With the 2nd fixture of the Three Counties Cross Country League cancelled due to Storm Bert, many squirrels were left disappointed and race-less. However, a few of our members had other races booked that did manage to take place. ​

Silverstone Half Marathon
Daniel Wrigley ran the Silverstone Half Marathon. He commented that the weather was awful with very strong winds and heavy rain leaving everyone soaked and freezing before the race even started!

​Despite the weather Daniel was very happy and surprised to beat his half marathon PB with a time of 1:45:55.

Hatfield 5
Four squirrels defied Storm Bert to run the Hatfield 5 Miles. James Keogh and Clare Holley booked the Hatfield 5 miles quite a while ago and then promptly forgot about it when booking a weekend away this weekend as well.

Fortuitously, where they were staying was even closer to Hatfield than home! They commented that circumstances with training this year mean neither of them went very fast but for Clare it was the furthest she had run since April. The weather held up far better than they thought and stated that it was "actually surprisingly warm, and seemed sheltered from the worst of the head winds except on the finishing stretch!"
​
NHRR times (chip) from the results are:
James KEOGH 00:35:20
Stephen BRENTON 00:36:49
Tracey MCCREATH 00:53:00
Clare HOOLEY 01:10:21

Doncaster 10k
Tom Barclay travelled up North to take part in the Doncaster 10k. He finished in 33rd position in a speedy 34:18. 

Parkrun Roundup ​

The past week has been another great week for our squirrels: a week full of fantastic performances, inspiring comebacks, and plenty of camaraderie. Here’s a roundup of where our members have been showcasing their grit and determination.

St Neots Half Marathon: Strong Runs and Sunshine
The annual St Neots Half Marathon drew 16 NHRR runners to the rolling hills of Cambridgeshire, with blue skies and a downhill finish making it a day to remember. The course, famous for its undulations, challenged legs and lungs alike, but our members rose to the occasion.
 
Leading the club pack, Helen Nuttall stormed through in 1:34:09, securing 8th place in the FV35 category and celebrating her fastest half marathon in eight years. Lucy O’Connor, returning after injury, was thrilled to complete the race in 1:54:23, just two minutes off her course PB from 2021 and earning 10th in FV55-64. Caroline Thrussell put in a fantastic run, taking 4th in FV55 with 1:47:12.
 
The support and teamwork on the day were as strong as ever. Richard Barker paced Meyrick around the course, while Tash Pitman and Helen Cairns crossed the line side by side in 1:48:41. With smiles all round at the downhill finish, it was a memorable day for the club.
 
Full results from St Neots:
Helen Nuttall: 1:34:09
Caroline Thrussell: 1:47:12
Jane Clarke: 1:48:40
Tash Pitman & Helen Cairns: 1:48:41
Dave Braybrook: 1:49:35
Damian Christou: 1:53:23
Lucy O’Connor: 1:54:23
Nick Walker: 1:54:44
Adrian Barnett: 2:01:43
Dawn Power: 2:04:43
Hannah Keeble: 2:14:05
Keith Swain: 2:23:51
Caroline Nobbs: 2:38:15

Trail Adventures: Exploring the Great Outdoors
 For those who prefer their running routes a little wilder, it was all about the trails this week.
Sue Foot tackled the Shillington Shuffle Trail Marathon, a self-navigated course that started and finished in Barton-le-Clay. With perfect weather and solid ground underfoot, Sue enjoyed scenic countryside and conquered the many ploughed fields along the way.

Parkruns the focus for Squirrels, North Herts Road Runners put the focus on training rather than racing this week as they gear up for the next fixture in the Three Counties Cross-country League. 

It was a quieter weekend for racing this weekend with the majority of the fireworks in the sky not on the roads and the frights limited to halloween and not route elevations! 
 
New York Marathon
The final Marathon Major of the year took place in New York and on a beautiful Sunday Mike Bannister took part in the race.  Supporting a friend rather than chasing a PB, Mike came home in 4:42 and enjoyed a fantastic day out soaking up an incredible atmosphere. 
 
Knebworth Half Marathon
Closer to home it was the Knebworth Half Marathon also on Sunday.  Farzana Bhatti was representing the squirrels at this one and completed the course in a time of 3:25 and personally a 5th half marathon completed.
 
