North Herts Road Runner, Rhia Botha, finished as first lady at the Baldock Rat Run in a time of 21:26. Not far behind was Paula Holm, who finished third in 21:58. In total, fourteen Squirrels took part in the second running of Sunday’s 5km race through the streets of Baldock. Speaking after the event, Richard Harbon (21:03) said it was: “A beautiful day and a great course. There were some outstanding results, and all proceeds went to Garden House Hospice Care.” Lucy O’Connor agreed, describing the conditions as “perfect running weather,” and ran 24:21. Helen Marson-Smith was pleased with her time of 29:51, her second fastest 5k time. See below for all NHRR Baldock Rat Run results. Naomi Parkinson ran the Thames Path Challenge 100k, fundraising for Mind. “A 100k is not for the faint hearted,” said Naomi, “and having 9 months of training under my belt I’m really pleased to say I finished in 14 hours 57 minutes, 25th lady and 123rd overall. The support from well stocked rest stops, family and friends made all the difference - and a special thanks to all the Squirrels that have trained with me!” On Saturday, John Auld was in his native Yorkshire to take part in the third of the four-race Silkstone Shuffle series. “It was a lovely morning actually. Lovely sunshine and a dry course,” said John. “Going into this race I was seventh in the series by a single second, so I planned to be at sixth after this race.” John was delighted to finish the race in seventh position, which means he is currently in fourth position overall. “Fourth is currently the first senior man outside the top 3, so in December I have a seven-second lead over fifth to defend - should be a good race - just how I like it!” John wasn’t the only Squirrel to head north at the weekend. Pete Sibbett travelled to Salford Quays to run the UKFast Salford 10km. “This was an England Masters qualifying race,” said Pete. “I was racing to see where I need to get to in order to qualify in my age category; the answer was over 2 minutes faster!” However, Pete ran a season’s best 38.30, and achieved the 39min qualifying time. He was 4th in his age group. “Lots of work needed without getting injured in the process” was Pete’s final assessment, adding: “It was good to see another distinctive NHRR vest as Chris Poole was also racing.” Chris finished the race in 46:04. Pat Norris did the Iceni Festival half on Sunday. He described it as a tough run round the town then out and around an RAF base, which was an undulating track comprising Brekon's sandy and loamy soil. “This was fortunately booked for me by my son as a birthday present as,” said Pat. “If I had seen it myself, I would have gone for the full marathon option (there was also a 10k at the same time) and I may not have finished it! Fortunately because this turned into quite a tough run. Only the first 8 finishers managed to go under 2 hours with the winner coming in at 1:38. Considering the weather was almost perfect and there were virtually no hills then I can only put this down to the conditions underfoot. Even so, my slowest half time ever at 3:28.” In what he has decided will be his last race, Oliver Saville ran the Great North Run in 1:16:55. “I’m just going to run for enjoyment now,” said a relieved Oliver. Also running was Jim Marvell, who finished in finished in 2:20:21 - a post injury PB by just under 11 minutes. Vanessa Rolfe took on the Draycote Water 20-mile race on Sunday. “Never done this one before,” she said after the event. “Although it was four times round the reservoir it wasn’t as boring as it sounds, and I was very happy to finish in 3:46:55.” Vanessa’s time was especially impressive as only the week before she had run the Bedford Half Marathon in 2:22:34. In the NHRR-organised First Saturday of the Month 5k at Norton Common there were 64 runners. First home for the Squirrels were Matt Sayers, who ran 18:25 to finish in first position overall, and Caroline Thrussell, who was the first woman, and ran a time of 22:12. A Special ‘WELL DONE’ goes to to Fiona Oldham who completed her first 5k after doing the Couch-to-5k course. Only the day before he took part in the Baldock Rat Run, Richard Harbon had run another 5k, this time at the Wetherby parkrun. The family were in the area for a wedding, and Katie Harbon