Organisers have hailed the success of a new family festival in Cumbria. The first Wild GOAT Festival was hosted on the Holker Estate from 31 May – 2 June and welcomed over 500 visitors of all ages for three days of camping, running, cycling and other outdoor activities, along with live music and other entertainment. A host of sports stars got fully involved in the event, many of whom brought their own families to take part too.
Designed to bring families together for a great value weekend in the outdoors, Wild GOAT was the brainchild of athletics legend Steve Cram and organised by Events of the North, with the support of the Holker Estate. It was held in thousands of acres of South Lakes countryside, with historic Holker Hall and Gardens as the main hub. The festival programme included trail running and cycling events that appealed to all experiences and ages, ranging from a 2K sunset run and other run distances of 2.5K, 8K, 10K, 20K and 30K, to cycle routes of 25K and 40K.
Over the course of the festival, there were three Families on Track events, Paula Radcliffe’s initiative that gives family groups the opportunity to complete a 10K distance in a continuous relay, having fun while exercising together. Paula was on hand to supervise and take part with her own family, and was also joined by Steve, and fellow athletes Chris Thompson, Jemma Simpson and family, and swimmer Karen Pickering and family.
Paula, Steve, Chris and Karen also featured in a full schedule of talks and Q&A sessions during the festival, as well as track and road athlete Aly Dixon, triathlete Non Stanford, and ultra-runner Imogen Boddy. Members of Duddon & Furness Mountain Rescue Team also spoke and were on hand throughout the festival, which raised money for the team as its official charity partner. Each evening, visitors were able to watch the sun go down while enjoying the food and drink available on the site, and live music and DJ sets.
Wild GOAT Festival founder Steve Cram comments: “It was a wonderful weekend in a beautiful setting. We launched Wild GOAT Festival with the intention of putting on an affordable, fun and activity packed weekend in the outdoors for the whole family. Based on the first event, I think we delivered that and more. Of course the weather helped, but what was more important was the breadth of activities and entertainment that we laid on, and which were clearly very popular with our visitors. Huge thanks to the team at Holker Estate who allowed us to hold the festival here, and to everyone who supported and attended the event. We’ve proved that the Wild GOAT concept works really well, and are very excited about its potential for the future.”
Dates and details of the 2025 Wild GOAT Festival will be announced in the near future. Find out more about the festival at www.wildgoatfestival.com and on Facebook.
