Tim, may I suggest you petition the government to either a) move Manchester further north, or b) move the north of England further south?

The problem of doing a drive-out south of Manchester (ish) is one of decent, uncluttered driving roads. Maybe it's just me, but it seems that the further south you go, the more traffic there is. Yes I know you still get traffic and tourists further up, but it's never as bad....plus the scenery can be quite spectacular, and I'm trying to tempt people to try somewhere they might never otherwise consider.

I did consider the Peak District for a run a few years ago, but it's too small and crowded, so I keep going back to "north of Preston". I'm toying with something a bit different than a simple drive-round-a-route next year, but it'll take quite a bit more effort...hmm, see how I feel about it come March!

I don't suppose you'd think about moving further up this way instead?