Saunders 2009 - Coniston

It's only a month since the LAMM and I'm racing again in the Saunders Lakeland Mountain Marathon - Kirkfell Class, this time with Anthony. I've competed in this SLMM class twice before with different partners and finished 16th in 2007 and 20th in 2008. Another good finish was a possibility particularly as Anthony is fairly fast, a good navigator and is also tall and can see over the top of bracken. (I am only 5'2" and can vanish for hours amongst the bloody stuff).

The start point on day one was on the track up to the Coniston Copper Mines. It was drizzling and the clag was down over the mountain tops which suits me as the race becomes a navigators rather than a runners event. Dibbed the dibber thing to start the clock, collected our check point list and then we set off at a run up the hill. Once we were round the first bend and out of site of the other competitors at the start, we stopped showing off and adopted a more sensible brisk walk up to Levers Water. The first check point near a ruin was an easy find.

The next check point was further north beyond Wetherlam but we were soon over the coll and descending towards it. This is where I fell in my first bog. Anthony (did I mention he was tall?) leaped over a wide stream, another competitor (just as tall) followed him and me (not so tall) in hot pursuit didn't quite make it to the following side and toppled backwards into the muddy bit. Wet pants this early in the race is unpleasant. Oh well, I had to carry on.

Check points 3, 4 and 5 were fairly close together but a little tricky to find in the undulating terrain north of Wrynose Pass. Good navigation got us safely through and then there was a very long leg back south to find check point 6 at Blind Tarn below Brown Pike. We chose to roughly follow the main ridge towards Dow Crag and a bit of local knowledge of side tracks meant that we wouldn't need to actually climb to the summit of each peak on the way. This proved to be an excellent route as quite a bit of it is runnable and we made rapid progress. The final few check points were easy to find and we were soon crossing the finish point at the mid camp.

The weather had improved during the day and now the sun was out so the mid camp was really quite pleasant and there was just enough breeze to keep the midges off. Got the tent up. Met Steve Moss who was having a paddle in the stream and had a chat. Scoffed my pot noodle. Had a snooze. Ate my cous-cous (Ainsley's Spice Sensation - a fine meal! Actually anything would be considered a fine meal after a pot noodle). Anthony and I were a bit surprised to find out that we were in 9th position after the first day. We assumed that some other fast teams must have struggled to find check points and lost time. After few cups of tea and more chatting, I finally went to bed.

Woke up at 5am to the sound of heavy rain on the tent. This made me want a wee so I eventually had to get up. At least the rain kept the midges off. As we had had such a good race the previous day, we were in the chasing start about 40 minutes behind the leaders. Again, the grotty weather would favour the better navigators so we thought we hade a chance to maintain our race position. Five minutes after setting off however, we were overtaken by the next team behind us but we couldn't let that put us off so we just kept going at our careful, steady pace. This strategy certainly paid off because over the next two hours, we caught up and overtook a few teams who had made a couple of duff route choices and lost time hunting for the check points.

The day two route took us north past Hardknott Pass to a check point at the base of Eskdale Needle and then across the valley to the slopes up to Little Stand. From this the most northerly point on the route, we headed back south on the long way back to the finish at Coniston. The weather improved and we could now see behind us the faster teams we had overtaken begin to catch up again. However we managed to keep up a good pace and some more crafty route choices got us up quickly to the col between Swirl How and Black Sails. From here there were only 3 more check points and it was all down hill except for a deceptive little knoll near the end which nearly finished me off. We hung on though and sprinted (sort of) the last bit down the road to cross the finish line.

There were no times posted yet for our class so we sat down with some food and a brew to watch the other teams finish. Anthony inspected his feet for blisters while I found tick embeded in my leg. What a fine way to spend a Sunday afternoon. The finishing times were eventually put up on the wall and we wandered over hoping that we had done well. YES!!! - we were still 9th! That's it. I've finally got a top 10 finish. I don't need to compete in another race ever again. Hang on though, I've already posted my entry fee off to do the OMM in October. Oh well, one more mountain marathon shouldn't kill me.

Northern T & F League Match 3

Yesterday, in glorious sunny conditions at Leeds Carnegie, Spen finished a respectable joint second in the penultimate league match of the year. There was some good performances from many of the athletes who appeared. Top scorers of the day were yet again our throwers with Richard Martin & Carly Beanland scoring a hat trick of 1st "A" string wins. Richard had competed in Bournemouth only the day before and had travelled up from his new base in Bedfordshire to compete, so many thanks to him. Our sprinters too scored valuable points: Chris Ward winning both "B" string sprints & Steve McNamara easily winning the 200m "A"- he would give Josh a good run for his money in the 200 now! Good to see my (occasional) training partners Tony Bradford running well and winning the "B" 5000m but eclipsed by Kevin "the race machine" Ogden who ran under 17 minutes (for the first time on the track in sweltering conditions). Amy Sharrad too ran well, winning the "A" 800m after belting through the first lap in sub 64 seconds. In fact looking through the results there were many fine performances: Becky, Sheila, Ryan's P.B., Carl, Dave in the steeplchase, Stef & Sarah in the javelin, Sarah in the middle distance events, and I wasn't too bad either for an old-timer but only if I could have got the damn baton to Chris within the marked lines for the relay!! Easily won by Spen (in a time which would have been an Icelandic womens national record!) only to be disqualified at the end.

However despite all this positivity, we are once again not fielding a full team. Analysing the results show that Rossendale-the eventual winners, fielded athletes in EVERY event bar the "B" string 3000m for woman. Yet Spen beat them 35 events to 32 and that is with even relay disqualification. For the final event at Cleckheaton (Sunday 2 August) we must have every race, jump and throw covered in order to win the match. Without that, all the good efforts by the above, fall by the wayside.

Running and weight loss

As an experiment today I weighed myself before and after I went for my long run. It was an 11 mile run and the temperature was probably in the low 20s. I lost 5 lbs and 10 ozs. My first thought was that this was all due to sweating in which case it equates to 4.5 pints of water if my maths is correct.

I then thought that this might be a too simplistic way to look at this. I seem to remember reading somewhere that, on average, about 100 calories are burnt for every mile covered so I should have burnt about 1100 calories. Presumably most of this was glycogen. How much does 1100 calories of glycogen weigh? I lost some salt as well but surely this will only have been a few grams? Anything else?

If I did lose something like 4.5 pints of water I then wondered what was the maximum amount of water that I could feasibly or safely lose? I remember when I ran the London Marathon in 1981 I tried taking water on early on and ended up spilling most of it so didn't bother after that (bottled water hadn't been invented then, it all came in cups). It was a hot day so I ran 26 miles without taking any water on. But I was much younger (and dafter) in those days. I also wondered how much others lose. For example how much did Federer lose this afternoon (but he did continually drink between points)? What about Chris on his monster bike ride last week?

Its funny how advice on water intake changes over time. In 1981 I don't remember ever hearing about water even being mentioned. About 10 years ago the vogue seemed to be that you need to drink as much water as possible. A few years ago I think there was some tragedy at the Great North run that may have been caused by taking too much water on and now the advice seems to be not to drink too much?

Where have all the bloggers gone?

Has everyone stopped running for the summer or what?

The last few posts have all been about the club records I've been trying to collate, surely some of you have been doing some running? What about the Reindeer Romp #2? Let's hear about it!

There were at least 3 Spen members in action on 2 wheels at the weekend, tackling the various course options of the White Rose Challenge. I know some of you have done this before (Frank, Steve) and I've put a short(ish) entry about it on my blog if anyone is interested.

http://gonecycling.blogspot.com/2009/06/white-rose-challenge.html

Spen Road Records - Draft #9

Thanks once more go to John Henry for poring over the Athletics Weekly archives and both verifying and uncovering more top performances from Spen athletes past and present.

Spen road records - draft 9

We still need more records to be verified, so come on folks, we know you've got old news clippings, athletics weekly mags in your closets. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone! You can even send them to me anonymously if you like.

Anyone from other clubs who happen to be reading, and can verify some of these we'd be appreciative too.

Spen Road Records - Draft #8

Yet another update, and I'm starting to fade a bit! But here's the latest:-

• I've put in actual race dates, not just the year, where it's been possible. This is so we can resolve any age category disputes later
• I've also added the source of where the time was verified, or in the case of the "pending" records, who supplied the information
  
• Chris Drake has provided me with results from his archive, some of which I've been able to verify, and some not. I'm hoping we can verify more of them. If we can, then Kath will make a clean sweep of the Ladies open records.
• I've added a page for the Ladies records Pending Verification

I really need some help with both the mens and ladies results which are pending verification, so anyone with old copies of athletics weekly hidden under the stairs, it's time to dig them out.

