It has been a busy two weeks for North Herts Road Runners.
 
Wednesday 7/9 saw the start of the Hatfield 5K Series.  26 squirrels raced with half of them finishing in under twenty minutes.  Their efforts secured first place for the mens team and county gold medallists whilst the ladies won silver.  Among many excellent performances were Katie Harbon finishing as first lady and Mark Vaughan and Dave Frampton setting new club records.
 
On Saturday 10/9 Steve Lummis travelled to compete in the New Forest Half Marathon which he finished in the fantastic time of 1:45:20, setting himself a new PB by nearly three minutes.  At the other end of the country Joe Sherry competed in his first half marathon at the Great North Run and finished the route in 1:52:30.
 
The Duck n Dash Aquathlon took place at Norton Common on 11/9.  Three squirrels competed in the 400m swim and 5K run.  James Walsh won the relay event with his swimming partner Poppy Allen, finishing in 0:25:44.  Competing in the mens events were James Keogh and Kevin Ferry who completed the course in 29:57 and 30:20 respectively.
 
Seventeen squirrels ran the Round Norfolk Relay on the weekend of 17-18 September.  The 197 mile 17 leg route started on Saturday morning near Kings Lynn and took the runners around the border of Norfolk along roads, paths and shingle beaches in over 24 hours of non stop running.  With even more squirrels turning up to cycle with the runners, cheer, organise and support it was a fantastic club event.
 
Several squirrels participated in Parkruns on 17/09.  Fastest was Andrew Leach who won the Bedford Parkrun in 0:17:10.  Darren Matussa ran at Kings Lynn in 0:19:22 Also running were Simon Poole in Bicester, 0:18:59, Vince Wright at Wimpole 0:22:41, Steve Lummis at Panshanger 0:22:58, Joe Sherry and Sheila Leavy at Stevenage with 0:23:37 and 0:29:13, Chris Poole at Enfield 0:27:08, Richard Fox at Aldenham 0:28:59 and Helen Giffin at Holkham Park 30.08.

John Auld turned in a personal best performance to win September’s First Saturday of the Month 5k race on Norton Common. His time of 18.15 was 30 seconds faster than his previous best and an impressive performance on the undulating two-lap course.
 
James Keogh and Simon Poole made it a clean sweep of the podium places for North Herts Road Runners in their monthly event on home turf, finishing in 19.29 and 19.47 respectively. Gina Joseph was first lady for the Squirrels in 28.01.
 
Other NHRR finishers: James Drew (21.10), Chris Stokes (21.12), John Cooper (21:57), Adrian Addala (24.30), Jon Hunt (26.18), Ian Sutcliffe (27.37), Gina Joseph (28.01), Lindsay Cook (29:36), Dawn Power (29.40), Beki Finch (29.44), Helen Giffin (29.46) and Sheila Leavy (30.01) NHRR


The First Saturday run is free to enter. First-timers should register by the outdoor pool car park at Norton Common by 8.45.
 
Naomi Parkinson shrugged off a virus to knock a huge chunk off her previous best for the half-marathon distance. Running in the Race for Life at Lee Valley, she finished the 13.11 miles in 2.23.46.
 
Spencer Bevan turned in a superb performance at the Spartan Super Elite race in Peterborough, finishing 5th overall and first in his age category in 1.28.28. Bevan’s result over the 13k course was good enough to secure qualification for the professional wave in the world finals in Canada.
 
Despite traffic diversions and a late start, Jo Summers paced her way steadily through the field at the Dunstable Downs Challenge, finishing in 5.11.
 
Ollie Garbas topped the NHRR Parkrun charts this week by winning the event in Barclay Park Hoddesdon – his second Parkrun victory in 68 attempts. Stopping the clock in 20.47, Garbas celebrated in style with a ‘roly poly’ across the finish line.
 
Martyn Annetts finished 5th in the Bedford Parkrun in 19.13, with 12 year-old grandson James Lancaster not far behind in an impressive 21.42. Nicky Kemp finished in 25.16. David Annetts was second in the Cassiobury Park event in Watford in 16.58.