News

ByJim Hickie

Wanted – Race Organisers

The club wants to appoint Race Organisers for the Hameldon Hill Fell Race, the Towneley Park 10k Road Race, and the Greenway 5k Road Race. All these races are part of the Pendle & Burnley Grand Prix series.

Each Race Organiser has overall responsibility for a race. This involves obtaining the necessary permissions before the race, and managing a team of helpers responsible on race day for route marking, registration, marshalling, timekeeping and results. Although each race already has an established team of helpers a key part of the Race Organiser’s role is recruiting more helpers. Assistance is available with the organisation of the separate Junior Races that are included with each of these races. Advice and support will also be available from the 2016 Race Organisers Paul Healey (Hameldon Hill) and John Roche (Towneley 10k and Greenway 5k).

Our race organisers usually find the role rewarding and so remain in post for many years. If you think that you could by become Race Organiser in 2017 for one of these three races please get in touch with any committee member.

ByAdrienne Olszewska

Baby it’s cold outside

Winter has come and it’s been a bit parky over the weekend. There were near Arctic conditions on Pendle for the Tour, and it was a bit nippy for runners at the Chorley 10k. Didn’t slow us down though. We’ve had race wins from Jacob Watson and Danny Collinge at 10K distance, age category wins for our vet men and ladies, and team wins at Pendle. Throw in a sack of PBs and it’s all looking rather hot.

WEDNESDAY 16 NOVEMBER

Manchester Run in the Dark 10k

Congratulations to Jacob Watson who won this night time 10k in a time of 35:12. The route follows a course around Salford Quays and BBC Media City.

Report from Jacob Watson

I missed out on this event last year due to injury and, as it’s one which my work colleagues do yearly (raising money for the Bolton Bulls wheelchair basketball team). I was looking forward to finally taking part this year! The race is a 2 lap event, with runners able to choose whether they would like to run 5k or the full distance. The race organisers had clearly put a lot of effort into the event as the atmosphere at Media City was fantastic.

Jacob Watson at the Manchester Run in the Dark 10k

Jacob Watson  ( 3rd from left on the front row) at the Manchester Run in the Dark 10k

The route takes part at night and is flat as a pancake, although it does feature a lot of switchback loops which nearly had the better of me! On the first lap I managed to fall while trying to turn back as quick as possible, however I managed to right myself in no time, after telling the marshal I was still fine to run. On the second lap the lead cyclist had left me and given me a few pointers on how to navigate the second lap. I wasn’t paying much attention on the first lap as I was just concentrating on following him round! Unfortunately I got a bit lost half way round the second lap on another switchback, but was shouted back by some of the lapped runners who kindly pointed me in the right direction! Only I could go the wrong way at a road race!

Great event and myself and all my work colleagues managed to grab personal bests. Same again next year then!

Full Results

SATURDAY 19 NOVEMBER

Conwy Half Marathon

Ian Hargreaves was our sole runner in this half marathon which starts on Conwy quayside next to the river Conwy and in front of the 700 year old castle. From here it proceeds along the road to Deganwy and on to the West Shore in the Victorian town of Llandudno then along Church Walks and past the pier. A tough bit follows as runner go around the Great Orme which is undulating with a couple of steep sections before a 2 mile downhill section returning to the West shore and retracing the route to the finish on Conwy quayside.

Ian finished in 1036th place with a chip time of 01:56:34 and bagged a new PB for the distance as well. There were 2408 finishers.

Ian Hargreaves at the Conwy Half Marathon

Ian Hargreaves at the Conwy Half Marathon

Pos Name Cat Time
1036 Ian Hargreaves M 50-54 01:56:34

Full Results

Kendal Mountain Festival – Trail 10K

Wendy Dodds was our sole runner in this 10K trail race around Kendal and part of the weekend mountain festival in the town. She was 62nd lady and 1st LV60.

Pos Name Cat Time
62 Wendy Dodds W60 01:01:28

Full Results

Tour of Pendle

The Tour of Pendle is a late season, category AL fell race over and around Pendle Hill and its adjoining moors. It is 16.8 miles with 4833ft of ascent. With the race taking place in November the weather is unpredictable and no two years are ever quite the same. This year despite harsh conditions and plenty of snow, hail, wind and rain there was no move to the bad weather course like last year.

Tour of Pendle CP9 or is it Base Camp Pendle? Photo by Jamie McIlvenny

Tour of Pendle CP9 or is it Base Camp Pendle? Photo by Jamie McIlvenny

23 Clayton Harriers finished the race with Peter Coates being the first Clayton man and Sarah Helliwell the first Clayton lady. There were lots of club members dotted around the course either marshalling or simply spectating.

A Day in the Snow – Report from Dave Motley

I woke up Saturday morning hoping for bad weather on Pendle, as knowing the hill really well I figured navigationally it could give me an advantage over some of the competitors, and when I arrived in Barley I wasn’t disappointed. The only problem was that I just wanted lots of low cloud and clag, not snow, hail and freezing cold temperatures! I set off without my jacket thinking, “How cold could it actually be, surely it’ll warm up when I get going?”. How wrong I was. I got to the summit of Pendle and instantly regretted my decision stopping for a minute to grab my jacket from my bumbag. How other competitors managed to run in just a vest I have no idea! (editor’s note: I’m told that John Thompson of Newburgh Nomads is a freak of nature according to one of his fellow clubmates!)

Dave Motley and Andy Laycock at the Tour of Pendle. Photo by Phil Donlan

Dave Motley and Andy Laycock at the Tour of Pendle. Photo by Phil Donlan

Although we had bad weather, I couldn’t get any advantage on the navigation as the leaders had effectively carved a path in the snow for the entire field to follow. I had a great tussle with fellow Clayton lads Andy Laycock, Dave Bagot and Pete Coates with the four of us coming together at the bottom of the big end for the final ascent; Mr Coates smashed the climb and left the 3 of us to fight it out on the tarmac to the finish. Luckily I managed to find some energy to take a little out of Dave and Andy and managed to come back second Clayton finishing in 20th place.

First finishers and winning mens team. L-R Andy Laycock, Dave Bagot, Dave Motley, Peter Coates. Photo by Adrienne Olszewska

First finishers and winning mens team. L-R Andy Laycock, Dave Bagot, Dave Motley, Peter Coates. Photo by Adrienne Olszewska

I think I’ve completed this race 5 or 6 times now and that was definitely the worst conditions I have raced in. The soup, the coffee and cake were certainly welcome in Barley Village Hall at the end and it was great to be part of the winning ream with Clayton taking first prize. In the battle to become fell champion the win puts Mr Coates in a very good position with Dave Bagot. I think me and Carl Helliwell are just behind with one race remaining in Mytholmroyd.

Ivan Whigham having far too much of a good time at the Tour of Pendle. Photo by Nigel Hodgson

Ivan Whigham having far too much of a good time at the Tour of Pendle. Photo by Nigel Hodgson

Report from Sarah Helliwell

I had never intended to do the “Tour” until about 2 months ago. Firstly I had never run more than 11 miles and secondly not on that kind of terrain for so long! After Carl’s persuasive optimism and a few of his words of wisdom (not that he is an expert at this kind of race) what a treat I was in for! As everyone met before the race there was talk of thick snow on top, tough conditions and more snow to come in, also do not expect to do a fast time! Fast, me and fast are not in the same sentence! I had 2 goals. Get to the cut off before the 2 hours were up and then try to finish the race.

Sarah Helliwell at the start of the Tour of Pendle. Photo by Phil Donlan

Sarah Helliwell at the start of the Tour of Pendle. Photo by Phil Donlan

We were counted through before we set of past the reservoirs and out up onto Pendle for the first time as the runners made a pretty line through the snow. People were taking photos and admiring the view of the white landscape (remember I am at the back!) We got to the top and the first snow shower came in as visibility became poor as we made our over the tussocks towards the Nick. I ended up in a group of 5 runners as we encouraged each other back towards CP4. When we got to “Geronimo” I realised it was easier to slide downhill on my backside rather than run and was lucky to miss the rocks, it was good fun. As we passed CP4 I got a shout of encouragement from Kath Brady (thanks Kath) and was happy to get through the cut off with a good 12 minutes to spare.

Now the big climbs were to come as we headed over the backbone of Pendle again and another snow shower. It was here that the advice from the ‘mature experienced’ Clayton members paid off, as I slowly began to leave some of the runners I had been running with and started to catch runners who had gone too fast in the first half. I was so glad I had kept eating and drinking as I went up the climbs. I felt relatively good up Ashendean and the Big Dipper before the weather deteriorated again and I headed to the Big End. Thankfully I had caught up 2 girls and we ran as a 3. Just as we started to descend down to CP9 the clouds cleared as we slipped, skidded and sledge our way down, I have never laughed as much running in my life, and thankfully this was distracting me from having freezing feet. We were now down to a group of 2 as we grabbed handfuls of Jelly Babies and Jaffa cakes from Dave Tait before heading back up to see Andy Firth and Di at CP10. I had drunk and eaten everything by this time and was glad to see Andy with drinks, flapjacks and more jelly babies. A massive thank you to you both for hanging out in your tent in horrendous conditions up on Pendle for over 5 hours, a bet the pint tasted good when you got back to the Pendle Inn.

Andrew Firth and Dinah at checkpoint on the trig. Photo by Nigel Hodgson

Andrew Firth and Dinah at checkpoint on the trig. Photo by Nigel Hodgson

It was now time for the run back to Barley, I will never honestly say that I have ever experienced cramp in both of my inner thigh…this was literally in the last 10 meters of descending before hitting the flat stuff. My new Portuguese running friend offered my support as she cheered me on and it thankfully subsided and we made our way to the finish line. I was hoping for roughly 4 hours 15 minutes in my head; however I crossed the finish line in 4 hour 24 minutes. I was happy to finish in 1 piece as Carl, Andy Armstrong, the legend that is Pete Browning and Paul Healey were at the finish line. In the debriefing in the Pendle Inn from the “experienced” Clayton men I was told I could take a good 20-25 minutes of my time which would have put around 4 hours mark. I was well chuffed with that for my first ever long distance fell race. It is one I would recommend, especially with it being on our doorstep.

It would be great to see more Clayton ladies running it next year. The support, advice and fun I had on the day has been brilliant. A massive well done to everyone who ran, to Peter Coates with a cracking run and 1st Clayton home and the men for a great result with the men’s team. Well done.

Pos Name Cat Time
17 Peter Coates M40 02:59:42
20 Dave Motley M 03:01:02
22 David Bagot M 03:01:31
26 Andrew Laycock M 03:02:08
40 Andrew Orr M45 03:09:41
45 Carl Helliwell M40 03:10:15
52 Chris Snell M 03:11:46
61 Richard Stevenson M40 03:14:59
78 Dominic Carr M40 03:19:14
81 Martin Terry M55 03:20:46
91 Andrew Armstrong M45 03:22:53
92 Ralph Baines M45 03:22:53
97 Andrew Priory M45 03:23:19
127 Ivan Whigham M50 03:30:15
144 Chris Funnell M50 03:32:38
172 Jeffrey Pickup M65 03:40:38
178 Mark Nutter M55 03:42:03
187 Pete Booth M65 03:45:12
192 Kieran Carr M70 03:45:37
247 Geoff Smith M40 04:03:01
267 Colin Woolford M40 04:09:31
290 Martin Brady M50 04:22:25
294 Sarah Helliwell W 04:24:42

Full Results

SUNDAY 20 NOVEMBER

10K Valencia Trinidad Alfonso

Dave Burnett jetted off to Spain to take part in this popular 10K race. He was accompanied by club member Garry Wilkinson who was there in a coaching/support role for a group of Running CF competitors.

Ever the shrinking violet! Dave Burnett at the Valencia 10K. Photo by Garry Wilkinson

Ever the shrinking violet! Dave Burnett at the Valencia 10K. Photo by Garry Wilkinson

Pos Name Cat Time
346 David Burnett VETERANO MASC D 01:07:46

Full Results

Arnside Knott Fell Race

Stephen Fish and Wendy Dodds took part in this 6 mile race with 1083ft of ascent.

Report from Stephen Fish

Two Clayton runners, Wendy Dodds and myself, made the trip up to Cumbria to compete in the excellent Arnside Knott race. This race is held in an unspoilt, beautiful area of limestone crags and woods with stunning views across Morecambe Bay to Grange Over Sands, fully justifying the A.O.N.B. status. This was made all the better with the lovely sunny conditions. The route this year had an extra half mile loop added to the previous time I did it in 2014, this increase in distance now moves it up to a category BM. The only downside was I’d forgotten to pack my Clayton vest, which felt strange attaching my race number.

From the off, Wendy slowly disappeared into the distance, as I settled into my rhythm to enjoy the great route through the woods up the Arnside Knott trig point. The additional loop took us out towards the village of Arnside, where the views of the sun reflecting across the bay was breath-taking. I was quite pleased with my run, so treated myself to one of the excellent cakes on sale…..it would’ve been rude not to.

A good race, well worth the short trip up the M6. It’s ‘pre-entry’, so look out for the details around late summertime, if you look to do this one.

Clayton Results:

Wendy Dodds – FW60 57:21

Stephen Fish – M60 – 1.02.47

Full Results

Chorley Fire 10K

The race starts from the Lancashire Fire & Rescue Centre in Chorley and takes an undulating route around the local villages of Euxton and Astley Village on quiet roads.

L-R Michelle Abbott, Reece Lawrence, Chris lawrence, Helen Harrison and Danny Collinge

A half dozen Clayton Harriers braved the chill to take part in this local 10K. Danny Collinge in superb form took first place in a time of 32:57. Team mate Stephen Biscomb was our next finisher in 34th place and 1st MV60 in 43:06. Reece Lawrence was hot on Stephen’s heels in 35th place just 2 seconds behind and 1st junior male. Michelle Abbot was our first lady finisher in 64th place overall and 1st LV35 in 46:42. Christopher Lawrence and Helen Harrison completed the Clayton team finishing in 71st and 156th place respectively and with new 10K PBs

Chris Lawrence reports

Well done Team Clayton today at Chorley, especially with the icy conditions. A PB for Helen Harrison and Michelle Abbot who was also a winner in her age category. Well done ladies! Steve Biscombe was a winner in his age category, Reece was 1st junior male and Danny Collinge was the overall winner of the race. I bagged a PB for myself for 10k which just goes to show that winter training is paying off.

Pos Name Category Time
1 Danny Collinge M 32:57.8
34 Stephen Biscomb MV60 43:06.2
35 Reece Lawrence Junior Men 43:08.7
64 Michelle Abbott LV35 46:42.2
71 Christopher Lawrence MV50 47:31.4
156 Helen Harrison LV45 54:51.4

Full Results

Peak Raid 3 – Grindleford

This was the 3rd in a series of 3 hour mountain marathon events and this event took place in Derbyshire. They take a score format so competitors can set their own pace and do as much as they like as a solo competitor or as part of a pair.

Jean Brown was our only competitor and she finished in 37th place overall with a score of 285 and a time of 2:55:58. A total of 117 competitors finished the event.

Full Results

Preston 10 Mile Road Race

Two Clayton Harriers took part in this 10 Mile road race organised by Preston Harriers with a route that starts at Hutton Grammar School.

Report from John Hartley

Just Kevin Davies and I made the short trip for this two lap, flat 10 mile course. I finished in 45th place and 2nd Vet55 in 1:02:53 and Kevin was 77th and 6th Vet55 in 01:06:13. There were 413 finishers.

John Hartley at the Preston 10 Mile Road Race. Photo by David Wood

John Hartley at the Preston 10 Mile Road Race. Photo by David Wood

Pos Name Category Time
45 John Hartley V55 1:02:53
77 Kevin Davies V55 1:06:13

 Full Results

parkrun roundup

Burnley parkrun – A total of 212 runners took part.

