April 2026 Newsletter

With recent events in the UK trail running scene, we have been talking a lot about community this last few weeks. Trail running is booming, with options to race every week of the year, so it was a surprise when one of the most well-known race organisations went out of business. It was not a surprise though that people stepped up  in the way that they did to offer help to those that still wanted to run. It was great to see several people complete the Coast to Coast route with that help and to put their training into action. 

Community is a basic human need and there are endless studies on why this is true. We can have our survival needs met; be given food and water, shelter, a place to sleep and be safe from the elements but if we don’t go beyond that, our mental and emotional health will suffer. In recent times, we saw it during the Covid pandemic. There is evidence to show that children who didn’t go to school during that period found it incredibly hard to re-engage when they did return; there were far more absences when schools reopened and spending more time online exacerbated feelings of loneliness and isolation. For anyone, children and adults, the need to spend meaningful time with others is what enriches our lives beyond survival. Cultivating a sense of belonging and purpose to something greater makes life easier to manage, giving people a reason to maintain relationships and achieve goals.

The trail running community is a wonderful one to be a part of and it has so many branches! Every week, members of our coaching community help one another out, with advice, offers of get togethers, swapping books and kit. Chatting all things running with like-minded people, even some that have never met in person, is a wonderful outlet for those of us that don’t have that with our non-running friends and family. While we write a race report every week, we could do a whole other one on those athletes that volunteer too. Races are held together by their volunteers, whether that is standing on a hill for hours on end, pouring water at checkpoints, cleaning and taping feet or putting medals on weary runners, it is these people that create the sense of safety, camaraderie and belonging that makes an event successful.

The race community is obviously a huge part of this conversation too and there really is something for everyone. A lot of people, especially those newer to the world of trail running, only know about what they see on social media, which is often made up of bigger events with money and media behind them. These races are fantastic of course and have their place, but there are so many smaller events that cultivate more close-knit communities. Finding your tribe within this is all part of the fun and you can explore both! A great example of this close to us is the Cleveland Way relay, an event set up by volunteers that see club runners complete the 109 miles of the beautiful National Trail within a day. There is no entry fee, there are no prizes, no tracking, no support and it is still a brilliant day. Our club takes part every year and that is the joy of it; we know we are all part of the team that is doing this fantastically weird and slightly pointless thing, just because we want to be part of it. And isn’t that the point of community? To be part of something that brings you joy. So whether it is joining a club, running with friends or being a regular at a local race series, embrace your community and make sure you give back too. You never know where you’ll find your people.

Kim and Jayson.