GP Race Results 2015

Grand Prix Race Results 2015

Race 1 – Haweswater half Race 2 – Thirsk 10M Race 3 – Keswick half Race 4 – George Ogle 6M

Race 5 – Newburn 6.5M Race 6 – Tynedale 10K Race 7 – LGBT 5K Race 8 – Darlington 10K

Race 9 – Haltwhistle half Race 10 – Castles half Race 11 – Brampton 10M Race 12 – Loftus Poultry Run

Race 12 - Loftus Poultry Run – Sun 20th Dec 2015

The last race of the 2015 Grand Prix season saw a small group of Blyth runners head down to Loftus, near Whitby, to take part in a multi-terrain race of about 8 miles. The Loftus Poultry Run is a challenging course with road, track and field elements combined with several long climbs. Conditions were fairly good although warm for the time of year with strong winds on exposed sections.

Muddy sections across fields were challenging and made the run a good test of strength and stamina. Over 450 runners took part and Rob MacDonald was the first Blyth runner to finish, in 42nd place, followed by Steve French. With only four Grand Prix runners out of about 9 who had booked taking part it suggests this race is probably too close to Christmas for most people. Hats off to Ewa Johnson who, while not in the Grand Prix, took part in the race.

The poultry run is definitely one for everyone to try, despite the travel and time of year. There's a great atmosphere with brass bands as the warm up act and prizes including turkeys, geese and everything you need for Christmas dinner. Fancy dress is encouraged with spot prizes for making the effort. All in all a good morning out and although not a great turnout from Blyth runners it was a great way to finish the GP for 2015.

The full results can be found HERE.

Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.	Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.
1	42	Rob Macdonald	M	53:18	1	8	5	340	Ewa Johnson	F45	79:42	-	-
2	91	Steve French	M40	59:22	1	7
3	293	Claire Mason	F45	75:20	4	7
4	326	Ralph Dickinson	M60	78:11	4	6
Total No. of finishers :- 453

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Race 11 - Brampton to Carlisle 10 Mile – Sun 15th Nov 2015

After fairly horrendous weather the previous day and overnight, it was relief to find that the usual course for the long-established Brampton to Carlisle 10 Mile road race was deemed fit to race on by the organisers. Despite some late drop-outs, 24 of our runners still made it to the start line for this perennial club favourite.

Although the rain had largely ceased for the race, there will was still a strong headwind to cope with, and many a PB attempt died with that wind. Those who still managed new bests should be very proud of their achievement. There were also some parts of the course that were flooded, although considered passable by the organisers. The runners opinions of this judgement were a little less positive, as splashing through ankle-deep cold water in the middle of the race was mostly not considered to be much fun (and your correspondent certainly didn’t enjoy the torn hamstring that he suffered immediately after the first such ‘dip’).

Jake Jansen was first back or the men but he disqualified himself from the Grand Prix points by not wearing his club vest. Jake was followed home by Tony Holland, completing his first 10 mile road race with a very impressive performance over what is a short race for him. Claire Calverley was first lady back and, with 15 of our finishers being from the Grand Prix, the final tables for the season are now very much taking shape.

The full results can be found HERE.

Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.	Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.
1	36	Jake Jansen	M	1:00:27	1	DQ*	13	253	Leanne Herron	L35	1:16:43	2	5
2	82	Tony Holland	M40	1:04:41	-	-	14	292	Phillippa Moore	L35	1:18:18	-	-
3	88	Rob Macdonald	M	1:05:03	1	8	15	294	Richard Shillinglaw	M	1:18:22	-	-
4	127	Jon French	M	1:08:03	-	-	16	343	Terry McCabe	M65	1:21:46	-	-
5	135	Robby Barkley	M40	1:08:24	1	7	17	344	John Mallon	M60	1:21:54	4	7
6	141	Ian Baxter	M45	1:09:02	2	8	18	402	Claire Mason	L50	1:26:40	4	6
7	178	Paul Knight	M40	1:11:52	3	7	19	422	Ralph Dickinson	M60	1:29:12	4	5
8	198	Steven French	M40	1:13:23	1	6	20	424	Anne Craddock	L55	1:29:16	-	-
9	201	Martin Scott	M45	1:13:30	2	7	21	429	Louise Coultate	L	1:29:46	-	-
10	207	Mark Nicholson	U20	1:14:03	2	6	22	501	Claire Everett	L	1:37:40	-	-
11	228	Claire Calverley	L35	1:15:32	3	6	23	538	Joanne Stobbart	L50	1:47:01	5	6
12	252	Mark Ponton	M45	1:16:43	3	5	24	DNF	Dave Roberts	M50	-	3	-
Total No. of finishers :- 560