Pos  parkrunner  Time  Age Cat  Note 
1 Danny COLLINGE 17:15 SM20-24
2 Jonathan PYE 18:36 SM25-29
3 Jordan MCDONALD 18:37 SM18-19
12 Nicholas HENNESSEY 20:25 JM11-14
14 Daniel PLANT 20:37 SM30-34
16 Simon WILSHAW 20:44 JM15-17
17 Stanley GREWAL 20:46 JM15-17
26 Reece Adam LAWRENCE 21:44 JM15-17
27 Lennon JACKSON 21:48 JM11-14
31 Stephen AINSWORTH 22:12 VM60-64
33 Mick HUGHES 22:14 VM40-44 First Timer!
34 Gordon BARRETT 22:17 VM50-54
41 Colin WHITE 22:51 VM40-44
47 George PIER 23:33 SM18-19
50 Michelle ABBOTT 23:37 VW35-39
51 Matthew JACKSON 23:41 JM10
56 Aaron LUNDIE 23:53 JM11-14
60 Chris LAWRENCE 24:11 VM50-54
63 Nina KEWIN 24:28 VW35-39
64 Irene ROCHE 24:35 VW55-59
70 David Ian SCOTT 25:00 VM70-74
81 Carl CAREY 25:41 VM45-49
84 Annabel WILCOCK 25:49 JW15-17
85 John WILCOCK 25:49 VM50-54
86 Lisa JOHNSON 25:52 VW40-44
95 Richard LAWSON 26:48 VM75-79
96 Bethany WHEATCROFT 27:01 JW11-14
105 Donna SCOTT 27:36 VW50-54
106 Julie DAWES 27:50 VW45-49
123 Stuart BARKER 29:07 VM50-54
149 Judith CAREY 31:32 VW35-39

Burnley Junior parkrun – A total of 43 runners took part.

Pos  parkrunner  Time  Age Cat  Note 
1 Nicholas HENNESSEY 7:24 JM11-14
2 Dexta THOMPSON 7:38 JM11-14
3 Aaron LUNDIE 8:19 JM11-14 First Timer!
9 Bethany WHEATCROFT 9:13 JW11-14
12 Kady THOMPSON 9:21 JW10
19 Imogen FERGUSON 10:36 JW11-14
25 Charlie PLANT 11:45 JW10
32 Emily JOHNSON 13:32 JW10

Cheltenham parkrun – A total of 379 runners took part.

Pos  parkrunner  Time  Age Cat  Note 
15 Alex CRAN 20:06 VM45-49

Dewsbury parkrun – A total of 146 runners took part.

Pos  parkrunner  Time  Age Cat  Note 
127 Robin PRICE 34:25 VM70-74

Keswick parkrun – A total of 114 runners took part.

Pos  parkrunner  Time  Age Cat  Note 
77 Eileen JONES 29:24 VW60-64 New PB!

Pendle parkrun – A total of 64 runners took part.

Pos  parkrunner  Time  Age Cat  Note 
4 Paul BRANNON 21:25 VM55-59
19 Dawn TERRY 27:33 VW50-54
53 Christine LEATHLEY 36:44 VW65-69

Stretford parkrun – A total of 369 runners took part.

Pos  parkrunner  Time  Age Cat  Note 
188 Jane HYLANDS 25:50 VW45-49

Witton parkrun – A total of 60 runners took part.

Pos  parkrunner  Time  Age Cat  Note 
59 Julia RUSHTON 51:35 VW50-54

 

ByAlan Dorrington

Mud’s up!

From stately homes to legs in a state, on road, trail, fell and the country, you’ve kept it going this week and heading toward… well that big event at the end of the year. Not too early to mention it, is it? Either way, some PBs from hard working seniors and some really good performances by Juniors who have also stepped up after putting the work in, all rounded off a sobering week.

Saturday 12 November

Cheshire 10k

Danny Collinge and John Hartley packed their flatland legs and made the trip to the stunning Elizabethan hall at Arley to run this very fast 10k. Undeterred by the rain, both of them posted very fast times in a quality field. Danny set a new PB in 7th place and is edging ever closer to that 32 min mark whilst John blazed round to finish first V60 and 83rd.

Pos Name Cat CatPos Time
8 Danny COLLINGE SEN 7 32:14
83 John HARTLEY V60 1 38:16

Full results

Harriers vs Cyclists

Louisa Powell-Smith spurned two wheels and opted for Harrier mode in this longstanding and unusual race over at Bingley. Probably a wise move as it looked pretty boggy and hard going, even more so on a bike. The Harriers won again, Tom Adams from Ilkley coming in first with Rob Jebb leading the cyclists home. Anna Lupton and Viccy Wilkinson were first runner and rider home respectively, for the women and Louisa was 5th and only 20 seconds of 2nd in a strong international ladies field, the first 4 having been top fell runners with GB vests.

37th Louisa Powell-Smith 42:15s

44th Gary Wilkinson 43:59 (2nd Vet 50)

111th (cycling) Paul Hesketh 48:15.

Full results

Louisa Powell in Harrier mode at Harriers vs Cyclists. Photo: Woodentops

Louisa Powell-Smith in Harrier mode at Harriers vs Cyclists. Photo: Woodentops

Dunnerdale Fell Race

Peter Browning sent this report about this tough late season fell race:

Just two Clayton Harriers made the journey up to south west Lakeland for the mini classic that is the Dunnerdale Fell Race.

After a wild, wet and windy Friday night, race day dawned dry but breezy and surprisingly mild. Conditions on the 8km course were very wet underfoot, with the descents requiring proper respect, but no navigation problems were encountered.
186 runners completed the course, and safely in midfield were our two runners

111. Peter Browning.   60.15
116. Wendy Dodds.     61.18. (1st LV60)

On collecting her race prize, Wendy jumped into the car and headed off to Yorkshire for that evenings FRA Presentation do, to collect her latest national trophy. Clayton’s most competitive runner ever? No question.

Warrington Way

Martin Terry continued his quest to retain his RunFurther V50 title from last year, with a strong finish at this 40 miles trail ultra base around the eponymous route of the same name and starting and finishing in Lymm, Cheshire. Martin was a fantastic 6th overall out of 123 competitors, completing the route in 5 hours 59 minutes. The RunFurther leader board hasn’t been updated yet but hopefully this was enough for Martin to retain his title this year.

Full results

Schools Cross Country Cup, Middlesborough

Ellie Root put her cross -country skills to good use when she competed in this event – Mum Sam reports back:

Ellie has run this week in the regional finals of the Schools Cross Country Cup. She ran in the inter-girls team. Ellie had a decent run and was 32nd. Although she wasn’t a counter her team won their event and have managed to secure a place in the final in December in Formby.

Red Rose Cross Country Round 3 – Leverhulme Park

Leverhulme Park. Photo: Alan Dorrington

Leverhulme Park. Photo: Alan Dorrington

It’s been a little reticent in coming but the mud is now finally here. Leverhulme delivered its usual wet conditions and the ever hardworking Jason Pier tried valiantly to find a dri(er) patch to pitch the Orange Tent of Comfort(TM) but it still ended up being at the centre of a squelchy bog. All of which is grist to the mill for the Junior and Senior cross-country teams who lapped it all up, as usual. Not literally.

Juniors

U11 Boys

Robbie Smedley on his way to 2nd. Phot: Alan Dorrington

Robbie Smedley on his way to 2nd. Photo: Alan Dorrington

Once again the U11 Boys produced strength in depth to cover many of the top placings, and take the team prize with ease. Dexta Thompson took his usual place at the head of affairs but a stand out performance from Robbie Smedley saw him take second not far behind with Finley Stubbs coming in as third counter. They were backed up by Jenson Bentham, Matthew Jackson, Joshua McKay and Toby Birtwhistle.

Pos Name Time
1 Dexta Thompson 6:52
2 Robbie Smedley 7:05
10 Finley Stubbs 7:20
12 Jenson Bentham 7:22
26 Matthew Jackson 7:44
57 Joshua Mckay 8:40
75 Toby Birtwhistle 9:07
Dexta THompson on his way to 1st U11 B. Photo: Alan Dorrington

Dexta Thompson on his way to 1st U11 B. Photo: Alan Dorrington

U11 Girls

Helena White in 5th led the U11 Girls team home to a 6th place overall backed up by Kady Thompson who is improving with every race at the moment, and Summer Hargreaves. The girls were supported by Emily Nichols, Holly Reilly and Ellisia Smedley.

Pos Name Time
5 Helena White 7:50
33 Kady Thompson 8:44
37 Summer Hargreaves 8:52
65 Emily Nichols 10:03
66 Holly Reilly 10:05
72 Ellisia Smedley 10:49

U13 Boys

Jackson McKay pushed hard for an excellent 2nd place, along with Christopher Brown, Lennon Jackson and William Nicholls and the boys took 4th place overall in the team event.

Pos Name Time
2 Jackson McKay 11:55
22 Christopher Brown 13:32
23 Lennon Jackson 13:33
34 William Nichols 14:37

U13 Girls

Ella Dorrington led Bethany Wheatcroft  and Keira Stevenson to 10th place in the team results.

Pos Name Time
12 Ella Dorrington 13:40
50 Bethany Wheatcroft 16:10
56 Keira Stevenson 16:36

U15 Boys

Just 3 U15 Boys ran – Stanley Grewel, Adam Stevenson and Aaron Lundie taking the club to 5th place in the team event.

Pos Name Time
26 Stanley Grewel 17:31
35 Adam Stevenson 19:30
40 Aaron Lundie 22:23

U15 Girls

The U15 Girls narrowly missed out on 2nd team after great runs from Briony Holt and Millie Stubbs, with Natasha Olzsweska continuing to improve in her races after some hard work in training, with 21st place. Liberty Thompson supported the girls in 26th.

Natasha Olszweska working hard. Photo: Alan Dorrington

Natasha Olszweska working hard. Photo: Alan Dorrington

Pos Name Time
5 Briony Holt 17:53
9 Millie Stubbs 18:55
21 Natasha Olszweska 20:57
26 Liberty Thompson 22:09

 

Under 17 Boys and Girls

Curtis Holt was 7th and Simon Wilshaw 10th in the Boys race with Lucy Stevenson flying the flag as sole Clayton Girl in 20th in the Girls race.

 

Senior Ladies

Pos Name Cat Time
54 Michelle Abbot L35 27:16
57 Irene Roche L55 27:31
58 Cassie Darling-Smedley L35 27:37
80 Julia Rushton L50 29:52
87 Rachel Todd L40 31:19
90 Helen Burnett L45 45:24
92 Adrienne Olszweska L45 32:35
109 Susan Allen L55 36:38
110 Judith Carey L35 36:49
114 Christine Leathley L65 40:23

Irene Roche reports:

There was a good turn out on Saturday for the third meeting of this league. We had plenty of senior ladies and men to make up teams for the club. With the tent ready nice and early (as always) by Jason Pier and helpers, the experience of cross country always has a comfortable and well organised start for us. The course naturally offered plenty of mud and on this particular event much of it vertical as we scrambled out of the woods. However, a rest from the mud was offered from the winding trails through the woods where a bit more speed could be had – if space allowed for passing the runner in front. A challenging course! Well done all who ran.

Senior Men

Pos Name Cat Time
32 Robert Aspinall V55 40:49
37 Peter Coates V40 41:09
39 Jonathan Cleaver Sen 41:29
44 Dave Motley Sen 41:58
46 Andrew Laycock Sen 42:06
50 Chris Snell Sen 42:23
51 Richard Stevenson V40 42:24
56 Matthew Duckworth Sen 42:42
66 Andrew Orr V45 43:43
80 Andrew Holt V40 44:30
97 Kevin Davies V50 46:01
98 Gareth Berry V40 46:02
102 Alex Cran V45 46:19
116 John Wilcock V50 47:42
138 Andy Quinn V45 49:09
166 James Hickie V55 51:02
184 Andrew Howarth V55 52:49
194 Craig Nicholls V40 53:41
215 Carl Carey V45 56:36

The Senior team was 5th overall and the Vets team 3rd. Well done to all that braved the mud.

Full Results

BOFRA Presentation evening

A rather glamorous location at the Stirk House Hotel, Gisburn saw the BOFRA fraternity reunited for one last time this season with 3 young (and one not so young) Clayton athletes all there to enjoy the final prize presentation.

Briony Holt (1st U17 Girl overall, Ella Dorrington (2nd U12 Girl overall) and Dexta Thompson (1st U12 Boy overall) all picked up their trophies whilst the ever enthusiastic Richard Briscoe picked up his series t shirt for completing the required 8 championship races. Richard was camera shy so here are Briony, Dexta and Ella instead.

U17 G winner Briony, 2nd U12B Dexta and 2nd U12G Ella get their trophies.

U17 G winner Briony, 2nd U12B Dexta and 2nd U12G Ella get their trophies.

 

Sunday 13 November

Windmill 10k

Clayton at the Windmill 10k

Clayton at the Windmill 10k

The big race of Sunday, from a Clayton point of view was the Windmill 10k, at Lytham. With a fast and flat course along the coastal fron past Lytham and Fairhaven Lake, the event first ran in 2011 and is growing in popularity. Among the athletes to get a PB was Mick Hughes…15078904_10211573321035462_2209104053296040252_n

 

Pos Name Category Time
18 Daniel Plant Men 40:20
26 James Boult Men 41:38
28 Stephen Ainsworth Male Vet Over 60 41:42
46 Stephen Biscomb Male Vet Over 60 43:19
53 Elizabeth Mullan Ladies 43:49
55 Mick Hughes Male Vet Over 40 44:02
67 Colin White Male Vet Over 40 44:52
88 Robert Morrison Male Vet Over 40 45:56
101 Adam Stephenson Men 46:36
104 Michelle Abbott Lady Vet Over 35 46:43
162 Ian Hargreaves Male Vet Over 50 49:17
220 Julie Dawes Lady Vet Over 45 51:00
285 Danny Pilkington Male Vet Over 40 52:56
292 Tony Pilling Male Vet Over 50 53:05
308 Jane Hylands Lady Vet Over 45 53:27
363 Helen Harrison Lady Vet Over 45 55:05
484 Deborah Greenwood Lady Vet Over 45 58:29
552 Karen Clarkin Lady Vet Over 40 1:00:22
601 Anita Jones Lady Vet Over 60 1:01:45

Full Results

Wadsworth Half Trog

Even Half a Trog is enough bog to strike fear into a fell runners heart but Jeffrey Pickup braved the diluvian conditions of the moors around Wadsworth for this semi-classic race, taking in the ‘best’ bits of the full Bog, sorry Trog race in February. No results yet, but hopefully he has dried out by now.

Parkrun

Burnley Parkrun – a total of 210 runners took part

Pos Parkrunner Time Age Cat Note
2 Jonathan PYE 18:58 SM25-29
8 Daniel PLANT 20:52 SM30-34
10 Nicholas HENNESSEY 21:18 JM11-14
30 Colin WHITE 23:24 VM40-44
36 Michelle ABBOTT 23:53 VW35-39
44 Nina KEWIN 24:27:00 VW35-39
54 Andy QUINN 25:16:00 VM45-49
55 Sophie ASHWORTH 25:17:00 JW11-14
65 Julie DAWES 25:52:00 VW45-49
72 Donna SCOTT 26:24:00 VW50-54
74 Annabel WILCOCK 26:33:00 JW15-17
75 John WILCOCK 26:34:00 VM50-54
80 Jake ANFORTH 26:53:00 JM10
109 Richard LAWSON 28:35:00 VM75-79
113 Helen HARRISON 28:54:00 VW45-49
122 Stuart BARKER 29:47:00 VM50-54

Bolton parkrun

A total of 191 runners took part.

Pos Parkrunner Time Age Cat Note
54 Katy THOMPSON 27:45 VW60-64

Dewsbury parkrun

A total of 109 runners took part.

Pos Parkrunner Time Age Cat Note
99 Robin PRICE 35:41 VM70-74

Pendle parkrun

A total of 51 runners took part.

Pos Parkrunner Time Age Cat Note
1 Christopher HOLDSWORTH 17:34 SM25-29
17 Martin BRADY 25:49 VM50-54

Fell Foot parkrun, Newby Bridge

A total of 137 runners took part.

Pos Parkrunner Time Age Cat Note
74 Eileen JONES 29:14 VW60-64

Witton parkrun

A total of 54 runners took part.

Pos Parkrunner Time Age Cat Note
53 Julie RUSHTON 47:08 VW50-54

 

ByJim Hickie

Special General Meeting – 5th December

Notice of Special General Meeting
7 pm Monday 5th December 2016
The Woodman Inn
129 Todmorden Rd
Burnley BB11 3EX

Junior Subscriptions
At the November committee meeting the Treasurer recommended that the annual subscription for junior members be increased from £4 to £12. The committee supports this recommendation and is proposing that this is achieved by adopting the following change to our membership structure.

As the Under 23 subscription is currently £12 it is proposed to remove the Under 18 (Junior) membership class. Thus all Junior members will become Under 23 members with an annual subscription of £12.

If the proposal is approved for current Junior members the annual subscription due on 1st January 2017 will be £12.