Spen Road Records Draft 8

Spen Road Records - Draft #7

Hot on the heels of draft #6, we have the next instalment.

1997 Nottingham Marathon results courtesy of John Henry and Athletics Weekly means we have new mens marathon records for the Open and M40 categories, those now going to Darren Hanson and Dennis Hoey.

John has quite an archive of Athletics Weekly's so we might be able to verify some more results!

John - can you take a look at the last page and see if there is anything on there that you can confirm?

Draft #7 Results Here

Speed and Age

Whilst randomly searching the net for anything and everything, i came upon this article which might be of interest to some of you;

http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/speed-age.html

Some worthy quotes...

'Weight training is crucial for mature sprinters determined to hang on to as much zip as possible, particularly after 50 when muscle mass begins to decline more steeply. Training with weights set around 75% of one rep maximum will offset fast- twitch fibre shrinkage quite significantly'

'stride length declines significantly with age, and plyometrics, like hill training, offers another significant training option for offsetting this decline. Bounding and hopping are two very effective exercises for enhancing stride length'

'Intense speed and power training can also combat the normal age-related decline in creatine phosphate. Research has shown that anaerobic (and aerobic) training increases the production of creatine phosphate. Research by Moller and co-workers showed that six weeks of cycle ergometer training increased the creatine phosphate levels of 61-80 year olds to levels similar to those of younger adults'

Also of interest is some of the masters 100m records...

specifically this one.. V50- 10.95s

Looks like i've got until i'm 50 to go below 11 seconds!

Joe Percy 10k

Monday nights race was the Joe Percy 10k.

A team of 10 Spen runners braved warm but damp conditions to do this hilly 10k. The race was run from a small cricket club in the village of Farnley Tyas. We only just managed to get the 10 runners needed to qualify for a team. At £3.00 entry fee one cannot grumble in these 'credit crunch times'

I really enjoyed the run as the last few weeks have been pretty laid back training wise. Even some top runners turned up on the night -namely Andrew Pearson(Longwood) and Matthew Pierson(Holmfirth). It was another case of man versus machine(kevin), and I lost out to the 'machine' once again. I did feel the strength returning and I was closing the gap on the second lap

I didn't stay to find out the results, but will probably find out in due course. My time was 36-06.

Thanks to those that helped - Jackie and others.

Spen Road Records - Draft #6

A few changes since last time, and a status update.

• Chris Drake is still looking into Kath's times
• Frank has a copy of draft #5 which he will analyse and compare to any results he has on record
• Graham Walsh takes the M50 records by storm

This begs a question...

At the moment we have a number of records which are "pending verification". What I mean by that is that, I have not been able to find an on-line result, or seen a paper copy of the official results. Graham's records are a case in point, as most of them are from his personal archive. However, I have no reason to doubt that they are correct. How should we handle these? Do we just accept them (some are a bit more vague than Graham's)? Or do we require hard-evidence? Perhaps we can accept them if they are "seconded" by another Spen athlete/official?

Thoughts everyone?

Road Records Draft #6

The Joe Percy 10k

The last time I ran this race was 2006 and my time was 51.25, this is a closed race which means clubs are invited to enter a team, this being a local race for us I felt we should support it and you know what I'm like (spen vests out in force) ,

I actually managed to get a team of ten together of which I'm chuffed about driving across we had some torrential rain and we were all thinking what on earth are we doing but fortunately it stopped before we set off and stayed dry for us.
You not only have competition from the other athletes, also there is competition from your other team mates even at my level its quite fierce.

Being team manager, it was my responsibility to enter everyone in duplicate (which somewhat stressed me out). Come the start of the race, I was wound up like a coiled spring. Edward, Karl, Emma and myself set off together. For the first 3k we managed to stay together.Edward and Emma started to pull away from us i got to the 5k mark in just outside 24mins at this point i saw James (my son) with words of encouragement and jogging along side me part way on the second lap i managed to gain a few places and leave Karl (i did encourage him to stay with me) playing cat and mouse with Geoff T(Meltham) and Geoff D(Penistone) i was determined they would not catch me as we got up the last climb Geoff D was not far behind me which made me dig deep and at this point i was on a roll i ran that fast down towards the finish i thought that i was going to fall over myself my time was a respectable 48.16 nearly 3minutes quicker , overall a good even paced run and the team finished 9Th place out of 14 thanks to to the team all had a good run maybe next year we will have two teams.

2009 Kintail - Lowe Alpine Mountain Marathon

After last year's Lowe Alpine Mountain Marathon, I vowed never to do the 'B' category ever again. We were last out of the teams who actually managed to complete the course and I was suffering from heat exhaustion. However, I found myself yet again driving up to Scotland to put myself through 45km of pain and midges and the forecast was not good with wintry showers and strong winds predicted. It was either that or more DIY at home so no contest really. The heavy showers soon cleared though on the Friday night and the wind kept the midges at bay so things were improving already.

The event this year was being held around the Kintail mountains on the Skye Road. Saturday morning was slightly overcast but OK. I was racing with my usual LAMM partner, Kev and we had late 9.30am start. I met Steve Moss at the event centre who was also running the 'B' course with Alan Greenwood.

At the appointed time, we collected our maps and then found that we would be taken by coach about 15km away to a start at Cluanie Inn. The first checkpoint was close but the next was some distance away with a Munro mountain in the way. Ascending the mountain, I noticed that there was a second Munro on the same ridge. This would mean that there would be a track along the ridge although nothing was shown on the map. Most teams were dropping straight down into the valley and contouring around the hill but we decided to use the track on the ridge and we made good time. There was however a bit of winter snow still left which made the traverse a bit chilly. We found the second checkpoint easily by descending onto it rather than contouring round to it.

Between the second and third checkpoints, we caught up with Steve and Alan and stayed with them for a few km before losing them when we decided to take a different route down to check point number four. Checkpoint 4 to 5 was a long way but easy to navigate and then there was only a few km left to the finish. Kev by this point had really started to struggle because of a knee injury from last year. We managed to keep a reasonable pace tho’ and finished Day 1 in 7 hrs 22 min. More importantly, the breeze was still keeping the midges away so the mid-camp was much better than expected.

Some quarrying was required to excavate boulders to create a flatish area to pitch the tent. A pot noodle then coos-cous then custard and cake with several brews along the way sorted the food issue. I was too tired to do much else so got into my sleeping bag about 9pm and slept right through until the traditional bagpiper alarm at 5.15 am. This is a truly horrible way to wake up. If he had come much closer to our tent I'd have done some mischief to his bagpipe with a tent peg.

Day 2 dawned bright with only a few clouds, ideal for running over the hills. The finish at the event centre was south of the mid-camp so the organisers sent us north to the first checkpoint. No chance of an easy day then. We found checkpoint 1 without difficulty and then a short climb took us up onto a ridge and on to checkpoint 2. Checkpoint 2 was located on a knoll at the base of a cliff which meant that we would have to scramble down the cliff, dip the dibber thing and then climb back up again before heading onward to checkpoint 3. On the way we found a load of rucksacks strewn all over the moor where competitors had abandoned their packs to head down the cliff and the back up again. I found running with my pack off for a while was as good as a rest.

Checkpoint 3 was a long way off but mainly downhill so not too tiring. I found a deer antler on the way and strapped it to my pack as a souvenir. The spikes sticking out behind me made it a bit dangerous for anyone to come too close but I now had an emergence brake if I slipped downhill on my back.

There was now only one long climb up to Checkpoint 4 and then another 5km back to the finish. Kev’s knee was now giving him serious gyp so the going was steady but a bit slow. The sun was also now beating down and a quick paddle in the odd stream to cool off tired feet was bliss. The finish line was a welcome sight and we were pleased to finish in a total time of 14 hrs 22 min in 65th place out of 113 teams. That’s our best placed finish on the ‘B’ course to date.

I really enjoyed this year’s LAMM and reckon that a top-half finish is feasible next year. Hang on, this is the first time I’ve finished one event and can’t wait until next one! It would seem I’ve finally lost my marbles.

Chris King

What do Linford Christie and Jackie Carter have in common?

Answer: me

Or at least it's easy to mistake one of us top athletes for another.

During the registration process on the UK Athletics Power of 10 web site, I entered my details as requested, and it came back with:-

"based on the details you have provided we think you might be one of those below."

This was followed by a list of 11 athletes including Jackie, Linford and myself. What more can I say?

Greenway 10k 2009

I thought about calling this blog "chasing the elusive sub-40 10k" but I think someone has copyrighted that one!