Bedford 10k
In Bedford there was a 10k, which Frances Stanton tackled.  This was a return to racing and resulted in a time of 52:11, which Frances said was “pleasantly surprising!” over a “lovely route along the river, highly recommended!”. 

First Saturday of the Month
This Saturday saw North Herts Road Runners' 'First Saturday of the Month' Monthly 5km race celebrate its 15th Year. 
 
As recognition of this milestone and with gratitude for the use of the beautiful Norton Common on the first Saturday of every month for these past 15 years, an award of £500 was presented to the 'fFriends of Norton Common' - a volunteer group who works to preserve the precious habitat of the Common. Graham Frost from the group expressed his appreciation and says that the donation will be used to plant some trees by the Letchworth Outdoor Pool.
 
Twenty Five Squirrels were among those enjoying the Autumnal delights of the Common this Saturday with ttwo club runners on the 1st and 2nd steps of the podium, with Steve McKeown taking first in a time of 19:57 and Mike Phillips second home in 20:07.

​Marathon Eryri! 
A scurry of squirrels headed to Eryri National Park (Snowdonia) for the demanding and spectacular Marathon Eryri! With 2,490 ft of elevation gain over 26.2 miles this route encircles Wales and England’s highest peak and is known as one of the hardest races around. The runners were Richard Barker, Alice Noakes, Michelle Grudzinski, Caroline Thrussell, Georgia Head and Gregor Bowie, with great support from Paul Bowal and Georgia Barker. They were fortunate to have a lovely sunny day in a region notorious for its mist and rain. Following a massive climb at mile twenty-two the runners were rewarded at mile twenty-four with a Mexican themed tea and cake aid station.  That’s a long way for a cup of tea!  Unsure about whether they would be able to complete the course due to injuries, Caroline Thrussell and Georgia Head decided to run together and loved the atmosphere and stunning scenery. Both did finish thus making it Georgia Head’s first ever marathon! Congratulations Georgia.
 
Results
Richard Barker 4:45
Caroline Thrussell 4:37:22
Georgia Head 4:37:22
Gregor Bowie 4:53:32
Alice Noakes 4:54:45
Michelle Grudzinski 5:18:58

Ricky Road Run 10 Miler
Richard Weber, Dervla Downing and Lucy O’Connor made their way to warm and sunny Rickmansworth in the Chiltern Hills to take part in the Ricky Road Race 10 Miler. This was Richard’s first time at this event, which this year is celebrating its 40th anniversary. The race starts on a downhill, but not for long. Almost immediately you become aware of the hills, which Richard described as ‘brutal,’ forcing him to stop and walk once he reached the top. Despite the hills it is a lovely route, displaying stunning autumn colours, with pretty country and residential roads from Mill End, through Chorleywood and Little Chalfont and back. This year a revised course, due to road works, meant runners did not have the big climb at mile eight and could instead look forward to the fantastic downhill final kilometre to the finish line. Richard achieved a very respectable time of 1:23:51 given the tough route, and not having managed a long distance run in over a year due to injury. Equally speedy was Dervla, whose time was 1:22:57.  Lucy O’Connor’s time was 1:30:03

Ashridge Canicrossers’ Annual Race
This year’s popular and sold out Canicross race offered two courses - long (13km) and short (8km)- and covered undulating cross country style trails across the Ashridge Estate in the Chilterns. Running the short course, and winning his class was Rob Jowett galloping home in 29:36.
Running the long course with two dogs each was Fiona Baker and Jill Tooley-Boys in 1:16:31 and 1:32:56, coming 2nd and 4th in their class (open).
Running the long course with one dog was Anna Gibson in 1:16:26 and coming third in their class 18-44.
Thanks to the canine companions Mabel, Flora B, Lulu, Bella, Flora G and Rob’s dog for delivering such a strong performance for team NHRR.

Exeter community Halloween 5-mile race.
On a beautiful autumn day Elwyn Howell ran the Exeter Community Halloween 5-miler. Elwyn finished in a time of 37:19, 33rd and was second in his age category.