In accordance with the club’s constitution a Special General Meeting (SGM) has been called to seek approval for this proposal from the membership. All members are entitled to attend the meeting and speak on the matter which will conclude with a vote. Only members aged 16 and over are eligible to vote on the proposal. Members who are eligible to vote but cannot attend the meeting may cast their vote via proxy by notifying me at least 72 hours before meeting. Full details of the rules around proxy voting are set out in clause 11(g) of the constitution.

I would also ask that if you are planning to attend the meeting that you let me know in advance so I can be sure there is enough room to accommodate everyone.

Please feel free to contact me if you need any further information around this proposal or the SGM. A statement from the Treasurer will be provided at the meeting, and is available on request beforehand.

John Wilcock
Secretary

SGM Agenda
SGM Proxy form

ByAdrienne Olszewska

Winter is coming

The summer is well and truly behind us and the temperatures are beginning to plummet. There was even the first flurries of snow on the top of Pendle this weekend. That means nothing and there’s still racing to be had. This week you have been out on the fells, the roads and even racing on foreign shores.

SATURDAY 5 NOVEMBER

SHEPHERD’S SKYLINE FELL RACE

The Shepherds Skyline Fell Race is a popular event organised by Todmorden Harriers with junior races as well. It’s an ideal warm up for bonfire night along a fast, muddy course – with a steep descent off Stoodley Pike for the kamikaze descenders, immediately followed by a stiff climb back up the hill for the stout-legged amongst you. Juniors can expect to get tired and muddy, but that’s half the fun!

U8s Race

Felix Thompson at the Shepherd's Skyline races. Photo by Geoff Thompson

Felix Thompson at the Shepherd’s Skyline races. Photo by Geoff Thompson

Pos Name Time
10 Felix Thompson 4:56
12 Ellisia Smedley 5:10

U10s Race

Ellisia Smedley with Kady Thompson just behind at the Shepherd's Skyline races. Photo by Geoff Thompson

Ellisia Smedley with Kady Thompson just behind at the Shepherd’s Skyline races. Photo by Geoff Thompson

Pos Name Time
19 Kady Thompson 9:57

U12s Race

Pos Name Time
2 Dexta Thompson 6:27
7 Christopher Brown 7:04
9 Robbie Smedley 7:13

Senior Race

Fourteen seniors took part in the senior races. Peter Coates was our first Clayton man in 10th place overall and 1st Vet 40. Rachel Todd was our first Clayton lady in 239th place.

Report from Peter Coates

The Shepherd’s Skyline fell race sets off from the Shepherd’s Rest Inn in Todmorden and is an approximately 10KM race that takes runners up Stoodley Pike. This is followed by a fast, technical descent off the Pike before a final climb back up the hill and then a muddy downhill to the finish. I’ve learned from previous years that a good start is essential in this race as there can be around 280 runners and only a narrow single track where passing is difficult. I think I set off a little too quick as I found myself towards the front of the pack just behind the fast lads. I managed to finish 10th overall and was first vet40 although I didn’t realise that until the following day. It is a really good, well-organised race and well worth doing.

Peter Coates at the Shepherd's Skyline Fell Race. Photo by Woodentops

Peter Coates at the Shepherd’s Skyline Fell Race. Photo by Woodentops

Report from Michelle Butschok

This was my first time racing the Shepherd’s Skyline and I was really glad I gave it a whirl. It was bitterly cold and windy when myself and Rachel Todd arrived but there was a great turnout and a really friendly reception from our fellow Clayton runners. A lovely scenic route up to the Pike and then a fast descent before another climb and back to the finish. Special thanks to Robert Hirst for his encouragement towards the end of my race. Will definitely look to do this one again next year!

Michelle Butschok at the Shepherd's Skyline fell race. Photo by Woodentops

Michelle Butschok at the Shepherd’s Skyline fell race. Photo by Woodentops

Pos Name Cat Time
10 Peter Coates M40 48:10
17 Carl Helliwell M40 49:24
47 Andrew Armstrong M45 54:12
74 Ivan Wigham M50 57:14
105 Mark Nutter M55 60:40
153 Peter Browning M55 65:43
158 Peter Dugdale M60 66:13
161 Colin Woolford M40 66:53
165 Andrew Dugdale M50 67:36
183 Andrew Firth M55 69:47
199 Stephen Fish M60 72:35
239 Rachel Todd F40 79:01
262 Michelle Butschck F40 85:45
263 Robert Hirst M65 85:47

Full Results

SUNDAY 6 NOVEMBER

AGE UK LEEDS ABBEY DASH

Laura Hesketh was our sole runner in this very fast, popular 10K. She finished in 380th place overall with a time of 00:37:34

Full Results

DERWENTWATER 10

Mark Wightman was our sole runner in this 10 mile road race organised by Keswick Athletic Club. The route loops for 10 miles on an undulating course around Derwentwater in a clockwise direction.

Mark finished in 109th place overall with a time of 01:12:56 in a field of 476 runners.

Full Results

GUY FAWKES 10

Roger Brewster was our only runner in this 10 mile race in Ripley, N Yorks. He finished in 111th place overall with a time of 01:12:54 in a field of 816 runners.

Full Results

Maraton Internacional de S.C de Tenerife – 8KM

Well done to Hayley Copeman who took time out while on holiday to run in the 8KM race in Santa Cruz. She finished in 692nd place in a field of 1067 runners with a time of 00:43:22.

Hayley Copeman at the Santa Cruz 8KM

Hayley Copeman at the Santa Cruz 8KM

THROUGH THE VILLAGES RACE

Fifteen club members took part in this 8.45 mile, undulating road race taking in the scenic West Pennine Moors and local villages of Wheelton, Brinscall, Abbey Village and Withnell. Matthew Duckworth was the first Clayton finisher in 21st place with a time of 00:53:23 and together with Jon Cleave in 28th and Chris Snell in 32nd took first place in the senior men’s team as well. David Scott was 1st V70 and 181st overall in the race. Julia Rushton was our only lady runner and she finished in 221st place with a time of 01:16:15.

L-R Ian Hargreaves, Brian Wildman, Stephen Biscomb, Martin Brady and David Scott.

Some of the Team Clayton runners. L-R Ian Hargreaves, Brian Wildman, Stephen Biscomb, Martin Brady and David Scott.

Pos    Name    Cat    CatPos    Time   
21 Matthew Duckworth M (009/062) 00:53:23
28 Jonathan Cleaver M (011/062) 00:54:22
32 Chris Snell M (013/062) 00:54:53
59 Daniel Plant M (022/062) 00:58:53
76 John Wilcock M50 (013/037) 01:01:02
84 Stephen Biscomb M60 (002/006) 01:01:57
100 Richard Briscoe M (033/062) 01:03:21
105 Andy Quinn M45 (015/033) 01:03:37
108 Robert Morrison M40 (019/034) 01:03:49
158 Geoff Smith M40 (025/034) 01:09:14
160 Martin Brady M50 (023/037) 01:09:20
170 Brian Wildman M50 (024/037) 01:10:00
181 David Scott M70 (001/002) 01:10:53
195 Ian Hargreaves M50 (027/037) 01:12:29
221 Julia Rushton F50 (004/010) 01:16:15

Full Results

Parkrun roundup

Burnley parkrun – A total of 342 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
3 Danny COLLINGE 18:52 SM20-24
6 Jonathan CLEAVER 19:41 VM35-39
8 Simon WILSHAW 19:54 JM15-17 New PB!
12 Alex CRAN 20:13 VM45-49
14 Reece Adam LAWRENCE 20:29 JM15-17
28 Nick ROSCOE 21:40 VM45-49
35 Terry O’LEARY 22:02 VM35-39
38 Colin WHITE 22:06 VM40-44
42 Donna RILEY 22:21 VW50-54
52 Lennon JACKSON 23:05 JM11-14
54 Michelle ABBOTT 23:09 VW35-39
56 Andy QUINN 23:11 VM45-49
63 Sophie ASHWORTH 23:28 JW11-14
64 Jonathan PYE 23:29 SM25-29
68 Matthew JACKSON 23:42 JM10
69 Chris LAWRENCE 23:43 VM50-54
70 Nina KEWIN 23:46 VW35-39
94 Matthew DUCKWORTH 24:50 SM25-29
96 Dawn TERRY 24:57 VW50-54
104 Andrew WEBSTER 25:07 VM45-49
106 Julie DAWES 25:09 VW45-49
112 Bethany WHEATCROFT 25:21 JW11-14
115 Annabel WILCOCK 25:29 JW15-17
116 Donna SCOTT 25:29 VW50-54
117 John WILCOCK 25:31 VM50-54
122 Andrew TAYLOR 25:37 VM55-59
129 Jane HYLANDS 25:51 VW45-49 New PB!
147 Heidi KEWIN 27:04 JW11-14
148 Aaron LUNDIE 27:10 JM11-14
167 Carl CAREY 27:56 VM45-49
171 Jack MCGUIRE 28:10 VM60-64 New PB!
182 Ron CHAPPELL 28:35 VM65-69
186 Richard LAWSON 28:43 VM75-79
187 Charlie PLANT 28:47 JW10
188 Daniel PLANT 28:48 SM30-34
201 Stuart BARKER 29:09 VM50-54
223 Karen CLARKIN 29:53 VW40-44
230 Judith CAREY 30:02 VW35-39 New PB!
239 Christine Jennifer EGERTON 30:12 VW65-69
256 Marion WILKINSON 31:17 VW70-74
287 Christine LEATHLEY 33:05 VW65-69

Burnley junior parkrun – A total of 45 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
1 Dexta THOMPSON 7:25 JM11-14
4 Matthew JACKSON 8:15 JM10
9 Liberty THOMPSON 8:58 JW11-14
11 Bethany WHEATCROFT 9:15 JW11-14
12 Kady THOMPSON 9:16 JW10
17 Felix THOMPSON 9:51 JM10
18 Heidi KEWIN 9:52 JW11-14
21 Imogen FERGUSON 10:16 JW11-14
23 Charlie PLANT 10:36 JW10

Heaton parkrun – A total of 606 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
357 Eileen JONES 29:11 VW60-64

Inverness parkrun – A total of 165 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
5 Colin SHUTTLEWORTH 19:32 VM55-59

Oakwell Hall parkrun – A total of 230 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
157 Robin PRICE 34:51 VM70-74 New PB!

Pendle parkrun – A total of 86 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
3 Dave MOTLEY 20:16 VM35-39 First Timer!
4 Paul BRANNON 20:31 VM55-59
12 John HARTLEY 21:03 VM55-59
13 Paul HESKETH 21:06 VM50-54
25 Finley STUBBS 24:10 JM10
28 Martin BRADY 24:46 VM50-54

Rutland Water parkrun – A total of 134 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
27 Katy THOMPSON 24:33 VW60-64 First Timer!

Woodbank parkrun – A total of 192 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
145 Ron HILL 35:31 VM75-79

 

ByAdrienne Olszewska

No tricks, just treats!

As we draw near the scary and spooky shenanigans associated with Halloween, one thing is clear; this has been a week of treats with no tricks in sight. You’ve been parkrunning in fancy dress, cross country running at a couple of venues, and storming along in 10Ks with wins, category triumphs and PBs galore.

SATURDAY 29 OCTOBER

RACE YOU TO THE SUMMIT

No results as yet but Robert Hirst, Jack Maguire and John Francis spotted on the photos by Woodentops.

John Francis who ran this race for the first time in 1967. Photo by Woodentops

John Francis who ran this race for the first time in 1967. Photo by Woodentops

In fact, John Francis ran the 1st Gale Fell Race in 1967 to the White House and back, which has been reinvented as Final Race You to the Summit Race where he is pictured racing. Amazing stuff!

MID LANCS CROSS COUNTRY LEAGUE – CUERDEN VALLEY

This was the second fixture of the Mid Lancs League cross country. It’s the first time a fixture has been held at Cuerden Valley, as the proposed event last year was cancelled in the aftermath of the terrible winter floods. Cuerden Valley Country Park had a whole lot of terrain to offer the cross country runners with a mix of flat muddy sections, woodland paths and a tussocky hill.

Danny Collinge at the Cuerden fixture. Photo by David Wood

Danny Collinge at the Cuerden fixture. Photo by David Wood

Unfortunately, there was a clash with the Red Rose League event at Witton Park but with the Mid Lancs taking precedence for the club just a group of junior runners and a couple of seniors took part in the Red Rose event with the rest of the juniors and the senior runners taking on the challenge of a new course at Cuerden.

U11 Girls

Helana White and Rachel Stevenson ran in this race and tackled this tough and hilly course with gusto. Helana had a great run earing a top ten finish. She was 8th overall with an excellent time of 7:04 in a field of 58 runners. Rachel was 52nd and despite the course being blocked by absent-minded spectators managed an excellent final spring to hold off a Barlick rival.

Pos Name Time
8 Helana White 7:04
52 Rachel Stevenson 9:22

U13 Girls

We had a full team of U13 girls comprising Keira Stevenson, Roanna Holdsworth and Bronia Olszewska. They finished 9th in the team competition. With a couple of climbs this was a challenging course for the team who put in a sterling effort to gain team points in the competition.

Pos Name Time
39 Keira Stevenson 14:19
40 Roanna Holdsworth 14:31
43 Bronia Olszewska 15:10

U15 Girls

After success in the last Mid Lancs fixture our U15 girls were out for a good result at this race. Briony Holt was our first finisher in 1st place, Millie Stubbs was 6th and Natasha Olszewska was 15th. These excellent performances gave them the win they were looking for and for the second time they took the 1st team position.

Pos Name Time
1 Briony Holt 13:41
6 Millie Stubbs 14:36
15 Natasha Olszewska 15:53

U15 Boys

It was great to see a full team in this age category. Stanley Grewel was our first finisher in 10th place, Adam Stevenson was 23rd and Jay Bowman was 25th. They were 4th team overall.

Pos Name Time
10 Stanley Grewel 14:17
23 Adam Stevenson 15:36
25 Jay Bowman 16:07

Ladies’ Race

A dozen ladies turned out to tackle this tough course. Elizabeth Mullan was our first finisher in 30th place with Donna Airey following in 45th despite carrying an injury. Michelle Abbott made a mad dash over from the Witton Park fixture to get there just in time to count in the A team.

Michelle Abbot racing hard at Cuerden after racing over from Witton. Photo by David Wood

Michelle Abbot racing hard at Cuerden after racing over from Witton. Photo by David Wood

Ladies A (E Mullan | D Airey | M Abbott) finished in 13th place.

Ladies B (J Bennett | S Helliwell | J Knightley ) were 21st.

Ladies Over 35 (D Airey | M Abbot | J Bennett) were 8th.

Ladies Over 45 (J Bennett | J Knightley | J Pollard) were 7th.

Ladies Over 55 (J Knightley | S Allen | C Leathley) were 5th.

Pos Name Cat Time
30 Elizabeth Mullan L 24:04
45 Donna Airey L35 25:01
54 Michelle Abbott L35 25:24
70 Joanne Bennett L45 26:30
84 Sarah Helliwell L35 27:36
87 Jean Knightley L55 27:58
99 Janine Pollard L45 29:02
102 Jane Hylands L45 29:17
117 Adrienne Olszewska L45 30:31
147 Susan Allen L55 34:43
151 Judith Carey L35 35:04
159 Christine Leathley L65 38:26

Men’s Race

29 men ran in the race. Danny Collinge was our first Clayton Man in 9th place overall. Our senior men finished strongly in 3rd place overall and our vet men were first in both the Over 40 and Over 50 teams. An excellent result for the men.

Kevin aka Tiger Davies at Cuerden. Photo by David Wood

Kevin aka Tiger Davies at Cuerden. Photo by David Wood

Our senior men’s team (D Collinge | M Perry| J Watson | P Coates | C Helliwell | R Stevenson) finished in 3rd place.

Men’s Team B (R Aspinall | D Motley | C Snell | A Laycock | G Wilkinson | M Duckworth) finished 9th

Men Over 40 (P Coates | C Helliwell | R Stevenson | R Aspinall) were 1st.

Men Over 50 (R Aspinall | G Wilkinson | K Davies) were 1st.

