Author Archives: sidmouthsrc

Exeter 1/2M

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Exeter Half Marathon 
The Exeter Half Marathon started from the quayside at Exeter with a traffic free and mostly flat route, apart from the hill from the crematorium up to Bridge Road. The event was held over the weekend (9th/10th of February ) with Saturday  being completed by Tim Swarbrick. Tim set a realistic pace by not trying to go too fast too early and run out of steam. This tack-tick gave him the the honourable position of being first and only Mighty Green to cross the line. He secured a place of 230th in 1h58m02s.
Going as a solo MG on Sunday the 10th, was Cheryl Boulton. This was her first half marathon since 2015 and the first as a Mighty Green. With very wet conditions underfoot and in places ankle deep in flood water, good progress very tricky. However and despite the rain, wind and deep puddles, she did it in 2h06m14s coming in 148th position out of 293 runners and also getting the honour of first and last MG over the line.

 

Brecon to Cardiff

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Brecon To Cardiff Ultra
  Jessica Raynor took part in the Brecon To Cardiff Ultra on Sunday the 10th of February. This 70k race started at 08:00 from the town of Brecon in the beautiful Brecon Beacons National Park. Following the River Taff down steam, the route journeys along The River Taff and makes use of the abandoned branch of The Taff Vale Railway and The Glamorganshire Canal. It utilises footpaths, forestry trails and cycle routes. Passing mountains, waterfalls, reservoirs and many reminders of the Welsh industrial heritage. 
  It was really well organised and marked out for a long distance 70k race, with better than forecasted weather for the competitors. Jess managed to find a steady 8.48 min/mile pace and ran with a chap from the 30k point until around the 60k mark, helping them both stay sane. She enjoyed the amazing views and felt it was a good course. Jessica was also happy with her place and time, claiming 2nd lady in a time of 6h.24m36s and a fantastic16th place overall out of 377.

Exmouth Express

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The Exmouth Express 5.
The Exmouth Express 5 took place on Sunday 3rd February. The event was organised by Exmouth Harriers Amateur Athletic Club and sponsored by Climb South West. With a cold but sunny morning at 10am, 11 Mighty Greens got off to a fabulous start from The Strand with a loop around The Parade, then twice along the Esplanade and twice along Rolle Road.
Antony Hall did extremely well considering he has been out of action due to an ongoing injury. Dispute a twinge all the way around, he kept an average pace of 6.14 minute/miles, crossing the line in 36th place in a time of 31m40s. Antony was the first SRC runner over the finish line. David King was next, claiming the 100th slot in a time of 36m12s. Then, in 153rd was Tim Swarbrick who completed the route in 40m13s. Hot on Tim’s heals in 160th was Steve Saunders, with a time of 40m48s. John Sharples, who had his family cheering him on from various points around the course, made it back in 210th place in 44m31s. Cheryl Boulton was very pleased with her 9.15 minute/mile pace and finishing time of 47m13s which gave her 245th over all. However, John Doherty almost pipped Cheryl to the post, with just 4 seconds between them. John was in 247th with a time of 47m17s. Not far behind Cheryl and John was Carolyn Sinclair in 255th in 47m48s.
Jodie Hawkins anticipated the route would be easier than it turned out to be and felt that perhaps complacency had set in with training. However, in front of two very supportive families (her own and some MGs) she achieved a good time of 49m39s and took 265th. Emma Grainger found the route a challenge, but with the sun out the town looked cheerful and the slight hill down Rolle Road was a very welcomed section. This helped to keep her spirits up both times around, so much so, that she managed another 1st in the FV65, that’s 2 out of 2 this year. Emma came in 288th in 53m14s. Sweeping up and refusing to be beaten was Mighty Green, Sue Cunningham in 298th place in 55m40s.

Magnificent 7

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Week 5 into the Beginners Course and the Magnificent 7 complete the 3 mile test run.

This was a great team run, keeping together, helping and encouraging each other, all at a steady pace of 11 minute a mile. That is until they got to the Esplanade for the final run to the flagpole when they all lined up together, picked up the pace to 10 minute miles and finished in style.

That’s the way to do it. Who’s next?

Congratulations to Beccy Johnson, Louise Dunford, Kerry Agar, Paul Williamson, Carol Hounsell, Jenni Yeoman and Danielle Downey.

