Maidenhead Half Marathon is an annual running race held in Maidenhead, Berkshire,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The inaugural race took place on Sunday 4 September 2011, starting at 9.30am, and attracted over 2,000 entrants. It was organised by local company Purple Patch Running.

Past winners

§ Location changed to Dorney Lake for this edition.

Course

Maidenhead Half Marathon has a fast flat course, with an overall elevation change of less than 10 m, and therefore provides excellent PB potential.

2011

The original course took in some of the most attractive local scenery including Bray, Maidenhead Riverside and

Cookham Cookham is a historic River Thames, Thames-side village and civil parishes in England, civil parish on the north-eastern edge of Berkshire, England, north-north-east of Maidenhead and opposite the village of Bourne End, Buckinghamshire, Bourne ...

. Starting in front of the Town Hall, runners made their way round the town centre before heading out along the A308 towards

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

. Around the mark the route turned left and headed into Bray Village, then along Oldfield Road and through Guards Club Park to

Maidenhead Bridge Maidenhead Bridge is a Grade I listed bridge carrying the A4 road over the River Thames between Maidenhead, Berkshire and Taplow, Buckinghamshire, England. It crosses the Thames on the reach above Bray Lock, about half a mile below Boulter's ...

. Next was a scenic, mile-long stretch alongside the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

before runners made their way to Cookham on Ray Mead Road. The route then turned left onto The Causeway, then back towards Maidenhead on Maidenhead Road. Approaching Maidenhead the runners turned left again and followed Cookham Road as far as Kidwells Park. The final part of the route went through the centre of Kidwells Park, under the A4, down the High Street, and looped around Chapel Arches before finishing in front of the Town Hall.

2012

For 2012 the route was altered to two laps of the Maidenhead/Cookham half of the route, staying north of the A4 throughout. Although less picturesque, this reduced congestion at the start and gave spectators a better opportunity to see the action. The amended route was voted in 4th place for PB potential in the Runner's World Races of the Year 2012 Awards.

Number for life

Maidenhead Half Marathon offers an unusual feature in that participants keep their race number for life. A charity auction allows people to bid for desirable numbers, with all proceeds going to a local charity called The Link Foundation. In 2011 this raised over £2,600 and attracted a winning bid of £300 for the number "1".Amanda Hall
"Maidenhead Half Marathon's No.1 runner chosen"
, ''Maidenhead Advertiser'', 4 August 2011

References

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External links

Maidenhead Half Marathon web siteRunner's World event ratings for 2011 Maidenhead Half Marathon
{{European half marathons Half marathons in the United Kingdom Maidenhead Sport in Berkshire Recurring sporting events established in 2011