Pos Name Cat Time
9 Danny Collinge M 34:05
16 Matt Perry M 35:23
37 Jacob Watson M 37:33
41 Peter Coates V40 37:46
46 Carl Helliwell V40 38:09
47 Richard Stevenson V40 38:10
48 Robert Aspinall V50 38:14
53 Dave Motley M 38:44
54 Chris Snell M 38:47
63 Andrew Laycock M 39:16
66 Garry Wilkinson V50 39:21
84 Matthew Duckworth M 40:51
107 Kevin Davies V50 41:56
113 Brian Horrocks V50 42:08
114 Alan Life V50 42:14
129 Alex Cran V40 43:31
132 John Wilcock V50 43:40
154 Nick Roscoe V40 44:18
155 Mark Wightman V50 44:19
163 Andrew Payne M 44:51
185 Andy Quinn V40 46:22
202 James Hickie V50 47:12
217 Jason Pier V40 48:21
218 Mick Hughes V40 48:39
223 Andrew Howarth V50 48:55
240 Peter Browning V50 50:27
242 David Scott V70 50:50
254 Christopher Lawrence V50 51:46
264 Carl Carey V40 53:21

Full Results

OMM – Original Mountain Marathon

Congratulations to Jean Brown who  was running with double Bob Graham record holder, Nicky Spinks, in the OMM Elite race. They finished in 16th place overall, 2nd ladies team and 1st Vet ladies team.

Full Results

RED ROSE CROSS COUNTRY LEAGUE – WITTON PARK

An unfortunate clash of fixtures left numbers somewhat depleted in this race with the club prioritising the Mid Lancs League

U17 Men. L-R Reece Lawrence, Curtis Holt, Thomas Bradley.

U17 Men. L-R Reece Lawrence, Curtis Holt, Thomas Bradley.

U11 Boys

With our first three finishers in the top ten it was no surprise to see the U11 Boy’s team take 1st place.

Pos Name Time
1 Dexta Thompson 6:32
5 Robbie Smedley 6:57
7 Finlay Stubbs 7:02
12 Jenson Bentham 7:07
27 Matthew Jackson 7:21
44 Thomas Ashworth 7:44
57 Joshua McKay 8:07
65 Toby Birtwistle 8:22

U11 Girls

Four U11 girls took part in the race and their team finished in 11th place.

Pos Name Time
19 Kady Thompson 8:07
56 Tillie Ferguson 9:38
57 Ellisia Smedley 9:48
61 Emily Nicholls 10:11

U13 Boys

Three boys took part in the 13 race. Jackson McKay’s first place chopped the points and took them to 6th place overall.

Pos Name Time
1 Jackson McKay 10:17
26 Lennon Jackson 11:50
39 William Nicholls 13:00

U13 Girls

Some stiff competition in the U13 girls’ team who finished in 9th place.

Pos Name Time
8 Ella Dorrington-Levy 11:39
27 Sophie Ashworth 12:36
49 Bethany Wheatcroft 13:58
60 Imogen Ferguson 14:32

U15 Girls

We had two girls in this race.

Pos Name Time
17 Liberty Thompson 18:53
23 Claudia Bentham 20:20

U17 Men

It was great to see the club fielding a team in this age category. Our U17 men’s team were 3rd.

Pos Name Time
6 Curtis Holt 19:41
8 Thomas Bradley 21:04
11 Reece Lawrence 21:32

Senior Men

Just two senior runners at Witton Park.

Pos Name Cat Time
80 Andrew Orr V45 39:33
149 Stephen Breckell V65 45:43

Full Results

SUNDAY 30 OCTOBER

ACCRINGTON 10K

Sixteen Clayton Harriers took part in the Accrington 10K race. Matthew Duckworth was our first Clayton man and 9th overall in the race. Elizabeth Mullan was our first lady finisher.

Report from Matthew Duckworth

After running a difficult and hilly cross country race on Saturday,  I was not expecting a great race. As I was warming up I was determined as usual but expecting a slower time than last year so I was pleasantly surprised when I achieved a new PB! When running to the finish line I saw the clock ’37:29′ and thought holy ****! How? A great overall race with an out of the ordinary participant leading us through Huncoat on his horse and trap. It was a fantastic road race; a great course with a few difficult and steep end miles. There was an excellent atmosphere, fantastic and motivating marshals and the race was well managed as usual. An overall great race and a brilliant result!

Matthew Duckworth running well at the Accrington 10K. Photo by David Belshaw

Matthew Duckworth running well at the Accrington 10K. Photo by David Belshaw

Pos Name Cat Time
9 Matthew Duckworth M 00:37:35
42 Stephen Biscomb V60 00:43:29
53 Stephen Green V60 00:44:33
54 Robert Morrison V40 00:44:40
56 Elizabeth Mullan F 00:44:47
64 Colin White V40 00:45:18
69 Adam Stephenson M 00:45:43
85 Helen O’Rourke F 00:47:34
97 Ian Hargreaves V50 00:48:50
104 Rebecca Crawshaw F35 00:49:19
110 Brian Wildman V50 00:49:52
124 Julie Dawes F45 00:51:06
137 Julia Rushton F50 00:52:06
196 Robert Hirst V65 00:59:41
213 Ron Chappell V65 01:01:38
268 Kathleen Garnett L75 01:31:14

BRONTE WAY FELL RACE

Half a dozen Clayton Harriers took part in this 7.5 mile fell race with 1152ft of ascent.

Paul Hesketh at the Bronte Way Fell Race. Photo by Woodentops

Paul Hesketh at the Bronte Way Fell Race. Photo by Woodentops

Paul Hesketh was our first man in 24th place overall. Sarah Helliwell was our sole lady runner.

Sarah Helliwell at the Bronte Way Fell Race. Photo by Woodentops

Sarah Helliwell at the Bronte Way Fell Race. Photo by Woodentops

Pos Name Cat Time
24 Paul Hesketh M50 01:04:01
69 Jeffrey Pickup M65 01:11:59
76 Andy Bradley M50 01:13:02
104 Geoff Smith M40 01:18:50
119 Simon Stansfield M40 01:22:15
143 Sarah Helliwell F35 01:27:34

Full Results

SHEFFIELD 10K

Over 3000 runners took on a city centre route, starting in Arundel Gate, and on a journey along Charter Row and along Ecclesall Road, before skirting the edges of pretty Endcliffe Park. The route then continues along Riverdale Road, along Endcliffe Vale Road, close to the Botanical Gardens, then travels down Brocco Bank and back to an exhilarating city centre finish.

L-R Reece Lawrence, Danny Collinge and Chris Lawrence

L-R Reece Lawrence, Danny Collinge and Chris Lawrence

Danny Collinge had a great run and won the race with a time of 32:38. He was very happy with the result having battled hard with two other runners in the final 2K to take the victory. David Bagot was our next finisher who also had an excellent run to finish in 6th place with a time of 35:20. They were joined by clubmates Reece and Chris Lawrence who finished in 154th and 716th place respectively.

Pos Name Cat Time
1 Danny Collinge U23 32:38
6 David Bagot M 35:20
154 Reece Lawrence M 42:37
716 Chris Lawrence V50 50:23

Full Results

Parkrun roundup

Burnley parkrun – A total of 267 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
1 Jonathan PYE 18:07 SM25-29
2 Laura HESKETH 18:12 SW30-34
14 Gareth BERRY 20:30 VM40-44
28 Gordon BARRETT 21:55 VM50-54
32 Donna RILEY 22:00 VW50-54
48 Michelle ABBOTT 23:03 VW35-39
57 Colin WHITE 23:36 VM40-44
60 Nina KEWIN 23:46 VW35-39
63 Julie DAWES 24:10 VW45-49
79 Aaron LUNDIE 25:20 JM11-14
81 Cassandra Darling SMEDLEY 25:23 VW35-39
90 Annabel WILCOCK 25:43 JW15-17
93 John WILCOCK 25:46 VM50-54
94 Donna SCOTT 25:47 VW50-54
99 Chris LAWRENCE 26:00 VM50-54
171 Stuart BARKER 29:48 VM50-54
193 Alan DORRINGTON 30:32 VM45-49
199 Marion WILKINSON 31:15 VW70-74

Fell Foot parkrun, Newby Bridge – A total of 189 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
87 Charlie PLANT 28:05 JW10 First Timer!
88 Daniel PLANT 28:05 SM30-34

Fulham Palace parkrun – A total of 378 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
281 Eileen JONES 28:35 VW60-64 First Timer!

Gorleston Cliffs parkrun – A total of 250 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
8 John HARTLEY 19:27 VM55-59

Lytham Hall parkrun – A total of 203 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
165 Philip NAYLOR 32:27 VM35-39

Medina I.O.W. parkrun – A total of 289 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
26 Simon WILSHAW 21:07 JM15-17 New PB!

Pendle parkrun – A total of 77 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
8 Richard BRISCOE 21:56 VM35-39
18 Martin BRADY 25:02 VM50-54

Sewerby parkrun – A total of 175 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
4 Jonathan CLEAVER 19:13 VM35-39 First Timer!

Stamford Park parkrun – A total of 77 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
52 Ron HILL 35:05 VM75-79 First Timer!

Warrington parkrun –  total of 316 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
77 Katy THOMPSON 24:17 VW60-64 First Timer!

 

ByAdrienne Olszewska

A quiet week

It’s been a fairly quiet week. With autumn well and truly upon us, the nights are beginning to draw in and the temperatures are dropping so there’s not a great deal of racing to be had. However, as always you have been out and about nonetheless. There’s been cross country for schools and at the Northerns for our junior runners, and there’s been ultra running success, road marathons and fell races for our seniors.

Runfurther Championship 2016

Congratulations to ultra runner Martin Terry who finished 7th overall in this year’s RunFurther championship and as a club we finished 4th team (Martin Terry, Nicholas Olszewski and Simon Halliday) from 31 teams in total.

Next Year’s races will be announced at the prizegiving on 13 November.

Final Standings

Wednesday 19 October

Burnley Secondary Schools Cross Country

Well done to all of our junior runners that took part in this event.

Saturday 22 October

Great Whernside

Fifteen Clayton-le-Moors Harriers took part in this 4 mile fell race with 1558ft of ascent organised by Wharfedale Harriers. The race starts at the bottom of the fell and the initial ascent is on grass following track and path through the fields uphill to a cottage at Hag Dyke. After passing through a gate the terrain changes dramatically. First a rocky scramble over rough ground followed by a short stretch of peat and bog and then a final steep descent over rocky ground. At the cairn it’s then about turn and anyway back to the start; either across the heather or back down the path.

Matt Perry at the Whernside Fell Race. Photo by Woodentops

Matt Perry at the Great Whernside Fell Race. Photo by Woodentops

Matt Perry was our first finisher in 14th place. Wendy Dodds was our first lady runner and also 1st V60 lady.

Wendy Dodds at the Great Whernside Fell Race. Photo by Woodentops

Wendy Dodds at the Great Whernside Fell Race. Photo by Woodentops

Pos Name Cat Time
14 Matt Perry M 34:42
26 Dave Motley M 37:53
71 Mark Nutter MV50 44:14
79 Jon Sharples MV60 45:02
108 Darren Rushton MV40 48:18
112 Andrew Firth MV50 48:57
115 Andrew Dugdale MV50 49:12
120 Rick Moore MV50 50:18
121 Mark Taylor M 50:50
125 Peter Dugdale MV60 51:10
127 Wendy Dodds LV60 51:29
130 Simon Stansfield M 51:48
136 Colin Woolford MV40 52:50
138 Linda Lord LV60 53:50
162 Doug Monroe MV70 1:03:07

Full Results

Northern Athletics Cross Country Relays

Report from Chris Thompson

A team of under 13 boys travelled down to Sheffield to compete in the Northern cross country relays. There were three boys in the team, Jackson McKay,  Lennon Jackson and Dexta Thompson. The event took place at Graves Park in Sheffield which is a great course for cross country with some good hills although not too steep and with a  very open area that was great for spectators.

L-R Dexta Thompson, Lennon Jackson and Jackson McKay. Photo by Nicola Thompson

L-R Dexta Thompson, Lennon Jackson and Jackson McKay. Photo by Nicola Thompson

First off was Jackson in leg one; he put in a great race up against some strong competition and finished back in 10th position. He was followed by Lennon who gave it his all and finished back in 22nd. Dexta took the last leg and gave it his all up against not only some tough competition,  but against boys a few years older to finish in 18th. The boys’ team finished in 18th position from 39 teams so not a bad run.

Full Results

Standish Hall Trail Race

Well done to Lee Smith who was our sole representative at this trail race. He finished in 5th place overall and got a free pie and a £20 prize voucher which was not a bad day’s running!

Pos    Name    Cat    CatPos    Time   
5 Lee Smith M (002/027) 00:38:36

Full Results

Sunday 23 October

Abingdon Marathon

Stephen Hartley Reports

I finished 87th out of 800 starters with a time of 3 hours and 1 minute! I did this marathon 15 years ago and as I am on holiday this week, I thought I could stop off and run this on our way to our holiday destination. It’s a lovely flat marathon round the Oxfordshire countryside. I just missed getting under three hours but pleased with my run. Felt strong all the way round.

Pos. Name Cat Time
87 HARTLEY, John V50 03:01:01

Full Results

Parkrun roundup

Bolton parkrun – A total of 265 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
128 Bianca BENNETT 27:40 SW25-29 First Timer!

Burnley parkrun – A total of 360 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
1 Danny COLLINGE 15:58 SM20-24
3 Jacob WATSON 17:39 SM30-34 New PB!
5 Richard STEVENSON 18:20 VM40-44
6 Jonathan PYE 18:39 SM25-29
9 Curtis Robert HOLT 19:17 JM15-17
13 Nicholas HENNESSEY 19:34 JM11-14
17 Gareth BERRY 19:52 VM40-44
19 Kevin DAVIES 19:58 VM50-54
27 Simon WILSHAW 20:22 JM15-17
28 Reece Adam LAWRENCE 20:26 JM15-17
30 Alex CRAN 20:38 VM45-49
42 Andy QUINN 21:31 VM45-49
44 Millie STUBBS 21:38 JW11-14
49 Helana WHITE 21:50 JW10
52 Donna RILEY 22:02 VW50-54
55 Matthew JACKSON 22:06 JM10
56 Colin WHITE 22:09 VM40-44
61 Michelle ABBOTT 22:33 VW35-39 New PB!
72 Ian HARGREAVES 23:11 VM50-54 New PB!
76 David Ian SCOTT 23:14 VM70-74
81 Chris LAWRENCE 23:18 VM50-54 New PB!
85 Nina KEWIN 23:31 VW35-39
97 Aaron LUNDIE 24:17 JM11-14
99 Bethany WHEATCROFT 24:24 JW11-14
100 Julie DAWES 24:29 VW45-49
104 Toby BIRTWISTLE 24:39 JM10
115 Annabel WILCOCK 25:10 JW15-17
116 John WILCOCK 25:10 VM50-54
132 Heidi KEWIN 25:59 JW11-14
149 Sophie ASHWORTH 26:47 JW11-14
159 Helen HARRISON 27:15 VW45-49
170 Robert HIRST 27:55 VM65-69
180 Charlie PLANT 28:17 JW10 New PB!
194 Ron CHAPPELL 29:02 VM65-69
224 Stuart BARKER 30:09 VM50-54
226 Christine Jennifer EGERTON 30:15 VW65-69
246 Adrienne OLSZEWSKA 30:57 VW45-49
267 Christine LEATHLEY 32:22 VW65-69

Burnley Junior parkrun – A total of 54 runners took part

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
1 Nicholas HENNESSEY 7:23 JM11-14
2 Matthew JACKSON 8:09 JM10
5 Natasha OLSZEWSKA 8:46 JW11-14
10 Bethany WHEATCROFT 9:21 JW11-14
13 Kady THOMPSON 9:56 JW10
17 Charlie PLANT 10:22 JW10 New PB!
20 Bronia OLSZEWSKA 10:58 JW11-14 New PB!
31 Jessica MCBRIDE 12:27 JW10
32 Emily JOHNSON 12:36 JW10

Dewsbury parkrun – A total of 106 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
85 Robin PRICE 35:12 VM70-74

Heaton parkrun – A total of 580 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
104 Martin BRADY 22:55 VM50-54

Pendle parkrun – A total of 77 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
4 John HARTLEY 20:42 VM55-59
9 Mark WIGHTMAN 21:46 VM55-59 First Timer!
21 Dawn TERRY 25:57 VW50-54

Witton parkrun – A total of 106 runners took part.

Pos  parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
2 Garry R WILKINSON 19:37 VM50-54
29 Katy THOMPSON 26:25 VW60-64

 

ByAlan Dorrington

It’s orange to the fore as the Autumn colours race in.