finished as first lady in 19:45. See below for all NHRR parkrun results. In race-walking news, David Annetts completed the last of the Tuesday night summer races at Woodford Green Open. In the 3000m Race Walk he finished 3rd in 13:47. Baldock Rat Run results Ian Datlen 5th 20:13 Richard Harbon 21:03 Rhia Botha First Lady 21:26 Paula Holm third lady 21:58 Andrew Coates 22:27 Steve Brenton 22:51 Lucy O’Connor 24:21 Andrew Cooper 25:27 Alan Hazelhurst 26:50 Sherryl Chatfield 27:20 Helen Marston Smith 29:56 Brian Justin’s 32:49 Helen Govey 34:36 Parkrun results Letchworth parkrun 25 Steve BRENTON 23:32 Stevenage parkrun 112 Sarah MILLHOUSE 25:19 313 Sarah MITCHERSON 33:53 349 Jane CLARKE 36:25 Roding Valley parkrun 9 Darren MATUSSA 19:24 Telford parkrun 494 Glyn BLAKEY 52:57 Wetherby parkrun 6 Katie HARBON (First Lady) 19:45 14 Richard HARBON 20:57 ? James BERRY 24:11 40 Matt ANKERS 24:45 Exeter Riverside parkrun 149 Dave BRAYBROOK 24:22 Panshanger parkrun 23 Chris STOKES 20:33 Alderford parkrun 48 Chris POOLE 24:48 The first of the Hatfield 5km series was on Wednesday. The first event being the Hertfordshire County championships. 28 squirrels turned out in force earning a few trophies and PBs. The mens team of Tom Webb, Andrew Leach, Mark Vaughan and Stewart Overton won the county championship gold. Tom Webb finished 2nd in the race and won silver in the county championships in a course best time for him of 15:49. David Weston was delighted to get a new PB of 18:35. Mark Vaughan finished 11th in 16:38. Kat Gourd finished in 23:40. Harry and Lewina Agius both managed PBs with 23:56 and 25:55 respectively. Andrew Coates also got a PB finishing in 21:55. Having qualified for England vests to run for England Masters at the half marathon distance, Mark Vaughan and Adam Bowller ran the Maidenhead half marathon as part of the England Masters team against the Celtic masters team. Mark finished 15th overall and 4th V40 in a time of 72:48. Adam finished 21st with 73:50 and Jane Clarke also ran and finished 848th in 1:51:23. David Annetts race walked in two events this week. On a very warm Tuesday evening in Battersea Park, he finished the last Vets AC summer series in first place. He achieved a new 5 mile PB of 38:11 at the Vets AC 5 Mile Race Walk. On Saturday he then finished 2nd in 24:07 at the L.I.C.C. and Enfield League 5000m Race Walk at Allianz Park Barnet. Sue foot and Jo Summers both ran the Dunstable Downs Challenge. Sue finished in 5:07 and Jo in 4:19. Not having done the event in a few years, Jo thoroughly enjoyed it – describing it as a lovely route with spectacular views and perfect running weather. Tom Webb achieved a PB at the Ladywell 10,000m B race on his 35th birthday. This was Toms first 10,000m on the track and finished 4th in 32:25. Several Squirrels ran at the Bedford running festival which included a 5km, Twilihght 10km and Half marathon. Several squirrels completed multiple events. Completing the 5km was Helen Govey (28:06) and Andrew Cooper (26:09). Dave Braybrook and Andrew Coates both ran the 10k in 51:14 and 48:38 respectively. Andrew's time being a new PB. Dave Weston finished the half in 92:34, knocking 4 mins off his previous PB. Kat Gourd also ran the half and despite a spectacular tumble at around 10 miles, she was very pleased to finish in 1:51:30. Also completing the half were Lewina Agius with a new PB of 1:59:39. Helen Cromack 2:33:01 and Anna Greetham 2:32:59 also having great runs. Ali Mottram completed both the 5km and 10km in 34:30 and 2:32:59 (PB) respectively. Elwyn Howell completed both the 10km (53:32) and the half (2:10:20) – achieving a PB in each. Training for a Autumn marathon, Jennie Fraser took part in all three events obtaining much bling and a total of 22.4 miles. Jennie finished the 5km in 24:56, 10km in 51:09 and half in 2:10:56. A scurry of squirrels took part in the The Freedom Tri Duck n Dash aquathon in home territory of Norton Common. John Auld was first squirrel home in 11th (29:53). Closely followed by James Keogh 15th (30:47), Richard Harbon 29th (34:55), Lucy O'Connor 57th (39:22) and Matt Ankers 62nd (40:08). James Keogh was happy to have completed the race faster than his first event 10 years ago and attributed this to consistent training. In the relay Katie Harbon finished