March 2009

 

For a complete results
listing view the
Results Index

Featured events this month:

Reading Half-Marathon - 29 March 2009

1154 Stephen Mason 1:34:46
1420 Andrew Miles 1:36:44

Draycote 5 mile - 29 March 2009

25 Peter Fellows M50 31:34
39 Nigel Bassnett M40 33:30
66 Charles Jones M55 37:09
67 Mike Wheeler M35 37:12
115 Lesley Keighley F55 44:24

Report: Peter Fellows

Good day for me as this was my fastest 5 since returning to running a few years ago. Not such a good day for Mike as he fell badly at about 4.5 miles. Despite several cuts and grazes to his hands and leg he made it to the finish line before being attended to by a very efficient First Aider. Charles had a less than perfect run (his words) but he was nevertheless pleased to get through his first race of the season without injury.

Sheffield Lord Mayor's 10k - 29 March 2009

50 Paul Stead 38:27 PB

Report: Paul Stead

So after the disappointment of missing out on the magic 40 minute barrier at the Stratford Raceway a few weeks ago, today was the day when I was determined it was going to happen.

The venue was superb probably the best venue I’ve been to for a race (The Don Valley Stadium), the course was flattish, the weather was beautiful, I was fully motivated, it was almost the perfect setting for a pb attempt…….and so it proved, not only sub-40 was achieved but sub-39…..needless to say I was very happy.

Anglo Celtic Plate 100Km - Galway - 28 March 2009

Men's Team Result: 1st England, 2nd Scotland, 3rd Ireland, 4th Wales

37th Mark Baker 10h 38m 38s 4th Welsh finisher

      10km 20km 30km 40km 50km 60km 70km 80km 90km 100km total
37 Mark Baker   51:17 51:10 50:06 50:53 57:31 63:20 81:13 84:21 85:56 65:52 10:38:38

Report: Mark Baker

Photo of Mark Baker and team mates in Anglo Celtic Plate race

Baker (left) with the synchronised running team at the AngloCeltic Plate 100km

This was my second Welsh selection for the 100Km. I arrived at the team hotel on Friday evening to find the new Welsh kit for 2009. I was sharing a room with the Welsh ultradistance champion, who was already preparing his drinks for the next day. The weather was terrible as I arrived but better was promised for race day. At dinner I met the rest of the Welsh team, consisting of Team Manager, Assistant Manager and 5 runners. We were then invited to a pre-race seminar at the hotel where any questions could be raised.

After an early night, race day (Saturday) began with a good breakfast, and final preparations of kit, food and drinks. The race was run next to the sea, on 50 laps of a 2Km road along Salthill promenade, 1Km up and 1Km back each time. The teams assembled at one end of the route in a car park, where the team managers set up their bases.

The weather was much better, but with a cold wind from the sea. I had been concerned about a tight hamstring since the Barry 40 miles, and was wrapped up well. The start gun sounded at 8am and 50 runners got underway. Teams from Wales, England, Ireland and Scotland contested the Celtic Plate, but many more guest internationals were competing, including a large German team.

I used the early laps to assess my hamstring. There was slight discomfort which kept moving from hamstring to calf to knee, but it was not serious. I ran with two of the Welsh team early on, and was optimistic of a good time. However, it was around the 32nd lap (40 miles) where my leg completely cramped up. I hobbled into the team area to get assistance and decided on a ‘walk then run’ strategy for the next laps. The walking part was fine, but the cramp was making running much more difficult. Times were now irrelevant and it was a case of survival to the finish. I was getting good advice and support from the team and was changing places with an Irish runner who had similar problems. Eventually the walking and stretching eased the leg, and I was able to run much more in the last 10Km.  I reached the finish line after over 10 hours, but was pleased with my determination to get to the end.

The team manager was very complimentary, and helped me get back to the hotel for the presentations. Each finishing runner was announced and presented with their medal. The organiser then invited everyone to a Galway pub, where each runner could get free Guinness! This was a fantastic evening where all the teams could socialise, and it’s a weekend I will always remember.

Rome Marathon - 22 March 2009

  Andrew Ralph 3:25:30  
  Sarah McNaney 3:45:39 PB
  Paul Costain 3:59:56 PB
  Jackie Williams 4:00:30  
  Steph Berry 4:05:19  
  Craig McNaney 4:05:20 PB
  Penny Wilkin 4:10:24  
  Corinna O'Connor 4:10:30  
  John Ralph 4:23:31  

Report: Sarah McNaney

Nine runners went out with a further 13 supporters to cheer us all on, and we all had a great time (partly due to a lot of pasta, a few large beers and even more red wine!!). Not sure how we did it but three PB’s were made on what is a very tough course, with the other runners coming very close to their previous times as well.

