Island Hopping Tom Barclay and Jane Clarke headed to sunny Jersey to take part in the Cannacord Jersey Half Marathon on Sunday 9 June. Tom was fourth overall in a time of 1:19:40 and Jane in 1:46:35. Jane commented that the race was well organized with friendly and encouraging marshals, and great views of the coastline and sea with some serious inclines. Hannah on the run! Hannah Ridley competed for Hertfordshire Police in the Police National Championships in track and field at Nuneaton on Wednesday 5th June. Hannah decided to run the 5k on track for the first time ever and came away with 2nd place and a new personal best time of 18:58, which she was absolutely thrilled with. The Parkrun Roundup For Saturday 8th June
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Midweek League 40 members officially finished the 2nd race in the Midweek League in Cassiobury park, Watford. As always it was a fantastic social for the club with tremendous spirit and camaraderie from team mates. Unfortunately, the result of this race was declared void after an incident with the course meant that many runners went the wrong way, getting lost in the woods. 7 men and 1 woman who would have placed in the NHRR scoring team went wrong and did not manage to complete a legitimate course. There were also several runners that managed to get back on route, but lost time due to the confusion as well as running much longer than they should have. North Herts Road runner are currently sitting in 3rd place overall in division 1. The next race is 12th June and hosted by Orion Harriers.
First Saturday of the Month 5k 33 members ran in a field of 54 runners at the First Saturday of the Month 5k in Norton Common. The weather was favourable with glorious sunshine that allowed the club to show off its brand new gazebo. The course was mostly dry but had a nice bit of mud in there too with the recent rain. FSOTM NHRR Finishers
Hitchin Hard Half and 10k A group of squirrels headed to Hitchin on Sunday for the Hitchin hard half and tough 10k. The heat and the hilly route made sure that the races lived up to their names, but that didn't stop the NHRR with Rachel Arnott and Rhia Botha coming in as second and third lady. Nick Malpeli and Caroline Thrussel were both 1st in their age categories, with Nick coming in 5th place overall. The runners of the 10k didn't disappoint either with Sharon French snapping up first prize for her age category. Also running was Grace Cleary who had a leisurely run around the Hitchin Hard Half Marathon in 2.07. She described it as a beautiful route and nice to see so many squirrels about. Pick and Mix Challenge Andrew Porter, Miranda Morgan and Sur Foot did the Pick and Mix Challenge event today. With five different routes to choose from they chose the10 and the 8 mile routes. Both routes started and finished at Wendover Memorial Hall and were self-navigating. The 10 mile route took us to Dunsmore and Butler’s Cross and then the 8 miles took the runners in the other direction towards Buckland and through Wendover Woods. Sue Foot commented that it was “needless to say we had spectacular views on both routes and perfect weather.” Lake District double including the Grasmere Gallop Richard Harbon travelled to the lakes to do a double header. Firstly the Keswick PR in 22.08 which is a great park run and he was “chuffed to bits” with the time. He then quickly whizzed down to Grasmere to run the 17k Grasmere Gallop. Richard described this as “a superb run over really, and I mean, really hilly terrain” adding that it was a “Brilliant event”. Richard loved every step and was delighted to finish as 2nd V60. Parkrun Roundup
Parkrun Action Many North Herts Road Runners were also in action at Parkruns both near and far this weekend. The full results are as follows:
Wednesday saw the start of this year’s Mid Week League in St Albans. The sun came out, along with 58 runners from NHRR giving them a super start to the 2024 MWL season with the ladies finishing 2nd, men 4th and overall the team are 3rd with the same league points as Trent Park but superior match points. St Albans striders made a strong start on home ground and won both the men's and women's races to lead 3 points clear of Orion Harriers. In the vets competition NHRR men finished 5th and ladies 2nd for 4th position overall. Katie Harbon was first lady home for the club and won the women’s race with Rhia Botha, Rachel Arnott, Hannah Ridley, Astrid Mckeown, Tracey Pitcairn, Jane Clarke and Tash Pitman completing the scoring team. Scoring for the men were Sam Coxon, Ben Hadman, Mike Roberts, Andrew Leach, Tom Barclay, Matthew Sayers, Mike Banister, Vincent Wright, Nicholas Malpeli, Nathaniel Rosa, Oliver Babik and Darren Matusa.
