Marilyn’s Meldon Madness
On Saturday, there was a great turnout of ORC’s for Marilyn’s Meldon Madness, the first fell race of the Summer Series. Named in memory of ORC Marilyn Cooper, the event offered shorter junior races before the 5 mile senior race.
The juniors ran straight up and down Longstone Hill whilst the seniors continued onto climb Yes Tor and High Willhays before descending to Black Tor and the welcome flying finish.
The juniors ran in pouring rain but fortunately this did not dampen their spirits or speed. Great performances from Rory Grubb (1st U10B on his birthday!), Alistair Taylor (1st U14B), Ruairi Duffield, Arthur Lane, Thomas Spiers, Alice Spiers and Ollie King.
The seniors were treated to drier conditions which made for some speedy running. First home was Luke Stannus (2nd overall) followed by Stewart Taylor, Oli Hunt, Ian Duffield, Joe Lane, Tom Poland, Paul Trace, Charlie Temperley, Garry Sprague, Ian Ripper, Deane Andrew, Emma Brock (2nd female, 1st F40, winner of the Marilyn’s Meldon Madness trophy for 1st ORC female), Claire Watkins (1st F50) and Karen King. The post race cakes were enjoyed by all!
Race the Tide
On Saturday, Matt Grint, Andrew Thorne, Peter Roissetter and Kathryn Volkelt-Igoe were in Mothecombe to run Outer Edge Events Race the Tide. Matt and Andrew took on the 29mile Long Marathon whilst Peter and Kathryn ran the 8.5mile Watery Woodland Trail.
The marathon incorporated the South West Coast Path on both sides of the Erme Estuary; 1300m of climb; sandy beaches, and a run across the causeway to Burgh Island. The Woodland Trail followed the Flete Estate’s beautiful woodland trails. Both routes had plenty of steep undulations and finished with wading across the estuary to reach the finish line!
Matt finished in 6hrs, Andrew in 6hrs38, Peter in 1hr27 and Kathryn in 1hr50. Everyone had a great day out commenting on how well organised both races were. Matt said the hardest part was running past the pub on Burgh Island!
Cotswold Trail Half Marathon
Rob Gooding headed to Winchcombe on Saturday to run Maverick Races Cotswold Trail Half Marathon. Set in the Cotswold Hills and starting from Sudeley Castle, the 23km route included over 500m of climb following undulating trails and Long Distance Paths through picturesque villages and green valleys passing famous ancient sites.
Although covering a bit more tarmac than he would have liked, Rob thought the route was beautiful. He finished in 1hr52.
Worcester Half Marathon
Pearl Barnes was in action again on Sunday, this time racing Tempo Events Worcester Half Marathon. The course followed rural lanes through the rolling Worcestershire countryside before finishing at Worcester Rugby Club. The hilly route did not slow Pearl up, and she was very happy to finish in 2:14:32 inside her goal time of 2hrs15.
Bownder
On Sunday, Claire Grubb and Keeley Phillips were in Cornwall for Bys Vyken Events Bownder festival of races. Based at Lamarth Farm, the looped multi-terrain event was contained within the farm and its lanes and offered seven distances from 10km up to 100miles. Each race was named after a field on the farm; Claire took on Carthouse (50km) and Keeley Phillips ran House (21km).
Using the event as training for the Summer Spine Race, Claire completed her 50km as 3rd female in 6hrs59 averaging 50 minutes per lap whilst carrying her full Spine Race kit. Keeley completed her afternoon 21k in torrential rain saying that it was tough course and cold out there; she was pleased “to get it done!”
