Exeter Parkrun 5k
Kate Wilson ran the Exeter 5km parkrun on Saturday. The course was a short section along the canal followed by four laps of a wet, muddy field, which was very soggy in places. This was Kate’s first parkrun and first ever 5km race. Kate was first in her category in a time of 27:11 – congratulations Kate.
Westward League Exeter feat. Devon Championship
It was a bright and sunny afternoon at the Exeter Arena that drew ORCs to compete in five of the races on the card. Our youngest runners were up first with regular Cross Country attendees Arthur Lane, William Bussell, Stanley Hicks and Laurence Hicks representing the club as a quartet for the third successive time. They enjoyed the course at it’s best and benefited from U11 boys and girls running together to produce strong runs and subsequent quick times. Each boy finished in their season’s best position and will look to build on that in the New Year.
Sophie Luxton broke the ORC ladies duck at this years races to compete in the U17 girls race. It was her first Westward League experience. A determined performance saw Sophie hold her own among seasoned athletes. She has a exciting off road season to come and we hope to see her at many future meetings.
Arthur Hicks was the sole U13 boy in ORC colours. In a small but fiercely competitive field Arthur started strongly to give himself a chance of Devon selection but faded in the second half of the race. A brave run which clearly hurt as Arthur finished in a time that should have placed him higher in the results.
The performances of the day possibly came in the U15 boys race. Elis Aldrich and Stan Woods raced brilliantly in a stacked field. Each boy ran strong controlled races and are becoming a fixture in the local XC scene.
The Senior Men took to the course in the final race. By now the route was more mud than grass and an attritional 8.9km lay before the large field. ORC boasted 8 entrants and were led home by the youngest, Sam Priday in under 32 minutes to finish 28th. Paul Crease bagged himself a category win as first Devon vet 45 home followed by Chris Turner and Andy Vallance. A gap separated the leading ORCs from the second wave led in by Rob Hicks, with Tom Poland a couple places behind. Shortly after came Joe Lane, book ending the day for his family after his eldest son Arthur ran in the U11 race, and then Paul Carter finished to deliver another strong team performance.
Cyprus Marathon
Jo Page ran a great race in the logicom Cyprus marathon on Sunday and came in second lady in a time of 3:24:25. The heavens opened as the runners crossed the start line and didn’t stop until they had finished. Thunder, lightning and biblical rain was not what Jo expected when she signed up for the marathon in Cyprus! Congratulations to Jo on a brilliant result.
Hurtwood 50k
Sunday also saw Ian Ripper run his first Ultra, the Hurtwood 50k. This ultra starts at Dorking and follows the Greensands way into the forested Surrey hills. The runners experienced muddy conditions and elevation in an Area of Outstanding natural beauty. Ian ran an impressive race to come home 1st Vet 60 – congratulations!