Riga Marathon Katrina Slisane ran the Riga Marathon which was her third marathon overall and the first in her native Latvia. The unexpected early arrival of summer in Riga made for a very sweltering run and an early tempering of ambitions so it was a pleasant surprise to have shaved a couple of minutes off her previous PB, finishing in 03:48:12. Cam completes Lanzarote Ironman Cam Geekie completed Ironman Lanzarote on Saturday. He absolutely smashed the 3.8km swim and 180km bike. By the time the marathon arrived it was absolutely roasting and zero cloud cover making Geekie feel like he was in survival mode, making it all the more impressive that he finished the hardest Ironman in the world in a time of 12hrs 41mins. Cloe Conquers Aix en Provence Ironman The Ironman action continued on Sunday as Cloe Stout took on the Ironman Aix en Provence 70.3 on Sunday, which included over 1100m of vertical elevation on the bike and nearly 300m on the run. After a challenging year she hit nearly all her time goals (missing the overall goal due to refusing to wee on the bike and having to wait for several minutes in the transition from bike to run) and finished with a huge smile on her face for her 13th half iron distance! NHRR Parkrun Roundup As usual, the NHRR members enjoyed the various Parkrun events on offer, with the fastest time being bagged by Matthew Ronayne, completing the Storeys Field event in 17:19 and Sophie Thrussel being the quickest Park running NHRR lady completing the Heartlands event in 20:29.
402 runners congregated at Stevenage's Shephalbury Park under blue skies and bright sunshine on Sunday morning to take on the flat pathed 5 mile route passing through green areas in Stevenage and the iconic Lamex Stadium. Runners were treated to a great view of 4,000 newly planted trees in Fairlands Valley park. Six North Herts Road Runners toed the line led in by James Dalton in 35:43, followed by Hannah Keeble 44:11; Richard Barker 53:00; Georgia Barker 53:00; Stephen Doran 53:38. Sheila Leavy race walked in a great time of 1:04:33 and said “it was warm and undulating in parts, but enjoyable”. Three top 10 finishes for Squirrels at Snowdonia Half Marathon A scurry of squirrels travelled to Wales for the Snowdonia Half Marathon, classified as 'very very tough' and 'one of the UK's toughest half marathons' with an elevation of 1900ft. And Georgia, one of the scurry agreed, “yes it was tough!! There was even a secondary medal for those with stamina and determination to run the final hill, which Caroline and Georgia achieved! Everyone was pleased with their results followed by the traditional swim in the local river.” The squirrels were led home by Kat Burr who 1:57:28 to take 5th position in her veteran 40-44 age group, closely followed in by Caroline Thrussell who took top spot by over 30 minutes in her veteran 60-64 age group and next was her daughter Georgia Head in 2:08:32 to finish 9th in the open category. Other Squirrels running were Dervla Downing 02:14:00; Alice Noakes 02:21:53; Paul Bowal 02:25:30; Helen Ankers 02:29:12; Andy Grudzinski 02:35:21 and Adam Wilson 02:40:39 Linda overcomes train strike to race at Battersea Linda was the only squirrel at the Veterans AC 5 miles champs at Battersea Park on Tues evening. It was a small, high quality field for the three and a half laps of the very fast and flat Battersea Park. Given the sunshine the park was very busy with many runners, walkers and cyclists, with Linda commenting “there was a certain amount of dodging necessary for those of us taking part in the race. Those of us near the back were soon lapped by the very speedy front runners, and it was a bit soul-destroying to have to run past the finish to do the final lap when most runners had already finished! I'm not sure I enjoyed the race, exactly, as I was running quite hard in warm conditions, but was happy with my finishing time of 43:13 (fastest 5 mile time since 2019, and following several years of recurrent injuries.). First W65 - also last W65 as I was the ONLY W65! Got quite a nice medal, anyway, which I definitely felt I'd earned. I narrowly avoided being last by beating a 65, a 70 and two 80 year olds - needless to say, they got a massive cheer as they went past and into the finish!” Parkrun roundup: Letchworth parkrun Sheriff Special update from Philip Flack, “We all know we couldn't have parkrun or any race without marshalls. Well, at Letchworth Parkrun this week, we had a Sheriff in attendance. The Sheriff of Hertfordshire adorned in traditional dress with ceremonial sword, gave a pre race speech in which she said she had the power to punish anyone taking shortcuts. The run/walk proceeded in it's usual orderly way and no executions took place.” Danish double from Bev Rimmer, “Being something of a ParkRun obsessive, I made the a trip to Denmark to take part in their extra event on Ascension Day. This fell on Thursday 9 May this year, and my chosen venue was Fælledparken in Copenhagen. The race director opened, rather amusingly, by asking if any Danes were taking part. A scattered few hands went up … however, the rest were crazy/enthusiastic/insert adjective here tourists rather like myself. The race is a flat three-lapper, and I dragged myself home in a fairly respectable time of 00:29:44. I’ve been struggling with pace lately, knowing full well that my training has hit a brick wall, and I was pleased to have finished sub-30. My mile times (according to my watch) were: 09:45, 09:23, and 09:17 respectively, which is certainly taking the desired direction. Still in Denmark on Saturday, I plumped for Amager Strandpark ParkRun (also in Copenhagen) - a beautiful coastal course that consists of an anti-clockwise lap followed by a clockwise one. I must add that the weather was absolutely stunning; the shorts and vest have made their first appearance of what I hope will be many this year. Again, the route is flat and fast, and I pushed with all my heart/lungs/aching muscles/flashy new trainers/increasing lactic acid to finish in the much better time of 00:28:40. Danish double completed…now to keep up the ParkRun attendance and the pace. It’s the Netherlands’ turn to have a double next weekend, as their nominated special day is Whit Monday. Is that the sound of temptation I hear?” And well done to Sharon French who went to Stevenage to complete her second ever parkrun!