After doing the 3 Esholt 5ks I decided to have another go at the Greenway 10k. I ran 19-30 in the last Esholt and had a further couple of weeks of good training so wondered if I could break 40 mins. A bit of a tall order but you've got to have a goal.

Heavy rain was forecast but it was reasonably fine. Chris Drake gave the pre-race talk and 2 points stick in my mind:
1) Its downhill all the way back so you should manage the 2nd half a minute faster than the 1st.
2) A heavy downpour is forecast for 8-00 hrs so if you want to stay dry you need to run 30 mins.

The whistle went for the start (have start guns been banned?) and I managed the first k in 3-52 and was still on target at 2k. I try not to spend too much time looking at my watch but at halfway I was 20 seconds down at 20-20. Chris's words were ringing in my ears - I was on target for 39-40! There was a lady runner from Stainlands 10 yards in front. Took me 1.5k to catch her. The next target was an old guy who looked like he was in my age category - 30 yards in front. Could I catch him? At the bridge over the motorway I didn't seem to be making much progress but he kept looking nervously over his shoulder - surely a good sign he was struggling?

The problem was my splits so far were consistently about 4 mins. I still worked hard and at 9k was 10 yards off him but I had to run 3-40 to go under 40 mins. I caught him with 300 m to go and pushed on with some else breathing down my neck. I finished in 40-10.

So I only managed the second half 30 seconds quicker than the first. I overtook 2 runners on the second half so feel I paced it OK. The heavy rain didn't start until 8-15 hrs so Chris got that wrong as well!

All in all a race. I worked hard, thought I ran to my potential, met a few old mates from Spen and didn't get too wet.

Just another point, I was allocated race number 1 by Chris. Is it a bit sad but this made me feel a bit special? It brought a smile and an extra cheer from some of the younger spectators which gave me a bit of a lift. Thanks Chris.

West Yorkshire Track and Field League #4 - Wakefield

A very wet, miserable evening greeted us at Wakefield for the WYTFL meeting number 2.

This is essentially a league for the young athletes, and the turnout from Spen this year has been poor. This is a real pity, that so many of our young athletes seem to have abandoned the very league that gave them their first taste of track competition, I'm not sure of the motives for this, it's certainly shouldn't be lack of competition, because it's seems to be well supported by athletes from some of the other local clubs, and some of them are running good times. It would be a real shame if this league suffered because of lack of support, because it gives a unique opportunity for those starting in competition. So if any of the parents of the athletes who have been avoiding it this year are reading this, I'd ask you to have re-think.

Anyway, rant over. There were some good performances on the night, I didn't watch every race, but saw Steve McNamara comfortably win the 200m, Matthew Jones ran another PB in the U15 boys 800m and Sarah Peacock ran in a very impressive win in the Senior Ladies 800m.

Sheila and Amanda were as usual having a go at every possible event, and you can only applaud their enthusiasm and commitment for that. Well done ladies!

In the senior mens 800m, our combined age (John, Keith and me) of somewhere close to 140 meant that we were certainly giving a few years away to the rest of the field, but Keith and John aquitted themselves well with Keith just getting the better of John, and a sub-2:10 time to boot. I was left trailing in their wake, but happy that I achieved my goal for the evening which was to go under 2:25, which I managed with a couple of seconds to spare.

Halifax 5K & Fun Run Photos

Photos by (c) 2009 - Dave Woodhead
Click the photos for a bigger picture

Why can't I run faster?

Last night at the track, 4 of us did 8 x 300m reps, and I was at the back on each one. I wouldn't care about that if it wasn't for the fact that I was running pretty much flat out, and that made me question why I can't generate the same amount of speed (or even close) as some others.

I don't believe it's strength or fitness, but rather I'm convinced there is something inherently inefficient with my running technique. I've suspected this for ages, and when I first joined the club I did ask about running technique, but no-one seemed to have given it much thought, they just did what came naturally. I suppose that's all well-and-good when "what comes naturally" is a pretty good technique, but in my own case it seems I'm not that lucky.

Here are some of the things I suspect that I do wrong (speed-wise)

1. planting my foot too far in front of my body, and thereby causing a "braking" effect rather than forward propulsion
2. too long a stride length
   
3. too low cadence
4. "swinging" my leg forward in a kind of neutral manner rather than powering forward to create forward motion.

The first 3 are all directly related to each other.

The question is, whether it's possible for an old dog to learn new tricks, or whether I'm doomed to life in the slow-lane. I'd be interested to hear the thoughts of others on this subject.

Northern League Match 2, 7 June 2009

Sunday saw Skyrac host the second Northen League match on a cold and extremely windy day at Leeds Carnegie, Headingly. Despite fielding more athletes than the 1st match, Spen could not produce the same kind of results and ended up in 4th place (now 3rd overall). There were some good winners from Nick Crimmen, Richard Martin, Lewis Hamilton & Emma Rawnsley as well as good performances and therefore valuable points scored by Kevin Ogden, Steve MacNamara, Amy Sharrad & Jenny Walsh who put in a gutsy performance on her senior debut. Once again though that old chestnut of not filling enough races, throws and jumps was the deciding factor in the overall team performance. As athletes, we need to encourage as many people as possible to turn out, put on a vest and win the points. In some races, other teams too failed to produce athletes which would mean a 5th or even guaranteed 4th A string points in the bag. Nevertheless, well done to those who did turn up and compete and let's ensure that a full team sheet is completed for the next match in a months time.

Northern League Match 2, 7 June 2009 (Photos)

The full bronte 5mile road race

This race also incorporates the Yorkshire vet's 5mile champs. It is a two lap, undulating course around Penistone hill country park at Haworth. It is a race I like to do but hate it, if that makes any sense. The last twice I've been 2nd vet back in my age group for Yorkshire, but after seeing the list of pre-entries I was not hopeful of even being in the first four, or beating last years time of 37: 36.

The first mile is fairly flat and slightly up hill, and having set off too fast I was in oxygen debt already. The first mile marker was further on the road than last year, it was on the hilly road up to the car park , 8:12 I thought no way! I'd done a faster mile time. It was nice to see Steve Carter marshaling there giving encouragement. I knew Hazel was not far behind me (I could see her) and thought she was looking pretty good. The second mile is just as bad, up and down, 16:50 at mile two, and at this point I realised a 38min was out of the question unless I pulled my finger out. With a nice bit of down hill between two and three I picked up pace (or so I thought) 23:56 at mile three. As I turned the corner again feeling knackered I asked Steve if he could see Hazel, and he said no she wasn't in sight so what did I do? - stop and walk! until I heard him cheering her on that is. Mile four I clocked 33:02 and decided to leg it and set my sights on the Keighley & Craven lady just about 100mtrs ahead of me. I nearly had her too! I finished in 39:51. I was pleased with the run as the weather was cold and windy.

Halifax Town Centre 5K

Before the race we agreed that Matthew would do the write up for this one as it was his first proper road race. However, it's fallen to me as will become clear towards the end.

Having spent the last few days ill since going down with some virus on Wednesday night, I was not all sure about running this one, but there were a few things that twisted my arm

1. I'd already paid (hey, I'm a Yorkshire man!)
   
2. I had to take Matthew in any case
   
3. It would be my first ever 5k race
   

Actually, running when you are still sick is just plain stupid really! I don't advise it.

It was a glorious day, and there was a good Spen turnout, with runners in the 1k fun run and the main race. The race started on commercial street, heading out to the bus depot, before turning left down the hill towards the railway station, then back up Horton Street, to repeat part of the same loop, then on the 2nd loop, continuing on past the station before heading back up towards the town centre, and taking a left to come into the side gate of the Piece Hall. A nice route, with plenty of undulations.

The section towards the bus depot is pan flat, so the start was pretty quick. I managed to keep Keith somewhere in sight for about 2km before I lost him (or he lost me) entirely. The last 2km was when the 3 days of sickenss took it's toll for me and I faded badly. Although finished with 20:07 by my watch, which was ok under the circumstances.

At the finish, I was somewhat surprised to see Matthew already there, since I past him in the first km and didn't remember him coming back past me. He hadn't passed me, he'd dropped out complaining of stomach pain.

Keith was first Spen runner home, followed by me, Tim, Jackie and Amanda.

This is definitely a race I'd do again (hopefully when fit though). Good organisation, good route, and a great finish area in the Piece Hall. The weather this year obviously helped, as it was blazing sunshine, but I'd recommend the race to anyone. It's not a PB course, too much up and down for that, just a cracking race.

