Held in glorious autumnal conditions, the third race of the Lincolnshire Cross Country League, held at Belton House on Sunday 18th November, saw a club record turnout of 28 Grantham Running Club members take part in the men’s and women’s races.
Racing over a 6.6km course and first home for the GRC women’s
team was Penny Hodges, who ran excellently to finish eighth in 29:09. She was
followed by Caroline Davis, who finished 16th (32:13) and Willow
Stacey, who had a fine race on her debut with the club to finish 29th
(33:15) and be the third and final counter. A score of 59 points earned the
club a fine fourth place on the day.
Ten more GRC runners: Andrea Ward; Julie Gilbert; Justyna
Gill; Sylv Hull; Dona Hall; Kate Marshall; Diana McDonald; Yvonne Buckley;
Amanda Hetherington; and Margaretta Murray, all ran well to finish the race and
ensure that rival teams’ scores were potentially adversely affected.
The race was won by Katie Ball of Boston Tri in 26:25 with
Lincoln & District Runners the first placed club on 30 points.
Women’s U20/Senior/Veteran Results
|
Position
|
Name
|
Time
|
|
8
|
Penny Hodges
|
29:09
|
|
16
|
Caroline Davis
|
32:13
|
|
29
|
Willow Stacey
|
33:15
|
|
32
|
Andrea Ward
|
33:38
|
|
47
|
Julie Gilbert
|
36:56
|
|
49
|
Justyna Gill
|
38:30
|
|
51
|
Sylv Hull
|
39:08
|
|
53
|
Dona Hall
|
39:58
|
|
54
|
Kate Marshall
|
40:53
|
|
55
|
Diana McDonald
|
40:56
|
|
57
|
Yvonne Buckley
|
42:04
|
|
59
|
Amanda Hetherington
|
43:19
|
|
60
|
Margaretta Murray
|
43:19
|
With gender equality in cross country a contentious issue
currently, the men raced over a longer 9.7km course, which took in two large
laps around Belton House that included a testing climb at the beginning of each
lap, but was otherwise predominantly flat to gently rolling with plenty of
variation in scenery to make it in an interesting, moderately challenging,
course.
First home for GRC was Matthew Kingston-Lee who, after five
years with the club, finally made his debut in the Lincolnshire Cross Country League
and was rewarded with a fine fourth place finish, clocking 33:50. This was his
comfortably his best ever XC League result, partially helped by the dry
conditions underfoot and the total lack of mud, which he struggles greatly to
run on!
Matthew was followed by Grant Davies, who ran solidly to
claim eleventh place (36:09). The third and final counter was Peter Bonner who,
like Matthew, had raced the Henlow 10 mile road race three days earlier, and
ran excellently on tired legs to finish twentieth. He was pushed all the way by
club mate Stuart Sinclair, who clocked the same time (38:16) and finished one
place lower.
This gave the club a score of 35 points, the lowest of the
three races so far, and equalled the third place overall they secured at the second
race. Currently eighth in the overall standings after three races, it is a
shame the club scored poorly in the opening round, otherwise they would almost
certainly be in the top three and fighting local rivals Grantham Athletic Club
for second spot.
Behind the first four, eleven more GRC runners crossed the
finish line: Richard Payne; Nick Rossington; Stefan Latter; Paul Davis; Chris
Toon; Clive George; Craig Drury; Samuel Jepson-Rivers; Tommy Napier; Paul
Jepson; and Martin Carter.
A special mention should be made for Nick Rossington, who
made a heroic effort to chase down Jonathon Dennison of Beverley Athletic Club.
The photo finish for 35th place may have been awarded to the younger
charger, but Nick’s valiant sprint brought about the biggest cheer of the day
and firmly embodied the team spirit that cross country racing imbues.
The men’s race was won by William Tucker of Grantham
Athletic Club in 32:33, with Lincoln & District first in the men’s
standings with 18 points. The fourth and final race in the league, scheduled
for December 9th, has been postponed, but will hopefully take place
in the New Year.
Men’s U20/Senior/Veteran Results
|
Position
|
Name
|
Time
|
|
4
|
Matthew Kingston-Lee
|
33:50
|
|
11
|
Grant Davies
|
36:09
|
|
20
|
Peter Bonner
|
38:16
|
|
21
|
Stuart Sinclair
|
38:16
|
|
34
|
Richard Payne
|
40:37
|
|
36
|
Nick Rossington
|
40:42
|
|
37
|
Stefan Latter
|
41:03
|
|
52
|
Paul Davis
|
43:46
|
|
56
|
Chris Toon
|
45:07
|
|
57
|
Clive George
|
45:10
|
|
59
|
Craig Drury
|
45:16
|
|
60
|
Samuel Jepson-Rivers
|
45:26
|
|
69
|
Tommy Napier
|
47:23
|
|
74
|
Paul Jepson
|
49:37
|
|
76
|
Martin Carter
|
50:41
|
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