Twenty nine North Herts Road Runners headed to compete in the brilliant local Hitchin 10k which played host to this year's Hertfordshire County Championship. They put in a smashing team effort with both male and female teams taking both first and third podium spots. Sophie Thrussell, Rhia Botha and Karen Townsend formed the gold medal winning women's team. Karen was delighted with her result, as it was her first run since becoming a mum just ten weeks ago! Astrid McKeown, Tracy Pitcairn and Rhiannon Brooks raced well to claim the bronze county female team medal. Ben Hadman led the male team to the male county title, supported by Shaun Allin in a PB time, Steve McKeown and David Edwards. The male third placed county team was led by Ian Datlen, who just 2 weeks after his London marathon PB paced Natalie Phillips to achieve a massive 10k best time. Ian was followed home by Simon Clapham, Andrew Wallis and Richard Barker. Ladies team captain Natalie Phillips reported the "Weather was sunny and warm, with beautiful blue skies, marshals were friendly. Club members offered each other plenty of support, including Ian Datlen who helped me achieve a (even better than I had hoped for) PB!"
Run to the sea Brighton 50k Ultra Laurie Scott headed south for his first Ultra marathon. The multi-terrain route from Horsham to Brighton seafront was a great introduction to the world of ultras. A beautiful slightly downhill first 25k then a very hilly next 20k across the beautiful South Downs and a “sprint” downhill to the sea front. Laurie managed to get home in 6hrs 45 min and 19 secs and says ‘he was extremely pleased after spraining both ankles (walking the dog on 2 separate occasions 4 weeks out!) and that it was a real well organised beautiful run with my Italian colleague, highly recommended to anyone wanting to try an ultra and a free 99 at the end of the run!’ Milton Keynes Marathon madness Rachel Arnott was back in marathon action just two weeks after her club record and personal best time at the London Marathon. She stormed round in a speedy 3:19:46 much to the astonishment of her clubmates, as some are still on light running duties post marathon! Running in the Half Marathon event was Dave Braybrook who finished in 1:57:36. First Saturday of the month 5k Saturday morning North Herts Road Runners hosted their FSOTM 5k on Norton common. The mud was back and made for some fun conditions. First home for the club was Tom Webb and first lady was Katie Harbon. Our next event is on June 1st and hopefully the course will be dry! Full result list.
Parkrun Roundup
Elwyn Howell completed the ocean city half marathon in a time of 1:42:20 to break the V65 club record by over 4 minutes which has been held for over 11 years. Elwyn commented “before I joined NHRR in 2018 I did this race a year earlier in 2017 my first race in over 45 minutes longer. The advantage of joining a brilliant running club.” The weekend also saw Monica Cullin celebrate her 80th birthday in typical runners style with a NHRR trip to Great Denham parkrun. Over 40 NHRR’s took part in the flat, 2 lap course. Happy Birthday Monica!
