DORCHESTER welcomes its first ever marathon at the end of May and the organisers are hoping that people in the county town and surrounding villages will give it their support.

The event is being pulled together by local people who are hoping to raise money for charities, including Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance, which has been named as the main charity this year.

The vision for the event came from the Casterbridge Rotary club and they set about bringing it all together with a team of experts.

John Adams is chairman of the committee. He said: “We’re in the final stages of organisation now and it’s all coming together really well.

“We’re expecting about 1,800 runners to take part so there should be a really great atmosphere. If you want to run but haven’t signed up yet you’ve still got time.

“Everyone knows West Dorset has the most glorious countryside and the route takes you through some stunning villages.

“We’re also laying on entertainment and a tented village, so runners can bring their families along and enjoy a whole weekend of fun and relaxation after the marathon.”

The committee wants to make sure that local people can get involved if they want to. John added: “The roads on the route will be closed for a short time while the runners go through, but we are hoping to have local people as marshals so that they direct people to use alternative routes. "Let us know if you’d like to be a marshal on the day!

“We’re also encouraging local people to get in touch with us if they are worried at all about how road closures may affect them.”

The committee has made a point of using local suppliers as much as possible.

Jamie Perry, from Dorset Catering Service, said: "We are proud to provide catering for the first ever Dorchester Marathon.”

There will also be a bar over the weekend which is being supplied by the Piddle Brewery.

The marathon and half marathon races are being organised by White Star Running and Andy Palmer, who owns the company, is part of the organising committee.

He said: “We’re a running organisation with a heart. We put our runners first and we want this to be Dorset’s premier running event, but we also want to put something back into the community.

“We know Dorset really well and have already won awards for our events. The Giant’s Head Marathon, which sets off from the village of Sydling St Nicholas in West Dorset, won an award for most improved marathon and was listed as the UK’s best marathon by Runner’s World magazine.

“We keep our events away from big towns so that we can keep running rural. We have such a beautiful county and we want to encourage everyone to get out and enjoy it.

“Our ethos is ‘runner first’ and we know what makes a really good run for runners. We believe in races that are tough, marshals who are friendly, views that are awesome and beer that is cold.”

The main sponsor for the event is Kiteleys Solicitors which has branches across the south west.

Mark Kiteley, managing director, said: “We are really proud to be involved in such a great community event and we want as many people as possible to get behind it.

“It’s going to be one of West Dorset’s biggest in-land sporting events and we can promise it will be a great weekend for everyone who takes part.”

Magna Housing is also helping with the event. Catriona Fountain, head of communication, said: “We support the communities we are based in through the work that we do, but this is a way of supporting our community to do something completely different and come together to raise money for good causes.

“Not only are we helping the organising committee with various things, we have also entered a team of runners who are raising money for Weldmar Hospicecare based in Dorchester.”

Committee chairman John paid particular thanks to those who have made the route possible. He said: “We’ve worked really closely with Dorset County Council highways department and we couldn’t have got this far without them. They have been really great about helping us find a route that suits them as well as our runners.

“We’re also extremely grateful to two local farmers for letting us run through their land. Getting permission from John Mayo and Tim Cox has made the whole event possible.”

*The Dorchester Marathon is on Sunday May 28. It will start from the centre of Dorchester and the route will mostly take in villages to the south and east of Dorchester.

Anyone who wants to take part can enter online at www.dorchestermarathon.co.uk

Nine reasons to sign up for the Dorchester Marathon

*It’s the first one ever You want to be there at the start don’t you?

*The usual high standard White Star Running fabulous medal for all finishers, plus a T-shirt.

*There is entertainment laid on Black Sheep will be entertaining with a barn dance after you finish on Sunday night so you can keep those tired legs moving. There will also be a band on Saturday night.

*You run through stunning countryside West Dorset is beautiful with some really great chocolate box villages. Here’s a great excuse to see them at the best time of year.

*Your family will thank you Why not make a weekend of it? Dorset is one of the country’s top holiday destinations so there is loads to keep the family entertained while you do your thing. If you’re a local, you can pretend you are on holiday!

*It’s all in aid of a great local charity. The event is to raise money for the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance so you are running for a great cause.

*You can support your own charity at the same time Why not run to raise money for your own good cause? It’s easy to set up your own page on Justgiving.

*Be special Only 1 in 100 people ever complete a marathon, if you’ve never done one before (and you have done some training already) now’s your chance.

*Beat the stress Anyone who runs knows just what a great stress-buster it is. If you’ve not run before, give it a go.