El Tast de la Mitja 2025: route, schedules and key details

Granollers is turning the calendar back on with one of its most recognizable events: the 10-kilometer race that serves as a prelude to the Mitja Marató. Starting in La Garriga and finishing in Canovelles, the course combines pace, a lively atmosphere, and a sustained downhill section that has made it a magnet for fast athletes and runners looking for a serious test before January’s big goal.

The 2025 edition arrives with a special buzz because the organizers have surpassed 3,000 registered runners, a figure that confirms the pull of a race born as an appetizer and now established as a benchmark in Catalan athletics. The mix of elite athletes, recreational runners, and a course favorable to fast times explains why this 10K has earned its own place on the Spanish running map.

A 10K that is already playing in another league

El Tast de la Mitja 2025 is not just a transitional race on the calendar. Its identity has been built around a very specific idea: to offer a fast, accurately measured circuit with enough personality to attract both those chasing a personal best and those who want to enjoy a race morning with a local feel. That balance is not improvised; it is crafted over years of continuity, a recognizable setting, and an organization that has turned a warm-up event into a race with a life of its own.

The route starts on the promenade in La Garriga and heads toward Canovelles, crossing Les Franqueses through a sequence of streets and industrial stretches that, on paper, may sound rough, but for the runner translate into a very clear mechanism: steady pace, few turns, and a favorable gradient along much of the course. In races like this, the scenery matters less than the geometry of effort. The body yields to inertia and the clock begins to take charge.

The race has also earned a particular reputation within the Catalan circuit because it allows athletes to compare their fitness states quite clearly. Those who arrive with fresh legs can get a lot out of it, and those who arrive carrying weeks of accumulated training get an honest reading of where they are. That honesty, so unshowy and so useful, is one of the reasons so many athletes mark it in red on their autumn calendar.

Start time, start, and finish on a course that invites you to run negative splits

The start is set for 10:30 a.m. on Passeig de la Garriga, a usual location for this race and a convenient reference point for runners and companions. The finish awaits at Passeig de la Ribera, 111, in Canovelles, in front of KH-7 headquarters, a closing stretch that is already part of the race’s image and has become associated with its character. There is no mystery in the logistics, but there is an important detail: the day and time heavily shape the experience, because the pace at the start usually sets the tone for the entire morning.

The circuit, officially certified by the Federació Catalana d’Atletisme, is structured in a way that encourages running by feel. It does not require complicated tactics. From the gun, the key is usually not to overdo it in the first kilometers, let the downhill do part of the work, and save some spark for the final stretch. It is a race that rewards control more than enthusiasm, even if the atmosphere pushes you toward the latter.

In races like this, the surroundings function almost like a soundtrack. The start in La Garriga, the passage through Les Franqueses, the crossing of the Congost, and the finish in Canovelles create a recognizable sequence for regular runners. It is not a tourist route, but it is a map of sensations: asphalt, rhythm, breathing, and the feeling that the clock, for once, can be generous if the legs cooperate.

Record participation and a high-level edition

The figure of more than 3,000 registered runners makes this edition one of the most crowded in its history. It is not just a volume statistic; it also speaks to the place the race occupies in the autumn calendar. Its proximity to the Mitja Marató de Granollers gives it strategic value, but its real weight no longer depends on being a prelude to anything. It has its own merits, its own category, and an appeal that has grown over time.

The appeal of a fast 10K is better understood when viewed in the context of today’s recreational runner. More and more athletes are looking for races that offer a clear fitness benchmark, with reliable organization and courses that allow them to beat their times without needing heroic feats. Here the equation works: an accessible distance, a fast circuit, and a large enough field for the atmosphere to feel like an important race, not a training run with a bib.

The presence of standout names reinforces that sporting ambition. The men’s field includes Mohamed El Ghazouany, Mourad Mourim, Genís Grau, Pol Espinosa, and other runners experienced in demanding settings. Among the women, Cristina Silva stands out as one of the main references, alongside athletes such as Míriam Ortiz and Sílvia Segurales. The level does not guarantee a perfect spectacle, but it does ensure a race with tension, pace changes, and room to see how the lead group takes shape very early on.

The value of a course favorable for fast times

Continuously downhill courses have a deceptive personality. At first glance they seem easy, almost gentle, but anyone who has raced on one knows they require careful muscle management. The stride lengthens, the impact changes, and the legs take on a different load, often more intense than subjective feeling suggests. That is why a fast 10K is not always a walk in the park. Sometimes the opposite happens: you feel like you are flowing while the body is quietly collecting its bill.