As April draws to a close, our members have been busy racing across the UK and beyond! Our club's running adventures this past week spanned the full spectrum, from exciting Parkruns to full marathons. Our members demonstrated their passion and dedication, achieving notable performances in both short-distance and long-distance races. London Marathon Legends: Records Shattered & Memorable Milestones Our club's squirrels tackled the London Marathon with incredible performances, celebrating personal achievements and memorable moments. Laura Fairbanks, who had qualified to run London thanks to her brilliant Manchester performance last year, celebrated her 10-year anniversary since her first London Marathon with a finish time of 3:41:51. A watch malfunction at Canary Wharf didn't dampen her spirits; she finished with a smile, supported by Anna Gibson's flat Coca-Cola pick-me-up at mile 22. Stuart Cocks achieved a new personal best of 3:31:50, reflecting his rigorous training block. Stuart fully embraced the electric atmosphere on the course and is still riding high on his success. Clare Hooley crossed the finish line in 6:33:02, completing her first marathon in four years. Though the race was tough, Clare is relieved and delighted to have accomplished this significant feat. On top of all the great performances today, we had two club records broken at London! Matt Sayers broke his own MV45 record in 2:36:57, and Rachel Arnott broke the FV45 record (previously held for 6 months) in 3:09:10. In addition, 9 other members put in impressive performances. Here is the complete list: Congratulations to all our runners for your dedication in training and your achievements on the day in the London Marathon! Your efforts inspire us all. Other Marathons Mastery: Adventures Across Diverse Races The club’s marathon adventures didn’t end at London, as other squirrels chose to enter a variety of different marathons, each with its unique challenges and rewards. Ollie Parsons took on the legendary Boston Marathon on Monday 15/04, experiencing the city's enthusiasm for the event and running-themed activities everywhere. Despite the heat and the challenging hills, including the notorious Heartbreak Hill, Ollie crossed the finish line in 3:14. Although it wasn't his target time, he appreciated the incredible experience and soaked in the event's vibrant atmosphere. Sue Foot participated in The Other Run marathon in Barrow Suffolk, organized by ZigZag Running. She described the one-lap course as undulating with some challenging hills. Sue appreciated the event's well-organized nature, including free tea, coffee, and cake at the finish. Having just run the Haverhill marathon two weeks prior, she was delighted to complete this race 16 minutes faster, with a time of 4:44. Simon Clapham embarked on his marathon journey at midnight, running the inaugural Flawed Hero virtual London marathon. Despite limited training and sleep, Simon managed to finish in an impressive 4:26. Although it wasn't a personal best, Simon is proud of his performance given the circumstances. Congratulations to all three runners for their determination and achievements in these marathons! Their experiences showcase the variety and spirit of our club's runners. Parkrun Roundup Our members were also busy across various parkrun events, showing great energy and enthusiasm:
A 12-strong North Herts Road Runners turned in a series of superb performances at the Manchester Marathon. The potential for fast times on a flat course has made the event increasingly popular in recent years and the Squirrels had been training hard to make the most of the opportunity. Tom Barclay led the way with an outstanding 11th place out of 21,000 finishers in a scorching time of 2:33:22. Ben Sewell was close behind in 2:42:14 and Shaun Allin said he ‘couldn’t be happier with a massive personal best’ of 3:07:50, despite ‘paying the price at 22 miles’ for attempting a sub-3 hour pace in the earlier stages. Rhia Botha recorded a 10-minute PB with 3:16:11, even after ‘really struggling’ in the last 5km. She said ‘the NHRR support along the route was amazing, and seeing my coaches around the 10-mile and 23-mile spots made the world of difference’. Helen Nuttall was on pacing duties for husband Steve – until ‘he decided at 21.5 miles he wanted some peace and quiet, so told me to run ahead to the finish!’ Helen finished in 3:50:56, with Steve crossing the line in 4:03:48. Flitwick 10k Hannah Ridley was delighted to finish as second lady in a ‘massive PB’ of 42:22 at the Flitwick 10k, reporting ‘It was quite an undulating course but a good one, and the sunshine made it 10 times better’. Parkrun round-up This week’s outstanding Parkrun performance came courtesy of Elwyn Howell at Teignmouth in Devon. Elwyn demolished the existing Club Parkrun record for the V65 age-group, knocking 5 minutes off the previous mark with a superb time of 21:09.
Elsewhere Sue Foot was out in the Suffolk countryside taking on the Haverhill Marathon. She took a podium place as the 2nd lady overall in a time 5 hours in spite of “an undulating course and a challenging run with gusty winds trying to blow me in the wrong direction”. Beyond the marathon... Lee Varley took part in the Ultra Marathon Windsor. Lee set out to break 4hr30 and came home in 4:23 and took 1st place overall, in a fantastic run, all of this whilst hitting the wall at 46k. “Probably the first and last time I come first in any race. Beautiful first 25km going along the River Thames and through Windsor Great Park and then running down the long walk listening to Parisienne Walkways made my day!”
NHRR results are as follows….
Parkrun Action...
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