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The Nationwide Building Society New Swindon Half Marathon event image

The Nationwide Building Society New Swindon Half Marathon

The Swindon County Ground

The Magic Roundabout, Swindon SN1 2EA, UK

Sun 20th September 2020

Starting at 09:30

Organiser's Description

At the heart of the south west's huge running community and with a famously fast course, Swindon is the perfect place for your next half marathon.

Starting and finishing in the Town Centre, the closed-road course is mostly flat with an incredible downhill final mile! The route takes you past some of the town's attractions - the beautifully restored Grade II listed Museum of the Great Western Railway, the Magic Roundabout, voted 4th scariest junction in Britain (don't worry it'll be closed to traffic!), the County Ground, home to Swindon Town FC since 1896, the chic Swindon Designer Outlet and the charming Old Town, the cultural heart of Swindon.

The race won the Bronze award in the 2018 Running Awards Best Half Marathon Category (< 5000 participants) and continues to grow each year. The Nationwide Building Society New Swindon Half Marathon 2019 also won the Racecheck Bronze Award and is one of the top rated races in the UK, as judged by you! 

The original Anglo-Saxon settlement of Swindon was built on top of a limestone hill and referred to as Suindune, derived from the Old English words "swine" and "dun" meaning "pig hill"! You&#39;ll love trotting around with runners from Swindon and across the south west, make the most of the town for post-run troughing and a brilliant day out.

Swindon Town Centre provides free parking for several thousand cars. The new car parks in Princes Street, or to the rear of Debenhams, are just a 0.4 mile walk to the start and a 0.3 mile walk from the finish.

 

On entering this event you should receive a booking confirmation email within 10 minutes. If you fail to do so, please check your spam/junk folder. Further event details will be communicated by email (to the address provided during registration) in the week leading up to the race.

 

Race Details

Registration: From 08:00 to 09:15.

Race Numbers: Participants who register on or prior to 12th September 2021 with a valid UK address can expect to receive their race pack by mail. Participants who provide an incomplete, invalid or non-UK address, together with anyone registering after 13th September 2021, will need to collect their race pack from registration on the day. If you expect, but fail to receive your pack by 15th September 2021, please contact us in order that we can prepare a replacement for collection on the day. To be fastened to the front of your top using the safety pins provided in your pack/at registration, your number should be visible at all times. Your race will be timed and the chip attached to the back of your number should not be removed.

Route: The course is traffic free, on closed roads and paths (with the exception of emergency responders and vehicles with specific permission). Please always be vigilant of other runners, spectators, dogs, cyclists and other users of public footpaths and rights of way.

Licensing: This race will be licensed with UK Athletics and the results submitted to Run Britain within a week of the race.

Pacers: Subject to the easing of additional COVID-19 restrictions, pacers will be offered at this race, covering times between 1h30 and 3h30. Should you wish to run at your own leisure, Pace Pockets are available for purchase from our pacing partners at www.pacepockets.run. Pace Pockets are fabric wristbands with a storage pocket for all your running essentials, such as keys, cards, cash or gels, printed with your choice of marathon or half marathon splits. Use promo code PPZERO during purchase to facilitate free delivery. 

Facilities

Bag Drop: We recommend bringing as little as possible to the race but, subject to the easing of additional COVID-19 restrictions, you can leave your belongings with us while you race using the tear-off baggage strip on your race number, collecting after you finish by presenting your race number.

Toilets: Portable toilets will be available at the start and finish area.

Race Marshals: Marshals will be present on the course throughout the race.

Distance Markers: The route will be clearly indicated with arrows, tape and distance markers where necessary.

Water Stations: There will be water stations on the route at regular intervals at which water will be provided.

Finisher Goodies: All runners will receive water and snacks on finishing the race.

Refreshments: Subject to the easing of additional COVID-19 restrictions, refreshments will be available at the start and finish.

Changing/Showers: There are no changing rooms or showers at this event.

Lost Property: Lost property from an event will be kept for one month. If unclaimed, or ownership cannot be determined, lost property items will be donated to charity.

Results/Prizes

Results: Results will be uploaded live to our website (internet connection permitting) and communicated to all pre-registered participants within 24 hours of the event.

Medals: All finishers will receive a medal on completing the race.

Prizes: Prizes will be awarded to the top three runners overall and the top runner in each of the veteran categories (V40/V50/V60/V70) for both males and females. Where possible, we will endeavour to present individual race prizes once validated on the day.

Further Information

Buggies/Pushchairs: This race is suitable for runners with buggies/pushchairs. You may be asked to sign a disclaimer, start at the back of the field and be vigilant of other runners overtaking during the race.

Wheelchair Users: This race is suitable for wheelchair users. You may be asked to start at the front of the field 5-10 minutes before the scheduled start time and be vigilant of other runners overtaking during the race.

Earphones/Headphones: Noise-cancelling earphones/headphones are prohibited and whilst we discourage the use of other earphones/headphones at this event, participants choosing to use them should ensure they are set to a minimum volume such that instructions from marshals or other race officials can be clearly understood. We reserve the right to disqualify participants who cannot hear instructions as a result of their use.

Event Time-Limit: Whilst there is no strict time-limit for this race, in order that we adhere to the restrictions imposed by the council, it may be necessary for us to begin deconstruction of the course and finish area after approximately 4 hours in order to reopen roads by the agreed time.

