Fell Championship
General Information:
The Fell Running Championship is open to all members (subject to minimum age limits on certain races). However, all who plan to take part should be aware that fell running is significantly more hazardous than road running, and some of the races in the championship will require specific equipment (waterproof full body cover, hat, gloves, map, whistle, compass) to be carried, and the ability to use a map and compass to navigate will be important should a race be held in poor weather/visibility. This is particularly the case on the longer races where the field can take different routes between checkpoints, and you may not have a line of other runners to follow.
See Requirements for Runners for more guidance.
That said, there are plenty of runners in the club who regularly take part in fell races, and we will be more than happy to offer advice on kit and/or navigation. The races have been selected to give as many runners as possible a possible the chance to compete. There are races in every category which are easier and more suitable for fell running novices, and I will be happy to advise on the suitability of races if asked.
Further details of all races, can be found on the excellent Fell Runners Association (FRA) website http://www.fellrunner.org.uk/races
Fell races are all categorised by severity of the terrain and the amount of height gain (A, B or C) and by length (S, M or L), with AL generally being the hardest, longest races, and CS the shortest, easiest. See the FRA Safety Rules (link above) for a full explanation. Some races require Pre-Entry (PE), and some are traditional Enter on the Day events (EOD). If there is an option it is usually a bit cheaper to pre-enter, and it guarantees you a place. Keep an eye on the FRA website, as pre-entry is becoming increasingly common.
Beginning in 2026, the novice category will be discontinued and replaced with a male and female ‘Fell Runner of the Year’ award. Selection will be made by the administrators and the committee, based on race attendance, performance and the individual’s positive influence on fellow runners.
2026 Championship Races
- Date not confirmed Cancelled
| Date | Race | Category |
|---|---|---|
| 1-Feb | Dovedale Big Daddy | AL |
| 14-Feb | Winter Tour of Bradwell | AL |
| 1-Mar | Cloud 9 | BM |
| 12-Apr | Wirksworth Incline | AS |
| 9-May | Cressbrook crawl | BM |
| 19-May | Totley Moor | BM |
| 22-May | Carsington Hill Race | CS |
| 27-May | Bluebells's Revenge | BS |
| 9-Jun | Calton Crawl | BS |
| 7-Jun | Passing Clouds | BM |
| 13-Jun | Wincle Trout | BS |
| TBC | Bakewell Pudding | CM |
| 2-Jul | Winster Hill Race | BS |
| 4-Jul | Warslow | AS |
| 8-Jul | Black Rocks | BS |
| 23-Jul | Sheldon | BS |
| 26-Jul | Holme Moss | AL |
| 4-Aug | Parwich Panoramic 5 | CS |
| 13-Aug | Ricky's race | BS |
| 1-Sep | Eyam fell race | BS |
| 5-Sep | Groovy Kinder Love | AL |
| 5-Sep | Groovy Baby Love | BM |
| 5 Sept | Longshaw Sheepdog Trials | BS |
| 6-Sep | Exterminator | BL |
| 13-Sep | Ilam 3 peaks | AS |
| 27-Sep | Stuart Learmouth Wirksworth Undulator | BM |
| 4-Oct | Dovedale Dash | CS |
| 11-Oct | Windgather | BL |
| 31-Oct | Monsal Mash | AS |
| 8-Nov | Roaches | BL |
| 8-Nov | Leg it Round Lathkil | BM |
Championship Rules:
- The championship event consists of 7 races to count across the board, minimum 1 Long, 2 Medium, 4 Short, but points will still be counted for anyone completing additional longer races (i.e., you can do more long races in place of Short/Medium, or more Medium in place of short, but not the other way round)
- Points are awarded based on overall finishing position in the race. i.e. if you come in 47th place in a field of 120 finishers, then you score (47/120) x100 = 39 points. Field position will be taken from number of finishers, not the number of starters.
- You can do as many of the races as you like, so long as the minimum requirements are met, and your best scores in each category (S,M,L) will count.
- The winner will be the runner with the lowest total from their best 7 qualifying races
- There will be awards for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Places in the Male & Female Championship
- Runners must enter races as Ashbourne RC runners.
- Matt Downes and Will Broad will administer the Championship but may not be at all races. It is the members own responsibility to inform the administrator that they have taken part in races and provide information on the results if required. ashbournerunning@gmail.com
- The administrators, subject to committee ratification, reserve the right to modify the race calendar, including the addition or removal of events.
- All results will be ratified at a committee meeting prior to the annual awards evening and all winners will be announced at the awards event.
- We have done our best to make sure that all the race details are correct, but please make sure you check at least the FRA website when planning your events.