Spen Results
9   Keith McGhie   M45 17:50
35  Chris Jones    M45 20:07
59  Tim Wragg      M40 21:18
93  Jackie Carter  F45 23:25
172 Amanda Pearson F40 30:29

234 finishers

Keith and Jackie each won their age categories!
Full Results Here

The reindeer romp, race one.

What a good night it turned out to be for Spenborough. A superb run from Keven aka race machine Ogden(who won the race). Which I think was his fist time running this race( correct me if I'm wrong). Next in was a sprightly Steve Moss, winning the vet 60 category. A good run also from Mick Howard, who was closely followed in by Edward Wilkinson. Both Mick and Edward are new recruits for the reindeer. Me, being the only Spen female winning the first vet 45 category.

Last but not least,Karl, who came in shortly behind. I have being doing this race for quite a few years now. And I have seen some horrible conditions. But tonight was warm and dry under foot. However, sometimes it can be quite badly rutted. But tonight it was pretty good underfoot. A good turn out for Spen and a PB for me. My first race as a 47 year old. Chip butties always go down well afterwards. The bottle of wine I won will too.

Spen Results
1  KEVIN OGDEN      17:21 M
30 STEVEN MOSS      21:41 M60
38 MICK HOWARD      21:59 M45
42 EDWARD WILKINSON 22:30 M45
55 JACKIE CARTER    24:09 F45
64 KARL SPEIGHT     24:59 M

90 Finishers

Full Results Here

Fellsman 2009

Hi to every one.It's taken me a while to put ink to paper, normally I can't wait to put down the successes of my challenges on the blog. You will see that this was not quite the success I had hoped for. As the planning for this event started last year with a possibility of entering a team and been able to stay together for the whole event with the team pulling us through the night on this tough part of the course. Some long training runs took place in order to do the full distance with a lot of help from Chris and some of the others from spen who were using this for the three peaks race (and I hope it helped) Friday night was the time to get every thing in order and check the kit, as on this event they are very keen and check ever one before you get your tally.

Sat morn was a dash to the start as I had forgotten that the check-in is before 8:00am, long queues, as we waited to register with lots of chat as to how we were all going to do (this could be a time to say that I was on my own again as none of the team managed to make the event).

Two mins to go and the field was buzzing with 381 entrants, off went the horn and as the field split in two some going the traditional way and others picking up on the shorter way to the road to ascend Ingleborough. My tactics if you can have any on a 61 mile trek was to try to maintain 4 miles an hour for the first 20 and re-assess later.

The weather report was for stay dry till lunch with some wintry showers in the afternoon drying up towards evening . On leaving Dent, after a good meal of baked beans and soup it looked like we were in for some harsh weather as we climbed up to Fleetmoss, and true to form down came the hail stones, and the wind picked up to drive them on. Lots of people took the shelter of the wall to don all their extra clothes and water-proofs. The pull to get to Stone Houses to get warm and some of that famous spaghetti was all that kept most of us going.

The weather settled to cold & breezy for the rest of the way to Fleetmoss, and at the time I was glad to get there well on time before pairing up took place (but later to regret being early) and for it to get to dark. The trek across Fleetmoss was very difficult after the rain and sleet, made even worse by the falling darkness and I was beginning to regret being on my own, but made it to Middle Tong in good time. To get to the next check-point proved to be my downfall. On getting to the mire over the fence and straight into a boggy swamp up to my waist in the pitch dark.When I got out my tactic was to follow the fence, cross over and find the lane and Hells Gap. I followed the wrong fence and ended up at Cray missing Hells Gap.

If any one asks me why I didn't go back up, I still couldn't reason it out and as I decided to carry on my mind was set. The rest was just a matter of staying grouped and getting back to Grassington which I achieved in 17h 32 mins.

I hope this helps any one considering this event or any other distance over the marathon that no matter that you know the course always check your direction.

MAYBE NEXT YEAR.

Mo Farah breaks 25 year old British road 10k record

Gareth and me were only saying at the weekend that many of the British records for distance events were set back in the 80's and are still standing, then Mo Farah goes and breaks the British Road 10K record.

Read about it here http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/8066984.stm

Conquering the Matterhorn

Shutlingsloe Fell Race, AS, 2m/900ft

OK, not the actual 'Matterhorn', but the Shutlingsloe, which is nicknamed the 'Matterhorn of Cheshire'. From some angles, it does bear a very slight resemblance, but not from the direction you run at it. This race is not a particular favourite of mine, it's too short for my liking, and I never get that comfortable feeling where you get into a flow after a few miles. This is just 2 miles of real hard work, much of it hands-on-knees. But it is a classic fell race, and very popular and well organised.

Matthew and Sarah were running in the English championship series here as they did last year, and I entered the open race to get a run-out myself. The race starts heading down a field, then crosses a stream, climbs steeply through a Bluebell wood and follows a path up to the summit. Initially the path is tarmac for perhaps 400 yards, then it's onto a well worn path up the fell side. Once at the top you round the trig point, then you are free to choose your own route back down. The general consensus amongst the U16/U18's who had run the same course earlier was that the best route choice was to run along the ridge for a few metres, and go wide down the fell side where it's most runnable. In fact this was exactly what I did last year, and I found it to be a good choice then.

It's steep going down, and there were a couple of casualties, but I managed to stay upright in the main until I reached the Bluebell woods prior to re-crossing the stream, there I slid down most of it on my backside. Finally, its a climb back up the field which is a real drag, and then a traditional touching of the wall at the top to finish.

I was a bit complacent, and took it for granted that I would beat my 2008 time, since I've been doing that all season, but when I stopped my watch I was about 9 seconds slower. I don't think I tried hard enough today (shame on me) because I'm in bettter shape this year. I promise it won't happen again!

epilogue
Funny, 22:10 only got me 40th from 88 last year, but 22:17 was good enough for 29th from 103 this year. I think the overall standard has dropped generally this year, which is inevitable, because the numbers are definitely up in the majority of races.

Spen Results
29 Chris Jones 22:17

103 finishers

Full Results Here

You know you're a runner when...

hello everyone and welcome to my first attempt at blogging. In a break from tradition(race reports/results/post race moaning) thought i would bring you a list i've been compiling. So here is my top 10.

you know your a runner when ?

1. Your toe nails are falling off

2. Your calves are bigger than your biceps

3. You can blow your nose with your index finger(snot rocket)

4. You know the location of all roadkill within a 5 mile radius of your club

5. You've become a professional at popping blisters

6. You have suffered one too many cases of joggers nipple

7. Gatorade/lucozade is your drug of choice

8. You know at least three different ways to tie a shoe lace

9. You can add up miles/meters/yards in your head whereas simple maths you need a calculator

10. The phrase 'moisture wicking' is a regular part of your vocabulary

Esholt 5k Race 3

Fastest Yet

The final race arrived. Plenty of pressure with John Henry making things interesting in our own little battle last week, added to the desire to continue to improve. I thought (hoped) John wasn't there as we warmed up but come the start line there he was, beaming brightly. My confidence was boosted when John kindly poined out that as I had beated him by some 10s in race 1 and he beat by just 1s in race2, that I was ahead on aggregate.

On the off I went quite fast and this time didn't see John in front of me. Was faster at 2k (7min 4s) but started to feel it as we approached the turn. Its funny that in a race series like this you see the same people and use them as benchmarks. Elation at passing someone who beat you last week is soon dashed when the man with the wooden leg (who you beat convincingly in race one) breezes past.

At 4k I new I was looking good as I had 4mins to get to the end. The final burst never came, but I clocked 18.39 (although the official got 18.40). Thats a 15s improvement from race 2 and 25s from race 1.

Its a long way from by PB on this course (16.10) but would like to see sub 18min again one day. Bring on the Hyde Park series.

Gareth

PS Thanks for the competition John

The John Carr (Esholt 5k) series race 3

Having done the previous two I was not looking forward to tonight,

1. feeling very tired, noisy neighbours having a heated debate in the middle of the night
2. I lost my number,
3. queueing traffic.

Normally I get faster at each race, but tonight I wasn't so optimistic but two friends from Pudsey Pacer's made me think otherwise. Gunning for me, they were along-side from the start. Not liking this, I put in a burst and was at the first k in 3.40 nearly half a minute up on last week, though between 3 and 4 k I found I was slowing down (not by choice). As we turned the bend at the top it was rather nice to have some encouragement from the crowd watching, thanks to all for that because I passed three ladies, all this to beat last week by one second, ah well the mars bar was good. The bag ! I've now got five of these, and no the Pudsey girls didn't catch me, this time.

