There are lots of historic races on the current local athletics calendar, but none* that stretch back as far as the Peel to Douglas Run which was first held in 1909.
*with the possible exception of the early-days Parish Walk.
In the earlier years it was held intermittently, but from 1949 onwards it has been a permanent fixture.
That first race was on the road (or what passed as a road in 1909) from Peel Football Club to the Palace Ballroom in Douglas, and was won by Stanley Karran in an excellent time of 1:10:52.
Historic Races
His name lives on today because when he died in the 1950s, his family presented a silver cup in his memory to be awarded annually to the winner of the Peel to Douglas race.
That magnificent trophy, the Karran Cup, is still presented each year and is currently held by Ollie Lockley.
A shield is presented to the women’s winner. Last year’s recipients Ollie and Dawn Atherton are seen with the trophies.
Road safety concerns resulted in the race being taken off the road after 2010, but a new version of the event was born the following year with the race being moved onto the much safer Heritage Trail.
With the exception of 2013 it has been held every year since.
Peel to Douglas
Whilst it may not have quite the prestige that it once had – for many years it was perhaps the highest-profile event on the calendar with huge crowds gathering at the finish line – it is still popular, and provides a safe and competitive race over a distance of around 10.3 miles from Peel Fish Yards to Quarter Bridge.
Sunday morning’s race, organised by Manx Harriers, provides a great opportunity for those building towards autumn and winter Half Marathons to have a good fast run on a mainly good surface, mostly as good as running on the road.
The highest number of finishers we have seen since the event was moved onto the Trail was 88 in 2014.
With all 500 places in the Syd Quirk Half Marathon being snapped up so quickly, interest in distance running is currently booming.
It would be great to see that reflected with good entries in events such as the Peel to Douglas on Sunday and the Western 10 in mid-October.
Andy Fox has posted details on Manx Harriers Facebook page, with entries taken on the day from 8am to 9am at the Creek Inn in Peel (thanks Claire Turner).
The race starts at 9.30am. The weather forecast is currently looking really good for Sunday, so let’s look forward to a big entry and a great race!
Footnote – the current course records are 52:40 by Ollie Lockley and 59:44 by Rachael Franklin, both set in the 2020 race.
Only six men have run faster on the course than Rachael did that year!
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