With less than 2 weeks to go until the Bypass Run and Walk anyone wishing to participate in the 5 mile road race needs to get a move on and register as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
As reported last month, demand to run the bypass on October 24th has exceeded expectations and as a result the organisers have increased the maximum number of runners able to take part from 500 to 800. Over 650 runners have now entered the race which means that a minimum of £5,200 has already been raised for charity.
Interestingly, over 75% of the runners live within a five mile radius of either end of the bypass so it really looks like being a fantastic local's event - which from a personal perspective hopefully won't include too many elite runners, given how well my 'training' is going I'm considering renaming the event 'The Bypass Jog and Walk'.
All the money raised from entry fees for both the run and walk will be distributed amongst charities and good causes located in, or supporting residents of, Alderley Edge, Nether Alderley and the surrounding areas. The local charities who will benefit are those who are helping on the day by supplying stewards and first aiders such as the Combined Charities Christmas Shops, Alderley Edge Methodist Church, Alderley Edge Scouts and the Scout Marching Band, Seashell Trust, The Christie, Alderley Edge Hockey Club, St. Philip and St. James Church, Nether Alderley Primary School, david lewis, East Cheshire Hospice, Lindow Scouts and St Mary's Church in Nether Alderley.
A number of village traders will have stalls at either end of the bypass to provide refreshments throughout the day for all the runners and walkers, these include Costa, Corks Out, Fruitcake, Alan Jackson, The Bubble Room, Stay Bar & Restaurant, The Cheese Wedge and The Royal Oak. Entertainment will be provided by the Alderley District Scout Band and Imagine FM, who will be broadcasting from the southern end of the bypass.
Andrew Hensall, from Alderley Edge Rotary Club, said: "At the moment we still have no idea how many people will want to walk the bypass but we have given out over 3,000 sponsorship forms to members of various charities who have people walking on their behalf. In addition a large number of forms have been downloaded from alderleyedge.com.
"We are all now hoping for a fine day to encourage more people to come along for this unique opportunity to see the bypass before it opens for traffic. There is no need for walkers to pre-register, or collect sponsorship if they don't wish to, people are also being encouraged to just turn up on the day and make their £2 donation to charity."
As reported last week, the bypass will be officially opened on Friday November 19th by George Osborne, our local MP and Chancellor of the Exchequor, therefore the road surface that all runners and walkers will be treading on on October 24th will not be the final surface - one last layer of black top will be put down along the whole length of the new road before it is officially opened to traffic.
The donation of all entry fees to charity has been made possible because of good management of the event and generous sponsorship by AstraZeneca, The Emerson Group, Pannone, Birse Civils and East Cheshire Council. Supporters of the event include; Nether Alderley Parish Council, Rotary Club of Alderley Edge and Bollin Valley, Wilmslow and District Lions Club, Wilmslow Running Club, Alderley Edge Action Group and Edge Dream Media.
We have set up a dedicated page for the A34 Alderley Edge and Nether Alderley bypass run and walk - a link to which can be found in the top right corner of the home page. We will be updating this page as more information becomes available over the next two weeks.