Spen Results
17  Kevin Ogden          M35 16.34
21  Antony Bradford      M40 16:42
74  Gareth Patchett      M45 18.40
87  John Henry           M50 19.15
93  Victor Kolodziejczyk M50 19.31
155 Emma Maguire         F40 21.47
177 Jackie Carter        F45 22.57
207 Les Fenton           M55 24.15
275 Amanda Pearson       F40 29.36

Selected Others
39  Karen Pickles  Pudsey Pacers      F35 17.45

Full Results

Askern 10K - chasing the elusive sub-40

It would be nice to be sitting here writing about how I'd smashed my 10k PB and finally achieved a sub-40, but it was not to be. As a runner, you've got to accept that not everything always works out as you want it to, and it would be quite boring if it did. Goals that are too easily achieved are not worth much.

It's been 3 years since I last ran a 10k. It was 2006, and Askern was my last real effort at chasing a sub-40 time. 3 weeks after I narrowly missed out with a 40:05 at Rothwell, so whilst my form was good, I had another go. However, it didn't work out, and I missed by some margin with 41:01.

But now it's 2009, and I'm 3 years older which can't help, but on the flip-side, I've been running well all year, setting course PB's at a number of fell races, and a few people helped convince me to give a road 10k another shot. I've done very little road training, and only got back into track training at the start of the year after a long layoff. I confess, I had doubts about my ability to achieve the sustained pace I would need to break the 40 minute barrier.

The weather was better than in 2006 when it was pouring rain, tonight it was cool and overcast, but I soon worked up a sweat. I clocked my km splits (then stupidly erased them later) 3;33, 4:09, 3:55, 4:07 - all over the place! I think it was dodgy markers, as I can't have been that wildly out. At 5km I was probably under 20 minutes, although not enough. 5-6km comes the hill, and I clocked 4:27 for that one, wiping out the seconds I had in the bag from the first km. 6-7 should have been fast, but I only clocked 4:00 dead, I needed to get some back there. After that I pretty much ignored my watch and just concentrated on giving it my best effort. In the last km I was tiring, and finally crossed the line in 40:42 (unofficial).

So what can I learn? A lot I think! I've come back from a 3 year road running layoff, and with no specific training, run my 3rd fastest 10km ever, plus I beat my previous best for this course by almost 20 seconds. I think it shows me I'm in pretty good shape, and convinced me that I can break the 40-min barrier.

After the race, I rushed back to Spen and just made it in time for my 1500 debut at the track, but that's another story.

Spen Results
108 Chris Jones M45 40:41

512 runners

click here for full results

Bloggers & Facebookers

Since I know some of you are using Facebook quite a bit, I've added a new feature to the blog template which will make it easy to share articles created here on some of the popular social networking sites. At the bottom of each post, you should see this.

Clicking on one of the links will allow you to share the article.

MOUNT FAMINE (R). AS. 5m/1850'.

The Struggle

Although not part of my plans, Frank tempted me into this Peak district classic. Only 5 miles but 1850ft of climbing. That means no flat bits.

The start is unusual in that eveyone lines up on a track and the race starts sideways straight up a hilly wood side. Its straight up for about 200m and then climbs steadily to a ridge. I see that Frank is ahead but feel too tired already to be bothered. Then follows the usual leg ache, the walking when you think you should be running, the old (well older) men passing you. A steep climb takes you to Mount Famine Top. Then guess what, yes, you come back down again. Then you go back up again (via the back of it). My speciality on Fell runs is the flat bits. This had none. The final 3/4 of a mile descent is not as steep so I came into my own and made some places. Not enough to catch Frank but an enjoyable day out and another classic ticked off.

Frank - 1hr 48s
Gareth - 1 hr 2 min 2s

Meanwood Valley trail race.

Saturday, 16 May 2009.

Edward, Hazel, Dave(new be) and I ran the Mean wood Valley trail race.
Although, I have done this lots of times, however, I never find it easy.
I forgot how many hills there are (especially the rock climb at the end, just before coming into the field).
As a fast start, Edward and Karl got off pulling away from me.
But trying my best, I passed quite a few runners. I eventually caught up with Karl between the 4-5 mile mark. At this point I was feeling strong, I encouraged him to stay with me. We worked together for a couple of miles, but unfortunately I went over on my ankle.
Subsequently, he started to pull away from me.
Overall, it was a disappointing time for me. generally times were down by around 3Min's due to the heavy conditions , not 6Min's like me so its time to pull my finger out i think.

Meanwood Valley Trail 2009

"You'll like this it's a nice race not too hilly..." As I tried to keep going round the course these were the words I was remembering and a few choice words for the person who had said it (mentioning no names but initials EW!). This was a tough course!

There was Jackie, Ed , Karl, Dave (newbie) and myself from Spen AC that were doing this today(Sat 16th May).

The first half of the course wasn't too bad (race was 7.5 miler through fields and woods in Meanwood Park). I remember thinking there's a lot of down hill wonder if we're going to start climbing soon - yes we did!

I managed to overtake newbie Dave at the three mile point but as he said afterwards it took me a while to get much distance between us - as I slowly plodded on. Then the steep bits came and came and came - Edward had said only one there were more like 10! - at one point I looked up and thought my god we're doing a bit of rock climbing here.

After 5 miles I was struggling and kept having to walk up the steep bits. One lady said 'I've never had to walk in a race before' another said 'I feel terrible' and I thought yep I know what you mean.

Eventually as always it finally came to an end. Official results not out yet but here's what I recall:-

• Ed Wilkinson 59 mins (last year 61.57)
• Karl Speight 1hr 05 perhaps?
• Jackie Carter 1hr 06 (last year 59.48)
• Me! 1hr 08 mins (1st timer for me this one)
• Dave (oops don't know his surname) 1hr 09

Karen Pickles won the ladies in 49 mins something and was 4th overall I think they said. Wow how does she do it?!

Esholt 5k#2 - View from the midfield

Another intra spen battle

After having pretty poor preparation for the second instalment (an 800 mile round trip to do an extremely hilly bike ride in the Highlands) I was non too optimistic about beating my time from last week. Took it easy early on and noted that infamous fast starter John Henry was quite a way ahead of me as we eased through the first 2k. Was 15s slower than last week at 2k so started to feel depressed. However as the race turned the corner and people started to slow, confidence grew. I know I am the master of pace (years of studying, and being victim to, Frank’s late rallies) so started to pull through the field.

Along the straight the legs start to burn but John comes into view agan and my split at 4k is good. Feeling strong I speed up down the hill and Johns vest looms large. 20m out John looks round as he hears me bearing down. As he panics and sprints for the line I decide I don’t want to look like one of those idiots who sprints in the beat a team mate. However be clear, I could have!

John watch out next week.

Gareth

Esholt 5K #2 Results

Plenty of Spen runners in action again, and improved times for almost everyone over last week. A good battle between Kevin & Antony up near the front, and John & Gareth swapping the honours this week a bit further back.

Antony has done a write up:
Chasing Pavements: Esholt 5k - Stay In Sight Of Blue And White

Spen Results
12  Kevin Ogden          M35 16.31
13  Antony Bradford      M40 16:32
30  Keith McGhie         M45 17.32
61  John Henry           M50 18.54
62  Gareth Patchett      M45 18.56
85  Victor Kolodziejczyk M50 19.54
147 Emma Maguire         F40 22.04
170 Jackie Carter        F45 22.54
266 Amanda Pearson       F40 30.02

Selected Others
34  Karen Pickles  Pudsey Pacers      F35 17.40
114 Chloe Patchett Wakefield Harriers FO  20.45

Full Results

Credit Crunch training tips

Here are some of my top tips for improving your results whilst avoiding the credit crunch..

1. Cancel the running magazine subscription(s)
Pure toilet paper!

The only thing they are any good for are drying out wet trainers, and you can always get a free copy of the Metro which is better for that, and more interesting to read too!

2. Don't buy that GPS/HRM/other stress inducing device
Relax, run faster and live longer!

If you already own one, get it on ebay quick before everyone else realises what a waste of money they are and beats you to it.

3. Energy gels/drinks
Who needs 'em. Those energy gels are just molten Jelly Babies, buy the real thing and save your cash.

And as for energy drinks, if Robinsons Lemon Barley Water was good enough for Pete Sampras, it's good enough for me. If you really must insist though, get yourself down the pound shop and pick up a 4-pack of Lucozade sport for a quid.

So there you have it, just some of the things that have made me the athlete I am today. Anyone else got any pointers to help me towards my next PB?

Leeds Half Marathon 2009

Well done to Tony Bradford and the other Spen runners who completed the course this morning. Tony was running well when he passed me at Lawnswood School. A top 30 finish was looking likely.

