If you have a question about the event that is not answered below then please get in touch with the team by emailing [email protected]
What do you get if you mash-up an Attenborough nature documentary and the Olympics?... Running Out of Time!
We're bringing together multiple sports, incredible climate action projects, stunning natural landscapes, mixing them all together and throwing YOU into the heart of it!
Running Out of Time is a 2,661km relay from Ben Nevis to Big Ben. There are a total of 366 stages, with stages ranging from 2-30km long. The relay runs from sunrise to sunset for 32 days and travels to 30 counties.
Our goal is for the relay baton to be passed from person-to-person and arrive in London. Most stages will be run and a small number will be cycled. We will also be kayaking, canoeing, paragliding, skiing, mountain biking, walking, wheeling and more!
What do we do when we're running out of time? We run faster!
We are calling on everyone – from national government to local government; from individuals to communities; from schools to businesses – to work together to protect our world now and for future generations.
We aim to celebrate amazing climate action, and nature protection projects, run by community groups, charities, businesses and schools, from around the UK. Hopefully by championing all the great work already being done, we can play a part in securing more support and funding for these projects and others.
The relay starts at Ben Nevis on Saturday 10th June and will finish at Big Ben on Tuesday 11th July.
You must be over the age of 18 to sign-up to our relay and be able maintain an average pace of 6 minutes 15 seconds per kilometre / 10 minutes per mile for the duration of a stage.
If you are under the age of 18 and would like to run a stage, then please ask your parent/legal guardian to contact us at [email protected] and we will see if this can be accommodated.
We also have a Schools Action Day taking place on June 21st, which is open to schools around the UK.
Click on the icon in the top right corner of your screen (you'll need to close FAQs) first. On the main image you should see an 'Update my photo' button in the bottom right corner of the image. Press that link and update your photo using one from your phone's library or snap a new selfie.
The Let’s Go Zero National Schools Action Day is a day of climate action that any school, anywhere, can join. There are a range of climate themed-challenges and activities, and is a great opportunity for students to get moving and explore their passion for sustainability.
The National Schools Action Day is on the 21st of June this year – but don’t worry if you can’t make this date, you can take part on any day that works for you. Discover more here.
School participation is free and there are plenty of ways to get involved – simply register your school’s interest and we’ll send you everything you need. As a registered school you’ll receive a comprehensive toolkit to allow your students to:
+ Track the Relay
You’ll be able to follow the relay on its journey, and find out more about the places and exciting projects it visits along the way.
+ Support the Message on Climate Action
You’ll receive engaging classroom resources to allow students to discuss, vote on, and support the message we take to COP27.
+ Join the Schools Action Day
On 3rd November* join thousands of schools across the world for our Schools Action Day. We’re asking everyone in all schools to get active for 15 minutes (or more) for a day of, truly global, climate action.
Run, walk, bounce or roll…… we don’t mind how you do it - it’s the taking part that counts!
*If you can’t make this date don’t worry, you can take part on any day that works for you.
The relay is only open for those over 18, so they would not be able to run in the relay (teachers are very welcome though).
You can always hold your own relay event on the Schools Action Day - don’t forget to share your activities with us.
Check out the relay route – if your school is located along the route, we’d love for your students to come cheer our runners on. Please contact our schools coordinator at [email protected] and we can let you know the date and time the relay will reach you.
There is no registration process, simply visit the Let's Go Zero webpage here to get your activity page!
Once registered, you’ll receive a welcome email with the link to our Schools Info Pack. This is an introduction to Running Out of Time, and a great way to get your school excited about taking part. We’ll be sending you lots of regular updates about the relay, the Schools Action Day, and the Message on Climate Action.
Ahead of the launch date all registered schools will receive a toolkit which will include:
It’s completely free to take part, and we’ll provide you with everything you need to make sure your student’s involvement is easy, successful and (most importantly) fun. There are lots of ways to get involved, and engage your students, and you can choose what suits your school, and its busy timetable, best.
The baton we carry from Ben Nevis to Big Ben contains a video message stating;
What do we do when we're running out of time? We get moving!
We are calling on everyone – from national government to local government; from individuals to communities; from schools to businesses – to work together to protect our world now and for future generations.
You can download our logo and a range of supporting assets here. Please credit Running Out of Time when using these images. For more pictures, please contact [email protected]
We’re more than happy to provide you with quotes, clips, images and more - just email [email protected]
We’ve pioneered relay running since 2013. We connected thousands of people in the first non-stop mass participation running relay across America, we’ve crossed continents by trainer-power alone and broken world records. If you want to see what we’re capable of, check out One Run Global, One Run for Boston, The London Relay and Running Out of Time 2022 as examples.
We also have a geeky side too - using cutting edge research to help organisations to increase participation and diversity in sport and organise sell-out events like The Women's Trad Festival.
To arrange an interview with one of the team please contact [email protected] and we’ll set everything up.
To get the latest news, follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. Or contact [email protected] and we’ll sign you up to our Weekly Newsletter.
Sure thing! Get in touch with your local paper, radio and TV stations and tell them what you’re doing and why. And, if you’ve got contacts who can help put Running Out of Time on the national news agenda too - terrific! Visit our Press page for a fantastic toolkit you can use.
