Turkey Trot

The Turkey Trot half marathon is the traditional end point of Grantham Running Club’s racing year, being the final event on their Grand Prix Championship. In an era of professional race organising companies, the race has a long and illustrious history of being well organised by volunteers and raising funds for the large Scout Group in the village. This history is evident in the website where one can learn more than you ever needed about the change in rules allowing registered athletes to get a discount on the entry fee in 2008.

The course is an undulating one lap road race starting and finishing at the secondary school and taking in various local villages, with a challenging final uphill section through the local housing estate. There were doubts about the weather in advance of the event but good communication from the organisers, including a recce run round the whole course the previous day, allowed it to proceed despite the chill and the still conditions meant surprisingly good racing conditions.

A Club Christmas party the previous evening and a bit of football meant that only two runners from the club actually completed the race this year. First back was Peter Bonner who was delighted to finish in 1:26:09 to gain an unexpected half marathon personal best and a 75% age grading for the second time in a fortnight.

Dean Riggall struggled with calf issues and so was well down on his best, finishing in 1:31:44. The race was won by Matthew Hammerton in 1:13:58, with the first woman being Claire Frankland in 1:23:04 and the first elf finishing in 1:25.

 

Louth and Heanor Cross Country

Last weekend saw members of GRC participating at not just one, but two cross country fixtures. First up on Saturday was the third round of the North Midlands XC League which took place at Shipley Park in Heanor. Always a favourite, this 'proper' cross country course offers a bit of everything - parkland, track, fields, woodland, uphill sections and mud. In the men's race over a distance of 10K, Rob Howbrook was first back for GRC in a time of 43:27, which put him in third place in his age group. Peter Jennings put in a great effort on this testing course, finishing second for the club in 47:17. Paul Davis followed having put in a determined performance, with Andrew MacAllister not far behind and Craig Drury bringing the team home.

 For the ladies in their 6K race, Caroline Davis was first back for GRC in 37:32, closely followed by Sarah High, who finished third in her age category.

Both teams are currently twelfth in this league.

Sunday saw several members of the club venture North to Louth for the fourth and final round of the Lincolnshire XC League.

Despite wet weather on the drive up, which could have kept the less hardy in the car, the rain held off for the ladies race. Over a distance of 5.1K and with a testing, undulating, wet and muddy course Sarah High was first back for GRC in 27:24. Paula Ebbins followed in 29:11, grateful for the cheerful support of the men's team which lifted her spirits.

A good turnout from the GRC men meant that we had two men's teams in their 7.5K race. Peter Bonner was first back in a time of 29:18 after putting in a storming effort round the slippery course. Robin Atter finished next for the club in 31:48. He was pleased with his pace being more at home on road than XC, but appreciated the variation to his winter training. Peter Jennings completed the first team with his second strong run in two days.

Team two was lead home by Paul Davis who put in a great effort finishing in 35:46. Paul was followed by Andrew MacAllister, and for both men this was also their second race of the weekend.

Paul Jepson, who enjoyed the race, finished next followed by Richard Urquhart. Paul commented that the rain holding off until the last lap was a bonus. All in all, those involved appreciated the chance to represent the club and felt that the support from team mates and the nice chats added to the morning.

Motto from the weekend...Mud: slippery when wet!

 

Valencia Marathon

Andrew Pask was the sole GRC representative in the increasingly prestigious Valencia Marathon in Spain, joining around 30,000 other runners. With world records at stake, the elite field was impressive for this flat, fast race which is almost always ran in perfect conditions.

Coming into the race in a poor run of form, Andrew had realistic expectations and was not targeting a repeat of his PB run of 3:05:10 at the same race in 2019. Running purely to feel, Andrew didn’t look at his watch during the race to relieve the pressure. Running freely and with a smile on his face he simply concentrated on keeping running in whichever way possible.

Supported by Sam Jepson, the GRC Men’s Captain, Andrew gave the thumbs up at the 17-mile point as he was about to enter the ‘business end’ of the race. Lapping-up the atmosphere in the final miles, he continued to enjoy the race in what was declared his last marathon of 15 attempts at the distance. Crossing the line at the Ciudad de las Artes he was surprised that the clock read 3:11:48.

After the race Andrew and Sam kicked back at a beach bar for the afternoon, consuming all the beer and paella they could stomach.