This week the Autumn action comes a variety of sources, from Lakeland mountains, Scottish Hills, the flatlands of Manchester and West Lancashire, and some Northern milltown hills thrown in the mix for good measure. You’ve all been out bagging podium positions, fast PBs or simply getting stuck in and having a right good time. Here’s how it went…

Saturday

British Fell and Hill Running Relays – Luss, Scotland

Pic: Kath Brady

Pic: Some of the Clayton runners, post Fell and Hill Running Relays. Not sure what Carl Helliwell is thinking but it looks mischevious…

Held in the Luss Hills, on the Western shores of Loch Lomond, this traditional late season event always attracts a big entry and with its Scottish setting this year, also offered a post race ceilidh to entice runners. Clayton sent four teams, an A and B team, a Ladies Vets team and a Mens V50 team.

Leg 1 was a solo leg of 5.9 km with an ascent of 427m (navigational experience and skills  required). Leg 2 was a pairs’ leg of 13 km with 1096m of ascent (and a nice sting in the tail) (navigational experience and skills required). Leg 3 was the pairs’ navigation leg and  provided a stiff challenge as to expected from a competition championship nav leg, and Leg 4 was a solo leg of 8.3 km with 653 m of ascent.The event was won by a flying Dark Peak Grindslow team in 03:38:58, beating off stiff opposition from Shettleston Harriers.

First Clayton team back in 32nd overall and 2nd MV50 Team, was the team of Phil Hall, Gary Wilkinson, Paul Hesketh, Mike Wallis, Tim Edward and Mark Aspinall. They finished in a time of 04:49:44. Hot on their heels in 36th overall came the B Team of Kirt Livesey, Dave Walker, Carl Helliwell, Neil Hardiman, Chris Snell and Lee Smith in a time of 04:55:38. Just behind in 04:58:18 came the A Team of Danny Collinge, Dave Bagot, Andy Laycock, Dave Motley, Ryan Wilkinson and Matt Perry.

The Ladies Vets team came in in 07:02:49 to claim 1st LV50 Team and 3rd Ladies Vets overall  – the team comprised Kath Brady, Katy Thompson, Barbara Savage, Wendy Dodds, Kath Wallis and Anna Kelly.

Kath Brady reports for the Ladies team:

‘Fortunately Katy had been in Luss for 3 days and managed to recce the area along with Wendy and provide useful advice for the rest of the team. As forecast, the morning started wet and misty on the tops. Runners were encouraged to enter the holding pen to have kit checked and prepare to be lead to the start by a traditional Scottish piper.

Leg 1 – solo (4.2km 341m climb). I was on this leg, we were off across a couple of fields then up the steep climb into the mist. A good trog off the top down to a stream to a checkpoint, a traverse round the hill before getting a wonderful glimpse of Loch Lomond and decent to the finish. 43.49 4th Vets

Leg 2 – pairs(13km 1096 climb). Katy Thompson & Barbara Savage starting with long gradual climb to checkpoint 1 and returning very steeply as checkpoint 5. Both ladies battled wind and rain on the tops moving us up to 3rd in 2.06

Leg 3 Nav leg. With a wealth of experience between them, Wendy Dodds & Kath Wallis set out. Described by locals as long and difficult, the fast men were taking 1hr 20mins! Wendy & Kath were still out on leg 3 a time after the mass start on leg 4, so I walked down the course with Katy to watch for them coming in hoping they may finish together with Anna, but she came flying by us and we continued watching the hillside for our navigation ladies. The rain stopped and midges came out. They finished the navigation leg 2nd Vets in 3.06

Leg 4 solo (8.3km 653m climb) – A mass start was scheduled for 2.30 but at 2.15 they called runners to the line. Anna, (with a slight ankle injury she sustained whilst reccing Hodgson Relay) had to rush to kit check. This was an out and back route to Beinn Dubh, the first checkpoint on leg 2. Anna finishing 3rd Vets team in 1.06.

The rules for this event requires experience and completion of an A category Fell race. With the distance to travel and a 10 am Saturday start gave a smaller pool of ladies to select from. We need more ladies racing on the fells to get the experience to compete at this level.’

A great day of racing and great results for the Mens and Ladies Vets alike! No reports back from the Ceilidh but that’s probably a good thing…

Full Results

Wendy Dodds and Kath Wallis setting off on the testing navigation leg. Pic: Kath Brady

Wendy Dodds and Kath Wallis setting off on the testing navigation leg. Pic: Kath Brady

 

Red Rose Cross Country League Round 1

A lovely warm and dry autumnal day greeted the runners at the first Red Rose Cross Country fixture at Leigh Sports Village. An already flat and fast course was made even faster by the hard, dry conditions, leading many to use trail or fell shoes and producing some close racing, particularly in the Juniors, right up to the finish.

The Tent! Pic: Jason Pier.

The Tent! Pic: Jason Pier.

Juniors

U11 Boys

There were 6 Clayton boys in the U11 race with Dexta Thompson continuing in his winning ways with a clear run at the head of field. Finley Stubbs put in a great sprint finish to come in 9th, with Robbie Smedley backing them up to help the Boys take 1st place in the Team event. Matthew Jackson was close behind with Jenson Bentham and Joshua McKay rounding out a great team effort overall. The Boys are now leading both the Mid Lancs and Red Rose team events – a cracking start to the season.

Pos Name Time
1 Dexta Thompson 7:26
9 Finley Stubbs 8:04
12 Robbie Smedley 8:08
15 Matthew Jackson 8:10
26 Jenson Bentham 8:26
59 Joshua Mckay 9:20

 

Dexta Thompson flying into the finish in 1st place at Leigh Sports Centre. Pic: George S Davies

Dexta Thompson flying into the finish in 1st place at Leigh Sports Village. Pic: George S Davies

U11 Girls

Pos Name Time
5 Helena White 8:38
15 Summer Hargreaves 8:59
38 Kady Thompson 9:39
60 Rachel Stevenson 10:26
71 Ellisia Smedley 11:17
77 Emily Nicholls 12:17

Helena White continued her great form after time out with 5th place, whilst Summer Hargreaves also had a great run in 15th. Kady Thompson in 38th helped the girls to 5th Team overall. Well done to Rachel Stevenson, Ellisia Smedley and Emily Nicholls working hard in backing up the rest of the girls in the team.

U13 Boys

Pos Name Time
4 Jackson McKay 9:16
24 Lennon Jackson 10:31
35 William Nicholls 11:34

Jackson McKay put in his usual gritty effort for a great 4th place with Lennon Jackson and William Nicholls the other counters to take the Boys to 6th Team.

U13 Girls looking relaxed at the start line. Pic: Alan Dorrington

U13 Girls looking relaxed at the start line. Hopefully Beth hadn’t forgotten something important…  Pic: Alan Dorrington

U13 Girls

Pos Name Time
10 Ella Dorrington 10:16
61 Keira Stevenson 12:23
65 Bethany Wheatcroft 12:38
68 Bronia Olszewska 12:57

Ella Dorrington led our U13 Girls home in 10th place overall, just behind a big group occupying 3rd to 9th place. Keira Stevenson and Bethany Wheatcroft (in only her second race) filled the team spots taking the Girls to10th Team with Bronia Olszweska completing the squad.

Ella Dorrington on her way to 10th place. Pic: Alan Dorrington

Ella Dorrington on her way to 10th place. Pic: Alan Dorrington

U15 Boys

Pos Name Time
14 Nicholas Henessey 14:51
19 Stanley Grewal 15:05
28 Jay Bowman 15:59
32 Adam Stevenson 16:25
39 Aaron Lundie 19:43

Our U15 Boys packed out the placings solidly, led home by Nicholas Hennessy in 14th and Stanley Grewal in 19th. Jay Bowman made up the 3rd counter for them to take 5th Team, coming home in 28th. Adam Stevenson and Aaron Lundie completed the squad.

Aaron, Adam and Jay before the start of the U15 Boys race. Pic: Deborah Stevenson

Aaron, Adam and Jay before the start of the U15 Boys race. Pic: Deborah Stevenson

U15 Girls

Pos Name Time
3 Briony Holt 15:26
9 Millie Stubbs 16:27
23 Eleanor Root 17:50
27 Natasha Olszewska 18:16

The all-smiling U15 Girls team had a great day, led home by Briony Holt in 3rd place, Millie Stubbs in 9th, Eleanor Root in 23rd and Natasha Olszewska in 27th. Overall they took 3rd Team to build on their 1st Team place in the recent Mid Lancs fixture.

Our flying U15 Girls team. Pic: Thomas Root

Our flying U15 Girls team. Pic: Thomas Root

U17 Men

Pos Name Time
10 Curtis Holt 21:26
13 Reece Lawrence 22:56
15 Simon Wilshaw 24:12

Just three U17 Men ran but Curtis Holt in 10th, Reece Lawrence in 13th and Simon Wilshaw in 15th still took 5th Team overall.

Men U20

Pos Name Time
4 Jordan McDonald 42:28
Clayton XC Dogs, little and large.

Clayton XC Dogs, little and large.

Senior Ladies Race

Pos Name Cat Time
32 Elizabeth Mullan L 24:12
62 Michelle Abbott L35 26:23
94 Jane Hylands L45 29:48
116 Deborah Greenwood L45 32:19
131 Christine Leathley L65 37:01

A Team – 13th  (Elizabeth Mullan | Michelle Abbot | Jane Hylands)

Vets Team –  11th (Michelle Abbott | Jane Hylands | Deborah Greenwood)

Andy Quinn and Mick Hughes. Pic: George S Davies

Andy Quinn and Mick Hughes. Pic: George S Davies

Senior Men’s Race

Pos Name Cat Time
45 Jordan McDonald U20 42:28
50 Matthew Duckworth M 42:46
73 Andrew Orr V45 44:23
80 Gareth Berry V40 44:54
81 Andrew Holt V40 44:59
85 Alan Dorrington V45 45:24
111 Alex Cran V45 47:02
121 Mark Wightman V55 47:38
128 John Wilcock V50 48:00
154 Andy Quinn V45 49:51
155 Jeffrey Pickup V65 49:52
163 Mick Hughes V40 50:41
183 James Hickie V55 52:09
193 Peter Browning V55 53:17
198 Martin Brady V50 53:42
203 Craig Nicholls V40 54:17
213 David Moynihan V45 56:02
220 Christopher Lawrence V50 56:41
229 Carl Carey V45 58:01

A Team  – 8th (Jordan MCDonald | Matthew Duckworth | Andrew Orr | Gareth Berry | Andrew Holt | Alan Dorrington)

Vets Team – 10th (Andrew Orr | Gareth Berry | Andrew Holt | Alan Dorrington)

Andrew Holt reports:

‘I arrived dreading today’s run if I’m honest, flat and fast, no mud/rain or wind. Having recce’d about an inch of the course I decided that spikes were too much but I hadn’t brought anything else so was kinda stuck with them. Got to the start line which I love ,the atmosphere and tension, and having watched everyone run away in a mad dash around the football field settled into a reasonable rhythm. Having passed Alan exiting the football field he sat on my shoulder(not that I realised until the start of the next lap) and we ran the pleasant route through the wood and around the golf course, slowly picking runners off along the way. (Strava later confirmed our lap splits had only 30seconds difference between them).

I felt strong after the first lap, started tiring on the second but had enough to hopefully to keep accelerating into the finish. For the second time this season I met Gareth Barry towards the end of the second lap,and he was able to run with us for some time increasing the cheers for Clayton and helping to keep my pace and intensity up. Not wanting the spectacle of a sprint finish between the three of us I opened up with maybe a mile to go,and judging from the shouts from people supporting think I was successful in creating a reasonable gap between myself and Gary and Alan. Entering the final straight,at more than full gas (Briony describes me as running like I need the toilet when I run like this) I saw Gareth screaming past me like I was treading water with Alan coming maybe 10-15 seconds later. I finished thinking what an enjoyable team run ,which was hopefully caught by someone with a camera. This bubble soon burst however when my children thanked the person who beat me and ridiculed me for a pathetic sprint!!’

As ever, a huge thanks on behalf of all the Clayton team to Jason Pier (TentMaster Extraordinaire) for getting things all set up and ship shape for racing.

Full Results

Round Rotherham 50

Martin Terry had a cracking run here to take 3rd overall in 07:43:56 in this 50 miler round, err, Rotherham on a fast flat course and with some of South Yorkshire’s ‘finest’ industrial areas on show.

Full Results

Sunday

Manchester Half Marathon

A huge field of 12000 runners took in this fast flat course through the Stretford and Trafford areas of Manchester, with plenty of entertainment and fancy dress on show. Jacob Watson and Richard Stevenson led the Clayton charge both posting superfast times. Great new PBs were also achieved for James Boult, Rob Morrison and Donna Airey. Well done all!

Richard reports:

We were greeted with typical Manchester weather this morning cold, wet and windy for a well organised race with a course that is perfect for any PB chasers, very flat and fast. Great to see so many familiar faces today at such a large race and very pleased with my time, a new PB.

Pos Name Cat CatPos Time
82 Jacob WATSON SEN 35 01:17:33
116 Richard STEVENSON V40 13 01:19:50
161 Jon CLEAVER V35 36 01:21:58
667 James BOULT SEN 295 01:33:07
669 Robert MORRISON V40 90 01:33:09
985 Donna AIREY LV35 17 01:36:49
1276 Colin WHITE V40 183 01:39:16
1305 Amanda DUFFY LV35 27 01:39:31
4768 Lisa ELLIS LSEN 653 02:01:42

Full Results

Green Drive 5 mile

Another fast, flat PB inducing course, this event incorporated the Lancashire AA 5 mile Champs. A select group of experienced Clayton athletes were to the fore in their age categories, enjoying the autumnal colours and rural lanes near Lytham and Warton.

Pos Name Cat CatPos Time
20 Paul Brannon M55 (002/015) 00:30:26
27 Kevin Davies M50 (002/029) 00:30:50
75 Stephen Biscomb M60 (004/016) 00:34:48
108 David Scott M70 (001/007) 00:38:00
110 Brian Wildman M50 (017/029) 00:38:12
223 Kevin O’Brien M70 (004/007) 00:48:55

Full Results

Oldham ‘Milltown to Moors’ Half Marathon

One of the most grueling of races, this half marathon covers a 13.1 mile run through Oldham and its many miles of countryside, pushing challengers to their limits whilst offering some of the best scenery the borough has to offer.

With a very atmospheric start that includes a lap of the Oldham town Centre runners travel a hilly route that takes them to the lovely Saddleworth area of Oldham with spectacular views of the Saddleworth villages and the imposing moorland landscape of the Peak District National Park that lies beyond.

Martin Brady decided he hadn’t had enough racing this weekend and was up for more. He reports:

I entered the Oldham “Milltown To Moors” Half Marathon on the Sunday morning after having run a Parkrun and Leigh cross country the day before. I have a 10 mile trail race in Nottingham next weekend and I have been lacking any distance runs for a few months so I thought this would be a good test. This Half Marathon is claimed to be one of the toughest in the country with lots of long climbs and descents. It is tough but I think Hendon Brook is slightly harder (Lenches wins it for me with the Hendon Brook). I think I was the only Clayton runner at the event. The commentator said at both the start and finish “Here is the Clayton runner – they come down from altitude to do this you know!”. He must think Clayton-le-Moors is in the Himalayas. I did enjoy the race this time. I have done it several times during my running career, the first being in 2001 when there was the foot and mouth outbreak so there was no fell running – this was the nearest thing to a fell race I could find that year. I took it very steady at the start as it has 4 miles of climbing before the first long descent. This paid off as I started to pass quite a few runners later on. My finishing time was 1 hour 53 minutes 20 seconds which is about 25 minutes slower than 2001 but it was much more enjoyable. I think I might pencil this one in again for next year.

