Lincolnshire Runner XC League 1

Grantham Running Club was represented at the first fixture of this season's Lincolnshire Cross Country League which took place on Sunday at West Common in Lincoln. On yet another sunny, dry but blustery day, conditions were favourable with the course being mud free and relatively flat except for a rather deceptively difficult hill to climb in the first 1200m. First home for the ladies and in 16th position overall, was Amanda Ward, running her first cross country race and indeed first race for the club. Sarah High followed closely behind with Sinead McDonnell, Roz Grindey (also in her first cross country league race for the club) and Justyna Gill completing the team.
Andrew MacAllister represented the GRC males putting on a good show against a large and strong field to finish in 72nd place.

Belvoir Clockback Harby Offroad 10K

Good turnout for the initial Belvoir Clockback

Thirteen GRC runners turned up at Harby for the Belvoir Clockback 10k on a grey and really quite chilly Sunday 29^th October.

The course took in a variety of surfaces, including farm track, field edge, overgrown disused railway embankment, tarmac and for one memorable 50 yard stretch, freshly ploughed field!  Fortunately there had been little rain in the preceding days so footwear emerged relatively mud free.  As the race went on the overcast skies were replaced by some glorious October sunshine which left some runners regretting adding an additional layer at the start.

First home for GRC was Stuart Reader in 45.49.  Achieving "personal bests" over the distance were Julie and Robert Braker and Kirsty Truesdale.  The general view was that the run was well organised and marshalled and one to put on the calendar for next year.  No medals unfortunately but there was a fine selection of homemade cake at the end. 

Results:

Stuart Reader  45.49

Stuart Baty  49.31

Julie Braker  50.06

Robert Braker  50.36

Kirsty Truesdale  58.16

Simon Hartley  59.46

Hayley Staff  61.55

Sue Swann  63.25

Berlinda Baker  66.51

Edina Burns  66.51
Stephen Wells 67:59

Yvette Taylor  70.32

Angela Wilson  81.20

(Note no gradings or rankings as this was an unmeasured course)

Worksop Halloween Half Marathon

Chris, MKL, Peter and Rob with their medals

Nineteen members of Grantham Running Club took part in the 36^th edition of the Worksop Halloween Half Marathon on Sunday 29^th October. The race, the majority of which takes place in a Clumber Park especially resplendent with autumn hues, manages to combine a highly competitive race atmosphere, partly thanks to a generous and extensive prize structure, with an infectious party vibe. Runners and volunteers are encouraged to wear Halloween themed costume and one of the highlights of the course is a near mile long stretch preceding a water station littered with humorous signs offering ‘encouragement’ to the weary runner. Were it not for somewhat chaotic scenes at race number collection which delayed the start by ten minutes and lengthy post race queues for baggage collection, the race could rightfully considered to be one of the very best hosted events in the region.

Two races in two days for Caroline and Paul

First home for GRC was Matthew Kingston-Lee. A week on after winning the Thoresby 10 Mile Race, Matthew put in another strong performance to finish fifth overall and second V40, clocking a season’s best 1:16:24. “I was really pleased with how the race unfolded,” commented Matthew after the race. “I was in around twelfth position after the first mile then suffered a side stitch which had me struggling until it thankfully disappeared at around five miles. Feeling much better, I was able to start picking off runners one by one. Given that there is barely a flat section along the course I was really happy with the finishing time.”

1:56:22 for Russell in his first half

Also very pleased with his performance was Chris Limmer, who finished 38^th in 1:22:15. This was despite his right trainer falling apart before the start of the race and having prepared for the event by running from Grantham to Nottingham along the canal six days earlier. Chris is seemingly back to near full fitness following injury earlier in the year and is looking forward to winter training towards an ultra race in 2018.

PB for Kevin

Rob Howbrook was third home for GRC in 1:30:08. Happy to be two minutes quicker than his last half marathon at Peterborough, he appears to be returning the form which sees him lead the club’s inaugural Grand Prix Series with four rounds remaining. New club member Dan Towey was prised off his sickbed to finish in 1:33:23, just ahead of Peter Bonner, who ran another strong race to finish just half a minute off his recent PB in 1:33:47.

