English Schools Cross Country Championships

Last weekend saw SIDMOUTH Running Club members Kate Marriott and Toby Garrick take part in the English Schools Cross Country Championships in Norwich, Norfolk.

After over 10 hours travelling there, they managed to shake off the tired legs and finish in 196th and 244th respectively, on a very flat course. The two athletes were very proud to finish 4th and 6th in their Devon team. This event followed the Inter-County Championships, held in Loughborough, on 11th March. Again, it was another long trip up, with an extremely challenging course with lots of mud and hills.

Both runners were at the bottom of their age group, and were very nervous to be competing with over 350 runners per race. The day was successful with Kate finishing 2nd in the Devon team and 202nd overall, whilst Toby got pipped on a sprint finish to finish 4th in the Devon team and 192nd in the testing field.

They are both very pleased the cross country season is now over which means no more mud, sweat or hills but the track season is soon looming.

The GRIZZLY

The Grizzly, what can you say about this 20 mile multi terrain race? Renowned as one of the toughest going, that takes in shingle beaches 3 times, river runs twice, hills many, muddy woodland trails, no make that very wet and muddy, flint paths, fields, and not forgetting the two bogs and the famous Stairway to Heaven. A race that sold out 2000 places in a matter of hours back in September and is greatly oversubscribed, attracting runners from all over Europe, well one word, FANTASTIC.

Fantastic organisation by Axe Valley Runners, start by the Town Cryer, route, views, marshals, supporters all around the course, entertainers, water and food stations, competitors and the fantastic 25 Sidmouth Running Club members nearly all resplendent in their Mighty Green Club shirts who took on the challenge.

Of the 1573 that started the main race 1569 finished, with the Club having 6 runners in the top 500. Danny Painter 109^th in 3:00:33 (last year142^nd in 3:02:19), Antony Hall 124^th in 3:03:09, Gary Anning 317^th in 3:26:48, Nigel Maeer 419^th in 3:35:19 followed by Julian Bartlett in 3:37:40 and Mark Welland in 3:37:48. This is the second race in a row that Danny has just gone over the hour mark by just a few seconds, third time lucky Danny.

Other club results Susie Perry 3:49:26, Carine Silver 3:48:26, Alan Colwill 3:55:03, Charlotte Forrer 3:58:24, Katie Kent 4:03:14, Naomi Garrick, 4:04:35 who ran dressed as a Strawberry in preparation for her attempt at the world record for the Guinness Book of records at the upcoming London Marathon.

Simon Hollyer 4:06:46, Rocker Sheppard who last year took the ambulance to the finish when an injury got the better of him at Seaton Hole managed to finish this year in 4:12:11, Becky Robson 4:23:47, Lynda Hawkins 4:27:33, Jonathan Dale 4:38:52.

The Rusty Runners, Helen Palmer, Cathy Keast, Moncia Read, Terry Bewes along with Janice Ranson and David Wright all ran the course together and finished in 4:48:39.

We had 2 runners amongst the 494 that started the 10 mile Grizzly Cub Run, Suzi Rockey 2:03:36 and Sarah Burston 2:06:54. Suzi was outstanding when you consider that only a few weeks ago she was hobbling around on crutches.

A feature of this race is the tree of remembrance where runners can tie a ribbon to it in memory of someone. This year it was particular moving and emotional to see Debbie and Don by the tree as runners tied their ribbons in memory of Debbie’s 19 year old son Sam who recently died so tragically.

Another great Grizzly and we all look forward to the next one.

Bideford Half Marathon

Three members of Sidmouth Running Club put on their Mighty Green shirts and headed up to north of the county for the Bideford AAC half marathon. The race this year was run in memory of Geoff Fanson one of the founding members of the running section of the Bideford club.

Beth and Danny

The course takes in the magnificent countryside alongside the river Torridge between Bideford and Great Torrington. The course is half on road and half on the Tarka Trail and you even get to run through a tunnel. The route is moderately flat with a small hill section. It was pretty windy though which made it a lot tougher.

Bethany Wells who joined the beginners course in January had set her sights on having a go at this race and despite being ill last week she still turned up at the Club for her 5 mile training run and was even more determined to complete the 13.1 miles. On the day however she did have the support of her step-dad, the well-known local marathon runner and back marker for JP’s Exe to Axe race, Danny Painter, who ran with her. Both turned out to be winners with Bethany finishing in 2:32:58 and despite Danny’s ‘encouragement’ she was still talking to him after the finish. A Mighty Green runner in the making Bethany, the club is proud of you.

Becky

Sidmouth’s other runner Becky Robson had an eventful start. After a busy week at work she took a laid back approach to this race as preparation for the London Marathon, a little too laid back as it turned out as exiting the port-a-loo she found that the runners had set off two minutes earlier so she had to get a move on and still finished in 1:57:34. A lesson learned for London.

There were 1150 finishers showing how popular this race is particularly with personal best runners.

Stroke Association Resolution Run

The mighty green vests of Sidmouth Running Club members were put to one side for the sake of charity this week. As part of the entry fee for the Stroke Association Resolution Run, held at Escot, runners were provided with a very smart vest or t-shirt to wear.

