Environment Awards 2025: Winners
Congratulations to the winners of the WFRA Environment Awards 2025:
- Tim Woodier - Individual
- Patrick Jarvis and Kani Hinshelwood - Race Organisers, Blorenge fell race
Our guest judges were Crispin Flower (previous joint award winner - Race Organiser) and Kathryn Miller (Fell Runners Association (FRA) Access and Environment Officer), who joined Briony Latter (WFRA Environmental Officer) and Craig Jones (WFRA Chair) to assess the nominations.
Individual winner
Tim Woodier from Mynydd Du was nominated in the Individual category for the “tremendous act” of riding his elliptigo from Abergavenny to the Welsh 1000m Peaks race in Eryri and back. The elliptigo is a stand up bike which uses both arms and legs to propel it. The judges were impressed with the lengths that Tim went to, with judge Kathryn Miller saying “I was highly impressed with Tim’s commitment to active, zero carbon travel to the Welsh 1000m Peaks race and he is a deserved winner of this year’s award”. Tim also shared some insights into his experience:
“Riding the elliptigo to the Welsh Thousands and back was great, 24hrs riding over the two days. I saved, as well as the fuel, 8hrs hours sat in a car. The way up was great, the race was brilliant and I did better than I would have expected even if I drove up.
The way back was definitely harder but made easier by the support from passing Welsh Thousands runners and Red Bull hardline [downhill mountain bike race] visitors who I'd rode past queuing earlier in the day. I was also helped out by a kind old man I asked for water somewhere before a huge climb who insisted I came in for tea and biscuits in exchange for gratitude and listening to his own tales of Welsh Thousands gone by. I'll be riding up again this year hopefully, if the weather is fine!”
Race Organiser winners
Patrick Jarvis and Kani Hinshelwood were jointly nominated for the Race Organiser category for the Blorenge fell race in November 2024. All the judges agreed that their actions were “superb” and extensive.
This included an impressive race website, hand-sewn race numbers, a prize for the person who had travelled the furthest using sustainable transport, prizes which were handmade cotton bags with recipes and ingredients from a refill shop or reused containers, collecting travel information from everyone so they could share data about how people travelled to and from the race, a kit swap stall at registration, promotion of and practical details about sustainable travel, and a pre-race litter pick. They took inspiration from the WFRA’s Climate Change and Environment Guidance which has ideas and practical examples of actions that individuals and Race Organisers can take.
Some of the people who nominated Patrick and Kani said:
“So much effort went into the event and it made everybody think about their own environmental impact and how to reduce it.”
“A demonstration to the fell running community that incorporating environmentally positive practices into fell races can be done in a way that creates benefits and value in other ways too, rather than detracting from the experience. For example, the race numbers will help form part of a year on year story as winners’ patches are added, the swap shop meant that people could upgrade their kit, and the prizes were generally received as being some of the best in the series. [Their] actions were very visible at the event, and the motivations behind them were explained verbally to all entrants at the start line.”
“If other races introduced any one of these [initiatives] that would be great. All in a race that was both challenging and fun. I have a bag of running kit ready for the next gear swap already.”
“Incredible efforts to minimise the impact of their race on, and promote awareness of, the environment and ways in which we as runners and ROs can ‘do our bit’. They had thought of everything […] Even more incredible is that they were first-time ROs. The fell running world needs more Patricks and Kanis!”
Thanks to those who sent in nominations. The winners receive free WFRA membership for the next year and money towards further improving or encouraging their climate and sustainability actions.