Final Instructions

Four key points, if you read nothing more than this:

  1. Numbers and timing chips to be collected on race day from approx. 7.30am;
  2. No parking on any grass areas in the park, nor on the hard standing next to established mobile homes;
  3. Toilets are at the start/finish area, please don’t water, despoil or litter the park.
  4. We may not be able to marshal all the road crossings this year, please take care and give way to any traffic.
ExpoNumbers will not be given out at the Brewer’s Fayre this year. However, we will have a “pop-up” information desk and social area at the pub from 6pm on Friday night, for last-minute questions, or just to meet up with the team and relax. If you have anything important that you need to let us know, or if you need to discuss any aspect of your race, then you’ll find us in Maravan Corner to the right of the bar.  Brewer’s Fayre is next to the Premier Inn at DN35 0PN.
Race LocationThe race takes place in Thorpe Park Holiday Park in Cleethorpes, DN35 0PW. To find the race village, follow signs to Touring Reception. There will hopefully be flags to show where to go.
ParkingThere are several parking options close to the start/finish area. Please do not park on any grass, or on hard standing next to any mobile home pitches.
A map showing parking options is here
A video showing parking options is here
NumbersNumbers and timing chips will be given out on the morning of your race. We have some pins, but would prefer you to bring your own if possible. The numbers will be given out in the race village from about 7.30.
StartYou can start as soon as you have attached your number and chip. However, if you would like to participate in a group start, marathon and relay runners will start together at 9am on Saturday. Marathon runners will start at 9am on Sunday, and half marathon runners will start immediately afterwards.
RouteMarathon and relay: A 0.6 mile starting stretch, followed by 7 laps of 3.7 miles. The course is signposted using yellow signs on street furniture and poles, and with arrows marked using flour on the floor. Although the course is well marked, you do still need to keep your wits about you as there are a number of turns on the course. 
There are two road crossings across a public road which is open to traffic. These may not be marshalled at all times during the race. Please take care crossing.
The course is not closed to traffic, although the traffic will be slow, you must take care on all roads and give way to vehicles. There are 6km markers in approximately the correct position, they are more an aid to route-finding than an accurate gauge of time/distance, though. (The measured distance for the marathon is 26.6miles, although it usually measures long on GPS devices.)Half Marathon: Four laps of approx. 3.25 miles with a short starting stretch. 
Please note, the half marathon on Sunday has a shortcut marked by a green arrow at the end of the grass track. Please take care not to miss it.
Route MapMarathon and Relay
Half marathon (although the start is in a slightly different location)
FacilitiesToilets are located at the start/finish area. These are the only toilets that we can guarantee being open on the park.
Please do not use bushes or the open countryside.
Bags can be stored in a gazebo at the start/finish area.There is medical cover at the finish area. Please notify a marshal if you require medical assistance or if you see another runner in difficulty.
RefreshmentsThere will be a feeding table at the finish line, you will therefore pass this seven times. There will be water, squash and cola available, with the possibility of beer later on. We’d prefer you to bring your own drinking vessel, but biodegradable paper cups will be available. Please use the bins/boxes provided to dispose of these.
There will be a variety of nibbles also available. These will be served to you by volunteers wearing gloves. Please don’t help yourselves this year.
There will be space available for you to bring your own nutrition and hydration requirements if you so wish. We can provide water to mix energy drinks if you bring powders. If you wish to bring some food to be shared with the runners, please feel free to do so, and let the feeding station know if something is available for anyone to eat.
FinishAs you finish your 7th lap, please move promptly through the finish area. You may help yourself to more food if you wish. Please remove timing chips and place them in the bucket. Once you have done this you can collect your medal and a goody bag with a drink and some snacks for soloists, and some chocolate for the teams.
I have bought some beer from Docks Beers to share with my friends, even those who aren’t running, which I’m happy to share with you subject to there being enough available for those who would like to share it with me.
ResultsLive results, courtesy of Timing Monkey: https://www.timingmonkey.co.uk/results/Maravan21
Leaving the sitePlease take care when leaving the site if the race is still ongoing.
SponsorsThanks to AM Electrical of Grimsby for supporting the Maravan this year.
Thanks must also go to Haven Holidays Thorpe Park for their continued support of the event.
OrganiserThe Maravan is organized by Vigilantes Maravan, a not-for profit race organiser, with a mission to organise low-key endurance running events with a social emphasis for the running community of Lincolnshire and Humberside. The event director is Darren Rowe, who will be available on the park site for the duration of the event. EVENT DAY PHONE NUMBER 0788 816 9370

Finally, we’d like to wish everyone taking part a good race, and a fun weekend. We hope you enjoy the event as much as we do.

Places for the Half Marathon unexpectedly available…

Counting confirmations and transfers this evening, it has come to light that I have two more places for the Half Marathon on Sunday 21 Nov than expected.

 

I’m aware that this is the same date as Deepdale, but there has been great demand for HM places since it sold out, with twice the usual entry, in August.

 

I’ve reopened entries for the half until this weekend.

 

If you want one of these two places, you’ll need to go quickly.

 

https://www.evententry.co.uk/maravan-half-2021

Two weeks left

Final arrangements are well in hand now, I’ve started sending out emails, and also I’m in the throes of the fun bit, going shopping for supplies and bits and goody bag stuff. 

