Fell Races

Our Fell Race Secretary is Dave Bish

Beeston AC take part in Fell Races in the Peak District between March and October on weekday evenings with some weekend races.

Fellrunning is sociable, fun way to run in beautiful places. Races tend to start on a village playing field or pub car park, up a big hill, along a bit, before speeding back down again. An ideal way to spend a summer evening.

We know it’s not the most accessible kind of racing – because there’s a fair bit of travel and a bit of kit involved (See below), but it’s by far the most enjoyable and sociable!

Your race entry (usually about £5) raises money for local schools, pays for village defibrillators and supports mountain rescue.

Kit

You’ll need some fell or trail shoes – something with a bit of grip.

Very few midweek Peak District summer races will actually make you carry that on the night if the weather is good, because you’ll never get more than a couple of miles from the village so the risks are minimal. Long races or spring/autumn/winter you’re more likely to be required to have kit.

It’s good practice to run with Full FRA kit, especially if you’re out on your own on the fells. It’s mostly there in case something goes wrong. If the weather turns, if you or someone else gets injured ‘full body cover’ will help keep you warm and dry. Your whistle helps you signal for help. Likewise, if you’re on higher ground visibility can vanish quickly so a map and compass are vital. Don’t depend on a phone to get help or navigate – in cold conditions your battery can die, and if you get caught in rain it’s not easy to use a touchscreen.

Kit to get is: full waterproof body cover with taped seams (including a hood), hat, gloves. Longer/non-summer races may also require a whistle, compass, map (printed for the area the race is in rather than a full OS map) survival bag, emergency food, water. A small rucksack or bumbag is the best way to carry your kit. This at the discretion of race organisers on the day, depending on the weather – details on FRA Event page and usually on social media. You can put the basics of this kit together fairly cheaply from Decathlon or other retailers. It’s unlikely you’ll run in your waterproof trousers so as long as they have taped seams and fit you they’re a good item to pick up cheaply. A jacket is far more likely to be something you run in, so get something you’re comfortable with.

Your waterproof trousers are the item you’ll be least likely to run in – but they’ll help if you’re injured. A jacket you’re happy to run in is a good idea.

Races are governed by the FRA (Fell Runners Association). You can join the FRA for £16 a year which supports their work and gets you their magazine three times a year. You don’t need to join to run fell races, though you will get a discount at some races if you are an FRA member.

Calendar

Our 2026 season will begin on February 14th at the Winter Half Tour of Bradwell and run through to the Great Longstone Chase in early September.

Six results are required. There will be a core list of races and you’ll need to do at least 4 of those (to be published soon), and you can top up with any other two FRA races.

We’re aiming for a weekend in the Lakes from 26-28 June including the Buttermere fell race.

Men’s and Women’s trophies to be presented at the club AGM in November. Scoring is out of 100 points each races, based on the percentage of your time compared to the fastest time in your age category. Races are increasingly pre-entry only and can sell out fast. We’ll do our best to notify you when race entries open on Facebook or the BAC Fellrunners Whatsapp. Some races have their own Facebook pages so it’s worth finding and following them. If any of these races are cancelled we’ll arrange a suitable substitution. In the unlikely event of a tie we’ll work through head-to-head results.

Summer races from May-September are unlikely to require kit but you must follow the race organisers instructions and not race without what is required.

Beyond that, remember fell running is the most fun kind of running. We drive an hour with friends to somewhere beautiful, run, go to the pub, drive home together. What better way to spend an evening.

We have a BAC Fellrunners WhatsApp to share info, get advice, and arrange liftsharing, and arrange to go for a run in the Peaks. Contact Dave Bish to join via the Contact page or Facebook.

BAC at The Nottinghamshire AAA Fell Championship history.

2023-2025, we’ve picked up loads of medals!
In 2022 Caitlin Bradbury won the Women’s County Championship and so ran in the Inter-Counties in Wales. We picked up the Women’s Senior Team Gold (Caitlin Bradbury, Elaine Clifford, Chris Bexton), Men’s V45 Bronze for John Evans, Women’s V60 Silver for Chris Bexton.
In 2019 Greg Hopkinson won the Men’s County Championship. Women’s V35-44 Silver for Em Bish.
In 2018 Chris Bell won Men’s Silver and V35 Gold. Jackie Welburn got Women’s V35 Bronze. Geoff Pennington got Men’s V45 Bronze. We also got Men’s Team Gold (Chris Bell, Andy Hunter, Dan Rawson) and Men’s Team Silver (Geoff Pennington, James Isherwood, Dave Bish).
In 2016 Andrew Stuart won the Men’s County Championship.