Catherine Payne was the first GRC female to finish, clocking 1:36:44 and taking second in the V50-54 category. Catherine has shown remarkable consistency thus far in 2017. This is her slowest of three half marathons, but only 14 seconds slower than her fastest, and arguably the strongest performance given the undulating nature of the course.  

Behind Catherine, Paul Davis was next to finish in 1:39:29. Both he and wife Caroline looked distinctly weary at the finish having raced the day before and extensively over the past month. They are looking forward to a relatively quiet end of the year. Caroline was the first of four GRC runners who embraced the Halloween spirit and raced in fancy dress.  Mark Hillson finished ahead of Kevin Kettle, who bettered his HM PB by two minutes running 1:44:07. A frustrated Tony Johnson was next to finish, hobbled by injury and recent illness. He finished ahead of an elated Russell Maksymiw, who broke two hours on his half marathon debut, finishing in a fine 1:56:22.

Runners were encouraged to wear fancy dress

Another half marathon debutant, Chris Gearren, also broke two hours, finishing in 1:57:24. Of the club’s six other finishers: Nicola Cottam; Nicola Fahy; Margaretta Murray; Julie Gilbert; and Ros Sadler, special praise was lauded to Shelly Dalhaug who completed the race despite suffering a nasty chest infection. She in turn thanked Julie and Ros who all ran together and collectively crossed the line as one in 2:25:50.

The race was won by Harvey Speed of Coventry Godiva Harriers in 1:13:00 with Stephanie Burns of Rotherham Harriers & AC the winning woman in a time of 1:21:46. There were 2485 finishers. The event raises funds for charitable organisations: Guide Dogs; Lincs & Nottingham Air Ambulance; and the Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice.

Results

Name	Chip Time	Grading
Matthew Kingston-Lee	01:16:24	82.04%
Chris Limmer	01:22:15	72.00%
Rob Howbrook	01:30:08	80.46%
Dan Towey	01:33:23	63.41%
Peter Bonner	01:33:47	66.30%
Catherine Payne	01:36:44	78.06%
Paul Davis	01:39:29	66.73%
Mark Hillson	01:42:19	63.80%
Kevin Kettle  PB	01:44:07	66.00%
Tony Johnson	01:50:47	60.96%
Russell Maksymiw	01:56:22	53.86%
Chris Gearren	01:57:24	53.39%
Caroline Davis	02:01:00	59.53%
Nicola Cottam	02:08:26	57.36%
Nicola Fahy	02:16:20	52.31%
Magaretta Murray	02:20:23	58.15%
Julie Gilbert	02:25:50	49.94%
Shelly Dalhaug	02:25:50	46.94%
Rosalind Sadler	02:25:50	48.44%

Hubble bubble 10k

On Saturday 28th October Caroline and Paul Davis took part in the 10k event of the Hubble Bubble, organised by Its Grim up North Running. Held on the tow path of the Leeds-Liverpool canal multiple distances were on offer from 5k right up to a 32mile ultra.

Conditions were good for the 9.30am start of the out and back from Kirkstall to Leeds and back. At the turn around point it became apparent we'd had an assisting tail wind for the first 5k.

With the Worksop half marathon the following day to consider both Caroline and Paul tried to take it easy. In a fairly small field of runners Paul came home in fourth place in a field of thirty one runners in a time of 43min 56secs and Caroline came in as 3rd lady, 8th place overall in a time of 50min 12secs.

Thoresby 10, 10k and 5k

MKL won the 10 miles race

With the threat of Storm Brian looming in the background, Grantham Running Club headed out in force on Sunday 22nd October to Thoresby Hall, to take part in the Thoresby 10. A multi-terrain course in a location known for its fantastic scenery, the weather was dry but could well be described as rather blustery! With members competing in every distance category, GRC was hoping to be on to a winner.

