BTR RUNNING COMMUNITY TRUST GROUP
BTR / RUNNING COMMUNITY GROUP / UPDATE OCTOBER 2023
Since the announcement I made earlier this year about taking a bit of a back seat from 1st January 2025 I'm pleased to say that the NTR (New Team Regime) has taken shape and become significantly involved in helping deliver - successfully - the various events hosted by BTR.
The group currently comprises six individuals with considerable experience in running and event delivery and it's been a pleasure to begin the process of passing on my personal knowledge of the BTR races from the Liverpool Half Marathon at the beginning of the year to the final event of 2023 which is the Winter's Trail 5K on 31st December.
The variety, size and scale of each of the events is so different they individually and collectively throw up many different considerations and problems to solve and yet because of the application of the extended backroom staff they always seem to pass off successfully.
This is down to the application of the wider team who embrace the different challenges of event delivery and despite learning on the job they are all getting to grips with what goes on behind the scenes. So far this year (since setting up the group) they have engaged with the Tunnel 10K, 97/5K, Port Sunlight 10K/5K, Tour Of Merseyside, Autumn Leaves 5K and more recently the Wirral 10K.
Each of these events has a different structure for delivery and there is a lot to learn and a lot of information to absorb about processes and procedure. But it's happening. I am transferring my 30 years of experience to a new and vibrant team.
So rest assured that when I take a back seat on 1st January 2025 the events will continue on and hopefully flourish with the full backing and application of the New Team Regime. Look out for them at any BTR event... they will all be sporting their new bright orange TEAM BTR jackets!
If you think you have something to offer the ongoing development of the BTR portfolio and would like to join the NTR group them email alan@btrliverpool.com and I will invite you along to one of our group meetings which take place in Liverpool city centre every couple of weeks on a Saturday lunchtime.
FOR CLARITY... some within the running community are confusing my 'retirement' with disappearing off the face of the earth which clearly isn't the case. In order to secure the long term stability of the current portfolio of races and fun runs I have set up the NTR group to allow individuals to get to understand different aspects of event delivery from start to finish.I have amassed so much information of the last 30 years I think it is dangerous to keep all this event knowledge stored away in my head... so I'm passing it on to the NTR group who can continue to deliver the BTR events without me being 100% responsible for every aspect of event delivery. I might be 'retiring' but I won't be far away and will hopefully still be attending all the events under the new regime from 1st January 2025. So, in summary... I'm not really going anywhere and the transfer of event knowledge is going well.
I think your races will be in safe hands.
Alan Rothwell
An opportunity for you to support your fellow runners and give back to the running community.
BTR Liverpool is looking to form the BTR Running Community Trust Group to help develop and deliver the existing BTR running portfolio.
Race Director Alan Rothwell would like to hear from anyone who feels they could contribute to the ongoing development of the BTR event portfolio over the next two years, up to and including the end of 2024.
Alan explained: “As we approach 2024 which will herald in several significant anniversary dates, I think it is important to take a look at any new and innovative ideas that would help improve the quality of BTR events. I've been doing this for so long now I would like to invite any interested individuals who feel they can play an ongoing part in the improvement of the events to join me and help form a BTR Running Community Trust Group.
“The idea is to bring together a group of like-minded people round the table, who can deliver innovation and improvement through a shared experience approach."
Three current BTR events reach individual landmarks in 2023 with the hosting of the 30th Liverpool Half Marathon, 20th Liverpool Santa Dash, and 10th Tour Of Merseyside.
The BTR Running Community Trust Group initiative is based on the original format of the Liverpool International Half Marathon which started way back in 1994, when a group of individuals came together to create something special.
Alan was part of that original group and has been involved in the event from the outset and, for 10 years up to 2004, acted as part of the voluntary arrangement that helped develop and deliver the Liverpool Half Marathon race until it was taken over in 2005 by the London Marathon Company.
In just two short years the London Marathon Company withdrew from Liverpool and the event was given back to Alan.
As the voluntary group who delivered the event had disbanded it was left to Alan to take over and keep the race going, which then became the origin of what we now know as BTR Liverpool.
Having reached a milestone year in 2023 thoughts are now turning to a new and different approach to ensure the legacy of what BTR has created cannot only continue but improve and delivers a vibrant and dynamic running offer.
If you would like to become part of the BTR Running Community Trust Group then please email alan@btrliverpool.com with a brief summary of what kind of input you think you may have in the group, and any other information you feel may be relevant to your interest.