2026 Chelmorton Five Chase Running race - 28 year anniversary

2026 Chelmorton runners line up outside primitive Hall for the running race with a view.

Double wins for team and first male.

84 year old runner, Matlock AC Clive Russell, finished highly creditable 29th.

Heart of the Peak National park, it’s a running race with a view - Eleven hundred feet above sea level - a running race that has become a village event, with an army of local marshals and iconic orange wooden arrows, climbing to fourteen hundred feet with vistas of the High Peak, finish downhill on Main Street at Primitive Hall to a raucous crescendo of applause by the locals, visitors and supporters.

Second year team win went to Matlock AC, Joan Windross first lady shield went to Jane Crowson, first male runner was double scoop, another second year win for James Mellor.

For 2026 Runners followed the iconic Chelly orange wooden arrows glistening in the Sunday sunshine.

Wet September week turned sunshine and dry for the 28th year of the race on Sunday Sept 20th. It has become an annual village event. Starting outside Primitive Hall on Main Street, mixed-terrain shoes were a great match for drying ground.

Tracey, Lady of Hollinsclough flagged the runners away for a dry start at eleven thirty sharp.

A local village army organised by Morgause Lomas became a highly trained extensive team of high-vis marshals at every turn, the iconic wooden arrows marked the route to be sure, but a marshal to cheer and motivate every runner in the right direction. The route makes a special circle courtesy of access to private farmland owned by the Coopers. Grass and gravel tracks, open field, cinder and limestone over High Stool for safety of tarmac on the decent.

Downhill finish, passing sheep and cows chewing the cud and, with not as much as a by-your-leave, the green fields and mixed terrain turns into a marathon tunnel finish of cheering, where Judith Mellor, head timekeeper and team log, checks and clarifies the results.

Prize-giving includes live event certificate photos of each of the top finishing runners, framed and presented with bubbles to finish.

The 2026 winners

One hundred pound team prize for affiliated clubs. (2026 winners Matlock Athletics Club ) (2025 team winners Matlock AC - 2024 winners were Sinfin Runners Club, Derbyshire)

Joan Windross shield for first woman to finish was awarded to Jane Crowson, with Anna Jaspan placing second (2025 winner Gemma Cox - 2024 winner Kathryn Liddiard)

First man home in 2026 was James Mellor with second place going to Rob Longley (2025 Thomas Oliver in thirty one mins 34 - 2024 it was Luke Beresford.

Veteran over-forty winners were Simon Young and Jane Crowson (2025 Macclesfield Harriers Oliver Barber and first Vet lady to Emma Fox High Peak Triathlon runners.

Clive Russell, 84 yrs old, finished 29th.

First place for 16-18s goes to Misha Kalashnyk of Matlock AC.

Chelmorton Chase Five. A race with a view as elevation takes you past the Church Inn pub for the Five Wells track. Across private open field land courtesy of the Cooper's Farm. The race covers five miles, climbing high out of the village, with spectacular views from the High Stool limestone trail, a meander over grazing cow fields and distant vistas too far to see before a twisting track leads the runners to the fast downhill road descent back into the village before returning up the Main Street tarmac.

Buxton runner Andy Wilton still holds the course record at thirty minutes thirty one seconds and villager Ian Hulse holds the locals' record. A double winner for the Dark Peak Running Club is Stuart Bond who took first place in 2008 and 2010. From 2010 the Joan Windross memorial shield has been presented to the first lady runner across the line. It holds more than a decade of names for lady running winners and is on display in the Church Inn pub. For 2025 Gemma Cox took the Windross Shield. Harry Mosley was first local and first over the line was Thomas Gulliver for High Peak AC.

Enjoy a re-run of the event with the compilation video by Paul Mellor. (see 2026 link below)

For 2026 Runners followed the iconic Chelly wooden arrows in Sunday sun shine with a christening at the St John the Baptist church.