History
2020 will be the 40th anniversary of the founding of the race in 1973 by George Broderick, and the 30th anniversary of its resurrection in 1983 by Don Booth. If you were at the race in 2010, George was a special guest, and handed out the prizes. He is very keen that a DVD of the 2013 event be produced, so there will be more news about that in due course.
1973 - The First Race
The Isle of Jura Fell Race is one of the main events of the year on the island, another one being the Music Festival. The islanders put their heart and soul into organising, sponsoring, helping, marshalling, and generally supporting this race, and one of the ways we pay them back is by making a donation to a worthy cause on the island. Last year, 2009, the donation was held over, so this year's donation was two years' worth. It went to a co-operative one of whose main tasks is maintaining the existence of the fuel pumps. You will see them by the road between the camp field and the jetty.
They Come ... and They Go (2013), Donald Booth
A history of the Isle of Jura Fell Race, They Come… and They Go reflects on a golden era of hill running, documenting the emergence of the race in 1973, its rebirth in 1983 and subsequent races to 1992. Donald Booth is a worthy storyteller. When Jimmy Jardine was seemingly missing in the inaugural race, Booth heard him ‘blethering over a garden gate’ with a Diurach. ‘I found this aeroplane on the second Pap,’ Jardine explained. ‘Couldnie leave it alone. Tried tae get it startit but I couldnie.’