Results to follow

Four Lakeland Passes

Nick Olszewski and Adrienne Olszewska were the sole Clayton reps making the trip up the M6 for this event. Adrienne explains more:

‘Four Passes was originally put on by the warden of Borrowdale Youth Hostel and was run from there for many years. It fell into disuse until the LDWA took the route on as a challenge event, but it is no longer on their calendar and Ascend Events believe it is too good a route not to be used as an event.
There’s a choice of 2 start times so Nick and I opted for the earlier 8.30 slot with the walkers as he is still recovering from a recent operation on his toe and I’m a bit of a slow plodder. We thought it would make for a more enjoyable event if the pressure was off and we could just joggle along.
The course is a spectacular 19(ish) miles route taking in four of the Lake Districts most scenic valleys and their adjoining passes. It is a circular route which starts and finishes at Rosthwaite Village Hall in Borrowdale, at the southern end of Derwent Water.
The first pass takes you to Sty Head Tarn situated between the Scafell Massif and Great Gable before dropping to the beautiful but always dramatic Wasdale with Cumbria’s deepest lake. We set off nice and steady with a motley collection of fast and slow walkers and jogglers and trotters like ourselves. The first climb up to Sty Head tarn is nice and steady and we were blessed with good weather allowing us to drink in the spectacular views on the way down to Wasdale. A fairly good path meant we could trot all the way down to the checkpoint.
We were on familiar ground for the second pass which is Black Sail Pass & the third Scarth Gap, as this is part of the route of the Lakeland 100. It was the first time I’ve done it in daylight which didn’t make the slog up Black Sail and the horrid descent any easier really. But at least we got to enjoy the gorgeous views of Haystacks, Wainwrights resting place, on the way up Scarth Gap which is the easiest climb but with another tricky descent to Buttermere straight after.
From Buttermere, The fourth and final pass is an old miners’ path up and over to Honister Mines. It’s a long steady climb on a path made up of loose slate at times which passes an old miners building on the way to the top. When you reach the mines, it’s a good track all the way back down to Rosthwaite, a welcome relief after the previous two trickier descents. This one is much more runnable as you head to the finish.
This is a really excellent, low-key and friendly event that is aimed a wide range of abilities. You can tackle it like a fast fell race or amble round with the walkers. The choice and the challenge is yours to take. There are four checkpoints, two of them groaning with snacks and drinks. There is also a very good finisher’s meal with pudding! This was the first event organised by Ascend Events and I will definitely do another. In fact, I’ll probably head back to this one next year.’

Nick does his best 'Forced Perspective' aka Hagrid impression next to a deceptively diminutive Adrienne. Or is it real?

Nick does his best ‘Forced Perspective’ aka Hagrid impression next to a deceptively diminutive Adrienne. Or is it like that in reality?

Full Results

Parkrun Roundup

Burnley parkrun – A total of 281 runners took part.

Pos parkrunner Time Age Cat Note
5 Jonathan PYE 18:21 SM25-29
6 Laura HESKETH 18:29 SW30-34
17 Richard STEVENSON 20:05 VM40-44
20 Nick ROSCOE 20:34 VM45-49
38 Gordon BARRETT 22:07 VM50-54
52 Ian HARGREAVES 23:22 VM50-54 New PB!
56 Nina KEWIN 23:29 VW35-39
58 Colin WHITE 23:34 VM40-44
61 Robert MORRISON 23:39 VM40-44
64 Martin BRADY 23:45 VM50-54
69 Julie DAWES 23:59 VW45-49
71 Toby BIRTWISTLE 24:02 JM10
72 Daniel PLANT 24:04 SM30-34
78 Sophie ASHWORTH 24:26 JW11-14
85 Lisa JOHNSON 24:36 VW40-44 New PB!
92 John WILCOCK 24:52 VM50-54
94 Annabel WILCOCK 24:54 JW15-17
98 Jake ANFORTH 25:06 JM10
102 Andrew TAYLOR 25:32 VM55-59
111 Andy QUINN 25:45 VM45-49
133 Bianca BENNETT 26:41 SW25-29
160 Robert HIRST 28:12 VM65-69
161 Jack MCGUIRE 28:18 VM60-64 New PB!
181 Ron CHAPPELL 28:49 VM65-69
233 Stuart BARKER 31:38 VM50-54

Pendle parkrun – A total of 83 runners took part.

Pos parkrunner Time Age Cat Note
3 Paul BRANNON 20:04 VM55-59
4 John HARTLEY 20:14 VM55-59
12 Richard BRISCOE 22:09 VM35-39
60 Harry WALKER 34:22 VM65-69

Fell Foot parkrun, Newby Bridge – A total of 246 runners took part.

Pos parkrunner Time Age Cat
149 Eileen JONES 29:06 VW60-64

Lytham Hall parkrun – A total of 183 runners took part.

Pos parkrunner Time Age Cat
156 Philip NAYLOR 35:22 VM35-39

 

ByAdrienne Olszewska

Searching high and low

Even on a quiet week there is still plenty of action to report. Our junior runners are busy taking part in triathlons, representing their schools in cross country and testing their navigational skills in orienteering events. What a talented bunch they are! The seniors have been finishing off the season in the FRA champs in Langdale and the BOFRA race at Wasdale as well as half marathons, local fell races, orienteering and road races.

North West Junior Triathlon Series

Congratulations to Ellie Root and Helana White. Ellie came 4th overall in the Youth Girls category and Helana came 4th in the T1 girls category.

Ellie Root at the NW Junior Trialthlon Series

Ellie Root at the NW Junior Trialthlon Series

Final Standings

WEDNESDAY 5 OCTOBER

ENGLISH SCHOOLS CROSS COUNTRY CUP

Well done to junior runners Bronia and Natasha Olszewska who took part in the ESAA Cross Country Cup completion running for their school, Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School, Blackburn. Natasha was the first counter for her team (Inter Girls)and they finished in 3rd place overall in the Lancashire competition. Bronia was second counter in her team (Junior Girls) and their team also finished in 3rd place in the Lancashire competition.

Results

SATURDAY 8 OCTOBER

LANGDALE HORSESHOE

14 Clayton-le-Moors Harriers took part in this classic Lakeland Fell race that is the final race in the 2016 FRA English Championship. Ryan Belshaw was our first finisher in 91st place overall and with a time of 02:38:47. Wendy Dodds was our sole lady runner. She finished in 275th place overall and 1st FV65. There were 380 finishers in this year’s race.

Ryan Belshaw at the Langdale Horseshoe. Photo by Sam Watson

Ryan Belshaw at the Langdale Horseshoe. Photo by Sam Watson

Report from Andrew Armstrong – Lessons learnt in Langdale

Lesson 1 – You can race with a cold (but don’t expect to be any good).

I’d had a cold for over a week, I’d slogged round a cyclocross course with it and I knew that attempting a tough Lakeland fell race was, at best, unwise. However, as a famous Scot once said,  “I’d paid for the tickets” so Saturday morning found me cadging a lift off fellow Clayton runners and arriving to perfect running weather in the Langdale valley.  I kept my cold to myself to avoid accusations of getting my excuses in beforehand!

The start is typical of fell races; narrow tracks with lots of jostling, eventually leading to a prolonged slog up to the first real peak of the day at Thunacarr Knott. The pre-race briefing had advised us that the marshalls would be ‘up against it’ at this checkpoint and we were requested not to shout numbers or even to say thank you. As it happens the checkpoint was fairly calm; they must have thought we were a right miserable bunch!

Lesson 2 – You can’t follow someone if they’re behind you.

Discussion in the car was mostly about the best lines off different peaks and I’d made copious mental notes. Visibility was pretty good so I was happy to navigate round most of the course but was keen to follow either Mark Nutter or Jon Sharples at the ‘Bad Step’, a notorious bottleneck on Crinkle Crags. I’d passed Mark just after Ore Gap but resolved to latch onto and  follow Jon’s unusual route choice towards the next checkpoint at Long Top. I lost faith when we seemed to be moving too far away from the pack; more fool me as I finally arrived at the checkpoint to see Jon disappearing into the distance! A big queue at the bad step saw Mark catch me up, we navigated an alternative route fairly quickly but Jon was long gone.

Lesson 3 – You can always find yourself alone in a fell race.

Around 400 runners started this relatively short (12 mile) fell race in good clear weather yet I still found myself alone coming off the final peak, Pike O’Blisco. Reluctant to get the map out, I did some hasty dead reckoning by the sun and managed to recover a poor exit line from the Pike to slot into the final descent. A fast and furious charge into the finish past bemused walkers (always good value) saw me finish in just over 3 hours.

Lesson 4 – The best races finish at a pub.

Langdale had a new organiser this year and Dan Duxbury was keen to thank everyone at Ambleside AC whose commitment had made the race possible. To para-phrase Dan; In an era where new trail races/challenges are popping up every week some costing £50, £60 even £80, to be able to put on a race of this calibre for only £10 (including a free pasty at the end!) is a testament to that commitment. Standing in the sun, outside a Lakeland pub, with a pint in one hand and a pasty in the other it was hard to disagree.

Pos Name Category Time
91 Ryan Belshaw M 02:38:47
109 Andrew Orr MV45 02:42:18
167 Andrew Mcfarlane MV45 02:56:29
168 Neil Hardiman MV45 02:56:35
184 Ivan Whigham MV50 02:59:38
190 Jon Sharples MV60 03:02:07
209 Andrew Armstrong MV45 03:06:33
216 Geoff Gough MV55 03:07:29
220 Ralph Baines MV45 03:08:17
237 Richard Bellaries MV60 03:12:05
239 Mark Nutter MV50 03:13:27
256 Andrew Firth MV55 03:17:15
257 Chris Whiteoak M 03:17:33
275 Wendy Dodds FV65 03:23:41

Full Results

WASDALE SHOW

Report from Stephen Fish

Two Clayton runners, Richard Briscoe and myself, made the long trip to compete in the Wasdale Show Fell Race, which can only be described as a beast. It was perfect for the final race of the 2016 BOFRA season, with a warm, fine, bright autumn day and good underfoot conditions.

Stephen Fish at the Wasdale Shoe Fell Race. Photo by Stephen White of Granddayout Photography

Stephen Fish at the Wasdale Shoe Fell Race. Photo by Stephen White of Granddayout Photography

The event starts easily enough in the flat field next to the show ground. However, once runners have climbed the stile over the wall and out of the field, the relentless and steep climb up Kirk Fell begins. After first negotiating a rocky track, before reaching the fell base, the runners now have a grassy ascent that only seems to get steeper the further up one progresses. Ever upwards to where the terrain now changes to become loose scree until the first false summit, where it becomes rocky and remains like this until the actual summit is reached. The top is 2,631 feet above the start line, which is rather reassuringly marked by a Wasdale Mountain Rescue volunteer. If the ascent wasn’t hard enough, the very tricky descent, through the loose scree begins, not before some stunning views of Western Cumbria, Great Gable and Scafell Pike were to be enjoyed. The race returns via the outward route to the finish funnel, where any attempt of a sprint finish, after the jump off the steep stile, is thwarted by jelly legs and wrecked thighs.

This has got to be the best and toughest race in the excellent BOFRA calendar, a 2.4 mile race, with 2400 feet of ascent, that I couldn’t believe left me so ‘wiped out’ at the finish and for the rest of the day….It was a long drive home. One for the diary next year though.

Report from Richard Briscoe

The Wasdale Show is a classic fell route and a brilliant country show. I had to do it to get the 8 races in to qualify for the BOFRA season. The race is a tough one straight up Kirk Fell, a 4 mile race with 2500 feet of climbing. I did well on the climb dodging the rocks from other runners. Got to the summit and the views were amazing all over the Wasdale area. On the way down was interesting, full of boulders and a scree, and the last section was a grassy slope which was hard to keep on the feet.

Richard Briscoe flying down at the Wasdale Show fell race. Photo by Stephen White of Granddayout Phototography

Richard Briscoe flying down at the Wasdale Show fell race. Photo by Stephen White of Granddayout Phototography

At the end was a good day and it was great to catch up with friends who do the race every year. The end of the day finished at the Strands Pub, an annual folk event.

Pos Name Cat Time
37 Richard Briscoe M 00:57:11
54 Stephen Fish MV60 01:11:10

Full Results

SUNDAY 9 OCTOBER

GIN PIT 5

Kevin O’Brien was our sole competitor at this 5 mile trail race organised by Astley &Tyldesley Road Runners.

Pos Name Cat Time
205 Kevin O’Brien M70 00:51:43

Full Results

PENDLE FOREST ORIENTEERS – NICK ‘O PENDLE

Some fabulous weather on the day (and fairly accurately predicted for once!) brought a bumper turn out for this orienteering event organised by Pendle Forest Orienteers. Set in the Nick ‘O Pendle area was always going to be a popular area with some of our navigating runners.

Mark Nutter and Mike Wallis took on the Brown level course which was the most demanding technically and, assuming no major mistakes, around 7km with 370m of climb. Mark finished in 18th place with an overall finish time of 91:35. Mike Wallis was 19th with an overall time of 96:22

Katy Thompson took on the Blue course, which is approximately 6km with 320m of climb, finishing in 15th place with an overall time of 94:04

Colin Woolford was 3rd on the Light Green course, approximately 3.5km with 130m of climb, with an overall time of 46:05.

Report from Colin Woolford

Sunday’s PFO event on the Nick O Pendle was a tough call between that and the Withins Skyline race over in Haworth but having enjoyed a glass or few on Saturday after some epic chores I decided the more local Orienteering event would be a good trot out for 45-60 minutes.  My plan was to arrive early, do the “short blue”  – which in technical difficulty terms was at the highest end, but with less climb/distance and be back in time for an early lunch before the Withins Skyline runners had even crossed the start line.  Well that was the plan.

Unfortunately the chores spilled in to Sunday morning so I arrived later than anticipated and due to unprecedented demand, the PFO team had begun to call time on several courses as they had run out of maps!  (an important tool in orienteering!) So my choice was either the full on Brown course (7km, 350m climb and top level difficulty) meaning for me a good 90+minutes or the Light Green course (3.5km and a civilised 130m climb) or the really easy stuff.  Orienteering has five levels of Technical Difficulty – referring to the navigation skills required factored in with distance/climb 5 being toughest, 1 being simplest.  I had wanted a TD5 short blue, but settled for the TD4 Light Green, which in the perfect running conditions on Pendle that day was a good call.  I came a comfortable third in the end from 17 and had I not made an error right at the start reckoned I could have got 2nd.  Note to self – warm up brain as well as legs before next orienteering event!

Several Clayton noted on the results

Report from Adrienne Olszewska

Hot on the heels of a challenging 20 mile challenge, our magnificent seven junior runners decided to try their hands at orienteering. Aaron Lundie, Lucy Stevenson, Adam Stevenson, Keira Stevenson, Rachel Stevenson, Natasha Olszewska and Bronia Olszewska started with the Yellow course.

Show us your dibbers! The Juniors at the finish of the Yellow course. Photo by Deborah Stevenson

Show us your dibbers! The Juniors at the finish of the Yellow course. Photo by Deborah Stevenson

This is the easiest course and is around 2.1km with 85m of climb. The terrain was no problem to the group and they flew round in just over half an hour. Always up for a challenge, they took on the orange course as well. This was a more demanding course of around 2.8km and 115m of climb.

Another control found. Keira Stevenson dibs in.

Another control found. Keira Stevenson dibs in.

Splitting into two groups, the older runners completed the course in around 75 minutes with the younger group following about 5 minutes later. A fantastic effort from a group of youngsters who remained cheerful and enthusiastic despite getting lost and struggling to find the second checkpoint for quite a while!

Coaches Richard Stevenson and Nicholas Olszewski consult the map to try and work out where on earth they are!

Coaches Richard Stevenson and Nicholas Olszewski consult the map to try and work out where on earth they are!

They were accompanied by Adrienne Olszewska, Richard Stevenson, Deborah Stevenson and, unofficially, Nicholas Olszewski who may have lent a hand with some of the navigation.

Full Results

WEST COAST HALF MARATHON

Report from Adam Stephenson

Myself and my partner in crime, Elizabeth Mullan, set off over to Lytham for the West Coast Half Marathon on a beautiful Autumn morning. An early start as it was a point to point event with a bus service included as part of entry fee.

Adam Stephenson and Elizabeth Mullan at the West Coast Half Marathon

Adam Stephenson and Elizabeth Mullan at the West Coast Half Marathon

It was only my second attempt at this distance having done the Darwen Heritage earlier in the year but I was very confident of bettering my time of 1 hour 55 minutes. Liz was too as her PB over 13 miles stood at somewhere around 1 hour 47 minutes again from Darwen…

Although the race was described as “flat”, which it mainly was, there was definitely some uphill involved, even though they might have been minimal my legs were definitely feeling it as I got towards the seven or eight mile mark, when I lost sight of Liz as we approached the promenade…

She battled past a couple of ladies to earn an impressive third in under 1 hour 39 minutes whilst my tired legs carried me to a 1:42:06.

Quite happy and I would definitely give it another go next year. Overall well organised and well marshalled for the majority with plenty of support and encouragement along the way

Pos Name Cat Time
34 Elizabeth Mullan L 1:38:58.45
45 Adam Stephenson M 1:42:06.52
51 Geoff Smith MV40 1:43:49.80

Full Results

WITHINS SKYLINE

Report from Sarah Helliwell

It was the first time I’ve ever raced over “Haworth” way and I will definitely be back to do some more over there over the winter. It was a lovely sunny day with a slight cool breeze as nearly 300 runners huddled together in the famous “quarry”. There was a brief joke that we shouldn’t get lost as long as we could keep up with Tom Adams – he broke the course record and the next runners were 4 minutes behind him!