Full Results Here
(quite possibly the worst results system I've ever seen - Chris)

Talented 11 year olds

Just a couple of points before I start:
1) I'm all for youngsters getting involved in the sport I love. It teaches them about the joys of winning and the hurt of losing, about the benefits of hard work and dedication, the good feeling you get from being healthy and taking part in exercise etc. etc..
2) One of the things that attracts me to road racing is the fact that you can race but you are not racing against the other athletes. Not many of us are actually ever going to win a race so all we are trying to do is run as fast as we can. So in effect you are racing against yourself. Whatever time you post there is only you knows how well you have done.

So why is it that something stirs in me when I get beaten by an 11 year old? In the Esholt 5k last week I was doing my usual sprint finish and this 11 year old lad went flying past me and beat me by 30m. If this would have been anybody else I would just have thought "that guy/girl obviously hasn't worked hard enough for the other 4.8 km if he/she can run so fast at the end of this race".

I'm not even sure what it is that rankles. Of course there must be lots of talented kids out there who train very hard. And all sorts of people beat me - fat/thin, male/female, old/young - and this never bothers me. So what is it when children beat me? Am I alone with these feelings? He did actually beat 67% of the field.

I suppose I could stick to 10 km races and never race against children again.

And they always come from Bingley. Its always Bingley.

P.S. Well done Sam from Bingley who beat me on Wednesday, just congratulations and well done. Honest.

Esholt 5k #1 - back from injury

It was 50 weeks since my last race (Esholt 5k #3 2008). Since then I've had 7 months off injured and 4 and a half months trying to get some sort of fitness back. First step was trying to get my muscles and connective tissues back up to strength. Have tried to be patient as last time I tried to do too much too quickly and ended up pulling all sorts of muscles (you'll be surprised how many different muscles you can pull in the backs of your legs). Have tried to build my mileage up slowly but have found each run a real effort even though they are all supposed to be slow! Squeezed 3 lonely track sessions in so didn't expect too much from the Esholt. The only indicator I had was 5 x 1 km reps with 200m walk. Total time for running bits was about 19 mins. What could I manage without the rests?

On the day of the race bumped into lots of familiar faces and was pleasantly surprised by the genuine goodwill shown by those that knew I'd been off injured. Told myself to start off conservatively but did the 1st km in 3-45. Well it is downhill. Felt easyish for the 1st km but that's what you get in 5ks. The pain kicks in after 1.1 km. Felt pretty cream crackered but think I paced it reasonably OK as I probably overtook more runners than vice versa. Worked harder than I wanted to but the problem with races is that I can't resist the competetion.

For the record I finished in 19-50 but that is really irrelevant. The main point is that I don't seem to have suffered any reaction. I feel healthy and should be able to continue my recovery. I have a benchmark and will be able to judge my progress over the next couple of races.

For results see earlier post from Gareth here

West Yorkshire Track and Field League #2 - Wakefield

Wednesday night saw the second meeting of the West Yorkshire Track and Field league at Thornes Park Wakefield. After a grey and miserable day we were expecting the usual damp night at this location, made all the worse by there being little shelter. ( a stand please any Wakefield Harriers reading this ). Fortunately this weather picked up and we even saw a few glimpses of sunshine.

A reasonable turnout from Spen athlete especially with the Yorkshire champs looming on Saturday and Sunday.

Chris Jones was turning out for his third race in three days (mad fool) and was making his first serious attempt at a track race in 34 years!

Unfortunately, as always the mens middle distance race is almost always the last event, so as most people were packing up to go home and the sun had dropped below the horizon Chris and I lined up for the mens 800m.

Only seven on the start line meant that at least one of us was going to pick up some points. Unsure of pace and Chris only persuading me to run at the last minute meant we settled in at the back of the pack. As the pace was quite moderate we hung on well and were still in contention as we hit the bell. Then the leaders pulled away and Chris and myself fought it out for the last two places but finished in the creditable times of Chris 2min 26.8 and myself 2 min 24.8.

Other performances of the night that I can remember were Sarah Peacock finishing a very close second in the Senior ladies 800m followed in by Emma Rawnsley.

Ryan Dransfield making a rare appearance at 200m having competed at the Calderdale Schools 800m in the afternoon and smashing his PB in 24.5 sec (faster than I ever ran - damn him!).

Matthew Jones growing in confidence with every race knocked chunks off his PB in the 800m finishing in 2 min 36 sec.

Curtis Dransfield also beat his PB in the 80m finishing in 12.6 sec.

Congratulations to all the other Spen athletes many of whom I know put in some excellent performances, with some victories but unfortunately I did not make a note of their names or times.

Bunny Run Relays

3 leg relay 1.5 miles/leg

Howling gales and driving rain met the Jones family team as we got to Haworth for the final Bunny race of 2009. The team consisted of Chris, Matthew and Sarah, who was coming up for her first Bunny experience.

Near to the start of the race we were told that the longer first leg was to be cut short because the extra loop was too muddy. This meant that we were all doing the same distance. So, we picked up the egg and a very cold Chris went to line up for the first leg. 12 minutes later Sarah set off and then it was my turn.

After waiting quite a long time in the quarry where you start I thought the wind had died down a bit. As soon as I got out of the quarry I was nearly blown back down again. I knew I was going to have fun. I seemed to be having a good run and I felt alright. Then, at about half way round, the rain turned to hail and the run became painful in more than one way. When I was finally near the the end and I turned to face the wind again, my cheeks were inflating with air.

Overall I had a good run and my Dad also had a great run. Sarah didn't enjoy the race much but did well for her first Bunny.

Spen Results
35 JONESEY'S JOGGERS 43.06

Leg 1: 21 CHRIS JONES   12.49
Leg 2: 41 SARAH JONES   16.59
Leg 3: 23 MATTHEW JONES 13.18

61 Teams

Full Results Here

Esholt 5k - Race 1

Where did that speed go?
Been a few years since I have done these, but with Chloe coming out of retirement (sadly with a Wakefield vest) it encouraged me to give it a go. I knew that the 16min glory days were in the past but was interested how quick the old legs could turn.
Good spen turnout (just to add to the pressure) with Jackie, Amanda, Vic, Emma, Tony B, Kevin, John Henry and Keith added to the great sight of Les back in his colours.
Was shocked by the fast start but paced myself. Found my heart and lungs were strong but the old legs were not happy with the speed. Managed to hit 3.5min k's and kept to that. John Henry was in sight all the way, and fortunately for me he 'died' more rapidly.
Finished in 19.00 dead so hope to improve with the series especially with the promise of a track turnout.
Nearer the front Kevin got one up on Tony in the battle of the fast boys.
Well done to all the spen brigade, see you next week

Spen Results
16  Kevin Ogden          M35 16.50
21  Antony Bradford      M40 17.03
36  Keith McGhie         M45 17.39
76  Gareth Patchett      M45 19.00
85  John Henry           M50 19.16
101 Victor Kolodziejczyk M50 19.50
131 Dennis Hoey          M55 20.41
189 Emma Maguire         F40 22.47
203 Jackie Carter        F45 23.10
231 Les Fenton           M55 24.18
299 Amanda Pearson       F40 30.33

Selected Others
20  Paul Hallas    Wakefield Harriers M50 17.00
40  Karen Pickles  Pudsey Pacers      F35 17.56
155 Chloe Patchett Wakefield Harriers FO  21.33

Full Results

Rothwell 10k - Monday 4th May - Report by Frank

The Rothwell 10km road race was held on Monday 4th May in cold and damp conditions; ideal for racing! Anthony Bradford lead the six Spen male runners home in 28th place in a time of 34 mins 29 secs. Eight days after a strong London Marathon race Kevin Ogden stretched his recovering legs to finish 38th in 35m 07s. The rest of us still had a mile or more to go by the time these lads finished. Steve Peacock was next in 220th place and a time of 41m 50s followed by Frank Reddington 267th 43m 07s, Mick Howard 272nd 43m 13s and Peter Scanlon 605th 53m 16s. Mixing among the men Steve's daughter Sarah Peacock finished 275th overall in a time of 43 mins 20 secs. Our first three men were 19th of 80 teams with the 'B' team in 62nd place. Andy Pearson from Longwood harriers won the race in 30m 35s. For the results go to

http://www.ukresults.net/2009/rothwell.html

Rothwell 10k - Spen runners out in force!

Spen Runners were out in force at the Rothwell 10K on Bank Holiday Monday. Superb performances from Spen AC's top road runners Antony Bradford and Kevin Ogden. Steve Peacock getting ever closer to the magic sub-40. Click the link below to read Antony's account of the race.

Chasing Pavements: Rothwell 10k - Sub 35 Again.

