Blackpool Freedom Runners

Blackpool Freedom Runners All abilities, free to join and access training sessions and social runs.

To celebrate the Summer Solstice, Blackpool Freedom Runner Adam Webster joined his friend Matt Baker for a challenge wit...
22/06/2026

To celebrate the Summer Solstice, Blackpool Freedom Runner Adam Webster joined his friend Matt Baker for a challenge with a difference - Escape From Meriden.
Meriden is traditionally described as "The Centre Of England", a claim going back to 1829, however in 1920 this claim was found to be not quite accurate. In the village and on the village green there is a monument known as the Sandstone Cross with a plaque giving details of the village's claim. This is the start point for the event.
The challenge for the participants is either as a solo, or pair, or chained pair they need to get as far away from Meriden as possible within 36 hours. Competitors are totally self sufficient as there are no aid stations, nor are there any route maps as competitors are challenged to make their own routes to escape. The rules are quite simple, you must go entirely on foot (running, walking, or crawling). No bicycles, cars, or public transport are allowed.
Adam and his partner actually managed an awesome distance of 68 miles finally reaching Holmes Chapel on their attempt to get to Blackpool Tower. However, in this event the distance is not measured by distance covered as in other events but by a straight line drawn from the centre of Meriden as the crow flies which meant their distance was over 60 miles. This gave them a gold medal which I am sure you will agree with me is more than well deserved. At one point of the adventure they were the leading pair and it is believed that they ended the competition as third best pairing, although at the time of writing the results have yet to be fully confirmed.
All of their journey was by self navigation and self fuelled, no checkpoints or aid stations en route. A truly inspirational adventure.

Freckleton Half Marathon boasts the honour of being the "Oldest Half Marathon In The Country" being able to trace it's o...
21/06/2026

Freckleton Half Marathon boasts the honour of being the "Oldest Half Marathon In The Country" being able to trace it's origins back to 1965. To make this year's event even more special was the fact that this was the 50th Ladies Race.
Set in and around the village of Freckleton runners enjoy the scenery of many rural roads as it wends itself through the countryside. Five runners from Blackpool Freedom Runners took on the challenge of this event this year in what were very hot conditions.
Hazel Bigley was first of our runners home in a fantastic time of 2:14:10 and hot on her heals was Sophie Fronte in 2:14:24. Completing the quintet were Declan Sheridan 2:17:21, Diana Barker 2:23:38 and Andy MacDonald 2:23:32. well done each of you

Another full 2 weeks worth of sessions.Wednesday Group Run - Let's Make Wednesday Great Again! BFR T-shirts are encourag...
21/06/2026

Another full 2 weeks worth of sessions.
Wednesday Group Run - Let's Make Wednesday Great Again! BFR T-shirts are encouraged as are good numbers in attendance. Record turnout is 69 and that was 6 years ago. Let's see how close to that record we can get. Run/walk/jeff just turn up and be active for 5k. Also, don't forget to vote for your choice of course currently it's between Megaroute and the Original parkrun course.
Carrie's Midweek miles is at FB Kafe, Cleveleys this Monday and the Devere Hotel next Tuesday.

21st June and 4 runners from Blackpool Freedom Runners took to the paths of the River Lune for the Father's Day 10k and ...
21/06/2026

21st June and 4 runners from Blackpool Freedom Runners took to the paths of the River Lune for the Father's Day 10k and Father's Day Half Marathon Event.
The day didn't start well for Lynne Butler as she took a small diversion on the motorway and ended up "Half way to Scotland" so unfortunately missed the pre-event photo with organiser Billy. 11 o'clock arrived and off we went. Hot and sticky doesn't do the conditions justice but in true BFR style we didn't let that stop us.
Competing in the 10k event Paul Muller once again defied age and injuries to return home in an incredibly impressive 42:54. He was followed home by Shaun Haynes in 58:02. Lynne Butler in her second ever 10k event managed a very respectable time of 1:19:38.
Carl Bennett felt he needed to challenge himself more and booked on the day to run the half marathon which he completed in a superb time of 2:23:56.

There were some really great efforts at parkrun this weekend and three runners celebrated with PB's
21/06/2026

There were some really great efforts at parkrun this weekend and three runners celebrated with PB's

Blackpool Freedom Runners Take The LeadOnce a month Wesham Runners offer to share their track session with Blackpool Fre...
19/06/2026

Blackpool Freedom Runners Take The Lead
Once a month Wesham Runners offer to share their track session with Blackpool Freedom Runners and this month we were also invited to lead the session.
Run Leaders Matt Taylor, Shaun Haynes and Declan Sheridan stepped up and put the hour session together. Starting with a 10 minutes warm up, Matt Taylor ensured the runners were well and truly ready for the session with a variety of excellent fun drills finishing with a frog leap relay.
Shaun then explained the main session of a pyramid interval session 1-2-3-4-5-4-3-2-1 minutes with half run time recovery. Building up the pace from a gentle easy pace for 1 minutes to a strong paced 5 minutes and then easing back as the times reduced.
Feeling accomplished the runners were then taken through their cool down by Declan who eased everyone back so we were ready for our next session.
The session was very well received and the running was impressive with the lead runner managing an amazing distance of 5 miles.
We now look forward to next month’s invitation with a great deal of excitement.