It was a dull, cold day and very windy. Lots of people were putting on extra layers of clothing, gloves and hats. There was a very cheery atmosphere amongst the contestants and the musical warm up was enjoyed by all, especially John as you can see. The course was mostly road and track with a couple of small hills, with about a quarter of it taking you along a woodland trail. There was a choice of three distances 5K, 10K or 15K, one, two or three laps of the course.

The star club runners or should I say super stars would have to be Team Mediocre made up of Hayley Otway, Kim Harland and Rachel Austen-Rigby; these three ladies started on the beginner’s course in January. The furthest they had run to date was 5k and here they are now having completed their first 10K in 1:20:00 with a stunning medal to prove it. I have also had inside information that Kim and Rachel only intended to run the 5K but the gentle persuasion of Hayley convinced them to run the 10K. A potential running club run leader in the making and a new name, Team Awesome. Congratulations ladies.

Also in the 10K Paula Farrand 42:30, Bert Dykema 45:13 and John Doherty 57:03 all enjoyed good runs while Antony Hall who ran the 15k and started with his wife Kat finished in second place in 1:02:00.

Although pleased with the second place he was gutted to miss out on the hour mark especially after the painful sprint finish as you can see in the photo.

All timings were taken from their watches as people were saying that the official time clock was 5 minutes out.

Barcelona Half Marathon

The great Catalan capital of Barcelona was host to the eDreams Mitja Marato Half Marathon. This half marathon has had to take second place to the new marathon which was reborn in 2005. However it is a great race and looks set to become popular with local runners and foreign guests as it establishes itself and if the number of world class elite athletics who entered is anything to go by, it certainly will.

Lining up at the start somewhere amongst the 15,239 competitors wearing the Mighty Green of Sidmouth Running Club was Katie Kent who was accompanied by an old school friend from Finland Dr Valpuri Luoma.

The route is a flat, fast course that takes in many of the city’s sights. It can best be described as a figure of 8 which is great for spectators and supporters. Starting at 9am it is still cool and the first 10 miles of the course are along many of the city’s wide boulevards with their pavement cafes from where you can relax and watch the runners go by. The shade from the tall buildings is a welcome feature. The last three miles is along the coast road and then back into the city to finish. It was dry and around 10 degrees for the race and although the windy conditions clearly hampered the elite runners, Katie and Val took no notice and both finished in a respectable time of 2:06:20 giving them plenty of time to change and enjoy the many delights of this beautiful city.

Punchbowl Ultra Marathon

Carine Silver from Sidmouth Running Club travelled up to Surrey with her family to take part in the LDWA 48^th Punchbowl Ultra Marathon. There are two options, either a 20 or 30 mile self-navigation route for runners and walkers. There is a 10 hour limit for both events.

Carine entered her first ultra, opting for the 30 mile with her sister Evelyne Wilkinson while husband and daughters 12 and 11 and nephew 10 walked the parallel 20 mile event. Both start from Witley Village Hall near Godalming and follow a route through the Devil’s Punchbowl across heath, common land, paths and bridleways and parts of the North Downs way, ending with a run along the rim of the Punch Bowl. There are 3 check points on route providing drinks, light refreshments, sandwiches and fruit.

The weather was not ideal, cold and foggy with snow on the ground between the puddles of mud but it didn’t actually snow on them which was a bonus.

Carine and Evelyne finished in 6:40:00 with about 40 minutes spent at the checkpoints enjoying the hospitality making them 7^th females home, although LDWA events are most emphatically NOT races. By quirk of routes and timing they passed the walking family members twice which was a boost to the spirts. The Mighty Green t-shirt attracted a lot of attention as it seemed that everyone has a connection to East Devon.

The Humdinger Half and Hurtle

The Taunton Humdinger Half Marathon and Hurtle is organised by the Running Forever RC and starts from the Wellspring Leisure Centre, Taunton.

With over 1000 feet of ascent, the Humdinger is one of the toughest Half Marathons in the area, although runners are rewarded with some stunning views of the Quantock Hills and Bristol Channel, depending on the weather.

On this occasion Sidmouth Running Club member Suzi Rocky chose The Hurtle. Run in conjunction, it covers the first three miles of the Humdinger course and then cuts off as the main ascent starts looping back to race HQ. The full route is just less than 5 miles and is gently undulating with no major hills. The Hurtle can still be considered a serious race and is an ideal alternative for those who do not wish to take on the Half. Suzi had one of her finest running moments in the Mighty Green vest finishing in a personal best time of 41:21 knocking 10 minutes off her previous time; being treated by the medical team for a hamstring injury at the end was not!

It is a race against time now to recover in time for the Grizzly in four weeks time. There were 214 finishers in the Humdinger and 106 in the Hurtle.

Exeter Half Marathon

The Exeter half marathon is a great 3 lap traffic free, pancake flat route run along the footpaths and cycle tracks around the River Exe and Exeter Canal. The course provides a fantastic opportunity to see how your Spring Marathon training programme is going or your first step into completing the 13.1 mile distance for the first time.

