Barnsley 10k 2024 [] Amazing Town Centre Race [] Where The UK Road Running Boom Began 50 Years Ago

I was so excited to see the return of the Barnsley 10k. Originally the Barnsley Six, this was the first race in the UK to promote mass participation, rather than races being only for dedicated club runners.

With a town centre start and finish, the atmosphere on the day was amazing and show the town of Barnsley in its best colours.

I was proud and slightly emotional to be able to run the Barnsley 10k, where my first ever race had been in 1999, and in the town where I had helped to set up a previous version of the Barnsley 10k in 2004.

5 4 3 2 1 loving it this is brilliant done cheers M thank you means a lot today is a massive day in running at this spot 50 years ago a race started called the Barnsley 6 it was the first race ever in the country to encourage Mass participation unattached Runners and women running in the same races men so today 50 years later is the start of the brand new Bounty 10K which runs past here in just 1 hour’s time so the London Marathon the great North run many people associate those races with the start of the running boom in the UK but I can tell you it was this town barnesley back in the mid 1970s which first came up with the idea of a mass participation race and races that women could take part in alongside men and for me personally this is a very significant day because it was 25 years ago in this town that I did my first ever race a different version of the bounty 10K and it’s 20 years since myself and a friend set up an alternative version of the bounty 10K which ran for a few years out in nearby royon so this is a race with a huge significance for running history in this country but also for me personally as a runner but the bouny 6 and the sort of success of the bounty 10K weren’t just important for the people and town of barsley used to get Runners from all around the country all the famous names of running from the 70s and 80s Steve Kenyan Ron Hill Mike Gratton all came and took part in the barsley 6 and the Bley 10K so the version of the bounty 10K myself and a friend setup was a little bit out in the sticks 20 years ago but what we have today is Road running returning to the very heart of Bary to the Bary town center and it’s been set up by a young man called gar cook he’s a very famous runner in the area he works at Bounty Council and he’s used part of his job to get this fantastic race back in the heart of Bary Che the T-shirt somebody who took part in that first ever bansy 6 race just so it was with great excitement and anticipation I made my way down to the town center seeing Runners from all around the town that i’ known for several years some I’d only known for a few years and there was a real sense of B in the buildup to this great race and a special shout out here to the chap in the orange bib Dave Bennett one of the three men who set up the original bouny 6 still a great coach in the area and a great supporter of the bansy Running Scene so it’s lovely to meet up as I said with friends that we’ve known for years this is brilliant yeah this race had sold out well over a thousand places within the space of 48 Hours the people from all the local running clubs present but what was also great to see as in the spirit Spirit of the original bansy 6 that there were so many unattached Runners taking part in the race also 4 3 2 1 is officially on the way started by the to Mayor and the so what a fantastic sight all these Runners pouring over the start line in the Town Center eager to take part in the resurrected barnesley [Applause] 10K and what a great atmosphere in the town too it wasn’t just about the runners but all the supporters Who come out to cheer us on to Marshall to generally support the town in bringing back this fantastic high-profile great Race So as you can see the first kilometer of the race Loops through the town center taking in many of the famous Civic buildings on the pedestrianized area here it’s a little bit um hilly we’re just about to swing a left and go up a steep hill but it gives a chance of people to get into Pace judge their efforts um I’m well familiar with plenty of these Runners just in front of me so sped it up now and after a little while we end up on one of the main roads called Westway now because this race had the full backing and was indeed partly organized by the bansy council we had road closures in place really seamless organization here’s Dawn Tak some pictures of the leaders going past the iconic town hall and the war memorial statue there um I’m just coming up a steep hill here called shamble Street you’ll see in a minute a lovely old um theater on the left we run past again some of the famous Civic buildings in Barnsley working hard as we do so so it’s quite a tough first kilometer to judge your effort and gauge your pace so is coming down chamble street now about to swing a left past the bsy pal cenery Square in memory of those brave men from Barnsley who gave their lives in the Great War I’m about to tell d what I think of the race so far loving it I was there was something indescribably fantastic about the atmosphere and camaraderie across the whole race from the front of the field all the way through to the back of the field everybody supporting each other cheering each other on in a great spirit so takat Spirit on the left here we have a statue which is a memorial to The Oaks color design disaster of the 1860s where several miners lost their lives on the left here we have the former nuum headquarters as well so when the bounty 6 originally was set up in 1974 Bary was at the center of the British coal mining industry I think most of us are well aware what happened to that industry in the 80s and ’90s the town had taken some knocks but it’s still very proud of its coal mining Heritage and obviously very proud of its running Heritage hence this race for myself I’m running between about 410 and 420 per kilometer it’s a pace that will get me round in about 42 minutes now we are going down Huddersfield Road it’s a thinking person’s course this there is a sort of slight downhill here and you don’t want to go too crazy and pound [Applause] down that was a great support still coming down Huddersfield Road you don’t want to pound down but equally you don’t want to think it’s a really tough climb on the way back and save yourself too much it’s deceptively quick actually uh Gareth race organizer was right you can get a pretty good Pace going if you Pace this sensibly so as you can see by this stage we’re getting pretty spread