SW Vets X-Country

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Southwest Vets AC Cross Country
Photo courtesy of Kit Woodcock.
Taking part in the South West Vets Cross-Country Championship last Sunday 27th January were 7 Mighty Greens. The race is 6km comprising of 3½ laps around the fields by the Rugby Club. In previous years the course has quickly turned into a muddy, slippery affair, but this year despite the recent rain, the course was good underfoot. To make matters even better the sun came out for the duration of the race. If only you could keep out of the biting north wind.
Although this is a championship event, it is a very friendly, low-key affair (mug of coffee and a chocolate biscuit after), it welcomes runners of all abilities. You never know who you are rubbing shoulders with, for instance, amongst Sunday’s runners was Ian Thompson, who still holds the Commonwealth Games Marathon Record of 2hrs 9 mins 12 secs set in 1974.
Paula Farrand picked up first prize in the W45-49 category and Emma Grainger first prize in the W65-69 age-group. Antony Hall had a good run and was the first Might Green home in 12th place. Naomi Garrick who turned up with a nasty cold, was the first Sidmouth woman home, closely followed by Kate Johnston. Bert Dykema had an enjoyable run on home territory and thanks to the much drier conditions underfoot Rob Edwards was 3 minutes quicker than last year.
Results: Antony Hall 24:40, Rob Edwards 30:10, Naomi Garrick 31:16, Kate Johnston 31:21, Paula Farrand 32:18, Bert Dykema 37:27, Emma Grainger 40:32.

Blackdown Beast

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The Blackdown Beast 2019.
   With a record number of entries for this year’s Blackdown Beast, the organisers, Honiton Running Club are hoping to have raised over £2000 for The Macmillen Cancer Support.
    This event is a social, self-navigating, multi terrain run, with a 10 mile and 16 mile route. It takes place in the Blackdown Hills, an area of outstanding natural beauty. So, for the 20 members of the Sidmouth Running Club attending the Beast, it was party time with pasties, cider, mud, and a bit of running chucked in for good measure.. 
   The runners set off on windy Saturday morning (26th of January) at 10am from the Highfield Sports and Social Club at Dunkerswell. They followed a rural and picturesque route along footpaths, woodland tracks, through fields and over many styles. Headed up farm tracks, through streams and bogs and over the odd hill to Smeatharpe Village Hall. Here the runners were rewarded with a hot pasty and mulled cider provided by the local WI. Then they contend with lanes and country paths that drop down to the village of Upottery. Here, the Sidmouth Arms provided more sustenance to the runners. This is where the 10 mile route finishes. The 16 milers continue along the road to Rawridge, crossing the river Otter and climb up to the ridge. The viewpoint at the top is above Luppitt and has a spectacular panorama of the surrounding countryside. They continued to the Luppitt Inn for another refreshment stop, it is the highlight of this run to have a drink here. The last few miles of the day took the runners over Luppitt Common and back to Dunkeswell. It was by far the muddiest part of the run and included a number of boggy fields before arriving back at the finish line, where again there was a chance for some more food and a well earned drink.
   David Wright found the Blackdown Beast tough going, so huge thanks went to Danny Painter for helping him around. David says he normally likes to run with his dog, so uses a Canicross harness (for the dog) and it helps to pull him up the hills. Today he was able to tap into some ‘Dannycross’ power instead! Danny Painter made good use of the stops with a pasty at Smeatharpe and a coke at the Inn at Luppit. He will remember this run for the quantity of cow pats! He took it easy with an average 13.6 min/mile and 3h:42m:45s running time.
   Els Laureys found this event to be a great, social run. We stuck together with a group of 8 from SRC,  Cathy Keast, who came armed with delicious Delia energy bars, also in the group were Monica Read, Nick Dicks, Richard King, Terry Bewes, Sarah Watkins and Helen Palmer. They indulged themselves in a lovely pastie and mulled cider at the first stop, which did not slow progress down in the least. Drinks for some at The Sidmouth Arms which was the second watering hole for all but Nick and Richard, who preferred a beer. The last stop was spent huddled together in the tiniest of pubs having a drink, which i believe this time did slow them down. Never mind, because now was the time for those energy bars made by CK and make a break for the finish line. Nick Dicks and Richard King took full advantage of all the public houses and really got into the spirit of social running. Emma Cudd, Sue Colman and Simon Holyer ran as a small group creating a great team atmosphere. Sam Ingram had to cut his run short due to bad back pains which came on from the start, however he still ran 13.2 miles of the race with an average pace of 10.25 min/miles. Jessica Raynor took this run more seriously than the rest of the MG’s. However, with loads of mud and stiles, she still had a few laughs. She flew the Migty Green proudly taking the 9th place over all and 1st lady all in 2hrs 46. No pasties or cider for this girl during the event, she was on a mission to finish this race in good speed and bag a good placing. Mission accomplished. She then had a drink…or two.