The race is run over two days, the first day for runners who can run it in under two hours and the remainder the following day. Day two saw Sidmouth Running Club member Emma Salter don her Mighty Green shirt and head for Exeter.

Training for the London Marathon she had every intention to treat this as a long run plod as part of her training programme, but decided on the morning as she was feeling up for it to try and break that elusive sub two hours. This would be her sixth attempt and she missed it by fifty eight seconds, so near yet so far. However showing great club spirit she said that she will not retire from the distance until she breaks the two hours. She was extremely proud of her time of 2:00:57 which was also a personal best.

There were 276 finishers

The Four Trigs 2017

After a very wet and blustery week leading up to the Four Trigs Challenge, we were granted a dry, although windy, window on Sunday for the 17^th running of this very popular but very hard Four Trigs Challenge.

The 101 runners who set off from the Sailing Club all enjoyed themselves, most managing to smile at the end of this challenging task. It was particularly difficult this year, due to all the rain prior to the event and this made the course very muddy, slippery and wet, especially for first timer Milly “Marvel” who set off in road shoes but soon recognized her mistake and a phone call to her husband saw a quick shoe change at Weston car park.

The runners have to visit the trig points at Western Cliff, Buckton Hill, Beacon Hill, and High Peak via a number of control points with many other hills, valley, woods and fields in between. This gruelling 17 mile race has a massive 3,200 feet of elevation gain.

Many runners chose to run around in small groups making it a sociable affair and they all finished in very high spirits talking and laughing as though they’d been for a stroll across the seafront, well most did anyway.

After the race many of the competitors sat in the Port Royal Club re-living the race and enjoying their well deserved Hayman’s pasty, and tea, coffee and cakes.

Over the years this event has made charity donations of over £8,000. This year all proceeds will be going to the charity Cardiac Risk in the Young. The charity raises awareness of the risk of undetected cardiac conditions in young people. Every week in the UK at least 12 apparently ‘fit and healthy’ young people (35 and under) die suddenly from a previously undiagnosed heart condition. Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY) was founded just over 20 years ago in 1995 and has become a leading national charity, striving to prevent young sudden cardiac death (yscd) through awareness, screening and research. CRY also provides a “bespoke” bereavement support programme for families and partners who have been tragically affected by the sudden death of a young person.

Sidmouth Running Club had eighteen members entered. Two of our newer younger lady members returned excellent times despite one of them getting lost on the training run the week before. However Charlotte Forrer was not going to get caught out again so enlisted the help of her husband Jim to run with and guide her around the course. Friend and running buddie Polly Walton, thought this to be an excellent idea so enlisted the help of her husband Ross to run with her. Well done ladies. Anthony Hall who has had some outstanding runs this year was the only club runner to finish in under three hours.

John and Ellie Keast ran together, (father and daughter) completing the challenge in 3:39:52 another year older John but 16 minutes faster than last year. Nigel Maeer was pleased to finish two places higher than last year. John Keast and Ian Voce have retained their record of having successfully completed all seventeen Trig runs.

Of the 101 who started only 6 retired but the biggest winner on the day was (CRY) with £1,350 being raised.

Results: 11^th place Antony Hall 2:55:50, 14^th Tim Mitchell 3:02:12, 17^th Gary Anning 3:05:02, 18^th Nigel Maeer 3:07:48, Julian Bartlett 3:30:44, Charlotte Forrer 3:36:42, John and Ellie Keast 3:39:52, Rocker Shepard 3:45:40, Polly Walton 3:49:07, Naomi Garrick 3:53:12, Simon Hollyer 3:59, Becky Robson and Jo Earlam 4:22:08, Helen Palmer 4:29:25, Dave Wright 4:29:28 Milly Frankpitt and Terry Bewes 5:05:26.

A huge thank you must go to Marion and Robert Hayman and to all their helpers, marshalls and tea ladies who made the day go so fantastically well. In particular, thanks must go to Stewart Hayman for his continued support providing pasties, Nigel Winchester for the bananas and to all the competitors.

A great day out for our runners and an ideal warm up for the Grizzly and our next Club race JP’s Exe to Axe.

The Fulford Five

The Fulford Five was first run in the mid 1980’s and is a 2 lap, five mile road race around the streets of Exmouth while taking in the sea view along the promenade. The distance of five miles is ideal for first time racers who feel the distance is well within their capabilities. This is highlighted every year by the number of non-club runners who turn up and have a very rewarding experience of their first proper race. This did not apply however to the two Sidmouth Running Club members Jayne Drew and John Doherty who have run this race on a number of occasions.

The running of 17 miles over hills, through woods and across fields covered in mud and wet in the Four Trigs for some reason did not appeal to these two as they prefer to keep their shoes clean on the road.

Jayne was the first Club runner home in 37:16 while John finished in 45:43 just 21 seconds slower than last year but he told me he gave up on the chance of beating that time by running with and encouraging another lady who was struggling. That is the Sidmouth Running Club spirit.

There were 239 finishers.