Absolutely, the more the merrier! Let's make the baton handovers and runs the best experiences ever!
Yes, as a sports event we’re covered and have insurance! But, just like in real life, to take part in Running Out of Time you will have to agree to take responsibility for your actions as per our Waiver. Everyone who takes part in the event must register on our website and agree to the Waiver. No exceptions!
You can find our booking terms in all their glory here! We can’t promise it makes for interesting reading though...
As much as we would have loved to make our website available in every language under the sun, we're only a small grassroots organisation. If you’re a translation company or tech whizz reading this and want to help out - get in touch!
The cost of entry is £15.
The first participant to sign up for a stage becomes the Stage Leader. The Stage Leader is the person who receives the relay baton from the stage before and carries it for the next stage. We encourage Stage Leaders to share the baton around during the run/cycle. The Stage Leader is our main point of contact for the relay stage, and leads the rest of the participants on the stage on the route run. If you are the first person to sign-up to a stage but do not want to be the Stage Leader we can swap you with another participant on your stage. Please email [email protected]
On every Stage Details page of our website we have provided a Strava route from your start and end point, which our Operations Team have plotted, however we recommend that you review this route ahead of your run.
Please make sure you are there at least 10 minutes before the start of your stage.
All Stage Leaders are responsible for checking that the planned route is suitable. For example, there are no roadworks or construction issues which would change the route.
Please email us at [email protected] if you have any queries or concerns about the stage route.
All of your stage details, including the place name and coordinates for your meeting points, are available on our website, within your Dashboard and in the welcome email we send you. We will also email you these details several times before your relay stage date.
Please bring your mobile phone, drinking water (in a reusable/recyclable bottle), wear suitable clothing and footwear to run/cycle your stage, and wear sunscreen if appropriate. If participating near to sunset we recommend wearing high-visibility clothing (reflective) and bringing a torch / head torch.
You must notify the organisers immediately by emailing [email protected] with the subject line ‘URGENT: I CANNOT RUN MY STAGE’. If you are the Lead Runner on your stage and no other runners have signed up to join you, please do your best to help find a replacement runner. We regret that no refunds on registration fees can be given.
This is the term we use to describe the location where one relay stage ends and another begins. It is the place that you will meet the people(s) from the stage before you and the place that you will run/cycle towards to meet the relay stage after yours.
It is the joint responsibility of all participants to keep the relay running to time. Please do everything in your power to prevent delays. We’re all relying on you!
You can track the relay’s progress online via our live map. The GPS device within the relay baton will update its location on the map every 15 minutes. Sometimes, GPS can fail and so please still be at your stage on time!
All runners must carry the mobile phone during their run, please ensure this is the same phone number that you provide during registration.
The Running Out of Time support crew will be driving the route in an electric car from Ben Nevis to Big Ben catching up with the relay at various points. However, they will not be at every stage. We strongly recommend that you arrange for a friend or family member to support you during your stage.
One of the aims of the relay is to highlight the contribution active travel can make in the fight against climate change and we strongly recommend using low/zero carbon methods to get to and from your relay stage. To help with this, wherever possible we’ve plotted the Stage Handovers to be near public transport so that you can get to or from your stage start/end point.
If this is not an option and you are running with others, please consider carpooling. Or even better, if you're lucky enough to have a friend/family member who has an electric car, ask them to give you a lift to and from your stage!
If you cycle to the start of your stage, we may be able to arrange for our support crew to carry your bike so you can cycle home. However, we’d need to arrange this ahead of time by contacting [email protected]
You could also make your relay stage a bigger challenge by running home!
Depending on where you’re running you might like to get in touch with the local police to let them know what you’re going to be up to. They may even be able to provide a vehicle escort if required. Our Operations Team will be contacting police in places where we feel the route is particularly challenging and our Support Crew will be at these stages to provide safety assistance. If you do decide to do this please let [email protected] know via email.
Certain sections of the relay are reserved because they are particularly challenging and require experienced runners or a slightly faster mode of transport such as a bike! We are recruiting these people behind-the-scenes and you will see their names appear on the stage listings soon.
Please go to www.carboncopy.eco and visit the Publish Your Project page to share your story. Here, you will discover a national collection of over 1000 innovative and inspiring initiatives, big and small, for people to copy and adapt. Please, add your story too.
Running Out of Time will be the biggest celebration of climate action and nature ever attempted across Britain. ‘Climate action’ covers a broad range of projects that are successfully tackling some big challenges, from air pollution to food security; carbon emissions to biodiversity loss; flooding and drought to excessive waste. We will be visiting amazing projects all along the relay route, from the biggest onshore wind farm in Britain – to a community refill shop in York. Our aim is to highlight that everyone across the country, from every background and working at every level (individually, locally, regionally and nationally) is needed if we are to protect our world now and for future generations.
There is still time. But the window of opportunity to avoid the worst effects of climate change and the loss of the natural world is closing – fast. The Running Out of Time relay is about celebrating what’s already being done, and inspiring more positive action that can and should be taken NOW, whilst we have the chance.
Running Out of Time partner Carbon Copy has gathered a collection of over 1000 climate action stories from around the UK, told by the people locally who are making change happen. Check out the Planet Pledges page and use the interactive map to find some of the projects happening near you, or visit the Carbon Copy website to browse the full inspiring collection!