Great Brook Run
Encyclopedia
The Great Brook Run is an annual mile-long cross country run which takes place on 27 December in Chadlington
, Oxfordshire
, England
. It is a fun run
event for charity and all proceeds go to The Friends of Chadlington School, a charitable group which supports the local primary school. The course is wet and muddy as it traces a path along the Coldron Brook (a stream
in the village) and passes through a 3-foot tunnel under a bridge.
The event was devised by Adam Engberg and James Kelly, and it was first held in 2006. The event has a fictional history which involves Viking
s who attempt to invade the village in the year 1066, but find themselves thwarted by the brook. The course begins at the local pub – a 17th century building called The Tite Inn – and sets off for half a mile in the brook before looping back and finishing at the same point.
Entrants, who donate £5 to take part, are encouraged to wear suitable clothing, although many fun-runners opt for fancy dress. People of all ages enter the competition and every competitor receives a medal, regardless of performance. Around seventy people competed in the first race in 2006 and this had increased to over 100 by the third edition. The competition gained sponsorship from The Cotswold Brewing Co. in 2008 and 2009.
The first edition of the Great Brook Run was featured on the BBC
's South Today
, a regional news programme. The race received nation-wide media attention following the second race owing to the participation of the Conservative Party
Leader David Cameron
, who is the current Member of Parliament
for the village's constituency
(Witney
). He acted as the race starter in 2007, and took part in both the 2008 and 2009 races. He finished 25th overall in 2008, beating a man dressed as Spider-Man
to the finish line.
Chadlington
Chadlington is a village and civil parish in the Evenlode Valley about south of Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, England. The village comprises five "ends" - almost individual hamlets in their own right - called Greenend, Brookend, Westend, Millend, and Eastend....
, Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is a fun run
Fun run
A fun run is a friendly race that involves either road running or cross country running with participants taking part for their own enjoyment rather than competition. A fun run will usually be held to raise funds for a charity, with sponsors providing the revenue to cover organisational costs...
event for charity and all proceeds go to The Friends of Chadlington School, a charitable group which supports the local primary school. The course is wet and muddy as it traces a path along the Coldron Brook (a stream
Stream
A stream is a body of water with a current, confined within a bed and stream banks. Depending on its locale or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to as a branch, brook, beck, burn, creek, "crick", gill , kill, lick, rill, river, syke, bayou, rivulet, streamage, wash, run or...
in the village) and passes through a 3-foot tunnel under a bridge.
The event was devised by Adam Engberg and James Kelly, and it was first held in 2006. The event has a fictional history which involves Viking
Viking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
s who attempt to invade the village in the year 1066, but find themselves thwarted by the brook. The course begins at the local pub – a 17th century building called The Tite Inn – and sets off for half a mile in the brook before looping back and finishing at the same point.
Entrants, who donate £5 to take part, are encouraged to wear suitable clothing, although many fun-runners opt for fancy dress. People of all ages enter the competition and every competitor receives a medal, regardless of performance. Around seventy people competed in the first race in 2006 and this had increased to over 100 by the third edition. The competition gained sponsorship from The Cotswold Brewing Co. in 2008 and 2009.
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's South Today
South Today
South Today is the BBC's regional television news programme for East Dorset, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Berkshire, West Sussex and the western fringes of Surrey...
, a regional news programme. The race received nation-wide media attention following the second race owing to the participation of the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
Leader David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
, who is the current Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for the village's constituency
United Kingdom constituencies
In the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly.Within the United Kingdom there are now five bodies with members elected by constituencies:...
(Witney
Witney (UK Parliament constituency)
Witney is a county constituency in Oxfordshire represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election, and was created for the 1983 general election....
). He acted as the race starter in 2007, and took part in both the 2008 and 2009 races. He finished 25th overall in 2008, beating a man dressed as Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
to the finish line.
External links
- Official website
- Official event page on facebookFacebookFacebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
- The Friends of Chadlington School website
- The Tite Inn website