Runner Information - 07 May 2026

Black to the Trails - Final Event Info

Lace up your trainers and dust off your favourite running gear. The UK's most vibrant trail party returns to Dunstable Downs this weekend.

Below is your final event information, please read it carefully to help ensure your day with us is the best it can be.

Event details

For the address of the venue, nearest public transport points and other event associated information please visit: https://www.blacktothetrails.co.uk/dunstabledowns

Event timings:

9.00am > Event Village Opens

9:00am - 9.30am > Bib pick up

9.50am > 5K runners to gather in front of stage at event village for pre-race brief and warm up.

10.00am > 5K starts

11.00am > 1K runners to gather in front of stage at event village for pre-race brief and warm up.

11.10am > 1K starts**

11.20am > Scotch Bonnet runners to gather in front of stage at event village for pre-race brief and warm up.

11.30am > Scotch Bonnet starts

11.50am > 10K runners to gather in front of stage at event village for pre-race brief and warm up.

12.00pm > 10K starts

2.00pm > Prize giving ceremony

3.00pm > Event ends

**Reminder: All U11s who are running the 1K MUST be accompanied by an adult.

Bib pick up

You will collect your bib from the registration tent in the event village. Please use the name that you have registered with when picking up your bib. Bib pick up lines will be alphabetical. Please pick the correct line. Those runner who have not completed their registration will need to visit the HELP line in order to fill out a form to pick up their bib. If you are one of these runners, you will be emailed.

Bib pick up will close at 11.30am. Please leave enough time before your race to pick up your bib.

PLEASE NOTE: You will not be able to buy a space to run on the day. You will not be able to transfer to another race on the day. You will not be able to transfer your entry to another person on the day. You will not be able to defer your space to another Black to the Trails event.

Race briefing - There will be a pre-race briefing before each of the distances start, along with a fun warm up, so be sure to be in the starting area in good time for your race.

Route Maps and GPX routes - Check out our Strava route maps for the 1km, 5km, 10km and Scotch Bonnet races here: https://www.blacktothetrails.co.uk/dunstabledowns GPX files for each race can be downloaded for you to follow if you want to feel extra confident you are on course!

Parking - We have a dedicated event village car park. Please look out for our ‘car park’ signs and friendly volunteers who will guide you to your car parking space. Car parking for runners is free. The What3Words location of the car park is: https://w3w.co/sides.jets.acted

Travelling to Black to the Trails

Coaches- We have four coaches this year, one travelling from Birmingham and the others from London. All coach passengers have been emailed their pick up time, location and coach contact. If you believe you have booked a coach seat and have not had confirmation of these details, please email us using the button above.

By car- Please add ‘LU6 2GY’ to your sat nav heading for National Trust Dunstable Downs and Whipsnade Estate via the B4541 west of Dunstable. Please note Sallowsprings road is a private road with no through access onto Dunstable Downs.

Parking - Please park in the free grass car park which will be signposted ‘EVENT CAR PARK’ for our event. If this car park is full, you can park in the National Trust car parks for a small charge of £3.50 (cash only). If you would like support with paying for the car park please contact us.

By train - Luton train station 7 miles.

By foot - From West Street and Tring Road, Dunstable Google maps directions

Weather - It is not looking to be as hot as it has been in previous years with showers currently showing before the 5K starts. Please note, weather can be changeable and we would advise to come prepared for all weather conditions. See suggested kit below.

Adidas TERREX Test and Trial - Our community supporter, Adidas TERREX, will be on hand with their Test and Trial van. If you do not have a pair of trail shoes, or want to try some different ones, you can get a pair from them and use them to run your distance at Black to the Trails. We recommend that ALL runners run this event in trail shoes so please use the products on offer to you if you need them.

Suggested kit - For the run

Trail running shoes*
Waterproof coat
Sunscreen
Hat
Something to hold water (soft flask or bottle)

Suggested kit - For the fun

Warm coat/jacket/jumper
If you are planning on staying for the day then warm/dry clothes to wear post run, Dunstable Downs is known for its wind even in May!
Picnic blanket
Fold up chair

Food vendors

Once again we will have a variety of food vendors at our event village serving an array of food including Halal and Vegetarian meals. We’ll also once again be joined by City Juice (Sugarcane Juice) too. And the National Trust cafe is open for teas, coffees, sandwiches and cakes.

Prayer Space - We will have a dedicated prayer space for those runners who would like to use it. The prayer space is in one of our LME marquees and is clearly marked. Please make use of this as you wish.