El Tast de la Mitja has learned to exploit that duality. Its reputation for speed is not the result of chance or a marketing campaign, but of a very specific combination of profile, certification, and tradition. The result is a race in which times matter just as much as the atmosphere. For many runners, crossing the finish line in Canovelles with a strong time is almost a declaration of fitness before the heavy winter campaign.

In 2024, the men’s course record belonged to Ilías Fifa with 27:50, while the women’s mark was set by Mesulu Berhe in 31:54 in 2022. These are demanding benchmarks, but also useful ones for understanding the kind of course we are talking about. This is not just any 10K, nor an event meant for mere completion. Here, people come to measure, fine-tune, and, in the best case, fly for a little over half an hour.

Registration, prices, and logistics designed to keep the morning simple

Registration closed once the 3,000 bib limit was reached or on October 26, whichever came first. That cap not only helps organize the race; it also protects the flow through the most delicate points of the course and helps maintain the feel of a big event that is still manageable. In an overcrowded calendar, that sense of control is appreciated.

Race bibs and gifts are usually collected in two very clear windows: the previous Friday at the gym of the Granollers athletics track, and Saturday morning in the finish area. To pick them up, the organizers require an ID card or proof of payment, a basic rule that prevents mistakes and speeds up access. Registration is personal and non-transferable, a detail that is often overlooked until pickup time arrives.

As for costs, the race has used different fees depending on the chip option and the registration period. For the runner, that administrative side matters less than the rest, but it is not insignificant: it determines whether you run with your own chip, a virtual one, or a purchased one, and affects the final price. In a race with such demand, those differences also reflect the usual structure of a well-established event.

Bus, train, and the small practical map that saves minutes

Transport is a key piece in races with separate start and finish areas. El Tast de la Mitja solves that issue with a bus service between Canovelles and La Garriga during race morning, a practical solution for those who prefer to leave the car far away or avoid unnecessary transfers. The ticket costs 5 euros and must be indicated during registration, a simple detail that can save runners more than a few headaches.

There is also an agreement with Renfe for those arriving by commuter train from different parts of the Barcelona area. The ticket allows a round-trip fare to be exchanged for Granollers Centre, Les Franqueses, and La Garriga stations. Mobility, in this case, is part of the race experience. It is not just about getting to the start, but getting there with both body and schedule in order.

The organizers also provide a baggage check and refreshments at kilometer 5 and at the finish, two basic services that reinforce the race’s character. In a 10K, these details may seem minor on paper, but they make the difference between a clean morning and one full of small setbacks. A cup of water, a bag for your clothes, and a reasonable return are enough to keep everything flowing smoothly.

A reliable thermometer before January’s big half marathon

The connection between El Tast and the Granollers Half Marathon remains the soul of the event. It began as a kind of competitive appetizer and now also works as a season thermometer. For local runners, it helps check whether the autumn training block is on track; for higher-level athletes, it offers a no-frills testing ground; for the public, it is a morning of athletics with a very local flavor and a well-defined identity.

The Granollers Half Marathon will reach its 40th edition in January 2026, a fact that explains why the prelude carries so much symbolic weight. The history of the big half marathon gives context to the 10K, but the 10K also feeds that history. The two events reinforce each other. One opens the way, the other seals it. And between them, a small running culture has been built in which the territory, clubs, city councils, and social fabric play a role that goes far beyond mere sponsorship.

The 2025 edition also reflects a very current trait of running: the coexistence of elite and recreational runners not as a postcard, but as everyday reality. There are runners chasing podium places and others who simply want to make the most of an October morning. Both find the same stage here, with a clear course and an atmosphere that needs no gimmicks to work.

What a fast race leaves behind when the bibs come off

The value of a race like this does not end at the finish line. It remains in the times, of course, but also in the way each runner reads themselves. A fast 10K can confirm progress, expose a rough patch, or simply restore the feeling of running easily. It is a cruel distance in its honesty and, at the same time, very generous to those who arrive prepared.

El Tast de la Mitja 2025 brought together a set of ingredients that explain its appeal: a favorable course, solid organization, massive participation, solved transport, and a competitive field of a high standard. That combination, more than any slogan, is what turns a local event into a name that appears year after year in runners’ conversations. It does not need to be sold with grand words; it is enough to look at the bibs, the clock, and the steady stride of those who set off on those 10 kilometers with a clear idea in mind.

In a calendar full of races that promise a lot and deliver little, this race maintains a rare virtue: it delivers what its profile promises. It is fast, orderly, and emotionally tied to the Granollers half marathon. That is why it keeps growing. And that is why, when October tightens its grip and the clocks start to drop, the feel of the asphalt in La Garriga once again tells half the field that the season is now for real.