Billy Bland (runner)

Billy Bland was one of the most prominent fell runners from the mid-1970s until the late 1980s, and is arguably the best long-distance fell runner in the history of the sport.

He was born in 1947 in Borrowdale in the Lake District.

Bland is the current holder of the record for the fastest time in the fell running challenge The Bob Graham Round. The Bob Graham Round involves a circuit of 42 Lake District peaks, covering around 66 miles, in under 24 hours. Bland accomplished this in 1982 in a time of 13:53.

Among Bland's other outstanding records are that for the Wasdale Fell Race, which he completed in 3:25:21 in 1982 (only three weeks after his Bob Graham Round record). This time has not been approached in recent years, despite the event being one of the counting races in the national championships on several occasions.

References

• Bill Smith, Stud Marks on the Summits (Preston, 1985), 372-75.
• Times Online Article on Fell Running