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Edinburgh Marathon Festival

 Bank Holiday weekend saw seven members of Grantham Running Club pack their PE Kits and head north and over the border to take part in the Edinburgh Marathon Festival.

The festival has different running events on over the Saturday and Sunday including 1K, 2K and 5K for juniors, and an adults 5K and 10K on the Saturday. The Hairy Haggis Team Relay, Half Marathon and full Marathon all take place on the Sunday.

The course for both the half and the full marathon starts in the city centre on Potterow with the picturesque backdrop of the University of Edinburgh's McEwan Hall.  From there runners take in many of the city's iconic sights including Greyfriars Kirkyard, The Royal Mile, St. Giles Cathedral and, of course, Edinburgh Castle.

After running through Princes Street Gardens and past the Scott Monument, the course heads out towards Arthurs Seat and Holyrood Park and as runners leave the Royal Park from there they head out towards the coast at Portobello.

Musselburgh is the next destination on the route, home to the world's oldest golf course. The half marathon route goes through the historic village of Prestonpans before turning back towards the beautiful finish line within the vast playing fields of Pinkie School. The full marathon route continues on past Prestonpans along the coastal road past Longniddry Golf Course and up to Gosford before turning back to retrace your steps and pick up the same finish as the half marathon.

The mixture of the crowds in the city centre, the peace and quiet of the Royal Park and the bustle of the seaside promenade makes the first half of the run a good mix. The out and back section isn't as well supported by the crowds which gives time for contemplation - mainly wondering why you signed up in the first place!

First to the starting blocks with an early 8am start was Kevin Kettle taking on the half marathon. Kevin had been suffering with an injury lately so knew a PB wasn't within reach, but he finished in a very creditable 1:44:40. Kevin said he particularly enjoyed the coastal scenery and was really pleased with the support.

Robin Atter, Jo Grace, Julie Gilbert, Rachel Pattison, Ros Sadler and Nicola Cottam had all signed up for the marathon distance.

First back for GRC was Robin Atter. Robin said after running Edinburgh as his first marathon in 2022 he wanted to return with the aim of a sub 3:30 and to not walk/run the end. He was pleased to have come in at 3:27:50 and to have run it all. He said he will return next year for the half marathon.

Jo was next home for the club. The months leading up to the marathon had seen Jo struggle to run with an injury so her only goal was to enjoy it and finish - and not on the sweeper bus. During the race her legs were ready to finish but her head didn't want it to end and she crossed the line in 4:47:23. One to return to in the future for sure.

Julie, Rachel and Ros had completed the London Marathon five weeks previously and claiming to "not have a whole fit person between them" just wanted to enjoy the event and do the best they could on the day. Julie was first of the trio to finish. Having found a nice steady pace up until around 21 miles, a niggling hip injury made itself known and it all unravelled a bit from there with the last 5 miles being a run/walk. Squeezing in just under 5 hours with a time of 4:58:23 was more than she could have hoped for. Rachel was next back. Running for The Brain Tumour Charity, Rachel's aim was to fully embrace and enjoy the event whilst raising awareness for a charity close to her heart. Running with Julie for the first half, she then tailed off slightly but still clocked up a very admirable time of 5:03:27 which is only just outside her PB.

Ros was next home and, as seemed to be the order of the day, had been nursing an injury for quite some time so was really pleased to finish with a very respectable time of 5:17:19. Nicola Cottam rounded off the intrepid runners and was pleased just to have finished after feeling extremely sick for most of the run and her time of 5:40:48 is testament to her grit and determination.

All runners reported that it was far too hot to be running such a long way, but the lovely course and great support made up for it - almost.

Kudos must also go to Rachel's husband Simon who hired a bike for the day and cycled up and down the route providing snacks, water and much needed encouragement to us all. A one-man cheer squad who the club should think about hiring for all events.

 

Helvellyn and the Dodds

There are many ways to celebrate a 50th birthday but Grantham Running Club's Craig Drury chose to race up England's third highest peak and shaved nearly an hour off his course best to boot. Family and friends came from as far away as Geneva and London to support him in the Lake District as Craig made his second attempt at running one of the country’s toughest fell races - Hellvellyn and the Dodds. A 24km race with 4,386 feet of climb, saw Craig run to the top of Helvellyn and back down again. For the past few months Craig could have been spotted repeatedly running laps up and down Grantham's Hills and Hollows in preparation for this year's race. Craig enjoyed perfect conditions on Saturday 27th May, it was warm but not hot, with a cool breeze. 