This proved to be a good bet with the club's Chairman, Matthew Kingston-Lee, putting in an excellent run in a time of 58.22 to be the overall male winner over the 10 mile distance. He was followed by Holly Durham in 1:15:31, who bagged the second Lady position overall for the 10 mile category and a victory also came for Sarah High in her age category for the 10 Mile distance. In the 10km category, the trio of Jacqueline Jacobs, Claudette Joint and Yvonne Buckley took home first place in the Ladies team prizes over the distance. 

With several runners within the club competing officially for the first time, some members tackling new distances, and some newer members of the club taking on the 5km distance, following graduation from the successful beginners course run by the club, it was a great day for individual members and the club as a whole.  

Holly collects her prize for second lady

Full results as follows: 

10 Miles - Matthew Kingston-Lee (00:58:22), Holly Durham (01:15:31), Penny Hodges (01:17:24), Sarah High (01:24:54), Martin Carter (01:26:49), Chris Gearren (01:31:27), Nicola Fahy (01:37:50), Nicola Cottam (01:37:50), Lucinda Gamble (01:50:23). 

10km - Gordon Geach (00:49:52), Stuart Baty (00:50:32), Claudette Joint (00:51:31)  John Nevard (00:57:28), Simon Hartley (00:59:59), Kirsty Truesdale (01:00:37), Jacqueline Jacobs (01:01:04), Jonathon Lill (01:02:52), Sue Swann (01:03:12), Rory Grindey (01:05:50), Brendon Buckley (01:07:10), Tracey Smith (01:07:33), Yvonne Buckley (01:07:42), Belinda Baker (01:09:29), Claire Fritz (01:09:33), Yvette Taylor (01:10:05), Angela Carr (01:10:56), Edina Burns (01:12:32), Lynn Fisher (01:12:53, Lisa Thomas (01:13:15), Amanda Hubbard 01:13:20), Julia Hallam (01:14:32), Vicki Geeson (01:18:19), Angela Wilson (01:22:45), Chloe Amos (01:22:53). 

5km - Louise Kennedy (00:35:38), Kirsty Carter (00:38:12), Sharon Wyatt (00:39:34).

The Yorkshire Coast 10k

On Sunday 22nd October, Grantham Running Club's Vicky Willan took part in the Yorkshire Coast 10K in Scarborough. Vicky's description of the race & her experience is better than anything the club's reporter could ever dream of writing!
'Where I was dropped off meant a small walk down to the start line at the Spa on the sea front. The view was so stunning I almost forgot to be anxious! There were 2,200 bodies tightly squeezed into a narrow promenade front. Loud speakers and music filled the air and everyone was buzzing. Ten minutes to go and some local fitness instructors warmed us all up. We were all a bit too close for some of the moves but it there were no shy runners near me!'

'It was rather windy. Mild yes, bright and sunny yes, but very windy. In some parts you really did have to drive hard through not to be blown sideways or backwards. It never helped to push you forward for some reason! I think hurricane ‘Breezy Brian’ enjoyed making the runners work hard that morning.'
'As the last kilometre approached the tannoy voices and music got louder and clearer and the excitement of getting close to the finish was in me. I didn’t speed up - I just kept steady so as not to jinx my injury free run. I had just enough energy to sprint past an elderly lady on the finish line!'
'Big thank you to Louise Fenton who gave me her place and to my Scarborough friends who put me up for the night. It would have been too far for me to drive up in the morning but seeing friends and doing a run made it a fab and fun weekend.'
Vicky finished in a time of 1:03:29 which was a solid performance considering injury concerns which affected her preparation for the race.
Report: Vicky Willan/Gav Meadows

POS	BIB	GENDER	NAME	CLUB	CAT	CAT POS	CHIP TIME	Age Grading	Ranking
1367	1864	Female	Vicky Willan	GRC	V45	89/167	1:03:26	52.9%	N/A