The race started and finished outside the olosseum which is a spectacular setting to begin a race (and end it).  It meanders through the city taking in some great scenery such as the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain.  However, I think the most memorable sight has got to be the approach to St Peter's Square which the race was allowed to take in this year for the very first time – awesome!!

The one downside to the race was the number of cobbles – millions of them!!!  The last 5 miles were through the old city and therefore the cobbles played a major part in slowing us all down – just think what times we could have done if the roads had been smooth!!

However, we all managed to recover very quickly and all the bad points of the race (like lack of water at the feeding stations, missing Km markers, course being longer than 26.2 miles…..) were soon forgotten.  Large glasses of beer and wine were consumed on the way back to the hotel before collapsing in a heap at the bottom of the shower!!

The whole four days we were out there were a delight, due to the company we were all in.  I now know the words to Rhinestone Cowboy, courtesy of Tom Jordan – actually so do all the people on the platform at the tube station.  I also know that Tom did a 2.28 (and 32 seconds) marathon – apparently – you’ll have to ask Tom about this one.  I am also extremely grateful for all the Northbrook supporters who cheered us on at various points throughout the race,without them it would have been a very quiet day.  (The Romans don’t do bands and music en-route).

Would I recommend this marathon to anyone else? No!!!!  It’s a bit disorganised, not well supported en-route and Rome is a filthy city covered in graffiti.  I'm doing Paris next year again!!!!!

Wedgnock Winter Mud & Mayhem Race 4 - 21 March 2009

1 Nathan Holmes 38:44  
16 Rebecca Smith 46:16 1st lady

Report: Nathan Holmes

The recent dry weather had done a lot to reduce the mud and the mayhem, so times were much quicker than in previous races. After disappointing runs in the earlier races I was very pleased with the win this time out, although I'll admit that it was in large part due to Phil Gould being injured on the day. I had a good see-saw battle over the first two laps with a young lad from Solihull & Small Heath with me pulling away on the hilly, twisty half of the lap and him catching me up on the flatter, straighter half of the lap, but fortunately the gap never looked like closing on the third lap because I'm not sure I'd have managed a sprint if it had.

In terms of the overall series: Phil limped round to finish in exactly the right position to tie with me on points and win on the tie-breaker of race wins (which is fair enough, because he's had me well beaten all series) and Becky finished with a perfect score from the three races she did and surprisingly little regret about not having tootled round the first race, so I guess we'll be going back next year to see if one or other of us can win the 4x4 Safari day!

Orion 15 - 21 March 2009

Pos   Vet Pos  
14 John Hosie   1:42:16
153 Jeremy Trill 18 2:06:24
193 Stuart Found 116 2:12:20
232 Andrew Houston 145 2:20:21

Ashby 20 - 22 March 2009

34 Howard Anderson 2:10:01
82 Richard Hodge 2:21:53
103 Adrian Powell 2:25:28
175 Clive Horton 2:32:12
227 John Elliott 2:35:33
395 Andy Whitehouse 2:51:18
807 Tony French 3:48:59

Full results

Milford 21 - 22 March 2009

60 Paul Stead 3:00:36

Report: Paul Stead

21 miles of trail running across Cannock Chase……Mmmmmmm pure heaven. Despite not having run further than half marathon distance for a good couple of months this race proved a really enjoyable if extremely tough challenge and with an additional one mile extra thrown into the mix due to a rogue arrow pointing a few of us up a really nasty hill it really did test my legs to the absolute maximum. 21.7 miles was run to be precise.

Inverness Half-Marathon - 15 March

30 Martyn Brunt 1:21:48
photo of Martyn Brunt

Fall guy Martyn Brunt

Although slower than last year I was pleased with this results because:
1. There was a blizzard during the race with one of the fiercest head winds I have ever encountered
2. I was still suffering the after effects of a major fall three days earlier in which smashed up my face, sprained my arm and ended up with concussion.

Forest of Dean Half-Marathon - 15 March 2009

112 Alix Critchley 1:31:56
161 Paul Stead 1:34:52

Report: Paul Stead

For those that like a bit of trail running, like a good challenge and want a downhill finish then this race has got to be tried, the only slight drawback being the first 9 miles is uphill!! But it’s worth it.

