A large group of Halifax Harriers travelled to Bramham Park recently to take part in the annual Endure Leeds 24. This is the UK’s biggest 24-hour relay trail race where the 8km route combines undulating hills with scenic luscious woodland. Along the course, runners pass key landmarks like the Lead Lads Temple, Roundhouse, and the historic Bramham Park Estate. The event runs from Friday through to Sunday and runners can enter as teams, pairs or as individuals (solo).
The junior run took place on Friday and Harriers’ Oscar Thornton was first home, many congratulations to Oscar!
The main race started at 12 noon on Saturday and finished at 12 noon, 24 hours later, on Sunday. The Harriers had four teams and 6 solo runners in the race this year. The weather for the event was absolutely gorgeous throughout, if not a little bit warm and windy for running. The sun was reflecting off the dry track adding to the searing heat, although the runners had tree cover along some parts of the route.
The organisers said: “There was nothing left out there at Bramham with 15,000 laps banked across the course of the weekend”. They added, “This is the best Endure24 Leeds ever.”
Harriers’ Results:
Team event
Team 1 (Sole Sisters), led by Sharon Cousen, with Fiona Murphy, Hazel Berrett, Andrea Ackroyd and Jane Curwen. They completed 25 laps, with a total distance of 200km.
Team 2 (The Squashed Runners) comprised Richard Corney, Sue Corney, Louise Briggs, Judith Cole, Fiona Ellan and Penny Bottomley and they completed 27 laps of the 8km route, totalling 216 kilometres.
Team 3 (The Jets) led by Ellen Limebear comprised Tim Slow, Ben Slow, Jack Melia and Sunny Curwen. Their collective distance was 216km in 27 laps (2 more than last year).
The 4th Halifax team (Ardley athletic) led by captain Nigel Rigg comprised Nigel, Keith Midgley, Martin Haigh and Heath Reilly. The team covered 128km over 16 laps.
Solo event
In the solo category we had six Harriers taking part: Jenny Hopkinson completed 3 laps, equating to 24km. Paul Hopkinson did 6 laps (48km). Nigel Jamieson completed his solo run with 11 laps (88 km) under his belt. The fourth solo competitor from the Harriers was Keith Lemon who was, once again, extremely proud of his achievement of 14 laps (112 km). James O’Rourke covered the ground well, delivering 15 solid laps equalling 120km. Both Paul Bateman and Will Carver covered 20 laps, giving each of them a total run of 160km (100 miles) and the honour of receiving the much-coveted ‘Yellow one-hundred shirt’.
Around a thousand runners completed the event in the female, male, mixed and non-binary categories. The event is not just about the gruelling running though as the event village was well stocked with food outlets and many stalls providing merchandise for the runners.
All in all, a great weekend of running, camaraderie and friendship was had by the Harriers team – bring on the 2026 event!