Race on the wild side at Howletts this Easter and support real conservation with amazing results. 

This is a Partner race
This means that we are working with a host Partner Organisation and provide timing and/or race management services for their event.

Event Overview:
Take part in a truly unique 5K at Howletts Wild Animal Park and support The Aspinall Foundation in their vital conservation work. This year's race edition will be celebrating and supporting the rewilding of three black Rhinos in Tanzania by TAF and includes full entry into the park for runners after the event.

Set where The Aspinall Foundation was founded by the late John Aspinall, 2025's Howletts Easter Rhino 5k will take you through 90 stunning acres of ancient parkland, where you will be cheered on (or maybe just watched) by more than 45 species of rare and endangered animals including giant anteaters, gorillas, tigers and lions.

The event will start before the park opens its gates to the public, giving you an exclusive glimpse behind the scenes. Why not bring your whole troop along to explore a world of conservation after you set your best 5K time ever and receive your unique Rhino medal!

The Rhino Rewilding project and The Aspinall Foundation
The Aspinall Foundation has already seen spectacular results with their captive breeding of black rhino at their Port Lympne site which has successfully rewilded 8 black rhinos. Since their release the project has seen 25 rhino births and a total of 60 wild descendants so far. This has assisted in boosting the dwindling population of black rhino which are registered as critically endangered in the wild. Eastern black rhino is the rarest of the three remaining rhino species in Africa. The Foundation's position as a world leader in captive breeding has enabled them to expand their Back to the Wild programme. But, there is still more work to be done and the rewilding of three more Black Rhino into Tanzania next year is a wonderful opportunity to build on the success already achieved by The Aspinall Foundation to date.

Why is conservation work so vital & how do The Aspinall Foundation help?
The Aspinall Foundation charity team in South Africa are on-call 24-7 to rapidly respond to rhinos in desperate need. Recently, they rescued two orphan rhinos whose families were slaughtered, dehorned dozens of rhinos to protect them from the attention of poachers, provided food for starving rhinos during a period of severe drought and fitted tracking collars to many more animals, ensuring they could be safely monitored and protected. This vital work is only possible thanks to the generosity of the charity’s friends and supporters. 

Supporting The Aspinall Foundation
Just signing up and running supports wildlife conservation, but there's so much more you can do to make a lasting difference to the lives of rhinos in desperate need and help contribute to conservation projects around the globe. Setting up a JustGiving or Facebook fundraising page is a great way for your friends and family to show their support and get involved.
You can fundraise by setting up a JustGiving page by following this link: www.justgiving.com/TAF.

Course Details:
The route will take you in and around Howletts, amongst the enclosures.
The course is mostly flat with one cheeky hill which takes you directly past Howletts’ resident red river hogs.

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

Available Races/Distaces
5k

Prizes:
Medals to all finishers.

On the day price (subject to availability):
£25.00

A note on headphones
Due to new England Athletic 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.

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