October 2011

 

For a complete results
listing view the
Results Index

Featured events this month:

• BUPA Great South Run
• Warwick Relays
• Staffordshire Trail Marathon
• Rugby 10
• Great Birmingham Run
• Abingdon Marathon
• Round Rotherham 50 miles trail race
• Nottingham Ultra 50k
• Merrill 10k
• Leicester Half-Marathon
• Isle of Wight Marathon
• Chester Marathon
• Stourport Shuttle 10k
• Coventry Half-Marathon
• Atlantic Coast Challenge

BUPA Great South Run (Portsmouth) - 30th October  

2371

Mark Dalton

1:20:39

PB

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Warwick Relays - 29 October

For complete results follow this link

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Staffordshire Trail Marathon - 27 October

1st place, and a win in a trail marathon, was not something I was expecting, but it was a great present for me, on the day after my birthday.
Originally, I had been looking for a few low key distance events, to increase my mileage for next years Barry 40 mile race. The Staffordshire Trail marathon was midweek, and I had some holidays left from work, so I signed up for the event.
The course was based in Penkridge, and featured 4 laps of an out and back course along a canal tow path for about 3.33 miles. This totalled nearly 27 miles according to people’s Garmins! There was a water station at the turn and the start/finish.

The route was flat apart from 5 locks where there were short upward inclines on the way out, and downward inclines on the way back. However, the path was very narrow and muddy in places, which was difficult when passing people in the opposite direction. It rained through most of the day making parts of the course very slippery, but everyone was in good spirits throughout the race.
About 25 runners lined up at the start, and 3 runners were soon ahead. I recognised Jen Salter who had run quicker than me in the Barry 40 mile race, but I decided to stay at my own pace for the first of the eight legs. After the first leg I was about 40 seconds behind the group, and this stayed about the same on leg 2. However, on leg 3 the two male runners ahead moved away from Jen, and I was still in 4th place. I knew that the next runner was a few minutes behind me. On the 4th leg as we approached halfway, the lead runner (John Kipps) had opened up a gap and was out of sight. However the second runner was slowing and was first passed by Jen, then myself.
At halfway, I changed my drinks from water to sports drinks, and headed off on to leg 5. Jen was now just ahead, and I passed her about a mile later. At the turn for leg 6, I saw that Jen was only about 20 to 30 seconds behind. I knew that I would have to work hard to keep second place. During leg 6 I was getting information from runners coming the other way, that John, the leader, was slowing down but he still had a good lead. As I approached the turn I saw John, and he shouted that ‘he was there to be caught if I wanted it’. I didn’t know what to think, but I grabbed another sports drink, and was told the gap was about 400 metres.
As I set off on leg 7, I saw that Jen was still less than a minute behind. By now, I was lapping slower runners, so I didn’t recognise John at first, who was jogging along. He shouted encouragement as I went past, and said that ‘his legs were gone’. I pressed on to the final turn. As I grabbed some water, I saw Jen passing John not far behind. A big effort was needed on the last leg. This was now the furthest I had run since May, and my legs were screaming. Adrenalin and excitement spurred me on. 'It’s scary leading a race', as John admitted later, and I couldn’t afford to take it easy. The slower runners going in the other direction, realised I was leading, and shouted encouragement. The constant rain was now affecting the path, and I nearly slipped over a couple of times. I got my composure back, and with a mile to go had a quick look behind. I couldn’t see anyone, and pushed on to the finish. I felt euphoric as I crossed the line. I couldn’t believe that I had won. Jen was only 70 seconds behind with an excellent run. She was followed by John a few minutes later. The top 3 posed for a finish photo before retiring to the Boat Inn for some free hot chocolate.
An absolutely amazing day! I’m already signed up for another trail marathon on 2nd January 2012 at Milton Keynes. There will be much more competition on that weekend race, but for now I’m just ‘very’ happy.

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Rugby 10 - 23 October

This was the final race of the Warwickshire Road Race League (WRRL) & also the Warwickshire 10 mile County Championships. It was not a perfect day for the organisers as apparently the course was marked out wrongly so the race was actually 10.21 miles long, but as everyone ran the same distance it doesn‘t affect the results. There was also a lot of confusion with the men’s County Championship medals as they seemed unsure as to which age groups to use but as far as I am aware the results above are correct.

It was however a perfect day for Amanda, she was first Northbrook counter, first lady in the open race, first Senior and first L35 in the County Championships, and she may also have set a 10 mile PB despite the tough course and strong winds. Her two boys were also happy as it meant they went home with a medal each but there was a bit of a dispute over who was going to carry the winning trophy.

It was also  another good day for me as I picked up my fourth County Championship age group medal of the year - Pete Fellows

Excellent effort and turn-out for a very windy and exceptionally hilly course.  What was billed as a ten miler turned out to be in an inaccurate course and we ended up doing 10.2 miles but it all added to the fun of the event!

