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capitals

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teams

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winner

Edinburgh - Cardiff - London

Wed 4 June - Sat 7 June

Join the Biggest Relay Race in the uk

Be a part of something big. Team North and South will relay race over 900km from Edinburgh to Cardiff to London. Through the day & night. Run a half marathon leg to help North or South win. Then celebrate together at Finish Line Festival at the most outlandish finish line for any running event!

How Does it Work?

We have a perfect video explaining how it works HERE. More details are outlined below as aswell!

  • The race will set off from Maggie's in Edinburgh at sunrise on Wednesday 4 June 2025.

  • We will finish at Finish Line Festival on Saturday 7 June - a festival dedicated to celebrating our achievement. The whole team will collate and run the last km together to the finish line.

    1. Team North and Team South will have one baton each.

    2. The full route will be mapped out and split into over 40 half marathon legs. Teams must stick to the assigned route.

    3. Each runner will be assigned a leg which will start when they receive the baton. Runners can run by themselves or be put in groups of people aiming to run the same pace.

    4. At the end of their leg they pass the baton onto the next runner(s).

    5. Both teams will run non-stop through the day and night.

    6. First team to reach the finish wins.

  • We have mapped out the full route from Edinburgh to Cardiff to London. When selecting our route we have chosen routes that provide the most direct route whilst giving the most enjoyable and safest journey for our runners!

    In order to select when and where you want to run please have a look at our route page linked here.

  • All runners will have to agree to our Terms and Conditions linked here.

Take at look at our 2024 to get a flavour of a North v South event

Your Options

Day Tripper

Choose a day you want to run. Travel to your start point. Run your half marathon for North or South and then travel home on the same day!

Price

£25

Travel

Travel sorted from the checkpoint prior to your run to the checkpoint after your run.

Accomodation

n/a

Other

50% off Finish Line Festival Ticket

Day ‘N’ Night

Join the race for 24 hours. Choose a day you’re free and follow the race for 24 hours. Must be willing to run during the night.

Price

£25

Travel

Travel sorted to follow the race from when you arrive for until you leave.

Accommodation can be organised if required. You will be required to pay when booked.

Accomodation

Other

50% off Finish Line Festival Ticket

Whole Hog

Travel up to Edinburgh and be a part of the race down to London. Run on as many days as desired. This is the full North v South experience.

Price

£60

Travel

Travel sorted from Edinburgh all the way down to the Finish Line in London.

Accomodation

Accommodation will be organised for three nights. You will be required to pay when booked.

Other

50% off Finish Line Festival Ticket

All entries come with a Race the Capitals race top and medal!

More Information & FAQs

  • The choice for which team you compete for is all yours! Some of the reasons people have picked North or South before:

    • Where they are from

    • Whether they associate with being northern or southern

    • Where they live now

    • Who their friends are running for

    You can have any reason you want, just pick a team and get involved!

  • Participants will be required to purchase accommodation and food during the event. For those selecting the Whole Hog and Day 'N' Nite we will organise hotels for participants to stay if they choose (participants will have to pay upon booking). Equally participants are welcome to organise their own accomodation.

  • North v South has three partner charities for the event - all supporting mental health:

    • Maggie's

    • Two Pints Deep

    • Ted Senior Foundation

    All participants are encouraged to raise money for one of these charities or raise for all three equally.

    Day 1 of the race will focus on Maggie's as we set off from Maggie's Edinburgh.

    Day 2 will focus on Two Pints Deep as we pass through the North West where the charity was founded.

    Day 3 will focus on Ted Senior Foundation as we head into Cardiff and through where Ted was from!

    Read more about our partners here.

    You are welcome to also raise funds for your own selected charity if you wish!

  • Absolutely, we are looking for a number of volunteers to assist with driving and logistics. Please sign up to our volunteer link if you are interested!

  • When you confirm your entry for Race the Capitals you will be asked which times you wish and are available to run.

    We will take this information for all runners and assign you with a half marathon slot along the route. In the months leading to the event we will instruct a meet point prior to your run and a time and an end point. We will send you a GPX of your route.

    Before and after your run we will transport you to agreed locations via car and bus.

  • There is a chance that participants could be running by themselves but the aim is that all runners will run in a pair or group with others on their team. You will be partnered with runners targeting the same paced half marathon. Please let us know if you want to run with a friend!

  • Absolutely not. This event is for all running experiences. In 2024 we had runners run their first half marathon and some running their 50th. The times ranged from 1hr 20m to 2hr 30m.

    We arrange the race so that each team will have a similar estimated finish time. As long you give your best you will be helping either North or South take the glory!

  • The majority of runners will be required to run a half marathon.

    However given the nature of the route and the location of checkpoints some legs will be shorter than a half marathon and will range from 5km-21km.

    When you sign up you will be asked if you would prefer to run a shorter distance.

  • All entries are fully refundable up until 6th March 2025. After this date you will not be entitled to a refund.

  • All participants must be a minimum of 18 years old as at the start of the event.

  • No you must stick to route provided to you by the event organisers. If you are unable to complete the route provided or there is an issue during your run please contact the organisers immediately and we will arrange an alternative route.

  • Once we have collated all of the runners details we will organise the two teams into the running legs. Once we have this we will send you your running details. This is likely to be in April - 2 months prior to the event.

  • If you are unable to complete your run we will collect you in a sweeper vehicle and if required replace you with a reserve runner to take on the baton for your team!

  • No you will not. All runners will be required to purchase their Finish Line Festival ticket. However all runners will be provided with a discount code depending on their entry selection to purchase their ticket with.

  • Whilst you are not running you will be transported by our support vehicles. In the off time you can be:

    • Supporting your team and runners

    • Grabbing food and refreshment

    • Enjoying the beautiful locations we pass through

    • Enjoy one of our evening events we are planning during the route!

    Take a look at our 2024 event page to get a feel for being a part of the race!

  • No you will not as we will be arranging transport.

    However as part of arranging transport we will be asking for volunteers to drive for the challenge. If you wish to drive and help out then that would be great!

  • The entry fee covers the cost of organising the event. This includes:

    • Car and Van Hire

    • Fuel

    • Running equipment

    • Support items

    • Race Top

    • Race Medal