Rotary Club of Hatherleigh – 2021 Ruby Run half marathon route planning

We are currently preparing for the next Ruby Run from Hatherleigh to Holsworthy on the assumption that Covid-19 restrictions are lifted by June 2021.We have been asked by Holsworthy Running Club to arrange for the finish to be in Stanhope Park, Holsworthy.

The most direct route for achieving this is along the A3072 to Waterloo Road, Holsworthy, then along Waterloo Road to Stanhope Park. However, we are concerned about the safety of runners on Waterloo Road. This is a particularly dangerous road for anyone on foot. It is a busy, narrow, dark and bendy, non-official bypass route around Holsworthy. To ensure safety it would have to be closed. Closure of the road at the beginning of the race when participants are bunched together and separated by say 10 minutes would be a minor problem. However, as the run finishes just beyond Waterloo Road, it would need to be closed for several hours. This is unlikely to be authorised.

 Alternatively, keeping to the safer roads through Holsworthy makes the route too long by about 1km if we want to start in or near Hatherleigh. We have now found a second alternative link to avoid Waterloo Road and would like to hear your opinions as this includes a 400m off road section on an unsurfaced footpath.

This link means leaving Windmill Hill on the A3072 to join a footpath about halfway down the Hill. This path continues through to Church Lane near the centre of Holsworthy. Please see attached map and the images provided. At the end of Church Lane, the route turns right along the A388 to the junction with Waterloo Road. There is then just a short distance along Sanders Lane from there to the entrance to Stanhope Park.

Most of the Windmill Hill/Church Lane footpath is wide enough to accommodate more than two runners side by side. There are a few pinch points at the two foot bridges and their approach, however as it is near the end of the run, the participants should be well separated. The footpath was inspected after two days of heavy rain and the ground was free from mud.

We would welcome your comments on whether or not this would be acceptable to you and other runners that you know.

Thank you for your help,

Secretary, Rotary Club of Hatherleigh                                                     23-Oct-20

E-mail address for reply: rotaryhatherleigh@gmail.com

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The last Ruby Run was on Sunday 9th June 2019. We ran from Holsworthy to Hatherleigh. 

Hatherleigh Rotary Club organised the event.

The overall winner of the race was Paul Piper, representing a London running club. Congratulations to him and to all those who took part. and we warmly welcome other visitors from non-local clubs to join us next year. They will certainly be challenged by our local club members and individuals!  

  We would also like to thank Rodney "Paparazzi" Parrish for taking the photos and for allowing us to display them; and a big thank you to all the sponsors and volunteers who made the 2019 Ruby Run such a success.

A sincere thanks to  Made-Well CIC , our main sponsor for this event. Click on the image above to view their leaflet for further information.