The inaugral Oswestry half was a superb event hosted by UkRunChat. A unique setting at the British Iron Works, with sculptures marking each mile and the most unique medal in my collection yet, a gorilla (based on the sculpture at the iron Works). The race started with a cannon and there was also a brass band playing. everything about this was unique, fun and well-thought.

By runners, for runners

Brilliant to finally have a half marathon in Oswestry. The support was amazing from start to finish. The course was a good one. Only negative is the quality of the medal and t shirt. There is no date, even year, on the medal. The lanyard and clip are also poor quality. T shirts are an odd fit and poor quality. Still looking forward to next year's event.

widely reported problems with road closures but a lot of that was press hype. Idiot drivers not really a problem. It would be good to eradicate the problem next time. 

No option but to drive to and from the start/finish. Unique venue but inevitable queues to get in and out at peak times.

mayor giving medals was a nice touch but should have been optional. Weather was a little chilly so got cold waiting for medal. Would have preferred to just be awarded medal at the finish or have the option to collect and go.

route was good. Local support ok. Turn at mile 11 was a nuisance. 

Would have liked the cafe to open earlier and more room at number pick up which was a bit chaotic.

some event info on the medal would have been nice but a unique medal all the same.

overall a positive experience and look forward to running it again. Thank you ukrunchat! 

The organisation was firt rate. Good parking arrangements. Unique setting with interesting and fun ironworks. Good warm up easy to get numbers. Interesting and demanding run which was well supported by local people. Great medal and nice to receive the medal on stage. Thanks Martin

Was a great event was well organised but cars were still on the roads and was a little dangerous in the town area.  Love my t-shirt,  great medals,  great photos and the massage was painful but amazing after the event.

Wish the medal has the event and year on it.  

This was a lovely race and great venue!! There was lots to do at the starting area. Getting your number wasn't all that easy though. Could have done with more people knowing what number you are. The course was nice and volunteers were all great too. The worst part about the race was the medal!! It was cheap, looked it and felt it. Mine was all chipped and did not hang right when it was on. The strap was naff and there was no where on it to tell you what race it was. There was so much hype about the medal that when I got it I though there was no chance I was doing it again for this. The main reason myself and the club were running was because yes it was local but we all wanted the unique medal for our collections. The medal came in a box which to me seems pointless because most people hang their medals up? I know my case ended up in the bin as I had no use for it. They could have used the money spend on medal boxes to make the actual medal a much better designed and qualify medal. 

What a joy it was to compete in this inaugural Oswestry Half Marathon.  The event was exceptional value for money and the organisation was second to none. The generously shown was heart warming, from the free photos to the beautifully crafted gorilla medal, presented in a box for safe keeping.  The volunteers and local support were so supportive. The venue, just fantastic. Your the best, can't wait for next year.

All in all a great race, I loved the mile markers.

A couple of bad points though:

1. The Medal.  

The medal looks great; however it doesn't mention the name of the event on it. 

2. The start/finish .

If it is possible could you change the route next year so you don't start & finish on grass?  Having to run on grass at the start and finish made it difficult to get off to a quick start or have a sprint finish.

3. Goodie bag 

The goodie bag was fine.  A quick suggestion though, would it be possible to replace the chocolate bar with a protein bar next year?

Regards 

Gavin Billington 

Top marks for the race village and location, the British Ironworks Centre is superb with ample free parking, plenty of scope for families to enjoy the cafe and facilities at the centre.  The first half of the route is quite tough but once the peak of the hill was reached it was mostly downhill all the way home, with some undulations!  Plenty of training on hills required! Running on the grass and dirt track to exit/re-enter the Centre is tough going as it is very bumpy.  Crowd support was amazing throughout - really kept me going.  Could have done with a few more marshalls particularly at strategic points where we need to turn - at one point if it wasn't for spectators shouting at me to turn right I would have run a much longer race.  The pre and post race free massages was a fantastic idea and really helped me, much appreciated!  Medal is great, the best in my collection - I also won a category prize medal which is even more bling.  I think some people were annoyed with the queues exiting the car park but the marshalls did a great job controlling the flow and keeping things moving.  Also the queue for the medals was a little long so the organisers decided to allow people to just collect their medals if they didn't want a picture with the deputy mayor, this was well handled.  Oh yes, finally, loads of free photos included - fantastsic!

All in all, a great day, and we were also blessed with perfect weather.