Exceptional runs by Amanda as first lady and also by Pete, Tony, Corinna and Linda whose legs were still tired from last weeks Abingdon Marathon.

This years course twisted and turned around Barby, Ashby and Hillmorton and took in just half of the lovely ‘Cart Hill’ before taking us on the long drag through Barby Village.  The wind and the numerous hills certainly took its toll on most of us but it was an enjoyable and challenging run.  Think I enjoyed it!! - Sarah McNaney

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BUPA Great Birmingham Run - 23 October

1023	Tony Forde		1:37:16	PB
2216	Craig Robinson		1:45:15
2654	Mark Dalton		1:47:44	PB
5407	Tony Granycombe		2:00:24
8677	Gemma Nash		2:01:28	PB

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Abingdon Marathon - 16 October

Tony Hughes was well pleased to get under 3½ hours for the first time.

Dave Fawkner missed a PB by 24 secs - better luck next year?

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Round Rotherham 50 miles trail race - 15 October

Paul Stead

9h:52m:18s

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Nottingham Ultra - 9 October

It was a lovely day at the start in Blidworth, and the plan was to take it easy and let my legs recover from the previous week. I tried to be sensible, but I found myself running comfortably and went through the 20k check point in 1:35! Lol It was not long before fatigue began to creep in, and it became a battle to the finish for the second half of the race. Running turned to jogging and then a shuffle, but I kept moving forward (apart from a 2k detour). I was relieved to find the finish line in sight, so as always I managed a quick sprint to the end. Being my first 50k the PB was always in the bag, so I'll be out to beat it next year. Next stop Abingdon :)

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Merrill 10k - 9 October

95

Chris Jones

45:51

PB

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Leicester Half-Marathon - 9 October

55

Mark Baker

1:29:31

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Isle of Wight Marathon - 9 October

8

Dave Halford

3:22:24

1st MV50

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Chester Marathon - 9 October

469	Joe Kelly		3:34:20	PB
1176	Lyn McDonald		4:05:33
1313	Dave Cooper		4:12:20	PB
1532	Claudie Combelas		4:22:42

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Stourport Shuttle 10k - 2 October

This was a new event for me and my fastest 10K so far as a vet. The race starts with 2 laps of the running track followed by a large lap of footpath/road, with one shortish sharp hill, then a shorter second lap without the hill, finishing with a final lap of the track. You need a good start for this one as you have to run on a narrow footpath for a while shortly after leaving the track and overtaking is difficult.

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Coventry Half-Marathon - 2 October

69	Rebecca Smith		1:33:05
75	Dave Halford		1:33:43
93	Robert Simpson		1:35:46	1st M60
175	Richard Hands		1:42:12
210	Tony Forde		1:42:40
284	Allan Walsh		1:46:53
356	Jack Langman		1:50:25
385	Alan Beeby		1:51:02
416	Kevin Coughlan		1:52:49
425	Chris Jones		1:53:04
444	Craig Robinson		1:53:59
655	Claudie Combelas		2:01:10
771	Robert Pool		2:06:49
896	Gemma Nash		2:13:07
953	Abbe Humphries		2:14:35
967	Roy Pye		2:16:35
990	Linda Richards		2:17:38
1004	Tony French		2:18:12
1290	Clare Weston		2:46:22
1291	Lee Hill		2:46:22

Complete results on Winning Time web site

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Atlantic Coast Challenge - 30 September to 2 October

Dave Fawkner - overall placing 27th

This was my second votwo event and I was really excited at the prospect of 3 more coastal marathons. After a good night of rest, I soon found myself at the start of the 1st marathon. The conditions were a lot warmer than I like, but at least the scenery made up for pain that followed. As per my usual form I set off too quickly, but it didn't take long before this settled down. By now the group I was in had broken away, and the miles were soon flying by. Feeling relatively good for the full distance, I even managed a sprint up a small hill to the finish. Body and mind intact, I was pleased to find I had finished 8th in 4:52:08! :)

Day 2 started where we left off, but after 8 miles I began to struggle with the heat and some harsh climbs. I was drinking litres just to keep moving forward, and I battled hard to finish this one in 5:31:57. I was really suffering now, but now also had an upset stomach to contend with. I forced some food down overnight, but needed to see the medics in the morning.

I knew I was in a bad way, but as you would expect I had no plans to stop. Some tablets and an earlier start helped me along at a very steady pace, but 4 miles in I had to abandon any thoughts of running. It was now a walk against the clock to avoid the meat wagon collecting dnf's! Many litres of salted orange squash to avoid dehydration, together with prawn cocktail crisps (all I could eat), I managed to keep going. With 10 miles to go I managed the odd shuffle until I could see Lands End and the finish line. This turned into a last minute sprint to finish this hellish day in 9:01:24!

An unforgettable weekend that was well organised, and I would be happy to repeat one day :)