Social Media

For further information about our races or any race updates, please check our social media accounts;

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Races

  • Half Marathon

    Sun 20th September 2020

    £39.00

    UK Athletics (UKA) save £2.00

    CLOSED
  • Residents of South Swindon Parish Council (SSPC) Half Marathon Entry

    Sun 20th September 2020

    £29.00

    UK Athletics (UKA) save £2.00

    CLOSED

Book

  • Half Marathon

    Sun 20th September 2020

    £39.00

    UK Athletics (UKA) save £2.00

    CLOSED
  • Residents of South Swindon Parish Council (SSPC) Half Marathon Entry

    Sun 20th September 2020

    £29.00

    UK Athletics (UKA) save £2.00

    CLOSED
What's Included

All finishers will receive a medal

Prizes will be awarded to the top three runners overall and the top runner in each of the veteran categories (V40/V50/V60/V70) for both males and females

Bag drop

Chip-timed

Portable toilets will be available at the start and finish area

Marshals will be present on the course throughout the race

The route will be clearly indicated with arrows, tape and distance markers

There will be water stations on the route at regular intervals - water will be provided in recyclable plastic cups

All runners will receive water and snacks on finishing the race

Location

Swindon County Ground, Swindon, Wiltshire

How To Get There

By road: The ground is well signposted in and around Swindon town centre. Just follow signs for 'The County Ground'.

From the North:
A419 from Cricklade/Cirencester/M5: Continue on the A419 until reaching the top of the 3 lane stretch of dual-carriageway, which runs uphill. (Stay in the inside lane as the exit approaches quickly). Take the exit at the top of the hill (Lady Lane Junction). At the lights go right, then almost immediately at the next set of lights go left. Follow this road through the next set of traffic lights (passing the Motorola building to the right), then branch left onto the A4311. From here follow signs for Town Centre. At Transfer Bridges roundabouts turn left at the first and then straight over the second. The County Ground is on the left after the mini-roundabout.

From M4 Junction 15:
Follow the A4259 (Queens Drive) towards Swindon. Go across one roundabout and at the next take the first exit onto the A4312 (signposted Swindon/Football Traffic). You will see the floodlights of the County Ground over on the right, as you approach the large Magic Roundabout. The County Ground is on the corner of this roundabout.

By train: Swindon Railway Station has services to Bristol Temple Meads, London Paddington, Cardiff Central, Cheltenham Spa, Taunton, Swansea.

The County Ground is walkable from the Station and will take you around 10-15 minutes. Leave the station, cross the road and proceed up the road between the two pubs (Great Western and Queen's Tap), continue to end of road. Turn left, proceed along Manchester Road, through traffic lights as far as you can go. At the junction turn right. The County Ground is about 300 yards up this road on the left.

Parking

If you survive the Magic Roundabout then there is some street parking. Otherwise park at the cricket club (take County Road off the Magic Roundabout, go past the County Hotel on your right, you will see a small sign further down on your right for football parking, just before the mini roundabout) which costs £5. Post Code for SAT NAV: SN1 2ED

Swindon Town Centre also provides free parking for several thousand cars. The new car parks in Princes Street, or to the rear of Debenhams, are just a 0.4mile walk to the start and a 0.3mile walk from the finish.

Course Details

The course is traffic free, on completely closed roads and paths (with the exception of emergency responders and vehicles with specific permission), so no cars or pedestrians will be allowed on the run course. Please always be vigilant of other runners, spectators, dogs, cyclists and other users of public footpaths and rights of way.

The town centre finish will be fenced from Regents Circus right down to the finish line. There will be ample space on both sides of the fenced area for spectators and pedestrians on both sides.

Other Information

Start/finish: Start - Swindon County Ground (postcode SN1 2ED). Finish - Commercial Road.

Entry on the Day: Subject to a £2 surcharge (cash only, subject to availability).

Age Requirements: Participants must be aged 17 or over on the day of the race.

Registration: From 08:00 to 09:15.

Race Numbers: Participants should receive their race pack by post to the address provided during registration. Participants who provide an incomplete, invalid or non-UK address, together with anyone registering after 30 August 2020, will need to collect their race pack from registration on the day. If you fail to receive your pack by 14 September 2020, please contact us in order that we can prepare a replacement for collection on the day.

To be fastened to the front of your top using the safety pins provided in your pack/at registration, your number should be visible at all times. Your timing chip is attached to the back of your number and should not be removed.

Licensing: This race will be licensed with UK Athletics and the results submitted to Run Britain within a week of the race.

Pacers: Subject to availability, we expect to have pacers at this event.

Earphones: Noise-cancelling earphones/headphones are prohibited and whilst we discourage the use of other earphones/headphones at this event, participants choosing to use them should ensure they are set to a minimum volume such that instructions from marshals or other race officials can be clearly understood. We reserve the right to disqualify participants who cannot hear instructions as a result of their use.

Time limit: Whilst there is no strict time-limit for this race, in order that we adhere to the restrictions imposed by the venue hire agreement, it may be necessary for us to begin deconstruction of the course and finish area after approximately 4 hours in order to reopen roads by the agreed time.

Bag Drop: Whilst we recommend bringing as little as possible, you can leave your belongings with us while you race using the tear-off baggage strip on your race number. Your belongings will be transported to the finish where you can collect them by presenting your race number.

Refreshments: Refreshments will be available at the start and finish.

Changing/Showers: There are no changing rooms or showers at this event.

Lost Property: Lost property from an event will be kept for one month. If unclaimed, or ownership cannot be determined, lost property items will be donated to charity.

Results: Results will be uploaded live to our website (internet connection permitting) and, where possible/practical, timing print-outs will be available at the race. In all cases, results will be communicated to all pre-registered participants within 24 hours of the event.

Buggies/Pushchairs: This race is suitable for runners with buggies/pushchairs. You may be asked to sign a disclaimer, start at the back of the field and be vigilant of other runners overtaking during the race.

Wheelchair Users: This race is suitable for wheelchair users. You may be asked to start at the front of the field 5-10 minutes before the scheduled start time and be vigilant of other runners overtaking during the race.

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Rebecca Holbourne

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The Swindon County Ground

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