​Parkrun Roundup

Duxford Dash
Rob Bell  ran the 5k Duxford Dash on Sunday along with other squirrels, braving the 40mph gusting head winds on the exposed runway at Duxford. Despite the weather trying its hardest to slow them all down, Rob was quite pleased after he managed to run a new 5k PB of 28:48. ​

Despite temperatures as low as 5c over the weekend, there was no hiding indoors for North Herts Runners, with a big contingent of club members taking part in a variety of events across Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire, London and even the US.

Chicago Marathon
On the other side of the Atlantic, Tash Pitman, Nicola Withington and Karen Townsend  took part in the iconic Chicago Marathon, which is considered one of the world’s top marathons and one of the six World Marathon Majors. Nicola finished with an outstanding PB of 04:15:59, four minutes quicker than her previous best at Paris.

​Tash brilliantly paced Nicola for a PB and finished in 04:16:07. Nicola said it was the best marathon she had ever done and that Tash was 'officially my hero', also that ‘the atmosphere, organisation and support was phenomenal.’ For Karen, this was her 10th Marathon, her 3rd World Major and she was delighted with her best time of 3:15:11 since becoming a first time Mum in February.

Great Eastern Run
A chilly autumn day proved no obstacle to the contingent of North Herts Runners completing the Great Eastern Run in Peterborough. Starting and finishing at the Embankment, the event is a super flat and fast half marathon around Peterborough City Centre and there were some outstanding times on display. Tracy Pitcairn said that she was very happy to manage a PB of 1:38:34, while Baljeet Sandher commented that it was a second-best time half marathon time of 1:34, noting that they had been ‘blessed with some lovely autumnal sunshine towards the end’. 

​Results as follows:
Sam Coxon                          (01:11:43.6)
Elliot Jackson                     (01:17:50.3)      
Shaun Allin                          (01:21:21.3)      
Oliver Parsons                   (01:24:09.2)      
Michael Banister               (01:26:35.2)      
Baljeet  Sandher               (01:34:43.5)      
James Godfrey                  (01:36:27.2)      
Tracy Pitcairn                      (01:38:34.1)      
Eleanor Street                    (01:45:34.3)      
Meyrick Jenkins                (02:15:47.8)

London Royal Parks Half Marathon
Elsewhere, three North Herts runners made their way to our wonderful capital to complete the iconic Royal Parks Half Marathon, winding their way through eight beautiful Royal Parks along with over 17000 other runners. Laurie Scott commented that it was a ‘beautiful cool clear day’ and & a beautiful course, which took several iconic London Landmarks such as Buckingham palace, Westminster Abbey, The Mall & Trafalgar Square. He completed the race in his third best ever time of 1:55:56, in the busiest field he had ever ran in. Results below:
 
Richard Barker                   (02:24:53)
Georgia Barker                  (02:24:53)
Laurie Scott                         (01.55.56)

Willow 10k charity run
Closer to home, two Squirrels took part in the Willow 10k, a fundraising event for the Willow Foundation, which helps young adults take much needed time out from the reality of living with serious illness. Taking place in the picturesque grounds of Hatfield House, there were two great performances on display:

​Adrian Barnett                   (00:52:51)
Nick Walker                        (01:13:31)

Tring Ridgeway
Nathaniel Rosa took on the Tring Ridgeway 2024. Nat finished 14th overall out of 497. Next year, Nat says, he will heed a fellow clubmate's advice and start at the front row, as there is no overtaking opportunity for a kilometer-long section near the beginning. Nat described the run as fantastically fun, quite technical and unforgiving, hilly terrain that in sections demanded sustained, absolute attention - which he really enjoyed.

Parkrun
Bev Rimmer continued her Parkrun tour of the East of England, with a trip to Coldham Common in Cambridge. Despite what she described as ‘Arctic conditions’ she said that she had ‘stoically faced 2 laps of the fields, avoiding hazards of rabbit holes, tree roots, and two awkwardly-pitched tents at the side of the route’, finishing in an excellent 00:31:26.