out this is running from Aquas this is really clever they put cones down here so the runners is going out on the course are in this Middle Lane so the left traffic’s still able to flow going back towards barnley and on the right hand Lan as you’ll see in a minute you’ll see the the leaders come through Scott there in the bans AC vest and his clubmate Josh in third while we’re able to go out and we’re about to swing a loop right around the back of the car sales rooms you can see there so yeah um using this Aqua Runner trying to keep him in sight yes on this part of the course is probably the least crowd support because there are no houses for people to come out it’s not on the main road we’re only around the back of a trading estate and we’re coming up to water station in a minute which is about 5 1/2k I don’t take water on generally during a 10K as you can see it’s a reasonably cool overcast day but do you take water on in a 10K let me know in the comments below yeah massively enthusiastic water station volunteers here and to provide further entertainment on this quite a bit of the course we have some music coming up in a minute to keep us all entertained and motivated [Music] [Applause] yeah just a small clip there so we don’t get a copyright strike so yeah we’re just about to come out of this trading estate swing a left and go back up huttersfield Road and that also means that we will then see some of the runners coming back down and again that’s a fantastic site I’m looking out for people I know people have been in clubs within the past how’s it yeah well then howy great to see you out enjoying the Bounty 10K along with well over a thousand fellow Runners so this bit we’re coming back up Huddersfield Road there are a few climbs I see a chapus overtaking me here on the right um Jonathan from manvers Tri asked if I was feeling okay um I said well generally I am but perhaps not at the minute on this drag uh yeah so we’re heading back to Water Town Center here uh passing the kilometer markers all exactly in the right place as you’d expect for a race organized by Gareth uh coming towards the Town Center so now you can just see the um back bus and the back markers going back down and I’m just trying to hang on to Jonathan here to get back to the center of town and hopefully have a final push so we’re now in what were the leafy suburbs of Barnsley probably in the late 1800s some nice houses on the left and right many now offices for solicitors and other professional um occupations um you can see trees on either side and I’m reminded now of all the old Tempo runs I used to do with bar AC which started and finished on this particular straight of Road working hard channeling that inner self you can see Jonathan still lurking there in front of me um trying to keep hold of him as we come back towards the Town Center just going to approach the crossroads now and we will be back in Bounty town center and I was expecting Dawn a little bit further up the road but she’d come down at the little bit by the bouncy College there on the left so by this stage obviously legs are re tired full of lactic acid but still feeling fantastically motivated to be running in this wonderful race there’s Dawn on the left and in a minute we’ll see Dawn camp now this isn’t the great Bary earthquake of 2024 she was having a little problem with stabilization as I came pass but yeah got some good footage of the runners coming back into the Town Center so we are still got Jonathan in front of me and we’ve got just a little over a kilometer to go we’re passing the town hall on the right once again the war memorial there to all those Brave Bary men who never returned from the wars of the 20th century uh got plenty of crowd support still out cheering us all back in and we’re now just coming on to the pedestrianized day of town the Finish is just a couple of down on the left but we’ve got to do a kilometer Loop now I’ve let Jonathan get a little bit of a lead there but we have the hill we did in the first kilometer and decide right it’s now time to push up one of these famous Bary Hills that we keep hearing about um through the columns there and push on and see if I can get a little bit of a lead on Jonathan um up past the post office building there on the left still working hard with then swinger left and now is his chap in White in front of me I think think well maybe he can be the next Target in the last kilometer see if I can pick up the pace and now we have this lady runner in black as well who I can dis focus on and try and catch up with and possibly overtake now in a minute for the last sort of quarter of a mile of the race we’re in familiar territory this is where I used to do all POF sessions of barn EAC so last part of the race I’ll just let you hear the lovely crowds [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] the big round Applause now as we welcome our next across the line 42 minutes 40 seconds this is amazing congratulations well done this is brilliant well done cheers mate thank you means a lot so official finish time for me at 4237 but today really wasn’t about the time which was actually quite good for where I am at the minute it was about taking part in this wonderful resurrected Bounty 10K well done to Tom from dronfield running club see it was great to meet new faces like Tom who subscribe and follow the channel as well as many dear old friends I’ve known for years on the bansy Running Scene so you see great scenes here people congratulating each other cheering each other on sharing anecdotes is Pat there who did the Bounty TK back in the 1980s great to see him still competing my friend Keith here great B AC Runner so Bounty 10K done and dusted I absolutely love that as I said at the beginning it’s a really important event to me it’s where my running started and it’s a really important event in the history of British road racing for the reasons I’ve already outlined my own performance 4237 a solid day at the office I was actually more thinking about enjoying the event enjoying the fact that a road race was back in the center the town of barnesley more than it being a goal race for me so really enjoyed the whole thing the crowds the support the camaraderie seing people have known on the Running Scene for years and years and years so real highlight of my running year yep 10K my absolute favorite distance my perfect race is running a 10K on the road so I’ll be doing plenty more 10K road races as the year progresses and hoping to get closer to 40 minutes so until next time keep on keeping on keep on keeping on