On Friday I raced the first race of four in the Towpath Series organised by Great Western Runners. These are flat multi-terrain races along the towpath next to Leigh Woods that runs along the river Avon and goes under the Clifton Suspension Bridge. Kinisi Run Hub are excited to be sponsoring this great series for another year!
The 2026 series kicked off with a bang as a record-breaking number of entrants as 207 runners lined up to take on the Avon towpath. The first race of the series always gets a strong turnout because it is the Mob Match where local running clubs battle it out to win a team prize and local bragging rights. Every place matters as the club's first fifteen finishers (mixed male and female) receive points based on finishing position.
Thankfully the temperature dropped on Friday after the record-breaking temperatures we experienced earlier in the week. It was a very nice evening for it with much more mild conditions. Another positive about the Towpath Series is the trees of Leigh Woods always provide shelter from any wind and extra shade from the sun.
The start is on the grass next to the towpath and everyone lined up excited to get the 2026 series started. After a short pre-race briefing the race started and we headed out into the trees and along the towpath. I'm always surprised the start of the towpath races is not more chaotic as the path is fairly narrow and remains open to the public during the race but everyone seems to know their pace and position themselves accordingly.
We soon settled into a rhythm and the kilometres started to tick by. I found myself at the front with Adam Holland (Tavistock AC) on my tail as we slowly pulled away from the rest of the field. It is a very simple course being 5km out before a 180-degree turn and running 5km back to the finish in the same place where the race started.
Adam held on to me until the turnaround point but as we were approaching it I could tell he was starting to tire and after the turn I started to pull away from him which meant the race became a solo time-trial. Turning around at halfway does mean that when running back you have to negotiate your way past all the runners behind you as they are running towards the turnaround point. This is ok for much of the towpath but is a bit tight between 5-6km where the path is relatively narrow and overgrown. Tactics can very much come into play here as it is very difficult to overtake anyone in front of you after turning around.
I felt fairly strong and maintained my pace running back towards the finish which was reassuring as I have been building back up after some downtime following the Bristol Half Marathon in early May. I took the win in 33:41 followed by Rob Farley (Avon Tempo) and Fraser Roach (Bristol & West AC) who had a sprint finish to finish in 34:54 and 34:55. The women's race was won by Chelsea Creak (Bristol & West AC) in 36:47 followed by Penny Guess (Southville RC) in 40:44 and Marie Monaghan (Bristol & West AC) in 40:48. In total there were 205 finishers. Full results here.
I helped Bristol & West AC win the highly anticipated Mob Match ahead of Southville RC and Westbury Harriers. There was also a strong turnout from Bitton Road Runners and Portishead RC who made up a closely contested top 5. In total there were 15 teams.
One nice thing about the Towpath Series is the number of runners who stick around for the presentations after the final runner crosses the finish line. The first race has the added bonus of the announcing the winner of the Mob Match but all four races in the series feature the now-famous free Towpath Series raffle which features an ecletic collection of prizes up for grabs. Every participant gets a raffle ticket after finishing the race and has a chance of leaving with a prize. The raffle always provides amusement when watching what prizes winners choose. The undisputed star prize is always the giant Toblerone bar but there are often bottles of celebrity wine on offer. I left with a bottle of Kylie Minogue rose!
The race HQ is at Ashton Park School and then the start/finish is a short 5-10 minute walk away which is where the presentations also take place. The Towpath remains open during the race but there are plenty of GWR marshals on the course to ensure any pedestrians and cyclists are aware of oncoming runners.
Well done to everyone who raced and thank you to Great Western Runners for organising another great Towpath race! Kinisi Run Hub are product to be supporting such a great event and I can't wait for the next one in June!
If you are interested in taking part in the next race in the series then you can read more and sign up on the GWR event page here.