Spen Results
28  Antony Bradford    M40 34:29
38  Kevin Ogden        M35 35:07
220 Steven Peacock     M45 41:50
267 Francis Reddington M55 43:07
272 Mick Howard        M45 43:13
275 Sarah Peacock      F   43:20
605 Peter Scanlon      M60 53:10

Full Results Here

Coiners Fell Race

It's always good to hear good race info after the event (if only Chris had mentioned the stile after 500 metres) Waiting at the stile was like a toilet queue at the three peaks, maybe he had a plan. Still I got off to a reasonable start (saving myself for the biggy this weekend where I will line up with a full field of hopefuls in the Fellsman long distance ultra at 61 miles.) Chris seems to have covered the race very well, and its nice to read someone's view of the same race. The race is well marked out and well organised, but if you do it next year it's a long walk uphill from the car park
at the community centre. The finish is one for the downhillers with lots of soft boggy mud and peat to get caught up in.

If you fancy this type of run I can recommend the Hutton Roof on May 23rd or the Austwick Amble on Bank Holiday May 25th. Both have a small gala and are only 7-8 miles long.

A restful day at the bar

Steve & Chris battle the Swamp Monsters!

Coiners Fell Race (BM, 7 miles, 1100ft)

After watching the 2nd in the FRA English Junior Championship series in the morning, and gradually freezing to death, I was wrapped in my waterproof wondering why I'd paid my entry fee. So I was greatly pleased to see Steve Moss bounding across the field towards me, all ready to go. After sheltering by the tents for a while, it was soon time to line up at the start. This was my second outing at this race, having run here first in 2008, but for Steve it was a new race. At the time I ran it last year, it was the boggiest race I'd ever run, but I think I've had a couple of races that surpassed it since. I had a feeling that based on recent form, there was a chance I could dip under the hour, since last time I'd finished in 1:01:27.

It's important to get off to a good start in this race, as after a short run down a lane there is a stile where there tends to be a big queue before climbing up through some woods onto the tops. I had maybe 6 or 7 people queuing before me going up, but the further back you are the worse it tends to get. Out onto the climb, and I was going OK, but was still the first to start walking, I few passed me, but I knew that at the top it crossed a stile onto a lane where a flat section would enable me to pick up the pace.

Heading up the second climb to Stoodley Pike, I started to feel more comfortable and passed a few runners. Rounding the monument, and starting the descent, I saw Steve on his way up, but not too far behind, but now we were onto the fast part of the course, where it's difficult to make up places. I was caught and passed by the ace V60 runner from Dark Peak - Dave Tait at the next stile, and was then chasing a small group down through a wooded section before dropping down to the next section.

Then we reached the bog! The swamp monsters were out in force, sucking your legs down and refusing to let go. I could hear cries and curses from behind as I trudged my way through. Finally reaching a murky pool where I took lead from the runner in front of me and just went straight through. The swamp was easily up to my shorts, but the alternative routes hadn't looked much better.

Once out I was onto the narrow sheep track and some fairly steep drops through heather where I went over on my right ankle, but not too serious. Finally reaching the top of the start field, and a short fast run along a track before a steep descent of the field to the finish. There were a bunch of us within a few seconds at the line, and a quick glance at my watch showed me that I had made it under the hour with a time of 59:11. Job done!

Very shortly afterwards, I saw Steve descending the field and into the finish. We chatted with runners around the finish area before heading back to the car park. A good race, and one I'd recommend, made all the better by having some good company. I have to say that I enjoy it far more when there are team-mates around.

Spen Results
44 Chris Jones V45 0:59:11
58 Steven Moss V60 1:02:27

129 finishers

Full results here

Northern T & F League Match 1

Despite initial concerns about how many athletes we could field for the 1st Northern League match of the year, Spen performed magnificently to finish 2nd overall and things can only improve from here. Thanks to Jackie and Amanda for taking on the difficult post of team managers but the troops rallied round and supported them. The performances of the day had to come from the throwers and our male sprinters. Nick Crimmen- on a welcome retun back, Richard Martin, Jack Bellwood, Carly Beanland, Sheila Bolland & Sarah Roberts out-performed all other athletes to gain maximum valuable points. On the track, Josh Cayenne eased to victory in the 100 & 400m and then ran, what one spectator called "poetry in motion", a blinder of a 3rd leg in the 4x400m relay to bring Craig Yates into an unbeatable position. There were other valuable victories and point winners throughout the day: Ryan Dransfield a very respectable 2nd in his 1st A string 800m for the senior men coming home in 2:06.00; young Lewis Hamilton making his senior debut with wins in the B 400m and running a superb final leg in the 4x100m to overtake Andy Cooke of P&B on the finish line; Chris Ward making his 1st appearance in Spen colours in the short sprints; Chris Mounsey for his Bob Beamon performance long jump and Becky Rowlands & Emma Rawnsley for scoring valuable points in a much depleted ladies' team. Despite all these great performances it is sad to report that we had no competitors in the men's steeplechase, 5000m, 110mH and the ladies' hurdles and pole vault: this is where valuable points are lost and will make the difference if we fill these posts if we are to overtake leaders Trafford at the next match. As for me: HJ, PV, TJ, 400mH and the slowest 1500m on record show it is time to call it a day very soon. Apologies if I have omitted any good performances. If I have please can someone add these comments.

The Bluebell Trail 3-5-09

Bluebell Trail - More Hills than Bluebells in the Heartlands of Stainland Lions Lady Vets!

"Voted 36th out of top 50 best races for 2006 by readers of Runners World Magazine"

After the trials of the three peaks it is back to earth for some less mad adventures. A 'bluebell trail' race in Halifax is just the ticket. I have accepted that my glory days of being an average club runner are behind me, but I now find myself amongst the knee bandage and cellulite brigade. So is the Bluebell Trail, a 10.3 mile trail race frequented by those 100's of Stainland Lions / Pudsey Pacers runners who enjoy a run out on a weekend. The unfortunate truth is that many of them are very good.

Just two spen vests on show (Chris Jacobs) and two former members (Alison Pickup and Karen Pickles) amongst the crowds waiting for the start. I decided to start slow (with the option of slowing as the race progressed).

Up and down along pleasantly soft woodland paths, the canal, and some backroads of Halifax and then onto the horror that is Trooper Lane. Foolishly on the lower slopes I was running well and passed many a walker, only to discover that they had paced themselves and walked past me nearer the top.

Then a couple more ascents of Southowram Hill and off down the valley back towards Elland. Disappointingly the 3 peaks came back to haunt me as I suffered a couple of minor cramp attacks, nothing serious though. A fast canal section saw me pick off a couple of super veterans and then all finishes with a crossing of the river back to the Rugby Club.

Showers in the Rugby club kind of unisex and alfresco which made things interesting.

Oh and I think I did 1hr 25mins which is fairly rubbish. Will update results when I get them

and I think Karen was first lady

Here are the results

More sports books worth reading

Gareth reminded me of another book I liked, and made a further suggestion. Here is a short run-down.

Running Free
By Sebastian Coe. For anyone who thinks ability and success is all natural (Gareth)
p.s. This seems to be a bit difficult to find now (Chris)

Put Me Back on My Bike: In Search of Tom Simpson
Chronicling the career of whom many regard as Britains greatest ever road cyclist, from his humble beginnings to his untimely death in the 1967 Tour de France. It's a moving story, I'll say no more than that. All cyclists should read it. There is also a documentary film based on the book that appears from time to time, watch out for it during July when the TdF is on TV.

In Search of Robert Millar: Unravelling the Mystery Surrounding Britain's Most Successful Tour De France Cyclist
The story of Rober Millar, ledgendary Scottish cyclist and winner of the Polka Dot Jersey (best climber) in the Tour de France. Robert ended his career and mysteriously disappeared from public. The book chronicles his cycling career, and goes out to track him down.

Northern League meeting

Today some of the spen athletes were at Stretford for the first meeting in the northern league, and Amanda's and my first task as team managers. Hopefully we didn't do too bad. I did find it a bit stressful at first, having to alter team sheets.

18 athletes took part, with some doing quite a few events. At times we were 5th but we worked hard and finished 2nd overall with the relays coming to a superb end both the 4x100 and the 4x400 men taking first place the ladies 4x400 finishing a respectable 3rd. It would have been another first if not for Amandas gammy knee! and me being tired from the marathon and the 3,000 + 1500.

Overall a good day and at the next meeting we should have more choice of athletes , thankyou to all of you - Jackie.

