Boxing Day Race

JUNIOR RACE

THE START: 9.25am Under 11’s & accompanying parents  

THE COURSE:    2 laps of a new course, which starts at the Clock Tower in Market Square and includes both Market & Kingsbury Squares. The course is still approx 800 metres and the route will be marshalled with a senior lead runner for juniors to follow. Finish will be in the High Street.

AWARD: Prize or medal to all finishers. A drinks voucher will also be available to spend in Mendoza cafe.

SAFETY: Please note that the junior race is run on a combination of public roads and footpaths. Runners should take great care if the conditions are either icy or slippery, to run on the pavements, only to cross public roads when it is safe to do so, and heed any instructions given by the Race Referee and/or Marshalls, especially at road junctions. Wearing of personal listening devises i.e. iPods is strictly prohibited and could lead to disqualification.

Due to the number of sharp turns on the course, dogs are not allowed to accompany runners.

5K RACE

THE START: (min. age 12) The 5K will start in the Market Square at 9.45am.

THE COURSE: The 5k race comprises 1 lap of the Market Square followed by 2 laps of Aylesbury Town Centre. The race will finish in the High Street. The route will be clearly marked and marshalled.

SAFETY: Please note that the race is run on a combination of public roads and footpaths. Runners should take great care if the conditions are either icy or slippery, to run on the pavements, only to cross public roads when it is safe to do so, and heed any instructions given by the Race Referee and/or Marshalls, especially at road junctions. Wearing of personal listening devises i.e. iPods is strictly prohibited and could lead to disqualification.  Due to the number of sharp turns on the course, dogs are not allowed to accompany runners.

History of the race

The first Boxing Day race was held on the road in 1939, a handicap over about 4 ½ miles. Another was held on Boxing Day 1940, again a handicap but this time over the country. Both during wartime of course.

Boxing Day 1949 was the first post-war race as far as the Club can tell, a road handicap starting in the Market Square. No one could catch limit man Pete Keep. Age 15 (He was still living on the Bedgrove estate in 1998!).

The first non-handicap Boxing Day race has been held since 1950 and has covered several routes within the Town Centre since its inauguration. D Woods won the first race and returned as victor the following year. Throughout the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s, Vale athletes competed for the J W Rouss Cup (it was last awarded in 1979). Some well known Vale runners of their day lifted the trophy they included John Collins, Rex Foulkes, Ron Gomez, Pat Ferguson, Bob Ellerton and Gordon Rimmer. In 2000 a new trophy was awarded to the first Vale runner home – the Kirk Clifford Trophy. Kirk had been a stalwart of the Club before injury and his Company had previously sponsored the race in the early years of the open era.

The race which began as a Club only event, was opened up to other enthusiastic runners in the 1980’s and 1990’s over a two loop course taking into account Walton Pond. It boasted steeplechase international Roger Hackney and Olympic swimmer turned tri-athlete Robin Brew amongst the previous winners, along with a string of wins and top three finishes by local athlete Andy Magnall. In 1996 the course measured 6.5km and included running up the High Street.  A new course was introduced in 2005 making it an accurate standardised distance of 5km. The race was not held in 2010 due to a snow covered course.

The current course consists of three laps (1 large lap of 2km followed by two slightly smaller laps of 1.5km), each lap taking on the short climb up Castle Street which has been a spectacular feature over the years.