As 11 o'clock approached Craig was very nervous as last year he had taken 5 hours and 3 minutes (it was his first proper fell race) only beating those who retired from the race. Guided by local fell running legend Leslie Malarky (FV70) of Keswick AC, Craig kept his head when climbing to the top of the first summit, Clough Head (726m), then to Great Dodd (857m) and the cut-off point at Raise (883m). Last year Craig just made the cut off time of 1pm, this year he was feeling strong and made it there almost 20 minutes faster. Craig and Leslie hit the summit within seconds of each other, but she showed her fell running skill running down the rocky descent of Lower Man, where she came into her own and showed Craig the best “trods” or routes. As only his 5th fell race it's clear there is a lot of skill to running down mountains as well as fitness. 

Completing the course this year in 4 hours 9 minutes and 57 seconds, Craig was 53 minutes faster than last year, that's 17.5% improvement! The cheers from his supporting friends and family gave him that extra boost to finish under 250 minutes! The winner's time was 2 hours 6 minutes and 23 seconds, Bertie Houghton from Dark Peak Fell Runners.

 

Beeston Trent 5

On the very warm evening of 24th May, 16 members of GRC took part in the Trent 5 mile race hosted by Beeston AC.

The course was a mix of terrains which made some sections more challenging than others. After coming tantalisingly close to the finish line, runners were sent on what felt like a demoralising final lap of the field before being able to cross the finish line.

First across the finish for GRC was Russel Whittaker in 29.08, finishing in third place overall and achieving his first podium finish. He was soon followed by Joaquim "Flash" Jeronimo, who finished in 5th place in 29.36, collecting the MV40 prize. The first GRC lady to cross the line was Hannah Whittaker in 36.32

There were many PBs set across the distance and some great times achieved by all. 

The general consensus of the event was that it was well hosted & marshalled with a very friendly atmosphere. This race forms part of the club's GP series. 

Results:

Darren Harley: 34.24

Alan Carley: 34.51

Paul Davis: 37.27

Simon Allsopp: 39.04

Nim Rivers: 40.13 (PB)

Caroline Davis: 40.16

Nicci Whittaker: 40.35 (PB)

Paul Jepson: 41.36

Sarah High: 42.59

Sylv Hull: 43.16 (PB)

Julie Stewart: 44.31

Yvonne Buckley: 54.46

Brendon Buckley: 59.45

 

Deepings 10k

 On a lovely late spring day, 3 GRC members made their way to Deeping St James to take part in the Deeping Rotary 10k charity race.  The race takes place through town and county and is a flat single circuit which finished on the playing fields. 

The 163 runners taking part were treated to idea conditions for running with warm sunshine and runners encountered cooling head and side winds in places. 

The first one back from Grantham Running Club was Paul Jepson finishing in 50.58.  Zane Wojtowicz completed the race in 54:27, shortly followed by Richard Urquhart 54:52. 

The men’s race was won by Thomas Preston in a time of 35:02.  The first female was Josie Knight in 41:29.   All the finishers were rewarded with an impressive medal and the event was very well organised.

Luxembourg City Half Marathon and 5k Team Run

After years of envying other local clubs with their foreign trips, Grantham Running Club finally put one together and what a weekend it was. Luxembourg City was the chosen venue and what an impressive city. Everything was pristine, the inner-city views were astonishing and getting around was so easy with free public transport.

A team of 12 flew out early Friday morning for the Saturday evening races.  The 8 who were running the Half Marathon set off at 7pm along with around 13,000 others in warm and sunny conditions and much fanfare.  The marathon is a major event in the Luxemboug calendar and the organisers and city officials make sure it goes with a bang.

Leading the GRC pack was Sam Jepson in his first race back after nearly a year off injured and Andrew Pask. Their plan of running together for the bulk of the race went out of the window after a few miles when Andrew couldn’t live with the pace. Sam had his own struggles later-on and overcame some serious blister issues to clock 1:29:05. A PB but not the time he was hoping for. Andrew was not too far behind with 1:32:17.

Next home was Sam Dodwell who’s had some injury niggles lately and lacked some long run conditioning. Finding the later miles tough going Sam clocked a respectable 1:39:25 although some way off his best. Sam was happy enough to get around in once piece.

Trip organiser Matt Atter had a great weekend. Not taking the race too seriously and with a modest amount of training he enjoyed his run with a time of 1:44:03.

Next up was the first lady, Zoe Wragg. Having already run a 10k PB recently, Zoe went into this race full of confidence. On a course that is far from suited to PBs and with many deceptive hills and 90 degree turns, Zoe seemed to love every minute of it. With a smile on her face, she ran brilliantly to bag a 2min 5sec PB with 2:00:59. The prestigious sub 2hr race is now well within her grasp on a faster course.

