Crowdfund Fife has provided £250 of match funding
The Scottish Coal Carrying Championships
Kelty, Scotland, United Kingdom
Aim
Fundraising to hold the Scottish Coal Carrying Championships in 2022 in the village of Kelty in Fife, Scotland.
Why coal carrying?
The village of Kelty in Fife was once a rich coalfield. Indeed‚ Kelty once had a reputed 14+ pits / mines in its locality.
The bizarre idea of a Coal Race was the concept of Race Organiser, Michael Boyle who at the time was looking for a modern day link to the heritage of his home village. It was inspired by stories that colliers in the late 1800s ran home from the pits with either bags of "rakers" or "clugs" in their bags.
And so the village of Kelty in Fife became the home of the Scottish Coal Carrying Championships.
The race day
The event is held over 1000 metres through Oakfield Street and Main Street in the village of Kelty and in past years, has attracted some 5000 spectators (+) each year.
The Men's race consists of carrying a 50-kilo bag of coal and the Ladies Race consists of carrying a 25-kilo bag of coal. In recent years there has been the addition of differing categories of Children's races, as well as a Mascot Race, to make the event even more interactive and fun.
Run on tarmac road, the course is a challenging mixture of incline and flat, being a true test of both athleticism and endurance.
Why we need your help.....
The Coal Race was held for 21 consecutive years from 1995 onwards. Sadly, the event had not been able to go ahead for 3 years due to lack of funding & COVID.
But it came back with a bang in 2021 and we want to keep the momentum going as it was much missed by the Kelty community. So this year, we dearly hope to raise enough funds to put the event back on. The community is enthusiastic, a date has been set (Saturday 27th August 2022), and sources of key funding have been approached.
However, we will still need to raise a little more to carry us over the finishing line and ensure we can put on a successful event. Which is where your help comes in.........
How you can help
- Rewards - we have mugs and t-shirts to remember the day by. Pick one or the other, or pledge twice and get both!
- Donations - if the rewards don't appeal, you can simply donate an amount of your own choosing. Hit 'Donate' and enter what you can afford.
- Shares - we need to let as many people as possible know about our crowd funder, so share it far and wide with your pals!
Want to sponsor a race?
We have various sponsorship opportunities available to suit all budgets:- a full race (men's, women's, children's, mascots); race sections; main stage; bands etc
For further information and to receive a Sponsor Pack, please get in touch with Michael Boyle on the details below.
Or if you think there's any other way that you or your business could help or support us, please feel free to get in touch with Michael Boyle by email or phone: [email protected] / 07715 304798
Thank you so much in anticipation of your help - and here's to the 2021 Coal Race going ahead!
This project successfully funded on 28th May 2021