Last Sunday, three members of Newport & District Running Club took part in the Shakespeare Marathon, an annual race which takes place every spring in Stratford-upon-Avon. Taking place on a two-lap course (each lap is slightly different to the other), runners undertake a tour of the countryside to the south-west of Stratford itself, passing through the villages of Welford, Long Marston and Milcote.
Darren Waters was the first NDRC runner to finish, taking 127th position in a time of 3 hours, 12 minutes, 7 seconds. Daniel Campbell-Miles was 775th in a time of 4:05:42, whilst Jennie Waters clocked 5:21:25 in 1,530th position. After the race, Daniel sent us the below report of his experience:
As is often the case with spring marathons, race day for the Shakespeare Marathon fell on a warm, sunny spring day. This was in stark contrast to the conditions I had trained in but meant the beauty of the Warwickshire countryside could be fully appreciated. My last marathon race was 5 years ago, and the last time I covered the distance was 4 years ago, so this was more about getting back into it after the arrival of my daughter than attempting to break any PBs.
Being a Runthrough event, the race is well organised, but fairly minimal in terms of what you get – the event guide said water points would have some water and there would be limited gels available. I decided at the last minute to run with my hydration vest to carry Tailwind and energy chews with me, which was definitely needed! This race has grown rapidly in recent years, with over 6,000 entrants across the marathon and half marathon for 2026.
The race started at 9am in the centre of Stratford upon Avon, with the route winding around the town before emerging into the surrounding countryside on the first of two laps. The route is relatively flat, making its way around country roads and villages, with only two hills of any note on each lap, before following an old railway line back into Stratford. The second lap loops further away with a longer stint on the railway line to reach the finish.
There is support the whole way around, with a DJ playing tunes on the back of a van and a rock choir, as well as people outside their houses handing out sweets and setting up sprinklers to run through. I was running with a friend, but without much of a pacing plan. We settled into a rhythm and the first lap flew by in around 1 hour, 55 minutes. At around the 20k mark, we met our families and took on more supplies, but soon after that, the heat of the day started to take effect and my legs grew heavier. My friend was feeling much stronger, so he pushed on without me and I ran the last 12k of the race solo.
I didn’t manage to stick to the pace, and despite drinking water and throwing a lot over my head at every water point (every 5k), the heat definitely had an impact. I eventually made it back into town along the railway line, where I was greeted by Acacia (Daniel’s daughter) with a couple of hundred metres to go. She took my hand and ran with me to cross the finish line in what was my favourite finish to any race I have ever done!
I ran very positive splits, coming in at 4 hours, 5 minutes overall, but this race wasn’t about the time, and I was delighted to be back to marathon running.
Newport & District Running Club 