Alison Clark also had a strong race, her time of 2:14:51 bagged her a new official half marathon PB of 2min 7secs.

Hot on Alison’s heels was Kate Marshall who was also struggling with blisters. Kate clocked a solid 2:15:15 which is someway off her best but the focus on this race was enjoyment, not fast times.

Stephen Fay also made a fleeting appearance as he wasn’t travelling with the main party though members managed to catch sight of him at the finish line and before the race. He rocked-up as the GRC dark horse and without ceremony to run a solid 2:19:35.

It was then the turn of the 5k team runners. Setting off at 20:10 for the challenging (as in, completely uphill) last part of the Half Marathon course, Sylv Hull, Julia Hallam and Robin Atter ran as the GRC Chimpions in what turned out to be a slightly chaotic fun run and with no accurate distance measured. While this was frustrating, they didn’t allow it to put a downer on their weekend and came 31^st out of 100 teams.

Runners were rewarded with a pretty impressive medal and some rather fetching straw boater hats which came in handy for providing protection from the sun in the beer gardens the next day.

After all the running was done, all that was left to do for the weekend was kick back, enjoy the sun and sample the local Bofferding beer and eat ice cream.  Plans are already afoot for the next adventure!

 

Grim Reaper 10

 On the lovely sunny morning of Saturday the 20th of May, five Grantham Running Club members attended the Grim Reaper, a multi distance event at the stunning Grimsthorpe Castle where runners had options for solo 100, 70 and 40 mile distances as well a 10 mile day race and night race.  Team GRC opted for the 10-mile option.

Runners could expect a mixture of estate roads, ancient woodlands, a disused Victorian railway, limestone tracks and grass trail and they were warned that trail shoes might be the weapon of choice if conditions were wet.

First in from the GRC was Russell Maksymiw, who put in a fantastic time of 1:19:32, especially given that he ran his first marathon at Manchester only a few weeks previously.  This gave him an impressive 1^st in his age category and 9^th place overall.

Next in was GRC newcomer and trail newbie Daniel Wallace who came 24^th with a time of 1:30:40.

Trail loving Dale Towning, who also ran Manchester Marathon recently, followed shortly after with a time of 1:32:12 and 26^th place.

Jon Whittaker followed up his London Marathon debut with a finishing time of 1:42:25 and a position of 48th.  Soon to follow was Catherine Wallace who has made an amazing return to running with great results at a variety of distances.  She was pleased to cross the line in 1:51:37 and 3^rd in her age category.

First male in from the 10-mile day race was Steven Shepperd with 1:02:41. First female was Suzanne Moon in 1:18:41.

Members commented that it was a fantastic, well organised event.

Skelly 10k Trail

 GRC members Robert Pask and Stefan Latter took the short trip to Lincoln for The Skelly 10k Trail race on Friday 19th May. 

Organised by The Lincoln and District Runners, this evening trail race didn’t disappoint with a mixture of cycle paths, woodland trails, farm fields and gravel tracks making up the 10k loop.

Robert ran with his wife Lisa and enjoyed the race immensely, finishing in a time of 57:20. He commented after that he wanted to push harder but is still under strict doctors authority to run to a low heart rate.

Stefan really enjoyed the race and the mix of terrain, finishing in 44:50.

Both runners complimented the course, organisers and goodie bag after the race which consisted of a medal, beer and chocolate and it is definitely a race to revisit in 2024.

The winner in the men’s race was Wayne Lathwell 35:51. The women’s winner was Charlie Hanson 38:17

 

East Yorkshire Half Marathon

The Coronation weekend saw the inaugural East Yorkshire 10k and Half Marathon, organised by Runthrough from Burton Constable Hall, a country house, gardens and historic family collection located near Hull.

One member of Grantham Running Club made the misty trip across the Humber Bridge to take part in this event, with Peter Bonner finishing in a chip time of 1:28:02. The winner was Alec Gibson of the local club East Hull Harriers in 1:12;48 and the first woman was Catherine Harris who finished in 1:28:05.

The course was all on road or the access track to the estate and conditions were good, with roads closed and some very good traffic management systems. It would be unfair to call the route hilly, but it was noticed by the runners that the highest point of the course was at New Ellerby, which also happens to be the village that is passed twice in the half marathon course.

The organisers provided four water stations, which were very welcome in the warm, humid, rather misty conditions that morning. The route was well-marshalled and sign-posted. The only potential disadvantage was a 180° turn in the road within the first mile, but the race organisers did a good job in streaming the start and the runners complied, so the turn was not too crowded.

Talking afterwards, Peter said that he would have enjoyed the race a lot more if he hadn’t been toasting the King the previous day, but that it was well worth paying the toll to cross the Humber to run there in future years.