The weather was fabulous, the scenery was great and the race lived up to all our expectations. Alix ran an absolute blinding race and finished only 15 seconds outside her pb which on a course like that is very very impressive, she was 8th lady finisher too, so she can wear her t-shirt with pride.

Bath Half-Marathon - 15 March 2009

1052 John Wilson 1:37:26 PB

Report: John Wilson

Absolutely stunning weather in Bath greeted the 11,000 strong field of the Bath Half Marathon. Unfortunately the organisation didn’t match the weather as the start was delayed by 30 mins due to ‘congestion’ (I now know that last year it was delayed 60 minutes). Everything else went well; the streets were lined with people and a flat course with ideal conditions promised so much. And it delivered! At least for 11 of the 13 miles anyway!

Grandma Wilson could have run the last 2 miles quicker! My unofficial (GPS watch) distance was 13.25 miles which I covered 3 minutes quicker than my previous fastest 13.1 mile time. (13.1 miles would have been covered another minute quicker but hey ho, we must be pleased with a PB) Onward now with the London Marathon training, main thing is no injuries to report.

Silverstone Half-Marathon - 15 March 2009

275 James Joyce 1:31:01  
696 Richard Hands 1:38:32  
860 Jo Tucker 1:40:31  
4546 Abbe Humphreys 1:10:41  
4541 Angela Hands 2:10:39  
4798 Andy Kelsall 2:13:26 PB

Andy Kelsall was on a roll; this was his 11th PB in a row, and was 9 minutes better than his previous best over the distance

Barry 40 mile track race (161 laps) - 8 March 2009

Mark Baker      5-31-29    (Silver medallist in Welsh Ultradistance Championship)

    5 miles 10 miles 15 miles 20 miles 25 miles 30 miles 35 miles 40 miles
5 Mark Baker 36:10 1:11:52 1:48:55 2:27:33 3:07:41 3:52:20 4:42:33 5:31:29

Full results

Report: Mark Baker

The Barry 40 has been held for 23 years, and the organiser described the conditions as the toughest ever seen. Frequent heavy rain and hail showers, combined with gusting winds, almost brought runners to a standstill on the backstraight of the track. After an energetic start, any thoughts of PB’s were forgotten, and times were much slower than usual.

Early on, four leaders broke clear, so I settled down in 5th or 6th place. At about 10 miles the reigning Welsh champion was forced to drop out of the leading group, and I briefly led the Welsh championships. However, I was being tracked closely by last year’s silver medallist who opened a wide gap in the second half of the race. The laps between 25 and 35 miles were very gruelling, but I was determined to keep going as I tried to improve on last year’s bronze medal. The lap scorers encouraged their runners when things got tough, and handed out extra kit and drinks as required.

After about five and a half hours I was happy to finish. This was my slowest time in 4 attempts, but my highest overall placing in 5th. A silver medal in the Welsh championships was also a dream.

Usually this race is a qualifier for the Anglo Celtic Plate 100Km, but I had already been selected for the race in Galway, Ireland, on 28th March. At the finish, I chatted to some of the team about the 100Km, which may provide more challenging weather in 3 weeks time. Now there’s something to look forward to!

Gloucester 20 - 8 March 2009

149 Andy Miles 2:26:07 PB

Milton Keynes Half-Marathon - 8 March 2009

2173 Helen Elizabeth 2:03:43 PB

In the none too pleasant wild and windy conditions the weather held that day! It was my second ever Half and I’m pleased to say I got a PB, taking 3 min 16 secs off my first ever time of 2:06:59 for Birmingham Half last October. Really pleased so I thought I’d shout about it.

Shakespeare Raceway 10K - 7 March 2009

24 Paul Stead M35 40:22
30 Peter Fellows M50 41:04

Report: Peter Fellows

New for 2009, and you will not find a flatter 10K without running round and round a track. Not the most exciting course on the old runway at Long Marston airfield, just past Stratford, and a strong wind affected times. You basically run up then down the main runway, do a loop round a side road back to the top of the runway, and then finish by running down, up and back down the runway. If you are just after a PB then this is the one to go for, they were talking of staging it again this September when conditions should be much better.

Centurion GP - 1 March 2009

3 Nathan Holmes 27:26
30 Paul Stead 32:07
41 Rebecca Smith 33:38
44 Paul McGurk 33:58

Report: Nathan
Felt surprisingly heavy-legged after trotting non-competitively round the 15-mile option
of the Belvoir Challenge the day before, so I was really pleased to take 40secs off my series
best time, even if I did lose second place in the last 200 yards.