RUNNERS from near and far arrived in Bratton on Saturday 15th May to take part in the 14th Hilly Run. 121 runners tackled the 11.4km of challenging terrain in one of the most successful hilly runs ever.
This year the proceeds from the event will be split between the Wiltshire Air Ambulance and Bratton Village Hall. Guest of honour was paralympian Ben Rushgrove, who won a silver medal in the 100m event at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. In his second year at the Bratton Hilly, Ben started the race and presented the prizes at the end.
Runners enjoyed plenty of spring sunshine as they completed the 11.4 km course, which took them from the Jubilee Hall towards the White Horse, out to Westdown Farm, and then back to the finish line in the village. Although the race was the main event, there was lots more going on in the village for spectators. The school held their own 1km race through the village for the older children, while younger children took part in other events. The Duke pub hosted their own beer festival over the weekend, which was particularly well-received by participants after the run!
Although runners came from as far away as Leicester and Coventry, it was former Bratton resident Sam Pictor who came in first with a time of 43 minutes and 28 seconds. Now a student at the University of Birmingham, Sam has a particularly close connection to the race: in the early years of the run, the event raised money for Sam’s former school, Bratton Primary.
The Bratton Hilly was started 14 years ago by founder Roger Broberg, who sadly died last year. Roger was helped by Simon and Dot Reeves of Bratton to raise funds for the village school and for many years the school benefited from the proceeds. It was subsequently run with the help of Warminster Running Club and funds were raised for various charities.
Dot Reeves said she was delighted with how the run went this year. “It’s been very successful, with a great atmosphere as usual, which people seem to love,” she said. “We’ve got more runners than last year, and it’s particularly nice that there are a lot of Bratton runners, with several people from the same family taking part. What is lovely is that we’ve got a whole lot of Bratton boys running who were at the school when the race started.”
“Roger was very much a village person, he was part of the Baptist Chapel and the Jubilee Hall. He would have thought it was brilliant, the way the whole village came together. Everyone has said what a fabulous atmosphere there was, and how much they’re looking forward to coming back next year!” The date for next year’s hilly has already been set for the 14th May.
Ben Rushgrove congratulated each runner as they crossed the finish line, and presented each runner with a special mug made by Trevor Pictor of White Horse Pottery. “It’s really important that it’s bringing sport out into the community, and having a day that the whole community can join in with,” Ben said.