the run in 20:15 with a combined time of 30:12. Susan Mansfield & Mike Bullock took on the St Albans Stampede as solo runners. The event is a lapped 12 hour Ultra where the objective is to complete as many laps of the 4 mile off road hilly course. The duo also took on the 12 hour all you can eat buffet as the organisers laid on free bacon butties. Between the two of them they completed 170km. David Annetts made the club proud today at the Muller British Championships 5000m Race Walk at the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham. David’s race walking has been going from strength to strength and continues to impress with his excellent times and representation of North Herts up and down the country. Taking part in the National Championships was a real honour and a day to remember. David stated: ‘Very happy to come through this race on a very hot day. It was a great experience to take part in a National Championships where the level of technical judging provides one of the toughest challenges for race walkers. I'm guessing I was the oldest person competing on the day, certainly by 30 years in my own race. Injury earlier in the summer affected preparation but after being DQ'd at the Indoor Championships in February, today was really just about staying in the race. I had a 30 second penalty close to the end but the pit lane rule enabled me to continue and complete it. The race was won by Callum Wilkinson in a new British Record.’ David came 6th in this challenging race in an excellent time of 25:06.32 Elsewhere Parkrun tourism continued unabated! Philip Flack was meant to be enjoying a relaxing bank holiday weekend in Longleat Center Parcs but couldn’t resist a new Parkrun (only starting last week) in Frome Somerset. Philip came 95th out of 236 in a time of 27:25 and finished 5th in the 65-69 age category earning himself an excellent age grading of 62.32%. Other parkruns: Roding Valley 45th Darren MATUSSA North Herts RRC 00:24:32 Stevenage 6th David WESTON North Herts RRC 00:19:28 21st Andrew UNDERHILL North Herts RRC 00:21:24 93rd Katherine GOURD North Herts RRC 00:24:42 Sheringham 9th Steve MCKEOWN North Herts RRC 00:20:07 25th Astrid MCKEOWN North Herts RRC 00:22:22 Wimpole 446th Jillian BOYS North Herts RRC 00:54:28 Telford 331st Chris POOLE North Herts RRC 00:34:58 Skipton 62nd Paula HOLM North Herts RRC 00:24:52 Penrhyn 93rd Naomi PARKINSON North Herts RRC 00:28:21 Letchworth 10th James DALTON North Herts RRC 00:21:30 12th Ian DATLEN North Herts RRC 00:21:51 31st Steve BRENTON North Herts RRC 00:24:32 34th Eva MCCABE North Herts RRC 00:24:38 58th Daniel MALLETT North Herts RRC 00:27:01 60th Rhiannon BOTHA North Herts RRC 00:27:07 72nd Carl GOODRUM North Herts RRC 00:29:06 80th Jennie FRASER North Herts RRC 00:29:33 113rd Brian BAILEY North Herts RRC 00:32:34 129th Rebecca NICHOLL North Herts RRC 00:35:23 134rd Carol GOODRUM North Herts RRC 00:36:17 161st Glyn BLAKEY North Herts RRC 00:51:22 Great Denham 26th Andrew COATES North Herts RRC 00:22:29 55th Dave BRAYBROOK North Herts RRC 00:24:59 137th Brian JUDKINS North Herts RRC 00:33:35 North Herts Road Runners had success at the Thorney 5-mile race on Sunday with many winning individual category prizes and breaking club records.
The Thorney 5-mile race was the clubs chosen ‘run of the month’ with a strong contingent of squirrels making the trip north for the event. Run over a fast flat out and back course and despite the strong head wind for half the race there were plenty of quick times and superb results. The club had three finishers in the top four with Tom Webb racing to 2nd place in 26.30, followed by Andrew Leach in 3rd (1st V55) in 27.05 and Mark Vaughan 4th (1st V45) in 27.13 breaking his own club record and Andrew setting a new club record with his time. The three men unsurprisingly also won the men’s team trophy. For the women Astrid McKeown finished in 4th and 1st FV45 setting another club recorded with her time of 32.45. Linda Aird was delighted to win her age group to be 1st FV60 in a time of 41.23. There were also plenty of squirrels taking on a longer challenge at the Kimbolton Half Marathon. Those taking part described the event as lovely and really well organised. Adam Wilson was very happy to achieve a new personal best by four minutes with a