It was a fast start out of the quarry as we headed down the track towards the road with about 4 different routes being taken, before we hit a track that led onto the moors. Once on the moor it was hard to pass anyone and vice versa as a long line streamed out in front of me up the hillside. The steeper the climb, the muddier it got and the more I enjoyed it, as I slowly got into a rhythm and passed a number of runners. Once on top myself and a another female runner started picking a route through the mud, ruts and heather, which liked to take your ankles out. We then hit the flag stones as we started a fast descent that eventually crossed a slippery stone bridge before climbing back up onto a track and back to the finish. It was here I started to tire (unfortunately I lost touch with the female runner I’d run with – she beat me by 14 seconds) and I knew it would feel a long mile and half climb back up to the finish. As I came in to the finish I got a high five from Eva and a “mamma” shout from Ralph…

It is a great route to definitely give the legs a good muddy, boggy workout on the first half before a fast return.

Well done to all Clayton runners who ran.

Pos Name Cat Time
11 Tim Edward MV50 46:17
12 Peter Coates MV40 46:40
33 Paul Hesketh MV50 49:48
84 Paul Brannon MV50 54:45
127 Jeffrey Pickup MV60 58:08
137 Jean Brown FV40 58:54
219 Sarah Helliwell F 66:57
265 Michael Frost MV60 75:50
278 Robert Hirst MV60 80:17

Full Results

WITHINS JUNIOR CURLY WURLY RAT RUN

Report from Alan Dorrington

Organised by the indomitable Woodentops over at Penistone Country Park, the Curly Wurly Rat Runs are the kids’ version of the popular end of season Withins Skyline race. Looping in and out of the familiar quarry, with added Halloween fancy dress options and lots of chocolate flying around, this event is a lovely low key finish to what can be a busy fell season for our juniors.

The under 8s were off first, with Felix Thompson enjoying a headlong rush up and out of the quarry, rapidly followed by a steep greasy descent back into it, only for another steep climb back out and up to the finish. Felix stayed upright on the descent, which produced a few comedy faceplants, but no injuries and came home in 16th, being rewarded later with extra chocolate for his fancy dress outfit.

Chris Brown at the Withins Curly Wurly Run. Photo by Alan Dorrington

Chris Brown at the Withins Curly Wurly Run. Photo by Alan Dorrington

Hot on the heels of the under 8s, 150 runners from all the other age groups started with the same mad dash to the single track climb out of the quarry, heading off for a fast narrow track across the moor before the rollercoaster drop and climb from the quarry to finish. U10s, 12s and 14s did one lap with only the U16s doing a second round. It all made for fast, chaotic racing but out of the melee, Dexta Thompson found some clear space in front and headed off in his usual determined fashion for 6th place overall and 3rd U12B. He was chased by Christopher Brown in 20th, Ella Dorrington in 32nd, Helena White in 64th, Alfie White in 109th and Kady Thompson in 120th. It was great to see Helena back racing after her impromptu surgery.

Ella Dorrington at the Withins Curly Wurly run. Photo by Alan Dorrington

Ella Dorrington at the Withins Curly Wurly run. Photo by Alan Dorrington

Notwithstanding the fact that finishers got a stacked goody bag with chocolate and sweets, many waited till the chocolatey prize giving for the infamous ‘chocolate throw’, a sure-fire winner amongst the kids and adults alike.

U8 Race

Pos Name Time
16 Felix Thompson 3:23

Main Junior Race

Pos Name Cat Time
6 Dexta Thompson U12B 6:34
20 Christopher Brown U12B 7:20
32 Ella Dorrington U12G 7:38
64 Helana White U10G 8:21
109 Alfie White U14B 9:59
120 Kady Thompson U10G 10:17

Parkrun roundup

Burnley parkrun – A total of 325 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
6 Richard STEVENSON 17:55 VM40-44 New PB!
9 Jonathan PYE 18:18 SM25-29
10 Chris SNELL 18:23 VM35-39
18 Nicholas HENNESSEY 19:20 JM11-14
19 Matthew DUCKWORTH 19:21 SM25-29
22 Dave MOTLEY 19:43 VM35-39
23 Reece Adam LAWRENCE 20:00 JM15-17
28 Mark WIGHTMAN 20:49 VM55-59
30 Daniel PLANT 21:08 SM30-34
33 Simon WILSHAW 21:28 JM15-17
48 Matthew JACKSON 22:06 JM10
57 Colin WHITE 22:35 VM40-44
66 Sophie ASHWORTH 22:55 JW11-14
73 Michelle ABBOTT 23:04 VW35-39 New PB!
74 Martin BRADY 23:08 VM50-54
76 David Ian SCOTT 23:22 VM70-74
81 Nina KEWIN 23:28 VW35-39
83 Aaron LUNDIE 23:29 JM11-14 New PB!
87 Robbie SMEDLEY 23:38 JM10
88 Cassandra Darling SMEDLEY 23:38 VW35-39
89 Carl CAREY 23:40 VM45-49
96 Bethany WHEATCROFT 23:51 JW11-14 New PB!
103 Julie DAWES 24:23 VW45-49
105 Toby BIRTWISTLE 24:26 JM10
108 Chris LAWRENCE 24:36 VM50-54
109 Donna SCOTT 24:40 VW50-54
119 Lisa JOHNSON 25:03 VW40-44
132 Annabel WILCOCK 25:39 JW15-17
133 John WILCOCK 25:40 VM50-54
145 Bianca BENNETT 26:09 SW25-29
179 Helen HARRISON 27:34 VW45-49
192 Justin BIRTWISTLE 28:17 VM40-44
197 Deborah GREENWOOD 28:21 VW45-49
205 Ron CHAPPELL 28:40 VM65-69
215 Robert HIRST 29:14 VM65-69
260 Judith CAREY 32:01 VW35-39

Chadderton Hall parkrun – A total of 42 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
15 Ian HARGREAVES 25:52 VM50-54 First Timer!

Cuerden Valley parkrun – A total of 144 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
13 Alan LIFE 22:21 VM50-54 First Timer!

Dewsbury parkrun – A total of 129 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
111 Robin PRICE 36:06 VM70-74

Marple parkrun – A total of 199 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
177 Ron HILL 33:50 VM75-79

Pendle parkrun – A total of 97 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
6 Paul BRANNON 20:30 VM55-59
7 John HARTLEY 20:42 VM55-59
71 Christine Jennifer EGERTON 32:09 VW65-69
76 Christine LEATHLEY 34:36 VW65-69

Skipton parkrun – A total of 141 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
78 Yvonne WICKHAM 27:32 VW50-54

Witton parkrun – A total of 88 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
88 Julia RUSHTON 49:55 VW50-54

 

ByAdrienne Olszewska

Mud, Mountains and Marathons

Summer has gone and autumn is here once again and with it the start of the cross country season. You’ve been out in force at Astley Park in Chorley with some fabulous results. We fielded 4 teams in the Hodgson Mountain Relays in the Lake District showing that our fell running heart is beating as strongly as ever. You’ve also been running in marathons, 10Ks and on challenging trails.

LAKELAND TRAILS – CONISTON

15K TRAIL RACE

Report from Darren Rushton

Had a crack at the Lakeland Trails race at Coniston fantastic route with mixed abilities some quick lads recommend anyone to have a go its not major fell running but all on runnable trails with fantastic scenery saw another clayton lady 191 ran I finished 67th a lovely day out.

Pos Name Cat Time
67 Darren Rushton MV40 1:21:19

15K TRAIL CHALLENGE

Report from Jane Hylands

A perfect running day in the Lake District for the 10k and 15k events with dry weather and some sunshine. The 15k was split into 2 events with the challenge starting off earlier with a 3 hour cut off and the race starting an hour later with a 2 hour cut off.

Jane Hylands at the Lakeland Trails 15KM Trail Challenge at Coniston

Jane Hylands at the Lakeland Trails 15KM Trail Challenge at Coniston

I found it a tough event with 1386ft of climb and it was a longer trail race than I’ve done before so quite challenging. The majority of the climb was within the first 5k followed by about 5k downhill and then the last 5k along grass and mud along the lake. Finishing with a paddle through a cold deep river to wake you up! A really enjoyable event with some amazing views and waterfalls but if you fancy it you’ll have to wait until 2018 as it’s not on next year or alternatively try one of the other Lakeland trails. There was also the added bonus of a bar at the finish line!

Jane Hyland at the Lakeland Trails Coniston Trail Challenge. Photo by Lakeland Trails

Jane Hyland at the Lakeland Trails Coniston Trail Challenge. Photo by Lakeland Trails

 
Pos Name Cat Time
236 Jane Hylands LV40 01:48:16

Full Results

MID LANCS CROSS COUNTRY LEAGUE – ASTLEY PARK

Bring it on! It’s Autumn, the leaves are changing colour, the temperature is starting to drop and the mud is getting muddier. Team Clayton was ready to rumble and made a great start in this year’s Mid Lancashire Cross Country League with some great results across the board.U11 Boys, U15 Girls and Senior Men all doing extremely well in this first fixture. It’s looking like it might just turn into another triumphant season for Clayton.

A special mention is needed for our super organised Cross Country Manager, Jason Pier, who makes everything run like clockwork – he has the tent up and waiting for the Clayton family, the numbers ordered and ready to go and words of encouragement for everyone – he even races too! A real superstar.

The team tent ready and waiting. The first one there.

The team tent ready and waiting. The first one there.

JUNIOR RACES

As a new cross country season begins, our junior runners are keen to build upon and continue the success they enjoyed last year. However, many of them have shifted to different age groups which can alter the dynamics of the team competition. As it turns out, this year this is no bad thing and we were able to field teams across the majority of the age categories only really struggling with numbers in the older teen age categories.

Clayton Juniors ready to race at Astley Park. Photo by David Belshaw

Clayton Juniors ready to race at Astley Park. Photo by David Belshaw

U11 GIRLS

Summer Hargreaves was our first finisher in the U11 girls’ race and raced hard to finish in 19th place. Team mates Rachel Stevenson (61st) and Ellisia Smedley (73rd) both ran well to put their team in 9th place. A great start to the season for the U11 Girls with all of them counters for their team.

Summer Hargreaves at the Mid Lancs XC. Photo by David Belshaw

Summer Hargreaves at the Mid Lancs XC. Photo by David Belshaw

Pos Name Time
19 Summer Hargreaves 7:09
61 Rachel Stevenson 8:18
73 Ellisia Smedley 9:01

U11 BOYS

There were 7 Clayton runners in the U11 Boys’ race. Dexta Thompson was our first finisher and overall winner of the race. Jenson Bentham, Robbie Smedley and Finley Stubbs all had great runs finishing in the top ten. Matthew Jackson, Thomas Ashworth and Finan Holdsworth completed the squad with some real racing effort thrown in. A comfortable 1st place for our U11 Boys promises another great cross country season to come from this strong group of Clayton boys.

Joshua McKay racing hard at Astley Park. Photo by David Belshaw

Joshua McKay racing hard at Astley Park. Photo by David Belshaw

Pos Name Time
1 Dexta Thompson 5:54
6 Jenson Bentham 6:26
9 Robbie Smedley 6:39
10 Finley Stubbs 6:39
31 Matthew Jackson 7:01
37 Thomas Ashworth 7:12
68 Finan Holdsworth 8:16

U13 GIRLS

There were 6 Clayton girls in the U13 girls’ race. Ella Dorrington appears to be missing from the results so the team position is currently 9th place but this could change once she has been added back in as it’s estimated she was around 13th place overall.

The U13 girls get off to a great start at Astley Park. Photo by David Belshaw

The U13 girls get off to a great start at Astley Park. Photo by David Belshaw

There were plenty of strong performances from this team with a welcome return for Roanna who had a great run and was a counter for the team.

Even with the missing results this is a great start for our U13 girls.

Pos Name Time
?? Ella Dorrington ??
19 Sophie Ashworth 11:26
41 Roanna Holdsworth 12:39
43 Keira Stevenson 12:42
53 Bethany Wheatcroft 13:07
66 Bronia Olszewska 14:38

U13 BOYS

There were four boys in the U13 squad. Jackson McKay was our first finisher in 5th place overall. Lennon Jackson was next in 37th place and third counter for the team was Christopher Brown still managing 57th despite a nasty fall on the course. William Nicholls was 59th.

Jackson McKay racing hard at Astley Park. Photo by David Belshaw

Jackson McKay racing hard at Astley Park. Photo by David Belshaw

Pos Name Time
5 Jackson McKay 11:39
37 Lennon Jackson 13:57
57 Christopher Brown 14:43
59 William Nicholls 14:46

U15 GIRLS

After a bit of a sparse team last year, we are back on form with a number of our girls moving up an age category this year.

Briony Holt was our first girl and 2nd overall with Millie Stubbs in 6th place. Natasha Olszewska had a great run to finish in 14th place and Claudia Bentham didn’t let a fall stop her from carrying on to finish in 27th place.

Our girls took a comfortable 1st place position for what promises to be a successful team in the U15 girls.

U15 Girls at the start line with the U13 Boys. Photo by David Belshaw

U15 Girls at the start line with the U13 Boys. Photo by David Belshaw

Pos Name Time
2 Briony Holt 12:24
6 Millie Stubbs 13:07
14 Natasha Olszewska 14:33
27 Claudia Bentham 15:43

U15 BOYS

Again, after a sparse year in this age group last time, we fielded 5 runners in this race. Nick Hennessey was our first finisher with Stanley Grewel and Jay Bowman taking the team to 7th place. Adam Stevenson and Aaron Lundie completed the squad.

Nick Hennessey in the U15 Boys' race. Photo by David Belshaw

Nick Hennessey in the U15 Boys’ race. Photo by David Belshaw

Pos Name Time
22 Nick Hennessey 16:32
27 Stanley Grewel 17:12
32 Jay Bowman 17:57
39 Adam Stevenson 19:23
44 Aaron Lundie 22:59

U17 WOMEN

Lucy Stevenson was our sole runner in this category. She finished in 12th place.

U17 MEN

Reece Lawrence was our sole runner in this category. He finished in 18th place.

SENIOR RACES

Another season begins and our senior runners are ready to rumble. There was a good turnout of runners and a few newbies in the mix.

SENIOR LADIES RACE

There were 17 Clayton ladies in the senior race. Donna Airey was our first lady in 29th place overall with Elizabeth Mullan not too far behind in 33rd. Irene Roche completed our 11th place ladies team also taking 1st L55 in the race. Cross country newbie Michelle Abbot enjoyed the race and was glad she had decided to get some spikes which she swears saved her from faceplanting in the muddy puddle.

Clayton Ladies ready to rumble! At Astley Park. Photo by Tina Holt

Clayton Ladies ready to rumble! At Astley Park. Photo by Tina Holt

Our ‘A’ Team were 11th (D Airey | E Mullan | I Roche )

Our ‘B’ team were 20th (M Abbott | J Bennett | C Darling-Smedley )

Over 35 Team were 4th (D Airey | I Roche | M Abbott)

Over 45 Team were 4th (I Roche | J Bennett | J Rushton)

Over 55 Team were 1st (I Roche | S Allen | C Leathley)

Irene Roche with Michelle Abbot not far behind. Photo by David Belshaw

Irene Roche with Michelle Abbot not far behind. Photo by David Belshaw

Pos Name Cat Time
29 Donna Airey L35 29:23
33 Elizabeth Mullan L 30:07
55 Irene Roche L55 (1st) 31:39
57 Michelle Abbott L35 31:46
64 Joanne Bennett L45 32:18
65 Cassie Darling-Smedley L35 32:23
71 Julia Rushton L45 33:02
78 Nina Kewin L35 33:49
88 Sarah Helliwell L35 34:29
94 Janine Pollard L45 35:04
110 Rachel Todd L35 36:29
129 Adrienne Olszewska L45 38:37
136 Yvonne Wickham L45 39:21
138 Deborah Greenwood L45 39:31
145 Jane Pier L45 40:18
156 Susan Allen L55 42:21
173 Christine Leathley L65 47:18

MEN U20

Jordan McDonald was 3rd U20 in the race.

SENIOR MENS’ RACE

We had 31 runners in the senior mens’ race. Unfortunately, Danny Collinge was forced to retire due to illness and we were missing Chris Holdsworth as well. This meant that, as well as 3rd in the U20 category, Jordan McDonald was our first Clayton finisher in the senior men’s’ race in 29th place overall. David Scott was 1st V70. There were 232 runners in this race. Our ‘A’ team was still 3rd even with a few of our fast lads missing from this race. A very promising start for our men.

