Race Date: Sunday 11^th June 2016

The Weets Fell race was first held in 1971 and was part of the Barnoldswick gala weekend. It used to start at the Rolls Royce club and go through the centre of the town before makings its way to the narrow lanes that lead to open moorland and the 1,302 ft summit of Weets. It was a straight up and down race and as a lot of the running was on the road, it was very fast. In its day, it attracted a field of top runners, such as Kenny Stuart and Ron Hill.

The costs of closing off most of the roads through the centre of Barnoldswick meant that the race was eventually abandoned, but it was resurrected by Kevin Rogan with a new course which did not involve running through the town.

The new course is half a mile shorter than the old one, but is much more challenging in that there is more off road running and more climbing, some of it on the return leg when you least expect it. The course is still partially on the road and as such, it will not suit off road purists, but if you are looking for a different race with a bit of a challenge, this race will not disappoint.

Thomas Corrigan of Barlick Fell Runners was the race winner, in a time of 38:08. The winning lady was Sarah Tipler, also of Barlick Fell Runners – in 45:43.

134 runners finished the race, including one Strider. Well done to Phil!