time 1.52.53 and 9 minutes quicker than the last time he ran the event. Endurance athletes Jo Summers and Sue Foot were in Wheathampstead for Leila's Run a four-lap undulating marathon course with constantly changing scenery to enjoy. Jo finished with a course PB of 4.07 and Sue finished in 4.50. Steve McKeown was up early for the Triathlon National Championships at Box End, Bedford. He was happy to pick up an age group silver medal at the Sprint, finishing the 750m Swim, 20km cycle and 5k Run In 1:06:43. Paula Holm was also competing well after a period of injury finishing 18th in her age group in a time of 1:25:46. Natalie Lawrence had a brilliant race winning her age group in 1:09:25 and 4th overall. David Annetts was 2nd at the Woodford Open 3000m Race Walk in a time of 13.49 on Tuesday evening. Full Results for Thorney: pos name time cat pos 2 Thomas Webb 00:26:30 1 3 Andrew Leach 00:27:05 1 4 Mark Vaughan 00:27:13 2 20 Peter Sibbett 00:30:19 3 25 John Auld 00:30:37 12 30 David Weston 00:31:41 13 45 Astrid McKeown 00:32:48 1 125 Andrew Coates 00:38:36 18 143 Richard Weber 00:40:03 15 149 F Lucy O'Connor 00:40:20 5 166 Linda Aird 00:41:30 1 182 Karen Dodsworth 00:42:14 8 206 Sue Vaughan 00:43:47 8 254 Jane Tyler 00:49:39 12 284 Joanne Sopala 00:54:38 18 298 Lindsey Lucas 00:58:28 17 Full Results for Kimbolton Half Marathon Rachel Arnott - 1:42:48 Adam Wilson - 1:52:53 Jennie Fraser - 1:53:58 Alice Noakes - 1:55:58 Lucy Hurley - 2:03:05 Naomi Parkinson - 2:03:06 Alan Hazlehurst - 2:06:22 Allison Blunt - 2:09:21 Vanessa Rolfe - 2:19:52 Jim Marvell - 2:31:11 Alison Mottram - 2:31:55 Parkrun Results: Letchworth: 1 Matthew SAYERS 19:02, 7 James DALTON 22:43, 13 Steve BRENTON 24:40, 1 Katherine GOURD 25:25, 80 Helen MARSON-SMITH 32:46, 98 Naomi PARKINSON 34:11, 135 Anna GREETHAM 40:25, 154 Glyn BLAKEY 54:29. Stevenage: 2 Rhiannon BOTHA 22:04, 3 Dervla DOWNING 23:09, 46 Damon CLEVELEY 23:13, 142 Philip FLACK 26:51. Wimpole: 14 Jillian BOYS 25:43. Ormskirk: 116 Joseph SHERRY 28:50. Great Denham: 25 Andrew COATES 22:52, 75 Dave BRAYBROOK 25:46. Heartlands: 19 Andrew ROBSON 22:48. Tawd Valley: 25 Chris POOLE 26:14. Roding Valley: 8 Darren MATUSSA 20:00. Bath Skyline: 35 Ian DATLEN 23:33. Gunnersbury: 413 Georgina QUAYLE 29:39. Making the most of the long summer days with some evening racing, Stewart Overton headed to Battersea Park after work on Tuesday to run the VAC 5-mile road race. Held over a flat and fast course Stewart set himself a target time of 27.30. Missing his target time by just 5 seconds Stewart finished in 27.35 taking first place. Stewart was happy with the result saying, ‘so close to my target time and nice to take the win.’
Also racing in the evening John Rayner travelled up to Sceddington in Lincolnshire on Friday night to race the Sleaford Striders Summer 10k. Expecting some family support John said, ‘It’s my dad’s club, I picked the race so he could watch but he was in Hertfordshire watching the Proclaimers instead.’ The blustery evening made conditions tougher than expected producing slower times for all the runners. John finished outside his target time but was happy with his effort considering the conditions securing 4th place overall and first V35 in a time of 36.18. David Annetts had a busy weekend race walking at the British Masters Championships held at the Birmingham Alexander Stadium. The event was more about championship racing than times. David competed in two races in two days starting with the British Masters Championship 3000m Race Walk on Saturday where he finished 1st in 15:09.68. Sunday saw him competing in the 5000m Race Walk and again David showed his form by winning the event in 24:46.71. Parkrun Results: Stevenage: Rhiannon BOTHA 22:47, Dervla DOWNING 23:04, Damon CLEVELEY 23:31, Elwyn HOWELL 24:47 Letchworth: Ed PRICE 18:30, Glyn BLAKEY, 23:55, Jegan SIMON 25:56, Linda AIRD 28:18, Ian DATLEN 28:18, Carl GOODRUM 29:05, Philip FLACK 30:36, Steve BRENTON 32:03, Brian JUDKINS 37:16, Lucy HURLEY 49:14 Ellenbrook Fields: Chris POOLE 24:43 Eden Project: Eva MCCABE 22:31 Conkers: Naomi PARKINSON 25:40 Penrose: Chris STOKES 20:47 Cirencester: Jillian BOYS 24:17 Rheinaue: David WESTON 20:06 A small bunch of squirrels made their way up the A1 to St Neots for the Riverside Runners' 32nd annual 10k race.