Other results are as follows:-

North Herts Road Runners put on their flagship race, the Standalone 10k on Sunday, which also happened to be the Herts County Champs 10km. Standalone Farm was buzzing before and after the race with runners, supporters and sponsor stalls from local businesses enjoying the blue skies and friendly atmosphere.  There were around 135 volunteers, something that didn’t go unnoticed by the runners who sang the praises of NHRR saying how encouraging and plentiful the marshals were, which not only helps keep them safe, but also helps to distract them from the ‘pain’. The Letchworth Army Cadets were also out in force to support the event.

Over 1500 runners entered the popular race, with nearly 1300 completing the course on the day. Mike Phillips, making his debut as Race Director said "This race couldn't happen without the amazing Race Committee Team who put in so much work and effort in the run up to the race, and all the fantastic members of the club for marshalling and making the course safe for every runner." Phillips thanked the sponsors and the local community for all their support and is already planning ahead for next year. 

This year also saw the return of a childrens 800m fun run which took part during the main race. This was enjoyed by many. The club charity, Headway Herts had a stall selling cakes to raise awareness of the important work they do for those with head injuries.

The club is also excited to take feedback from the first wheelchair athlete to participate in the race, which will allow them to understand options for the future.

Each year NHRR select a small team of runners to represent the club. The racing teams did the club proud by winning the Open and Herts County Veteran team prizes. Ladies winning team was made up of R Rhia Botha (40:32), Hannah Ridley (41:48), Helen Nutall (43:55) and Tracey Pitcairn (44:27). The men’s winning team was Andrew Leach (34:34), Shahab Ahmad (35:32), Matt Sayers (35:51) and Stewart Overton (37:23).
​
Mike Roberts (33:25) and Rhia Botha were 5th male and female in the open race, Botha securing first place in her age category for the Ladies Herts County Champs, with Nutall and Pitcairn taking second and third. Leach, Ahmad and Sayers also secured first, second and third in their respective age categories.  
Hannah Ridley, Helen Nutall, Tracey Pitcairn, Natalie Phillips and Rhia Botha ran in the ladies team and Andrew Leach, Matt Sayers, Vince Wright, Stewart Overton, Shahab Ahmad and Mike Roberts ran for the men. There were also two ‘golden ticket’ winners who were given the opportunity to run, Georgia Barker and Saab Bharaj.

Cambridge Bidwells 10k
​Further afield Georgina (49:29) and Carina (1:07:55) Quayle, along with David Weston (44:39) ran the Bidwells Cambridge 10k. 

Chester Marathon
Vanessa Rolfe took on the Chester Marathon after suffering a very bad back spasm resulting in no running at all 2 weeks prior to this event. Her stubbornness got her through the course from start to finish in a time of 6:11:02. She achieved what she had set out to do, which was to complete a marathon before she turns 70yrs old this coming December. An amazing achievement. 

FSOM 
North Herts Road Runners hosted their monthly First Saturday of the Month on the beautiful Norton Common, giving many of their member who would be on marshalling duties, the opportunity to race over the weekend. 

Parkrun Results
Some club members chose to celebrate Parkrun's 20th Birthday by heading to their local or favourite course. Finishers include;

Hitchin 5km
Sunday morning saw a flurry of squirrels at the Hitchin 5km race including father and daughter duo, Andrew and Elizabeth Robson. Andrew’s perfect pacing resulted in a sub-30 time of 29:48 for Elizabeth finishing with a very impressive sprint up Bucklesbury. Andrew finished in 29:49. Philip Flack and Ian Sutcliffe were two of the six M70s racing. Philip was second in his category in 27:52 and Ian ran strongly to record 31:02. Sheila Leavy also took second in her age category race walking to 39:14. Rhia Botha was third female overall in 19:57 and won her age group, casually adding this into her Sunday long run! Steve McKeown also won his age group in 19:37.
​
Full NHRR results:
Steve Mckeown 19:37; Ian Harvey 19:53; Rhia Botha 19:57; Tom Kingham 23:18; Nicole Whitton 26:27; Philip Flack 27:52; Lindsay Cook 29:09; Meyrick Jenkins 29:43; Elizabeth Robson 29:48; Andrew Robson 29:49, Ian Sutcliffe 31:02; Sheila Leavy 39:14.