This week's Group of the Week is the Monday hills session. This session has always been popular since it's inception. At...
18/06/2026

This week's Group of the Week is the Monday hills session.
This session has always been popular since it's inception. At one point it forced the publication of events to take place at a specific time and day as it filled as soon as it was published so people were say waiting for the link to become active to book on so they didn't miss the opportunity of the session. It's still a popular session now but the panic-buying sensation is now thankfully a thing of the past.
This session is one of two hill sessions the group offer and it is surprising that despite the session having the same name the challenge they offer is a completely different one due to the nature of the hill.
So why do we punish ourselves by choosing to run up hills? Well it does us good is the answer and here are the top 5 benefits runners get from a hill session.
1. Builds Powerful Leg Strength
Hill running naturally recruits glutes, hamstrings, quads, and calves far more than flat running. It’s basically strength training disguised as cardio, improving stride power and running economy.
2. Boosts Cardiovascular Fitness Fast because hills increase effort without needing high speed, runners hit a strong aerobic and anaerobic stimulus safely. This leads to quicker improvements in VO₂ max and overall endurance.
3. Improves Running Form Automatically
Hills force: Upright posture, higher knee lift, stronger arm drive, better foot placement It’s one of the easiest ways to teach good technique without coaching cues.
4. Builds Speed Without High Injury Risk
Uphill running reduces impact forces by up to 30–40% compared to flat sprinting. That means runners can train speed, power, and turnover with far less risk to shins, knees, and Achilles.
5. Increases Mental Toughness & Race Confidence
Hills teach pacing, grit, and controlled discomfort. Runners who train hills regularly feel stronger on race day, especially on undulating courses.

Are you a lurker? If so, isn't now a good time to step out of the shadows, put on your running shoes and join us for a s...
17/06/2026

Are you a lurker? If so, isn't now a good time to step out of the shadows, put on your running shoes and join us for a session?

This week our spotlight shines on our founder Chris Hammond. It seems like only yesterday that several of us were invite...
15/06/2026

This week our spotlight shines on our founder Chris Hammond. It seems like only yesterday that several of us were invited to turn up on Wednesday Evening to do the parkrun course and log a "Freedom Run".
Since then there have been many events for which Chris's name will forever be linked. Who remembers these?
101 mile in a day running from Blackpool to Todmorden and back.
Lapathon - as many laps of the parkrun course as you can manage. Chris did over 20 miles.
Bunch of 5's Challenge - running 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 miles on consecutive days.
Mad January - see the picture it's too complicated to describe!
10 days of oddness - running 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 17 miles on consecutive days.
4 x 4 x 48 - 4 miles every 4 hours for 48 hours
101 laps of Stanley Park Track.
It's not just the amazing challenges Chris is known for as he has completed over 300 parkruns at 22 different venues. For me the memory of Chris's parkrun was challenging Leah around parkrun and publishing a video to evidence the result. I think these stopped when Leah started beating him, but the I might be wrong!
Of all the things we are grateful for of course is setting up our wonderful group so that when Beaverbrooks 10k or Night Run comes around and we assemble in numbers close to 100 or when we look at the calendar for the next 2 weeks and there is a session each day to choose from this all came about because one person did something good - and that was setting up Blackpool Freedom Runners.
Thanks Chris 👍

If you're looking for a nice, easy, flat marathon then the Windermere Marathon probably wouldn't be in your top 50. A ve...
14/06/2026

If you're looking for a nice, easy, flat marathon then the Windermere Marathon probably wouldn't be in your top 50. A very undulating course with 600m+ of elevation did not put off Blackpool Freedom Runner Amanda Lomas.
Setting off at Waterhead the runners cover a wide variety of terrains from open roads and country lanes to dedicated running lanes the route follows Lake Windermere on an anti-clockwise direction. It's first big challenge comes at mile 7 with Devil's Gallop, a sharp 200-250 foot climb over a half-mile. It was at this time the benefit of attending Matt P's hill session on a Monday came to assist her. The view at the top is described as stunning and the further reward is a downhill section towards Newby Bridge. The course once again has a sting in the tail (almost literally) as mile 21 throws up Cook's Corner, a long strength sapping rise on very fatigued legs.
Arriving at the finish line situated in Brockhole On Windermere Event Village in a very impressive time of 6 hours and 2 minutes Amanda had completed the challenge.
Rumour has it that Matt P has given her permission to miss the hill session on Monday - but only this once 😄

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