SWINDONIANS wanting to set themselves a new year’s resolution are being encouraged to sign up for next year’s half marathon just as early bird entries set to close on January 1.

The race, to be held on September 9, takes runners on a tour of the town, past many of Swindon’s famous landmarks, including the Magic Roundabout, the Oasis, the railway, the McArthurGlen Designer Outlet as well as Old Town.

Entries for next year’s race opened two months ago and so far, over 500 people have pledged to run the 13.1 mile course.

Organisers LG Running Ltd and 113 Events were overwhelmed this year when 2,700 runners signed up for the inaugural new run and hope to soar past this figure by September.

“This year’s race was about getting everything in place before we opened the entries but what we have done for next year’s race is open the entries a lot earlier to attract people who have already done a couple of runs and want to sign up for another one next year,” said Graeme Hardie, one of the race directors.

This year’s newly-revamped race, where Nationwide was the title sponsor, faced much criticism from residents regarding traffic chaos on the day – something which Graeme has promised will change for next year.

Other changes to be brought in include ending the race on Commerical Road as well as trying to start the run earlier in the morning.

Graeme added: “The planning side is going reasonably well but we are going to start the race quite a bit earlier next year.

“The traffic should run a lot better and we will have a couple tweaks to the course that will make the traffic flow much smoother. If we start slightly earlier it also gives people the chance to not be enclosed in their area for the entire day but instead of going out at 10am they will be able to get out at 11am with the roads open.

“It is a difficult one because the traffic is always going to be a point people complain about but we hope people will see the amount of good the half marathon does for the town and the amount of money raised for charity to compensate for that.”

A new addition to the race will be the Brighter Futures GWH Fun Mile which has been organised so that the whole family can enjoy the big day.

“We are delighted to team up with the Brighter Futures team because we worked with them on this year’s race and they are a charity everyone knows about and had experience with,” Graeme said. “They organise and host their own events regularly in the same field as us and so they are the perfect people to join with for this new addition.

“The idea of the fun run is to open up the day to the entire family. It gives something for everyone and it acts as a stepping stone for people who aren’t runners but want to achieve a run and it gives them the chance to work up to a Park Run and then a half marathon if they want to.”

So far in excess of £100,000 has been raised for charity from this year’s event and more details on the fun run will be released in March.

Early bird entries close on January 1 and standard entries, costing £5 more, will then be open until two weeks before the race.

To sign up for the 2018 Swindon Half Marathon, visit www.newswindonhalf.co.uk.