Run over a flat mix terrain course with some wobbly bridges and pretty scenery to distract the runners. Adam Wilson described it as ‘a very enjoyable run’ despite temperatures soaring to 27 degrees during the race. Admin was delighted to break 50 minutes for the first time with a new PB of 49.54. Helen Wilson was also pleased to finish her first 10k in about three years in 1.07.06. Other squirrels completing the race were Glyn Blakey in 47.48, Andrew Coates 50.57, Kat Gourd 50.57, Ian Sutcliffe 59.57, and Ally Blunt 1.00.58. Adam Bowller unexpectedly found himself taking part in the Clun Carnival Canta on Friday evening in Shropshire. The course was 5.5 miles of what could be considered as a fell race due to the steep off road climbs and descents. Adam said the descents were, ‘so steep that I had to walk in places and I was leading over the peaks. I clearly have to work on my descending however as I ended up 2nd by just 5 seconds’. Adam completed the incredibly tough course in a time of 39.45. Taking a break from road racing Darren Matussa and Stewart Overton took part in the SOAR mile on Friday evening at the Olympic Stadium warm up track in Stratford. Darren was first up and ran a new PB of 5:09. Stewart’s race also hosted the Women’s Elite mile and in a competitive field he finished in a time of 4:51. Stewart said ‘It was Great fun to run on the track graced by so many Olympians and international stars since 2012’ Pete Sibbett broke the clubs V55 parkrun record at Great Dunham on Saturday in 18.54 and Karen Dodsworth was delighted with her time of 23.53. Other Parkrun results: Bury St Edmunds Patrick NORRIS, 35:26, Stevenage Dervla DOWNING 23:24, Wimpole Estate Jillian BOYS 23:47, Joseph SHERRY 29:19, Stretford Ian DATLEN 20:18, Letchworth Damon CLEVELEY 23:46, Lucy HURLEY 27:24, Naomi PARKINSON 27:25, Glyn BLAKEY 36:51, Great Denham Peter SIBBETT 18:54 and Karen DODSWORTH 25:53. Superb performances at the prestigious MK 5000 PB Special saw members of North Herts Road Runners seize places at the top of the national rankings. The Letchworth-based club sent five runners to compete in the series of 5000 metre races on the Stantonbury Athletics Track in Milton Keynes. With the men’s and women’s A races also serving as the English 5000 championships, the Squirrels found themselves rubbing shoulders with plenty of high-profile GB runners. NHRR member Stewart Overton said ‘The chance to watch the current and future stars of GB athletics from lane 4 and the chance to interact (and get the odd photo) with them puts this event on a par with any track meet’. Andrew Leach was the standout performer for North Herts as a superb 16.04 clocking put him first in the national rankings for the 55+ age group by over a minute, while Mark Vaughan’s 16.28 put him 18th in the country in the 45+ category. Nathan Pask had a ‘bittersweet’ result, securing a 12-second personal best with 16.00, but missing a sub-16 clocking by just 0.68s of a second – ‘literally a dip for the line’ according to team-mate Overton, who finished in 16.33. Tom Webb closed out what Overton summarised as ‘a great evening of racing for NHRR’ with 15.43 for the club’s fastest time of the night. Damp conditions did not stop Elwyn Howell from enjoying the ‘nice scenery’ and securing 7th place in his age category as he finished the Lee Valley 10k in 55.40. Kat Gourd completed the 10-mile version of the same event in 1 hour 23 mins, and was 11th female. She said it was ‘an absolute treat to run in cooler temperatures under cloudy skies and rain after all the hot weather lately! ‘ Andrew Robson achieved new personal bests in all three triathlon disciplines as he finished third in his age group at the Galeforce Events Bedford Tri Crazy sprint triathlon. Despite the rain, ‘which could have made the ride tricky’, he was pleased to finish in 1.27.53. Andrew commented ‘It is a very friendly local triathlon and I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to dip a toe in the triathlon water, so to speak. The next race is on 29th September.’ As ever there was a strong NHRR turnout at Parkruns far and near: Luton Wardown: Chris Stokes 20:30; Newcastle, Joe Sherry 28.20; Medina (Ise of Wight), Damon Clevely 23.38; Stevenage, Jennie Fraser 26.21, Paul Bowal 27.13, Helen Giffin 31.17, Pat Norris 33.42; Wimpole Estate, Jillian Boys 24.51; Whinlatter Forest, Glyn Blakey 26.48; Holkham, Ian Datlen 20.58,; Letchworth, James Fox 17.30, Peter Clarke 19.25, James Dalton 21.29, Jegan Simon 25.20, Ellie Scott 27.29, Carl Goodrum 28.30, Philip Flack 28.45, Lucy Hurley 31.27, Naomi Parkinson 31.28, Carol Goodrum 35.59; Fletcher Moss, Chris Poole 25.40. North Herts Road Runners were celebrating on Friday night with success at the Bedfordshire AAA 10k. In unseasonably damp conditions, nine Squirrels made their way to Bedford. It looked like the evening was going to turn sour as the rain started pouring down at the start of the race. Nevertheless, the Squirrels’ spirits were still high from a successful Midweek League race series, and the conditions didn’t put a stop to some decent performances all round. In fact, the men's team scooped up the team award, narrowly beating Bedford & County on their own patch.