Clayton Men at Astley Park. Photo by David Belshaw

Clayton Men at Astley Park. Photo by David Belshaw

’A’ team 3rd (J McDonald | A Stubbs | L Smith| R Stevenson | J Watson | C Snell)

‘B’ Team 10th (B Holdsworth | D Horrocks | A Holt | G Berry | A Orr | A Life)

Vet 40 Team 3rd ( A Stubbs | R Stevenson | B Holdsworth | D Horrocks)

Vet 50 Team 3rd (D Horrocks | A Life | J Wilcock)

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Breton outdoing the autumn foliage for colour at Astley Park. Photo by David Belshaw

Pos Name Cat Time
29 Jordan McDonald U20 39:53
33 Andy Stubbs V40 40:11
36 Lee Smith M 40:20
41 Richard Stevenson V40 40:51
46 Jacob Watson M 41:19
48 Chris Snell M 41:25
52 Breton Holdsworth V40 42:06
56 David Horrocks V50 42:28
74 Andrew Holt V40 43:42
88 Gareth Berry V40 44:34
91 Andrew Orr V40 44:56
98 Alan Life V50 45:31
109 John Wilcock V50 45:31
115 Andrew Payne M 46:30
117 Brian Horrocks V50 46:32
118 Alan Dorrington V40 46:34
121 John Roche V50 46:39
148 Nick Roscoe V40 48:19
158 Andy Quinn V40 48:50
162 Mark Wightman V50 49:05
178 James Hickie V50 50:15
198 Jason Pier V40 51:30
208 Mick Hughes V40 52:19
215 Matthew Duckworth M 53:01
223 Peter Browning M50 54:29
229 Geoff Smith V40 54:53
230 Craig Nicholls V40 54:56
235 David Scott V70 (1st) 55:24
236 David Moynihan V40 55:49
241 Ian Hargreaves V50 56:32

Full Results

SUNDAY 2 OCTOBER

BURNLEY FIRE 10K

Fourteen Clayton Harriers took to familiar ground on this year’s Burnley Fire 10K road race. The route starts and finishes at Burnley Fire station, climbs up and around Towneley Park and, after a bit of respite as you descend on the road to Cliviger, takes in the beast of a climb that is Mount Lane before a fast downhill gallop back to the Fire Station. 216 runners took part.

Jacob Watson at the Burnley Fire 10K. Photo by David Belshaw

Jacob Watson at the Burnley Fire 10K. Photo by David Belshaw

Jacob Watson was our first finisher and 3rd overall in the race with a time of 37:12. He was swiftly followed by Jonathan Pye in 6th and Matthew Duckworth in 10th. Terry O’Leary joined them in the top twenty finisher in 13th place. Donna Airey was the first Clayton Lady finisher in 35th place overall and 3rd female in the race. Michelle Abbot was 77th and 1st F35.

Donna Airey at the Burnley Fire 10K. Photo by David Belshaw

Donna Airey at the Burnley Fire 10K. Photo by David Belshaw

Report from Deborah Greenwood

A beautiful sunny October morning at this very friendly, well marshalled race. It’s my third year in a row of running this race and I am progressively getting slower! In 2015 I had a time of 57:04 on Sunday I only managed 1:00.32! Yes .32 seconds over the hour, I was gutted.

Donna Airey smashed it, coming in 3rd lady overall with an amazing time of 44.56. A stunning performance after being our first lady at Cross country the day before. Jacob Watson also came in 3rd male overall with a brilliant time of 37:12, with the overall winner being a Blackburn Harriers runner. Exactly 200 runners finished the race and swelled the coffers of the Pendleside hospice and Firefighter funds.

Mount lane proved as challenging as ever, lots of people around me walked this part of the course, I of course ran every step as this is how we have been trained. A lovely resident half way up the hill had set up a water station to revive those that needed. The fires crews and marshals’ were brilliant, shouting and cheering everyone on.

I must do better next time!

Pos Name Category Time
3 Jacob Watson M 37:12.4
6 Jonathan Pye M 38:29.0
10 Matthew Duckworth M 39:19.1
13 Terry O’Leary M 40:21.9
35 Robert Morrison M40 44:48.1
37 Donna Airey F35 44:56.4
44 Colin White M40 45:45.9
48 Stuart Proctor M 46:02.5
55 Andrew Webster M45 47:06.1
77 Michelle Abbott F35 49:13.8
139 Hayley Copeman F45 57:07.8
141 Helen Harrison F45 27:10.4
142 Robert Hirst M65 58:27.8
156 Deborah Greenwood F45 1:00:32.6

Full Results

BURNLEY FIRE FUN RUN

Well done to all of our junior runners that took part in this fun run. Results are not available but Nick Hennessey was the overall winner with Helana White taking first girl which is fantastic considering she was in hospital with appendicitis only a couple of weeks ago.

Clayton Juniors racing ahead at the Burnley Fire fun run.

Clayton Juniors racing ahead at the Burnley Fire fun run.

CHESTER MARATHON

Daniel Plant was our sole representative at the Chester Marathon. He finished in 303rd place with a time of 03:22:22.

Report from Dan Plant

Arrived at Chester and conditions were perfect. We went and registered Tracy and the kids for the mini marathon then the Chester town crier got us under way. The plan was to stick with the 3:15 pacer but I got a bit carried away so pulled away

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Clayton Junior, Charlie Plant (R)at the Chester Mini Marathon

Once you leave the city centre, it’s a very scenic route with the occasional up and down. At 19ish miles I hit the good old wall but by 24 I was moving well again just on time for the main Hill of the route. I did manage a strong finish marathon number 4 of the year and the quickest can’t believe I’ve got to wait till April for another… what will I do with my Sunday mornings!

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Dan Plant ready to go at the Chester Marathon

Full Results

GLENCOE MARATHON

This off-road marathon is an epic trail run that ascends a total of 1,608 metres through the heart of Glencoe and into the foothills of Ben Nevis.  The route snakes through the pass of Glencoe, surrounded by the towering remains of this ancient super volcano, before climbing 500 metres up the fearsome Devil’s Staircase. From the eastern edge of the Aonach Eagach Ridge you look straight onto the mighty Buachaille Etive Mor (the great herdsman) before dropping back to sea level at Kinlochleven where the Mamores Half Marathon starts. Climbing up through the Mamores the route undulates until the descent into Glen Nevis and the base of the mighty Ben Nevis, the UK’s highest peak.

Congratulations to Avril Duckworth who took part and finished in 56th place overall. She was the 6th lady finisher and 1st Vet 50 lady in a time of 4 hours and 29 minutes.

Full Results

 

HODGSON BROTHERS’ MOUNTAIN RELAY

The ‘Hodgson Brothers Mountain Relay’ is a fell running relay race that started life as the ‘Ian Hodgson Mountain Relay’. It is set in the heart of the Lake District Fells, takes place every year on the first Sunday in October, and is competed by teams from across the country, but mainly the North of England. It is the longest-running mountain relay in the country.

Dave Motley and David Walker - leg 2 of the Hodgson Brothers Mountain Relay

Dave Motley and David Walker  on leg 2 of the Hodgson Brothers Mountain Relay. Photo by Steve Razzetti

The race is a tough one, with 4 legs each throwing up their separate challenges, including hard climbs and steep descents on difficult terrain. The route requires careful navigation, especially in bad weather. Each leg is run in pairs (so 8 runners per team) and teams compete for a number of prizes across different categories including Open, Ladies, Mixed and Vets teams.

We were one of the few clubs to field 4 teams in this event.

Men’s Team Report from Captain Ryan Wilkinson

My Sunday morning started @ 5:30am as I may have been a little excited because this is one of the best days out of the year…

After a bit of a shuffle around with the team over the weekend we were ready to go. First up was Jonny & the super sub Bretton who stepped in at the last minute after racing on Saturday at the XC, can’t thank the guy enough! We got off to a good start and came in 14th overall, a swift handover to out leg 2 runners Dave Motley & Dave Walker who set off up the long drag up to the trig then the long, fast run off on a few rocky paths & a steep rough descent to Kirkstone Pass. They had a good run together finished the leg still in a good position.

It was my turn to run leg 3 with Dave Bagot, he’s a bit quicker than me so I knew I had a big job on my hands. Off up Red Screes we went and started to catch a few teams up. We felt good & had a good climb. We dug in & ran our socks off to make up 3 positions and bridging a good gap on our local rivals, handing over to Mr Perry and Andy Laycock who had a cracker of a run putting more time between Barlick and ourselves who were set on catching us. Senior men finished 16th overall which is the best we have finished in a long time. Making it brilliant day as always. Thanks guys for all your effort. Roll on Scotland #TEAMCLAYTON

Our first team to finish were in 16th place overall.

Leg Runners Time
1 J McKenna & B Holdsworth 00:42:55
2 D Motley & D Walker 01:19:11
3 D Bagot & R Wilkinson 00:58:20
4 M Perry & A Laycock 01:18:33

They were followed by the Vets team who finished in 30th place

Vets Team Report

This year the vets were out in force with a really strong team put together by the new vet team manager Garry Wilkinson. First up was Andrew Stubbs & Mark Aspinall with a good solid run and coming in a respectable 22nd position. They then handed over to Carl Haliwell & Peter Coats who are both on great form picking off 4 other pairs on their dash to hand over to Paul Shackleton and Andrew McFarlane who did not waste any time climbing up Red Screes and putting a good shift in across what can only be described as a rugged 5 miles. Then it was time for Garry Wilkinson & Paul Hesketh to finish off the route with last dash for the finish line. All in all it was a good day out for all our teams

Peter Coates and Carl Helliwell. Leg 2 of the Hodgson Brothers Mountain Relay. Photo by Steve Razzetti

Peter Coates and Carl Helliwell. Leg 2 of the Hodgson Brothers Mountain Relay. Photo by Steve Razzetti

Leg Runners Time
1 M Aspinall & A Stubbs 00:45:43
2 C Helliwell & P Coates 01:15:22
3 P Shackleton & A McFarlane 01:09:37
4 G Wilkinson & P Hesketh 01:31:15

Clayton ‘Z’ Team were 55th

Report from Chris Funnell – If Carlsberg did Fell Races

Nothing short of perfect is the way to describe the Hodgson Brothers Mountain relay on Sunday. Despite a very cool (4deg C start leaving home at 0630) and some spectacular cloud inversions, these eventually gave way to perfect blue skies and fantastic running conditions.

I felt very privileged to be running for the second year for the now “infamous Clayton Z Team” on leg 2 with Mark Nutter (a seasoned Z teamer).

We watched all the leg 1-ers get underway from Patterdale and then made our way across to Hartsop for the start of our leg (7.5 mile and 2900 feet of ascent). Andy Howarth and Keith Thompson were on leg 1 and Mark and I waited on the start line to try and catch an early glimpse of Andy and Keith sporting the new Z team colours (which team coach Andrew Walmsley has had his top R&D people develop). Angela Shian and Anna Kelly ran a great first leg and added to the pressure as Wendy Dodds and Tracy Mitchell set off into the morning sunshine. A minute or so later and Andy and Keith came in both looking like they’d run a race. As Mark grabbed the dibber he said “we’ve got some work to do”. Despite our pre-race pact not to set off too fast, we set off (too) fast up the long climb up towards High Street. Wendy and Tracy soon came into sight and we did our best to mask our heavy breathing as we inched alongside.

After a couple more scalps, we rolled the dice on a couple of alternative race lines which Mark had picked up studying the map prior to the start. Both route choices paid off and as we reached High Street we were at least 6 places up. A blast along High Street and a good scramble up Thornthwaite gained another 2 places. A final tricky descent down to Kirkstone and job done we passed the dibber into the capable hands of demon descenders Richard Bellaries and Andy Firth. The final leg was run by Ivan Wigham and Ralph Baines who had a blistering run in claiming a Lonsdale scalp in the final descent to the finish line at Patterdale.

At the customary post race debrief in the White Lion (attended by groupies and mascots) it became evident that Andy and Keith had opted to take in a bit more scenery (who could blame them) by missing an exit route, however with times and places up on last year it was clear the day had been a resounding success with the reputation and infamy of the Z Team intact.

Leg Runners Time
1 A Howarth & K Thompson 00:57:20
2 M Nutter & C Funnell 01:33:51
3 A Firth & R Bellaries 01:09:40
4 I Whigham & R Baines 01:40:59

And finally, our open mixed team finished in 64th place

Report from Kath Brady

After illness/injury calls days before the event, the available experienced ladies had run out so had to swap our Ladies team to Open and run with 2 men. We finished 64th out of 70 in a time of 5:48.This event is just as tough and competitive as the British relays. Leg 1 Anna Kelly & Angela Shian (in her first Lakeland relay) started us off. Leg 2 legend Wendy Dodds ran with Tracey Mitchell (who’d moved from leg 3 on Thursday). Leg 3 A bit of childcare from me and Kieron Mitchell (who’d been over the route with Tracy) ran with an even later replacement and always smiling Paul Wale. Leg 4 Jean Brown guided Barbara Savage round having been moved from leg 2

Leg Runners Time
1 A Kelly & A Shian 0:56:11
2 W Dodds & T Mitchell 01:45:36
3 K Mitchell & P Wale 01:20:25
4 J Brown & B Savage 01:46:43

Full Results

LITTLEBOROUGH 10K ROAD RACE

Two club members took part in this 10K road race organised by Cannonball Events. Stephen Biscomb was our first finisher in 55th place overall and with a time of 44:13 and also taking the 1st V60 position. Joining him was Amanda Duffy who finished in 70th place with a time of 45:37. A total of 239 runners took part.

Report from Amanda Duffy

I decided to try the Littleborough 10K on Sunday. The race started opposite the station with the first part being a climb up Hollingworth Road to the lakeside. The course took up around the lake and then on a few farm tracks and trail. It was a lovely day for it and a nice scenic route

Myself and Steve Biscomb were the only runners from Clayton

Pos Name Cat Time
55 Stephen Biscomb M60 44:13.1
70 Amanda Duffy W35 45:37.0

Full Results

STANLEY PARK 5MILE ROAD RACE

Kevin Davies (minus the tiger this week!) was our sole representative in the inaugural running of this race. It’s proposed to run the event twice annually in the Spring and Autumn. He finished in 5th place overall with a time of 30:51 and was 1st V50 as well.

Pos Name Cat Time
5 Kevin Davies M50 30:51

Full Results

PARKRUN ROUNDUP

Brighouse parkrun – A total of 378 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
271 Robin PRICE 32:54 VM70-74 First Timer!

Burnley parkrun – A total of 291 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
1 Jacob WATSON 17:54 SM30-34
2 Jonathan PYE 17:56 SM25-29
5 Jonathan CLEAVER 18:31 VM35-39
14 Nicholas HENNESSEY 20:47 JM11-14
17 Kevin DAVIES 21:09 VM50-54
20 Stephen AINSWORTH 21:16 VM55-59
24 Adam STEPHENSON 21:36 SM30-34 New PB!
26 Gordon BARRETT 21:46 VM50-54
27 Terry O’LEARY 21:59 VM35-39
38 Colin WHITE 22:58 VM40-44
58 Michelle ABBOTT 23:51 VW35-39
68 Nina KEWIN 24:10 VW35-39
69 Reece Adam LAWRENCE 24:13 JM15-17
73 Chris LAWRENCE 24:32 VM50-54
75 Julie DAWES 24:35 VW45-49
87 Andy QUINN 25:10 VM45-49
89 Andrew TAYLOR 25:13 VM55-59
94 Annabel WILCOCK 25:22 JW15-17
95 John WILCOCK 25:24 VM50-54
104 Donna SCOTT 25:46 VW50-54
139 Hayley COPEMAN 27:23 VW45-49
140 Yvonne WICKHAM 27:23 VW50-54
149 Ron CHAPPELL 27:47 VM65-69
182 Carl CAREY 29:35 VM45-49
185 Christine Jennifer EGERTON 29:41 VW65-69
186 Robert HIRST 29:42 VM65-69
257 Helen HARRISON 34:43 VW45-49

Fell Foot parkrun, Newby Bridge – A total of 189 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
47 Martin BRADY 23:53 VM50-54
103 Eileen JONES 28:51 VW60-64 New PB!

Pendle parkrun – A total of 92 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
1 Paul BRANNON 19:54 VM55-59
4 John HARTLEY 20:56 VM55-59
25 Dawn TERRY 26:18 VW50-54
65 Harry WALKER 33:47 VM65-69

Witton parkrun – A total of 103 runners took part.

Pos   parkrunner   Time   Age Cat   Note  
37 Stephen FISH 27:40 VM60-64