in 3:09:15 (12th overall), while local runner 200 minutes proved to be the "fastest old man" (his own admission) in the 10K event, crossing the line in just 41:02.Dull Napoleon™, OuchOuch and Blisters