Berlin Legend
Andreea Weisl-Shaw was the sole squirrel at the Berlin Marathon on Sunday and shared this great report!

‘Ran the Berlin Marathon today (its 50th anniversary edition, a privilege to be a part of it), and got a PB of 4:46:10. Not quite the 4:30 I was hoping for, but I’m still really pleased, because I’ve shaved 12 mins off my London time, in 17 months of training (out of which only the last 5 months really count, as I had a long time off).

Lovely day for running - sunny 15C - and a fantastic event. Felt as busy and as noisy as London, but a lot flatter and the sun made for a fabulous experience. Made some friends while waiting to start, and even at the airport, where we identified each other by our medals. Proves that runners everywhere are a big family and are just generally lovely people to know.
​
I’m so happy that my determination and hard work have paid off, and so grateful to Cara for all her incredible support and coaching the last 5 months. I’m confident I can get better by the next London, and I can’t wait to get back to training - after a rest, of course! And some highly calorific food.’

Hannah triumphs at Rat Race Sea to Summit in the Lake District featuring Scafell Pike!
Hannah Keeble joined a group of friends to take on this huge challenge advertised as 31 miles, but then increased to 33 miles on the email confirmation and finally confirmed as 34 miles by a marshal at the start!

They started along the beach at Seascale running 13 miles to the start of the climb up Scafell Pike! Hannah said ‘The weather was horrible, but we made it up! The descent down was mostly by bum - it was so slippy! As we came out of the clouds, we were happy to see the lakes and sunshine in the distance, but in true Rat Race style they turned us away and sent us up again! This time I scrambled up Scafell and there were tears as I have never done anything like that! We came down again, seeing those lakes in the distance only to be sent again up another grassy climb this time, surely that had to be the last one!

​This down was on grass and another 4 miles of marsh land with water and mud halfway up the shins! The final pit stop was 26 miles in where we reached the tarmac, put on the head torches and made our way back to Seascale with the final mile along the beach! Over 34 miles and 14hours I was done! I can’t say I’d ever do it again!!’

Special parkrun report from Bev Rimmer
‘It’s certainly been another active weekend for this scampering Squirrel. Friday and Saturday saw a trip to visit friends in Chepstow, and I couldn’t resist popping over to Severn Bridge ParkRun while I was there.

It’s the only ParkRun that spans two countries, and it technically passes through three counties (if you use a bit of creative licence and include the ancient county of Avon). It’s run almost entirely on the bridge itself, so isn’t one for vertigo sufferers. I struggled for pace this Saturday, and finished in 00:29:30. Still, I couldn’t fault the organisation of the event, or the stunning views, so this ParkRun gets a SEVEEEERN from me!’

Windsor Half Marathon.
Anna said ‘It was an amazing race with The Tribe Team. Really pleased with how we ran. The course had plenty of hills, an impressive finish and great supporters. Together we raised £355 for Tribe Foundation. Thank you so much to everyone who sponsored us.’
They completed the course in 1:50:47 and fellow club-mate Laura Fairbanks was also running, finishing in a speedy 1:45:01!

​London Vitality 10k
Unfazed by the awful weather forecast, our squirrels headed to central London for the Vitality
10k. Luckily the rain and anticipated storms held off.
​
Mike Roberts lead the club team home with a time of 33:24 followed by Shaun Allin 36:59,
Mike Phillips 41:20, David Edwards 43:12, Daniel Wrigley 47:56, Natalie Phillips 48:07, Elliot
Jackson 56:28 and Adrian Barnett 57:32.

Daniel Wrigley was pleased with his PB just two weeks after his Great North run. Our
runners were in good company, with Eilish McColgan and David Weir amongst the
competitors!

Chas Avis Harvest Trail
Lucy O’Conner described this race as the hardest halfs she has ever done, made worse by
the poor weather and hard terrain of the ploughed fields. At mile 11 Lucy fell down a steep
muddy hill and broke her wrist.

Lucy did manage to finish the race, but due to poor signage
ended up running 14 miles in 2:17:38 according to Strava. (no official times yet) many thanks Brian Judkins who drove Lucy home from the hospital.