Mark Vaughan, who had spent the day celebrating his 49th birthday, was first home for NHRR, and ran a season’s best time of 33:44 to finish in an impressive 3rd place overall (fastest V45). Sue Vaughan also ran, and the husband and wife team were first man and first lady home for the Letchworth-based club, with Sue finishing in a time of 54:21 – what a way to celebrate a birthday! Andrew Leach was second home for NHRR in 5th (fastest V55). Matthew Sayers (9th) and Stewart Overton (10th) were both happy to get in under 35 minutes. John Rayner and Wayne Bell were not far behind and men's team captain Peter Sibbett was in good form. Also representing the ladies was head coach Karen Dodsworth. (See below for all Beds AAA results.) Three Squirrels travelled north to run the 40th Northumberland Coastal Run. Linda Aird, Lucy O’Connor and Andrew Porter described the event as “fabulous, with stunningly beautiful coastal scenery”. It starts in Beadnell, and heads south to eventually finish on the beach at Alnmouth. “We started on the beach and almost immediately our shoes were soaked as we had to run through the retreating tide.” said Linda. “When we eventually left the first beach section we found we had to clamber over slippery rocks and seaweed to get up onto the coast path. We were rewarded by spectacular views of the very impressive - and very ruined - Dunstanburgh castle, before hitting the half-way point in the lovely little harbour at Craster. Another climb up, and some more beach sections with added seawater for our shoes, then a few miles on roads and tracks before eventually descending to the beach again at Alnmouth for a 1.5 mile run across more sand, rocks and seawater to cross the finish line at Alnmouth.” The weather was in the trio’s favour (unlike last year's event, apparently) with sunny intervals and a pleasant breeze - which turned into a bit of a headwind on the final push across the beach in Alnmouth, making for a tough finish to a challenging event. Linda was very happy with to knock four minutes off her previous time there ten years ago, and finished in 2:15:41. Lucy O’Connor’s time was 2:17:00, and Andrew Porter was was awarded the prize for 2nd V70, and finished in 2:19:22. Closer to home, Jo Summers, Sue Foot, Alan Hazlehurst and Lucy Hurley were among a number of Squirrels to take part in the FVS Challenge at the weekend. “Perfect running conditions - warm and sunny” was Jo Summer’s verdict after she completed the marathon in 4.35 (first lady). Also running the marathon was Sue Foot, who was going along nicely when she tripped in mile 10 and somehow scraped her nose. “One very helpful runner patched me up with a plaster,” said Sue. “It caused me to walk for a while but with no other damage apart from a bloody nose and swelling i was soon back running if a bit slowly and finished in 5.56.” Alan and Lucy took part in the half marathon, and finished in 2:25. Alan described it as “a lovely self guided run around the countryside near Stevenage. Lucy's navigation was impeccable,” he added, “as was her encouragement for me in the last few miles as I slowed badly after. A really enjoyable friendly event with great company!” Stuart Cocks ran the London Asics 10k in 43.41, beating last year's time by five minutes. He was joined by Hayley Cocks, who finished in 1.08.50, which although not a PB was still 21 minutes quicker than the previous year. Hayley had decided to run it with her sister Shani Briers (“my partner in crime” says Hayley) and just enjoy it. The plan was to run steady and both were very consistent which meant they were able to produce a sprint finish at the end. Helen Harbon (50:58) and Matt Ankers (52:17) ran the Run Norwich a 10k race in the centre of Norwich. “It was a lovely run through some of the great sites of Norwich,’ said Matt after the race. “It was incredibly hot but lovely.” Vanessa Rolfe ran the inaugural Ilkley Half Marathon on Sunday 14th July, after gaining permission to run from her husband (it was their wedding anniversary!). She described the event as “a definite recommendation for a running weekend away” and finished in 2:24:58. Beds AAA Results Mark Vaughan 3rd 33:44 (V45 winner) Andrew Leach 5th 34:02 (V55 winner) Matthew Sayers 9th 34:57 (PB) Stewart Overton 10th 34:59 John Rayner 18th 35:41 Wayne Bell 20th 35:53 Peter Sibbett 63rd 41:24 Sue Vaughan 160th 54:21 Karen Dodsworth 162nd 54:40 NHRR parkrun results 20/07/2019 Stevenage parkrun 210 Helen GIFFIN 00:30:10 251 Sarah MILLHOUSE 00:32:35 346 Jane CLARKE 00:38:57 Wimpole Estate parkrun 20 Ian DATLEN 00:21:07 54 Rhiannon BOTHA 00:23:48 84 Jillian BOYS 00:25:09 Letchworth parkrun 5 James DALTON 00:21:29 19 Andrew ROBSON 00:24:04 24 Steve BRENTON 00:24:35 28 Damon CLEVELEY 00:25:01 42 Adam WILSON 00:26:18 59 Lucy HURLEY 00:27:39 71 Paul BOWAL 00:29:29 74 Philip FLACK 00:29:46 96 Helen WILSON 00:32:05 Pocket parkrun 22 Glyn BLAKEY 00:22:20 32 Andrew COATES 00:22:53 (PB) 38 Katherine GOURD 00:23:21 (PB) 249 Sheila LEAVY 00:43:14 Rosliston parkrun 67 Chris POOLE 00:25:55 Champion Squirrels! North Herts Road Runners win the Midweek League for the first time in the club’s history
