Inaugural Milton Keynes Marathon

§staticmap(10012,5,450,250)Hello, on April 29 2012, you’ll be organizing the Milton Keynes Marathon. Can you tell us where it is located?

The Milton Keynes Marathon is located in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England, which is about 40 miles north of London.

This is the inaugural event. Why was it created in the first place?

My name is Andy Hully and I came up with the idea of a Milton Keynes Marathon a year ago. Two reasons.

Firstly, a quarter of a million people live in Milton Keynes and yet there isn’t a mass participation running event and so we wanted to create one and, secondly we wanted the inaugural event to be in the 2012 Olympic year.

What kind of route have you set up for the runners? How would you describe it?

This is a city marathon with a difference. With 4,500 acres of woodlands, lakesides, parks and landscaped areas within the city boundary, Milton Keynes is the ideal venue for a Green Marathon.

The course is traffic free on closed roads and cycle paths or “redways” as they are known locally and without any significant incline there is real PB potential for all participants.

Runners and spectators will enjoy an electric atmosphere at the finish of the race inside the state of the art stadiummk, home of Milton Keynes Dons FC.

With plenty more entertainment en route this will be a race to remember.

How many runners do you expect on Sunday morning? What type of runners do you plan to attract?

We are hoping to attract 6,500 runners of all abilities.

Do you organize other races during the Week-End? If so, on what distances?

On the same day there will also be a Corporate Relay Challenge where local business can compete against each other in teams of 4 over the marathon distance. There will also be a mini-marathon for 11 to 17 year olds, which will be held on closed roads and will finish inside stadiummk.

At that time of the year, what kind of weather can we expect?

The marathon will be held in the Spring, and this can range from a warm day with sunshine to light showers.

Have you planned festivities around the marathon?

There will be a Sport & Support village at the stadium and lots of entertainment en route.

The race finished, what advice would you give a runner who has never been to Milton Keynes before? A good restaurant, a fancy sightseeing?

MIlton Keynes has a lot to offer our runners, with many good restaurants, hotels and local attractions.There’s always a surprisingly large choice of things to do in Milton Keynes. This vibrant new city lets you enjoy the countryside, spend time with the family, take part in thrilling adventure sports or explore its rich history.

You are spoilt for choice with eating and drinking, with over 350 restaurants within the city centre and surrounding areas you can always find something to satisfy your appetite from an a la carte menu, a sumptuous buffet or a pre-theatre meal. Milton Keynes Theatre is the most successful theatre outside London’s West End and thecentre:mk and Midsummer Place combine to make one of the largest covered shopping centres in Europe.

There’s always plenty going on in Milton Keynes’ parks, find out more at www.theparkstrust.com. You can try cable wakeboarding and waterskiing at Willen Lake or visit Aerial Extreme and climb through the treetops on gravity-defying rope adventure courses.

For more enjoyment of the outdoors visit the celebrated landscape gardens at Stowe, now owned by the National Trust, or go really wild at Woburn Abbey where you can visit the safari park or just admire the grandeur of the house and gardens.

There is plenty to challenge the adventurous at Xscape including indoor real-snow skiing and snowboarding at SNO!zone, as well as rock-climbing and indoor sky-diving

For the history or military buffs among you don’t miss a visit to Britain’s best kept secret at Beltchley Park, historic site of secret British codebreaking activities during WWII and birthplace of the modern computer.

For children of 2 – 13 years there are plenty of thrills and fun at Gulliver’s family theme park.

For more details of what’s on during Marathon weekend and on finding places to stay in Milton Keynes visit Destination MK.

In a single sentence, what would you tell the readers of ahotu Marathons to make them register for the Milton Keynes Marathon?

The inaugural Milton Keynes Marathon offers a single lap, fast and scenic route with a impressive stadiummk finish.

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Interview with Andy Hully, Race Director for the Milton Keynes Marathon 2012.