Where is it?
Birches Valley Forest Centre at Cannock Chase, Staffordshire, WS15 2UQ. The What 3 Words location is here. It is managed by Forestry England.
Parking is £6 for 2 hours and £9 for 3 hours and functions on ANPR. You can pay by card or coin.
We are hopeful we’ll be able to secure an event parking rate at a much reduced rate. This will be confirmed closer to the event.
The nearest train stations Rugeley Trent Valley, and Rugeley Town, are both approximately 2 miles away
If you want to see what the venue is like watch the venue preview here.
Won’t it be dark?
We hope so! You need a head or chest to torch to run in this event. No torch no run.
Our friends from Petzl will be with us so you can test out the best head torches around on the night. If you’ve got a cheap headtorch from Amazon, you’ll be able to tell the difference immediately. We’ll have more to announce on this closer to the event.
Who are Petzl?
Petzl are the industry leader in high quality head torches. We’re very lucky to be hosting some of their “Night Runner” events. We’ve got 1 at Cannock Chase Forest and 2 at Salcey Forest this winter.
There is a reason the top ultra runners in the world use their head torches, when you need the trail lit up they are simply the best. When trail running at night you want to make sure youyr head torch wont let you down and your Petzl wont.
They’ll be at the event with their demo kit for you to try on before, during or after the event.
Can I run with my dog?
Yes!!
We’ve held many night time 10k’s with canicross and it’s been great success. We request that your dog be lit up (lights on it’s harness rather than wrapping the dog in Christmas lights!), you keep your leads short and be considerate of the other runners. We’ll start the canicross runners off a couple of minutes before the main field. Please read our general canicross rules here.
We’ll confirm the exact timings for this closer to the event but it is likely the canicross start time will be around 18:50.
Please make sure you enter the Canicross race when you click on the enter button above.
Course description
Ground conditions will depend very much on the weather closer to the event. It is predominantly on crushed stone however, with tree detritus the ground can become a bit slippy and mucky, you’ll never be in ankle deep mud though. There are a few sections on more exposed grass paths, trail shoes are advised. The route is fully marked and effectively a 2 lap course. Cannock Chase is hilly!
What does it cost?
We operate a tiered pricing approach. The earlier you enter, the cheaper the event but never ever will you pay a booking fee!
Before 01/09/2024 £16
After 01/09/2024 £21
Unaffiliated entrants pay £2 extra. Why not join your local running club or sign up the Big Bear Brigade and save 10% off entries for ever!
Enter all 3 parts of the series for only £43/£49 up until the first event at Cannock Chase Forest closes for entry.
How far is the race?
10k! This might seem a bit pointless to mention given the name but this is different to a normal Big Bear Event. You'll get the same love, a medal and some goodies but you can't run all night!
I’ve heard you do cupless events?
Yes, but not for this event. Unlike our other events we will have some biodegradable cups with water/electrolyte available on the course and our friends at Grounds Cafe will stay open for your hot drink (and cake!) post event! If you have a foldable cup you can bring, even better but we don't insist on it for our short races.
Has the event been run before?
Yes!! Different name, same vent. We held our Head Torch 10K at Cannock Chase Forest in 2023 and have been holding this event for numerous years at Salcey Forest and it’s won many Gold Racecheck awards too!
I’m not that fussed by a medal…
In that case our partnership with Earth Runs will be perfect! Rather than give you a medal you don’t really want (and to help reduce waste) we’ll give you a Big Bear Tree Token. Not only will a tree be planted for each token given out but the token is also full of wildflower seeds for you to grow at home!
Is this the same event as the Petzl Night Runner Rivington/Delamere?
No, we’re separate to those events, but we’re both lucky enough to be sponsored by the world leading head torch company Petzl.