Thursday saw the final race in Division 1 of the Midweek League, in which leading clubs from Hertfordshire and North London battle it out in a summer series of 10k races. North Herts Road Runners not only finished as overall winners on the night, but also sealed the league win. It was the first time the Letchworth-based club has won the first division, and was particularly impressive given the larger size of some of the league’s other clubs. Women’s team captain, Katie Harbon, said “We can’t forget that Division 1 is hard, with several strong clubs competing against each other and with every place to play for it certainly does test your strength.” Throughout the season both the women’s and men’s NHRR teams consistently delivered leading results, right the way through to the final fixture, in which the women’s team finished second, having worked their way from third place to second throughout the four races, placing eight scoring runners between 4th position (Katie Harbon) and 46th (Rhia Botha). The men’s team won their race, as they have done in every fixture this season, placing twelve scoring runners between 3rd position (Tom Webb) and 22nd (John Rayner). “It wasn’t just the scoring teams that made us win,” said Katie Harbon, “but every single runner who put their all into each race contributed to our success.” See below for all Thursday's results. Saturday was the Midsummer Dawn and Dusk double First Saturday of the Month 5k. With cakes at the end and donations to the Hospice, 86 runners completed the dawn event and a 49 runners then ran at dusk. NHRR’s very own James Fox won at Dawn and whilst Matt Sayers won at Dusk. Vanessa Rolfe had a good run at the Ware 10 mile race, despite not feeling confident following so closely to the MWL race on Thursday and a double appearance at the Dawn and Dusk. However, she did better than expected and finished in 1:53:37. Showing off their multi-sport skills, several squirrels participated in the Hitchin Triathlon. Several more came down in support and there was many cheers from fellow squirrels on the course. Steve McKeown won the race, “fending off the youngsters” and retained his title from last year. Sofie Thrussell was third lady and Caroline Thrussell was 1st FV50. Shani Fielding throughly enjoyed completing the super sprint nitro event. Hayley Cocks also took on the challenge of Swim Bike Run for the first time and “would definitely do it again”. Adam Wilson completed the sprint distance for the first time. Afterwards Adam said that he beat his target time, but admitted he needs to work on his transitions. John Auld also competed, finishing 8th, taking 3 mins off his time from last year. Anna Greetham and Helen Cromack had a great weekend at Love Trails Festival in The Gower. They each ran in the 5km, 13km and 9km guided trail runs taking in beautiful beaches and stunning scenery. With a relaxed vibe and food and music, they described it as a brilliant way to enjoy trail running. Lucy Hurley went to Willingham to do the Fen Gallop 10k, and event fundraising for the local primary school. She finished in 51:40 and received a wooden medal. Jo Summers ran marathons in the 5 day Great Barrow Challenge. She finished in 4:30 on Monday and 4:14 on Saturday. Midweek league results; Race Pos Cat Vet Time Name Surname Cat. 3 3 34:50 Thomas Webb S 6 6 1 1 35:36 Andrew Leach V 50 7 7 1 2 35:43 Mark Vaughan V 40 8 8 2 3 35:49 Jim McConnel V 40 10 10 35:59 Adam Bowller S 12 12 36:12 James Fox S 13 13 36:21 Nathan Pask S 15 15 4 5 36:40 Matthew Sayers V 40 18 18 36:52 Stewart Overton S 19 19 6 7 36:54 Wayne Bell V 40 21 21 8 9 37:03 Edward Price V 40 22 22 37:04 John Rayner S 29 29 37:38 Ollie Saville S 49 49 38:58 Andy Mutton* S 52 52 3 20 39:19 Nicholas Malpeli V 50 93 4 41:24 Katie Harbon S 99 95 30 36 41:36 James Keogh V 40 110 105 42:15 John Auld S 112 6 1 1 42:23 Astrid McKeown V 45 122 115 38 50 43:12 Ian Datlen V 40 127 118 40 53 43:22 Vincent Wright V 40 134 10 3 5 43:38 Paula Adams V 45 137 11 44:06 Sophie Thrussell S 138 127 16 59 44:06 Peter Sibbett V 50 155 137 45:26 Brent Lloyd S 171 22 1 14 46:49 Caroline Thrussell V 55 172 150 51 73 46:50 Andrew Underhill V 40 181 26 7 17 47:15 Helen Cairns V 45 183 157 22 77 47:27 