Calling all Green Santas and racing Elves! Join us for this BRAND NEW eco festive sustainable and accessible race at the stunning Alice Holt Forest this December!

This is a Nice Work race
This means that this is an original Nice Work race, fully hosted and organised by us.

Event Overview:
We are excited to invite you to the inaugural edition of this brand-new festive event! It’s the first ever accessible festive themed race to be held at Alice Holt Forest and explores the stunning trails that twist and turn between the trees. Seasonal dressing up is wholeheartedly welcomed (but not essential!) so get those Santa hats at the ready!

The race benefits from accessible, traffic free trails which makes it a great course for those who are new to running or new to racing! But it’s also jam packed with the type of racing magic that will see more seasoned racers return again and again. This is a truly inclusive race, and runners of all abilities are warmly welcomed whether they’re part of a club or elf-taught (Sorry! Elf-vidently, we couldn’t resist!).

Course Overview:
This family friendly, traffic free, cross-country running event is entirely off-road and explores the stunning tracks and trails within Alice Holt Forest in Farnham. The undulating route uses a captivating 5k forest trail with 10k runners completing two laps whilst 5k runners complete a single lap. There will be a water station located at the start of each lap.

An inclusive event for all:
We are committed to hosting our first accessible running event alongside our partners at Alice Holt Forest.
- Accessible parking available
- Designated quiet spaces and dedicated quiet start
- A basic BSL race briefing will be provided
- Guide runners for our visually impaired runners
- Staff and marshals with impairments will be assisting on the day
- Detailed information and photos will be provided about the course, parking, event village and toilets ahead of race day to aid planning.

Keeping things sustainable…
Because we care and because, amidst all this festive frivolity, we want to ensure that our event doesn’t have a negative environmental impact on Alice Holt Forest, we are working hard to ensure that our Christmas race offering has the lowest carbon footprint possible. We’re achieving this in several ways:

1) Our communications will all be sent virtually – no paper!
2) We encourage all our runners to bring their own hydration packs or reuseable cups; our water station team will be happy to fill these for you and ensure that you are racing fit.
3) If you don’t have your own water receptacle to bring to the race, then that’s OK! The cups we supply will all be fully recyclable and made from recyclable materials.
4) We are encouraging all of runners (and their supporters) to car share to the event. Or, if you think your legs can take it, why not bike over to us?
5) Whilst we will be issuing our runners with a beautiful bespoke festive medal, we have provided the opportunity to forgo your medal and donate the cost to our charity partners. This is set up in the booking flow.
6) We be joined by Preloved Sports who will provide a donation point for your old running kit. Once they receive your sportswear donation, it will be assessed by a volunteer to determine whether it can be redistributed to another charity, sold on our shop to give us the funds to continue their work or whether it has to be disposed of.

About Preloved Sports...
Preloved Sports is a non-profit company, aiming to create a sustainable business model that uses Preloved sportswear to provide inspiration, opportunities and support to others. They make running, cycling and fitness more accessible and affordable to others through the resale and redistribution of sportswear.

70% of the sportswear that leaves Preloved Sports is redistributed to charities and organisations who help those in need, such as refugees, homeless and those from deprived backgrounds.

Since 2022, Preloved Sports have received just over 13,000 Donations. 
70% have been redistributed, 19% have been sold, 8% repurposed, 2% recycled and less than 1% disposed of.
The items they have had to dispose of shouldn’t really have been donated and tended to be contaminated with either blood, fecal matter or sick! Please ensure that your donation items are not contaminated in this way!

Some sustainable seasonal fun:
Whilst not compulsory, seasonal silliness is something we embrace with gusto! Should the yuletide mood capture you, we encourage you to celebrate this special time of year with your very best homemade costumes made out recycled materials. We will have a prize for the best dressed runner in a seasonal costume! It’s super fun and it’ll do wonders for your elf-confidence! So, let your imaginations run amok and show us your best Christmas creations!

A good cause…
We are delighted to announce that this wonderful new event will be supporting Alice Holt Inclusive Cycling! This wonderful initiative, based within the Alice Holt Forest, celebrate the beauty of cycling as a truly multi-disability sport. No two disabilities are identical, and so,  Alice Holt Inclusive Cycling  has made it their mission to ensure that their cycle adaptions they provide keeps this in mind. The Alice Holt fleet has a wide range of bikes to make cycling accessible to everyone, and volunteers to help choose the right bike to match each unique circumstance, show you how to ride and where to go in the forest. This also means that we can invite customers of Alice Holt Inclusive Cycling to join us on the course for race day!

We hope that you will join us in helping to make the beauty of Alice Holt truly accessible to everyone by securing your entry to the race today. There will also be the option to donate to this very special cause during the booking process – it's a very special season gift!

And, for our junior racers...
... we have a super family event in the form of a 1k junior race offering!
This race will give our aspiring junior racers a chance to take part in their very own, dedicated event.  The race will take place before the main race, on the trails and paths around Alice Holt and will be fully marshalled. The race will not be chip timed but all our junior finishers will receive a medal and can look forward to being cheered across the finish line. 

Parents are responsible for collecting their children at the finish line. If parents are accompanying their children on this race then no additional entry is required. However, participating parents will not receive a chip time or medal. We hope that you will join us in supporting our young runners with uproarious cheers!

Route Map:
You can view the route map here.
You'll be able to download the route in different formats including GPX.

Available Races/Distances:
10K / 5K / 1k Junior Run

Race Start Times:
1k Children's Race... 09:30
10k & 5k... 10:00
Quiet start... 10:10

On The Day Entry Fees (subject to availability):
10k race: £30.00
5k race: £25.00
1k race: £6.00

A note on headphones:
Due to new UKA rules that came into force on 01 April 2024, in the ear and over the ear headphones are no longer permitted at running events unless otherwise stated. Bone conducting headphones are permitted however, if you do choose to wear bone conducting headphones, then we ask that you have the volume turned down low enough to hear the marshal instructions.

Prizes:
Bespoke festive medal for all finishers (including juniors)
Trophy with e-certificate & £5 voucher prize for 1st, 2nd & 3rd male & female winners (both distances)
E-certificate and £5 voucher prize for 1st male & female age group categories (10k only)
E-certificate and £5 voucher prize for 1st male junior & female junior (both distances)
Team prizes on offer! - First male and female team - 3 to score and must be in club kit (10k only)
Dress to impress Santa with a special prize to the best dressed runner!

Event information will be sent to all registered entrants prior to race-day.