The back bedroom is now unusable for it’s intended purpose, it’s full of crisps and chocolate and sweets. It never ceases to amaze me how unhealthy we runners can be!

I’ve made sure there’s stuff for vegans, and hopefully some stuff for those who need GF as well, but I can’t promise there’ll be no cross contamination, as there’s just Norma, with some help from me, feeding you all.

I’ve paid for the toilets, timing and medical cover as well, so it’s absolutely all systems go.

I’ll contact everyone who has entered next week with final instructions – I have to make a final inspection and mark the course out first.

See you soon!

Last 10 places for Saturday

Wow!
Just ten places left for Saturday’s solo Marathon. It’s possible I might be able to keep entries open for a little while after the closing date just to squeeze a few latecomers in, but there’s a little bit of admin in that, so late entries might have to cost a couple of quid more.
Best bet, if you want to enter Saturday’s race, is to get entries in now, because once it’s full I can’t make any more spaces.
In other news, I’ve now booked and paid for toilets. Isn’t organising events exciting?

Plenty of Relay places still available, but the half is now full!

I always feel conscious when I’m quietly working away in the background that I should be chatting to you more, but this is a busy time of year for me both away from the Maravan and in the throes of organising so many people’s favourite running event.

I’ve still got lots of places available for teams of 4 in the relay on Saturday this year, which has surprised me because usually they fill up really quickly.
This is good news if you still want to enter the relay, but bad news for me, as I have a waiting list for Half Marathon entries now. At some point I’ll need to decide if I can afford to have places unsold if there are other folk wanting in!

(I love the relay, but it is actually the most costly part of the weekend to put on.)

https://www.evententry.co.uk/maravan-4-berth-relay-2021

I’ve paid for all the medals, reconfirmed the toilets and the medical, and I’ve got the money for the timing and race numbers sitting in the event bank account ready and waiting for me to confirm final figures. This year’s fixed costs are pretty much covered, but as usual, it would help me if I could get entries in nice and early so I can relax a little and not have to batter my personal credit card to pay for the things that need paying in advance.

Remember, this event happens each year for the love of putting it on, it’s never made a profit in seven years, whatever extra it costs me is my gift to the running community because I love you all!

Thanks, of course, are due to AM Electrical for their support this year, without whom I’d be struggling this year. Things are different for everyone, as is our event, but I hope that we’ll still have a whale of a time in November.
See you all soon!

Medals

So, apparently there’s something causing medals, which, although bought from Lincoln, are manufactured in China, to take longer than usual to get here, so I’ve had to order and confirm numbers now.

I’ve ordered the medals for the following maximum numbers:

Relay: 35 teams

Day 1 Marathon: 75 runners

Day 2 Marathon: 75 runners

Half Marathon: 40 runners.

There *might* be flexibility to switch some entries from Marathon to relay, but not the other way round.

I’ve confirmed these numbers to Timing Monkey as well, and will arrange the insurance for this many.

Just need to hope now that I can sell all these places.

AM Electrical

AM Electrical

This year’s Maravan is proud to partner with AM Electrical.

Ash has been one of the biggest supporters of our fun weekend in Cleethorpes since the event first began, and it would be fair to say that without his support, right from the start, it may not even have happened.

AM Electrical have 20 years in the trade, are fully accredited with Napit, and enjoy glowing reviews from customers, large and small, from both residential and commercial work.

They will always be my first thought for any electrical work I need doing, and should be yours as well.

https://amelectricalgy.co.uk/

So, looking forward to this November!

Click here to skip my purple prose and go straight to the entry form…

Well, that last year was, there’s no better term for it, a bummer. Still, I was able to see what way the land lay before too many people got on board, and I’m ever so grateful that every member of the Maravan family chose to defer their 2020 entries to this year, which makes planning so much easier.

Obviously, at the time of writing, we’re still in the throes of a global health emergency, but things are looking up, and I’m very positive for the outlook for later this year.

We had a COVID mitigation plan in place for 2020, and at the moment, I’ll still be looking to employ some or part of this in the risk assessment for November’s event, but as was the case last year, we are in the hands of our hosts at Thorpe Park as to the final yea or nay for going ahead. I have agreement in principle for the weekend of the 20th and 21st November, and so I’ll be booking my room at the Premier Inn as usual on a non-refundable rate, such is my approach to this.

Craig at Event Entry has kindly done the hard work in transferring everyone’s entries over to 2021, and Matt at Timing Monkey has confirmed our weekend. Both these companies are small operations who’ve had their own woes over the lockdowns, so I’m delighted to be able to partner up with them for this year’s event.

I’m conscious that the autumn is filling up for events this year as Spring is now deferring – Liverpool, I’m looking at you – and I know that people are going to be looking to make up for lost time, so I’m sure that events will fill quickly. Remember, that if you enter this and subsequently get into a big-city marathon (and how can I possibly compete?), you’re free to transfer your entry to whoever you so wish so long as it’s done before the end of October so I can give plenty of notice to the chip timers!

So, if you’re willing to take the plunge, entries are open for Maravan 2021. If you entered last year, your entry is automatically transferred to the equivalent event this year. Thanks to chip timing, I can squeeze more people in this year, especially for the Half Marathon or Sunday’s full marathon, but also have more space for soloists on Saturday and for a couple of extra teams. I don’t want the event to be huge and unwieldy, though, I still want to keep the friendly little event that people keep coming back for.

See you soon!

D