Richard Harbon V 50 186 159 47:32 Mark Seddon S 188 28 11 19 47:42 Rachel Arnott V 35 191 162 47:56 Scott Reed S 213 177 60 91 49:33 James Drew V 40 219 179 62 93 50:04 Steve Tracey V 40 221 181 26 94 50:15 Andrew Robson V 50 231 189 67 102 50:44 Stuart Cocks V 40 240 46 51:16 Rhia Botha S 252 53 21 39 51:58 Dervla Downing V 35 258 55 52:23 Ellie Scott S 261 57 22 42 52:38 Jane Clarke V 35 262 205 52:41 Daniel Mallett S 266 61 52:53 Kat Gourd S 269 207 36 117 52:58 Johnny Spinks V 50 276 212 72 120 53:34 Harry Agius V 40 281 214 38 122 54:09 Andrew Cooper V 50 283 215 11 123 54:26 Elwyn Howell V 60 296 75 7 53 55:36 Linda Aird V 55 297 76 25 54 55:38 Lewina Agius V 35 303 80 9 58 56:17 Lucy O'Connor V 55 314 85 10 61 57:06 Jo Harbon V 55 316 87 27 63 57:10 Jennie Andrews V 35 317 230 57:13 Chris Poole S 329 235 3 141 58:06 Andrew Porter V 70 336 101 30 76 58:37 Jennie Fraser V 35 341 239 4 145 58:56 Ian Sutcliffe V 70 344 104 30 79 59:28 Sue Vaughan V 45 345 105 16 80 59:28 Karen Dodsworth V 55 361 115 35 90 1:01:17 Alison Blunt V 45 364 247 18 152 1:01:34 Geoff Murray-Rochard V 60 369 119 19 94 1:02:25 Miranda Morgan V 55 387 131 1:04:56 Gladys Cheng S 394 138 28 110 1:06:24 Vanessa Rolfe V 55 397 140 40 112 1:07:45 Lindsay Cook V 35 400 143 29 115 1:08:23 Jane Tyler V 55 406 258 21 162 1:11:34 Patrick Norris V 60 Sixty two hardy Squirrels battled the M25, road closures and rush hour traffic to defend their lead in the 3rd round of the Midweek League in Epping Forest. Their efforts were not in vain. Stewart Overton describing the ‘First Class’ commitment of club members commented “the men’s team have won all 3 rounds and currently hold maximum points going into the last round. Seeing 8 squirrels in the top 13 showed how dominant we have been at the sharp end with Tom Webb taking a well deserved win.” All eyes are now on the fourth and final race at Trent Park next week.
The Road Runners were out in force to take on the Hitchin Hard Half on Sunday. Linda Aird speaking after the race said she was very pleased to finish in 1:58:55 – “my best time on this course and first time I've run it in under 2 hours since then as well! I always enjoy this one, despite the challenging hills, and it is often quite warm - today was no exception”. Hitchin Hard Half results: Natalie Lawrence 1:27:13 Brent Lloyd 1:38:32 James Dalton 1:42:22 Chris Stokes 1:46:37 Caroline Thrussell 1:46:49 Rachel Arnott 01:49:28 Dan Martin 1:51:36 Steven Peel 1:58:34 Linda Aird 1:58:55 Adam Wilson 1:59:17 Lucy O'Connor 2:02:56 Alice Noakes 2:12:33 Alan Hazlehurst 2:16:57 Vanessa Rolfe 2:34:10 Hitchin Hard 10K results: Helen Cromack 1:09:49 Anna Greetham 1:09:52 Despite racing success during the week, less than 48 hours later, 20 club runners took part in the annual Greensands Ridge Relay Event consisting of 46 teams of 6 runners competing over 35 miles. The first of the NHRR teams narrowly missed first place by just 35 seconds. Team Member Alan Hazelhurst blamed his slower than anticipated time on the hot conditions, hills, a detour and his inability to run in straight lines! Six squirrels travelled down the A1M to compete in the Welwyn 10K. The hills, including one at the end named ‘The Stinger’ did not prove a problem for Nick Malpeli who was 2nd V50 (Veteran, 50 or over runner) in both the main race and in the County Championships and to Andrew Porter 3rd V70 in both! Kat Gourd enjoyed the scenic course, despite the hills, and as the only female Road Runner was delighted to take the place of first lady home for the club in 0:52:24. David Weston struggled with the hills, lacking energy and dehydrated, but “drew on the power of his inner squirrel” for a strong finish in 0:43:53. Other finishers included;Christian ALLEN 0:50:17 Christopher POOLE 0:51:21 Ian SUTCLIFFE 1:00:09. John Auld was pleased to finish 5th in the 4.6 mile Silkestone Shuffle, tackling high grass and stiles along the way and attributed his return to running fitness to his training partners and coaches at North Herts Road Runners. The North Herts Road Runners’ Parkrun results for Saturday 22nd June: Letchworth – James DALTON 21:35 Glyn BLAKEY 23:10 Katherine GOURD 25:29 Damon CLEVELLY 25:43 Jillian BOYS 25:58 Jegan SIMON 26:05 Dave Braybrook 27:00 Jennie FRASER 27:11 Philip Flack 29:28 Carl GOODRUM 32:17 Stevenage –Dervla DOWNING 22:36 Mike MORALEE 27:38 Helen GIFFIN 31:28 Patrick NORRIS 35:24 Jane CLARKE 36:23 Ruth HICKS 36:40 Holkham – Matthew SAYERS 18:03 Marston Vale – Chris POOLE 24:09 Conkers -Naomi PARKINSON 24:11 Ruimsig, South Africa - Rhiannon BOTHA 24:01 |
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April 2024
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