DUMFRIES Devorgilla Rotary Club has stepped up to the mark after it was revealed that an annual race held in the town had been
axed. But Devorgilla Rotary Club has promised to fill the void. They have gone ahead and organised a similar event called The Female Race and Run 4 Health on Sunday, June 28. Organiser Ken Asher said: “We believe that we can not only sustain a successful event on the Dumfries calendar, but improve it through an enhanced emphasis on activity, health and wellbeing, whilst raising money for local (particularly health) causes rather than a huge lump of money going out of Dumfries and Galloway peoples’ pockets to a massive national charity.” Mr Asher organised a very successful male race last year which attracted 435 entrants who walked, jogged or ran a 5K circuit to raise awareness of male health issues. But the decision to cancel the Dumfries Race for Life event, which has been a fixture in the town for several years, came as a surprise to him. Mr Asher added: “This was highly surprising given the success of the event which I am fairly sure has been going for around 15 years in Dumfries and is possibly the largest annual participation event in Dumfries and Galloway.”
“We owe it to our participants and supporters to ensure that we raise as much money as possible in the most cost-efficient way. For this reason we have taken the difficult decision to reduce the number of smaller Race for Life events across the UK, including Race for Life at Dumfries, and increase the number of places available at bigger events.”