A Quiet Start - For those runners who would rather not start the race with the ‘masses’ we offer a staggered start. This will mean that you can start just after the main pack have departed in a less busy, and noisy, wave. Please make yourself known to our Operations Manager, Anne-Marie if you would like to use this.

Women only toilets - Two of our portaloos (we will have 12 in total) will be allocated to women only. These toilets will be stocked with feminine hygiene products which have been kindly supplied to us by Here We Flo. If there is anything we can do to make your experience as a woman at Black to the Trails even better, let us know.

Bag drop - You will be able to leave your bag with us while you race. A bag label is attached to the bottom of your race number. Please tear it off and attach it securely to your bag. Please note, any items are left at your own risk, and we can not accept responsibility for any items left at the bag drop station.

Photography - Photographers will be on site and images will be available to participants post-event free of charge - we will share a link via email post event to all participants. We (and our partners) may wish to use some official event photography after the event. If you would rather not be featured by us or our partners, please make yourself known to Anne-Marie.

Water station for runners - Please bring your own reusable water bottle to help make this event plastic free. The event water station will be positioned by the race village.

Prizes - Prizes for 1st, 2nd & 3rd place participants have been kindly donated by our event partners Adidas TERREX. Prizes will be awarded based on gun time not chip time, so if you’re racing for the win, we’d encourage you to start near the front of the pack.

Leave no trace - We are operating on the leave no trace principle, please help us by making sure you use the bins provided or by taking any rubbish home with you, leaving the trails and race village exactly as you found them. We also ask you to be respectful of the other trail users out there on the day too.

Good afternoon everyone,

Since sending out the final information email we have had some questions re bib pick up. Please see clarification below.

Bib pick up - We would urge all runners (no matter the distance you are running) to pick up their bib between 9.00am - 9.30am on Sunday 10th. This is the time when the registration tent will be fully manned.
If you cannot pick up your bib between 9.00am - 9.30am, we will have a volunteer manning the registration tent until 11.30am at the latest (30 minutes before the final run starts).
You will NOT be able to transfer your race place.
There will be NO on the day entries.
If you are a runner who has not completed their full registration, please join the HELP line at the registration desk. You will be asked to fill out a form giving us your first name, last name, DOB, ethnicity and the email address you used to register. Only once we have these details will you be able to pick up your number.*

*It will make our lives much easier if those runners who have not yet completed their registration (you have been emailed separately) can do by 23.59 this evening. This will alleviate pressure on our volunteers this Sunday.

Weather

We have been keeping an eye on the weather and we can say with a decent level of certainty that it will not be as hot as it has been in previous years.

The forecast is looking dry but windy. Dunstable Downs is known for being one of the windiest locations in the area (being high up) so we would urge you to come with clothing that can protect you from wind and/or gusts.

The event team is constantly monitoring the weather and, due to the wind, the set up of the event village may look different than in previous years. Your safety is paramount to us and is our main priority in any infrastructure decisions that we make.

We can’t wait to see you on Sunday.

Runner Information - 09.05.26

Travel update - Sunday train disruption to Luton. There will be no train services running to luton on 10.05.26. Replacement bus services will be operating instead, so please allow extra time for your journey and plan ahead accordingly. We recommend checking your route before travelling.

MASSIVE THANK YOU to all our supporting partners.

We must take this opportunity to say a massive thanks to our amazing supporting brands, without whom this event wouldn't be possible.

Firstly London Marathon Events, our supporting partner, who have helped us ensure that this year's event will be a roaring success.

National Trust who allow us the use of this beautiful space to enjoy.

adidas TERREX, who provide our branded kit so you can go out and represent Black Trail Runners all year round. The team will be there on the day so please go say hi and take advantage of their free kit loan - perfect if you’d like to try out some new kicks.

Voom our official nutrition partner for Black to the Trails. Voom were at last year's event and will be back again this year offering everyone the chance to try their plant based performance energy packs.

Pelotan who have helped us to provide protection for our runners. These guys believe every athlete should be protected from the sun, regardless of their skin colour. We will have bottles dotted around the event village for everyone to use during the day.

And of course, last but by no means least, we must give a huge shoutout to our volunteer crew who are the heart of this event. Please give a high five to our marshals on the course and in the village – they're the ones making it all happen.

We're so pumped for Black to the Trails. We know you are too, let's make this a day to remember. See you on Sunday!

#representationmatters

Black to the Trails

If you have any questions, please email blacktothetrails@blacktrailrunners.run