The Three Peaks Fell Race (Chris K)

I always find that the weeks leading up to the Three Peaks fly by much too quickly to get in all the training I would like to do. So as usual, I lined up at the start of the race and thought 'Oh my giddy aunt' (not my exact words but you will get the gist). Anyway, too late now but at least the sun is shining.

My race strategy for sub-5 hours was to take it as steady as I like up Pen-y-gent and then try and make up time on the descents leaving enough in reserve to still be able descend off Ingleborough at a decent pace. For once, everything went according to plan. Got to the top of Pen-y-gent much slower than in previous races but I was not even feeling even slightly out of breath so it was now time to try and eat up the miles and make up the time without overdoing it.

From the top of Pen-y-gent, I started to overtake people and eventually caught up with Paul H (work colleague) and ran with him up to Ribblehead. I made sure I drank plenty and ate an energy bar before the worst part of the race which is the ascent of Whernside. Psychologically for me, once the top of Whernside is attained, the race is more than half done. This year I climbed the hill quite well, didn't get cramp at the top and then descended like the jaws of Cerberus were snapping at my heals. Top of Whernside to the Hill Inn only took 25m 47s which is the fastest I've ever done it.

At the Hill Inn, I was very surprised to catch up with Gareth and Mike but they set off before I had finished getting another energy bar and some fluids inside me. I had expected them to be miles ahead. I don’t find ascending Ingleborough too bad because most of it is across the flagstones and there is only a short steep section at the end. Got to the top of Ingleborough at 3h 59m 55s which was a whole 5 seconds ahead of schedule so I knew that I should easily beat 5 hours.

I can run downhill over rocky terrain quite well because I am light, agile and a bit dim at times so caught up with Gareth and even overtook him for a couple of minutes near the bottom of the steep bit. However, as soon as it levelled out again he was off again and my little legs had nothing left for a final effort. It was just a case of head down and endure.

Getting to the col where you can finally see down to Horton-in-Ribblesdale was a very welcome sight and the last half-mile went quite well although I’d forgotten about the 10 metre uphill slope after the railway bridge which reduced me to a walk. I’m sure someone has built it up a bit since last year. I finished the race in 4h 48m 45s so was pleased with my result but I will do more training next year (I’ve said that before I think!).

Bunny Run #4 - To run, or not to run...

I wasn't at all sure about this one, since on Monday my legs were still in a state of shock from the 3 Peaks on Saturday, but I'd had a few short sessions on the turbo-trainer to try to keep them from seizing up, and figured I'd do another on Tuesday morning and then just see how I felt as the day went on. By Tuesday afternoon, I was starting to get that kind of tingle deep in the muscles that I've come to know as a sign of recovery, and since Matthew was keen to complete the series, I decided to go for it.

The conditions were a mild drizzle, and little wind, but the course was no longer dry following a couple of days of rain, but it was by no means saturated. The numbers seemed to be down on the previous three weeks, but it could have been my imagination. Milling around before the start I saw at least 2 other runners who'd done the 3 Peaks at the weekend, so I wasn't alone.

I had little in the way of expectations time-wise, so I was quite relaxed, and got off to what for me was a slow start, and got very boxed in. I found it harder than ever to get around some of the slower youngsters, but on reflection, a slow start was probably a good thing, as by the long climb on the 2nd lap I was feeling much better that I had in the previous week. I felt to be pushing fairly hard, but not struggling, and assumed it was because I was running much slower than I had been doing.

At the end, I felt quite strong going into the finish, and stopped my watch at 20:04, just 5 seconds outside my PB from BR#2. Not bad!

Matthew had his second fastest BR too, although he was suffering from an upset stomach, and was still some way of his best. There was another Spen runner, David Wilson shown in the results (see below), but I confess I don't know who he is, and I didn't see any more club vests. So if you are reading David, please introduce yourself next time you see someone in a club vest.

Next week it's the relays, where we hope to recruit Sarah and put in a family team. With some persuasion, we might see 'Team Dransfield' put in an appearance too.

Spen results
67  CHRIS JONES   V40 20.04
108 MATTHEW JONES U14 21.48
163 DAVID WILSON  U16 24.39

223 finishers, 0 retired

Full results here

Summary of the 2009 BR series

For me it's been a good set of races. I ran 4 of my best 5 times this year, breaking my previous PB for the course twice. However, I have done more running this year than I have for the previous two. Matthew has also improved, although he's very inconsistent. Clearly he can run extremely well, but can't seem to find the formula yet.

Steve's 3 Peaks Photos

Just one or two that survived my daughter with our new automatic camera

3 Peaks - The return

Congratulations to all those who followed in the footsteps of the greats those ardy fell racers who do this event in under 3 1/2 hours. Having done this race 5 times i now believe i cant do it any faster than my best time of 4 hours & 25 mins done in 2004. I did manage to get 3rd vet 6o this time so its going to be my very last time. The day started in the usual for this race sunny skies and cool breezes, at least the wind stayed fresh (even if the legs didn't). Chris got a good start and I was glad he got off as I didn't fancy having to keep up with him up the first climb. The climb is made more difficult as all the first timers try to get up front (not my usual plan) My aim was to make steady progress and get warmed up and try to speed up on the descents. This seemed to work and I enjoyed the long haul to Ribblehead (even the road part was ok), good to see the the support every body had. The climb up Whernside is always going to be tough but I could just see Chris climbing up as a target to catch. Coming off the top he seemed to fly so I decided against chasing him and doing my own thing taking a wider approach to the descent and coming down on the far left on nice soft grass in stead of the rocky path taking only 27 mins Les has supported this race for 2 or three years and he is always a very welcome sight (maybe it will be time to support him next time) The climb up Ingleborough didn't go as well as expected but I was very glad to see the top and receive some great support. The descent is always tough but felt easier this time, but slower. Well done to all spen runners who put themselves on the start lines this weekend I HOPE THE LEGS ARE STILL GOOD

STEVEN MOSS

London Marathon Results

Well done to those Spenborough runners who took part in the London Marathon today.
The results listed are in time order and not in order of merit. Just to complete the course is an excellent achievement. Well done and all the best for speedy recovery. The results are;-

Kevin Ogden           2:47:37
David Lane            3:07:05
Edward Wilkinson      4:07:13
Elizabeth Bottomley   4:24:01
Hazel Pike            4:25:08
Jackie Carter         4:27:52
Meg Simpson           4:58:12

Three Peaks Challenge & London Marathon

Well done Chris, Spike, Steve, Gareth & Chris on the 3 Peaks Challenge- great write up of the event. Well done also to Jackie, Kevin, Dave, Edward, Meg, Liz & Hazel on completing the London Marathon. Everybody at Spen will be very proud of you!!

3 Peaks Results

Full results here

Three peaks (Michael)

Turned up at the start not really knowing what to expect as my longest training runs had been barely over 2 hours which I has struggled to complete.
Decided to run with Gareth from the start as I have a tendancy to set off way too fast and pay for it later. Things didn't start too well as Gareth took a fall within 200m of turning onto the off road section.
Chris J and Steve had already disappeared into the distance but I was holding back feeling good up the ascent of Pen-y-gent. The long run over to Whernside passed relatively quickly with a strong tailwind helping us along. Nice to see Les with welcoming drinks along this section.
As we approached Ribblehead started to get a burning sensation on the ball of my left foot. Now starting to regret wearing a pair of shoes I had only worn twice before.
Still feeing OK Gareth and I tackled the ascent of Whernside. I knew it was going to be tough but I had underestimated the length and severity of the climb.
Gareth disappeared into the distance and as I approached the summit I started to feel dizzy and rather tired. Looked at the watch and realised I wasn't even halfway.
Tried to recover on the descent to Hill Inn but when we stopped for drinks the legs had turned to jelly. I knew it was going to be a struggle to make the finish.
I must have walked most of the way up Ingleborough and the final rocky climb tested my resolve to the limit.
Thanks to the Jones family who had waited patiently for me to arrive and handed over the welcoming cans of Red Bull. Unfortunately at this point I wasn't unable to communicate with them much at all. I sat down on a rock to take the drink and if there had been an option to drop out here I would have. I then realised the quickest way back was to continue to the finish so off I went.
Managed a very slow jog to the finish catching my feet on every rock that was sticking up due to the fact that I could hardly lift my feet off the ground. Left foot by this time was killing me and I was looking for soft groung at every opportunity. My target time had been under 5 hours and as I approached the finish the dreaded thought entered my head I may have to sprint to achieve this.
Finally finished in 4:57 so the goal was achieved and another box of things to do had been ticked.
Did I enjoy it? Ask me in about 4 weeks time!!!
Thanks to all the support from everybody at Spen who came to support us. I'm sure without this I would not have finished the race.