Added on 4th May 2022 Wokingham Dinton Races Return

Dinton Races Return For 10th Anniversary Series

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Runners of all ages and abilities are invited to lace up their shoes for this year’s Barnes Fitness Dinton Summer Series, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary when it launches this month.

The racing, which is held at Dinton Pastures Country Park near Hurst with support from Wokingham Borough Council, consists of several friendly 5km and 10km events along a flat, scenic, traffic-free route.

When

These will be held at 7.30pm on Thursday 12 May, Thursday 9 June and Thursday 14 July and at 7pm on Thursday 11 August.

Entrants complete either one or two laps of a 5km circuit around the lakeside beauty spot – and those who sign up more than once might just see their course record drop throughout the summer.

Finishers of each event can claim a medal, which is designed to interlock with medals from the others in the series, or have a tree planted in their name instead.

Those who choose this will get a certificate showing the exact location of their sapling from Trees Not Tees, which will plant it.

Prizes will also be awarded to the first, second and third-placed male and female entrant and the first male and female in the veterans’ over-40s, 50s, 60s and 70s age groups.

Stephen Brown, assistant director for place services at Wokingham Borough Council, said: “We’re proud to be supporting these hugely popular races for the 10th year running and would once again encourage as many residents as possible to take part.

“It’s a fun day out for all the family, whether you’re taking part or cheering on a friend or relative at the finish line, and it offers something for everyone, however experienced they might be.

“Our flat course is perfect for serious runners who want to smash their personal best, but also ideal for beginners who want the satisfaction of finishing a 5k without any added challenges like hills.

“We’re hoping for good weather on all four days and can’t wait to see you there.”

Ellie Barnes, director at Barnes Fitness, said: “Some of our runners told us they had lots of medals and were concerned about generating more waste.

“I care about our environment too and thought it would be a great idea to plant trees instead. Last year the Dinton Summer Series dedicated 116 trees and we hope even more will be planted this year.”

Entry fees range from £19 (5km) to £21 (10km) per race and from £72 (5km) to £78 (10km) for the entire series while entering a race virtually, in which entrants can run any 5km or 10km course of their choice and count the result towards their Summer Series time, costs £17.

All races will be marshalled and chip-timed, with free photographs available afterwards, and parking is available on site.

Online entries close at 11.59pm on the Tuesday before each event and 5km runners must be 13 or over while 10km runners must be 16 or over.