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Race 10 - Castles Half Marathon – Sun 25th October 2015

Bamburgh was the starting location for the 10th race of the GP competition and the last opportunity to score points in the ‘Above 10M’ category. The Castle itself provided an excellent backdrop to start the race with a nice downhill section into town. There were many familiar faces at registration and along the route with many Blyth runners opting to volunteer for marshalling duties. The Castles races also took place last year but this was a new course for 2015 so nobody knew exactly what to expect, however it was common knowledge the Half would be one lap and the Marathon would be two. Davina Lonsdale was competing in the Marathon which started a little bit later than planned, then it was time for the Half to start. The race itself took place over quiet mostly single track roads and the word ‘undulating’ would describe the course perfectly. There were no significant hills but there was always a gentle rise or dip around the next corner. One point to mention is the mile markers were a shambles, some were accurate but the majority were 0.5 miles too short, very confusing I’m sure for those without GPS.

Tony Holland (not in GP) was first back for Blyth (4th overall) with a pb of 01:24. Great running after an equally impressive parkrun pb the morning before. There were 2 runners in attendance from Div 1 and Div 2. Robbie Barkley finished ahead of Steven French in Div 1 but it was Martin Scott from Div 2 who split the two Div 1 runners. Mark Nicholson was the other Div 2 runner who picked up some valuable 2nd place points.

There were no runners from Div 3, Dave Roberts already has this title wrapped up so a missed opportunity for those chasing points perhaps?

Div 4 and Div 5 also had 3 runners each. In Div 4 Michael McKenna had a good run to take max points and was closely followed by the first Blyth Lady, Lisa Scorer (not in GP). Next to follow in Div 4 was Claire Mason and John Mallon. Leanne Davies put in a speedy finish and was first back in Div 5 with Joanne Stobbart and Alison Warnes also picking up good points. Other non-GP competitors making up the 16 from Blyth were Anita Brabazon, Claire Everett, Andrea Wilson and Gemma Harmon – maybe next year for the GP ladies?

Thanks again to the Blyth marshals and to Andrew Grieves and Craig Harmon taking photos on the route.

The full results can be found HERE.

Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.	Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.
1	4	Tony Holland	M40	1:24:09	-	-	9	133	John Mallon	M60	1:58:16	4	5
2	9	Robbie Barkley	M40	1:29:31	1	8	10	157	Anita Brabazon	SW	2:05:09	-	-
3	27	Martin Scott	M45	1:34:39	2	8	11	175	Leanne Davies	SW	2:08:44	5	6
4	32	Steven French	M40	1:35:55	1	7	12	184	Claire Everett	SW	2:12:41	-	-
5	47	Mark Nicholson	SM	1:41:16	2	7	13	192	Andrea Wilson	L40	2:16:38	-	-
6	114	Michael McKenna	SM	1:54:54	4	7	14	196	Joanne Stobart	L50	2:17:34	5	5
7	119	Lisa Scorer	L35	1:55:35	-	-	15	203	Gemma Harmon	SW	2:18:56	-	-
8	132	Claire Mason	L50	1:58:14	4	6	16	228	Alison Warnes	L50	2:32:20	5	4
Total No. of finishers :- 233

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Race 9 - Haltwhistle Half Marathon – Sun 27th Sep 2015

On an unusually warm, still and sunny day for late September in Northumberland, 18 of our runners assembled for their first experience of this race, which was in its second year of running. It turned out that we accounted for slightly more than one in every eight of the field, and this seemed to result in lots of support from those locals scattered along the entirely rural route.

The race was an out-and-back route and almost entirely off road, although the surface varied from tarmac-coated path through rough track to a few short stretches of grass. Several of our runners found conditions underfoot quite taxing and the local insects were also out in force and a problem for some, but the race was mostly considered to be a good addition to the calendar.

First back for Blyth and in a hugely creditable 4th place overall was Rob McDonald, while Claire Calverley was first Blyth lady and an excellent 5th lady overall. Both Rob and Claire ran PBs, as did Martin Scott and – by a huge margin – Richard Shillinglaw, so the course cannot have been too tough after all. Claire also won the FV35 age category, so we took away one prize as well.

It is to be hoped that this race thrives despite the rather disappointing turnout – no doubt the unkind scheduling of the first Harrier League meeting of the season for the previous day did not help – as it is a nice part of the world for a run and half marathons within the county should be valued and supported as much as possible.

The full results can be found HERE.

Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.	Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.
1	4	Rob Macdonald	M	1:25:50	1	8	10	52	Mark Ponton	M45	1:45:39	3	5
2	7	Paul Whalley	M40	1:29:15	1	7	11	53	Richard Shillinglaw	M35	1:45:56	-	-
3	14	Martin Scott	M40	1:33:15	2	8	12	55	Phillippa Moore	F35	1:46:24	-	-
4	15	Steven French	M40	1:33:16	1	6	13	69	Ralph Dickinson	M60	1:51:18	4	7
5	23	Shaun Dodd	M40	1:36:25	2	7	14	83	Claire Mason	L50	1:56:15	4	6
6	25	David Roberts	M50	1:36:58	3	7	15	92	Michael McKenna	M	1:59:04	4	5
7	29	Robbie Barkley	M40	1:39:04	1	5	16	112	Paul Blackett	M40	2:08:40	-	-
8	32	Claire Calverley	F35	1:40:17	3	6	17	129	Joanne Stobbart	L50	2:25:13	5	6
9	36	Steve Dobby	M40	1:41:21	2	6	18	133	Alison Warnes	L50	2:37:36	5	5
Total No. of finishers :- 138

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Race 8 - Darlington 10K – Sun 9th August 2015

21 of our runners took part in this year’s Darlington 10K, a race with a strong reputation as being well organised and fairly fast. That reputation no doubt contributed to the size and quality of the field, as with well over 1600 finishers and some high quality at the sharp end this qualifies as something rather more than just another local 10K.

Perspectives on the day seemed largely to be influenced by whether or not people had run this race before, perhaps largely influenced on the day by quite warm and very humid conditions which did not help most people’s performances. While the course is quite obviously not as flat as our own Blyth Valley 10K it is also significantly less undulating than some of our other local 10K races, such as the Morpeth or Alnwick races.

19 of our runners are also taking part in this year’s Grand Prix and good turn outs from the top two divisions meant that two thirds of our runners finished in the top quarter of the field. Joseph Woods was our first finisher, with what looks like a substantial PB, followed by Paul Whalley, who is continuing his comeback. Leanne Herron was first Blyth lady.

Overall, I would say this was a well organised race not helped by some challenging conditions, and would obviously be faster in other years. Having said that, the size of the field means that you definitely would not want to get caught too far back in the starting pens!

The full results can be found HERE

Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.	Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.
1	80	Joseph Woods	M	37:51	1	8	12	370	Leanne Herron	F35	45:02	2	4
2	108	Paul Whalley	M40	38:52	1	7	13	381	Mark Ponton	M45	45:08	3	6
3	126	Rob Macdonald	M	39:19	1	6	14	412	Claire Calverley	F35	45:57	3	5
4	164	Robby Barkley	M40	40:27	1	5	15	683	Ralph Dickinson	M60	49:22	4	7
5	167	Ian Baxter	M45	40:33	2	8	16	945	Claire Mason	F50	55:32	4	6
6	225	Martin Scott	M40	41:49	2	7	17	996	Leanne Davies	F	56:32	5	6
7	244	Steven French	M40	42:28	1	4	18	1001	Anne Craddock	F55	56:14	-	-
8	272	Shaun Dodd	M40	43:16	2	6	19	1126	Andrea Ponton	F35	58:47	5	5
9	306	David Roberts	M50	44:00*	3	7	20	1233	Louise Rawlinson	F40	61:00	4	5
10	316	Steve Dobby	M40	44:07	2	5	21	1391	Joanne Stobbart	F50	64:48	5	4
11	322	Gareth Hope	M	44:15	-	-
Total No. of finishers :- 1649 *Gun time (no chip time recorded). All other results are chip times.

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Race 7 - LGBT 5K – Fri 17th July 2015

After great reports about the 2014 version of this race, 35 Blyth runners were sufficiently encouraged to turn up for the 2015 edition, held on the Town Moor as part of the Newcastle Pride Festival weekend. OK, maybe half of these runners were also motivated by its inclusion in the 2015 Grand Prix as the shortest race of the season.

For those familiar with Newcastle Parkrun, some – but not all - of the course is the same, only the LGBT runs anti-clockwise rather than clockwise. On an extremely windy evening for mid-July, this meant that we were faced with a powerful gale in our faces for a large part of the fourth kilometre, which was not going to help anyone in search of a PB. Still, at least it was dry and temperatures were reasonable enough.

On quite narrow paths, most of us were grateful enough that many of the 500+ participants were there for the fun of it rather than to race, and there was soon plenty of elbow room to be had and 12 of our 35 runners finished inside the top 20% of the field. In a tight fought battle, Jon French managed to pip Sam for first Blyth finisher, and Lauren Barrett was first Blyth female. However, neither of these two is in this year’s Grand Prix, so it was maximum points again for Sam, Ian, Dave and Leanne, with the Division 4 points being taken for the first time by Michael McKenna in only his third Grand Prix race.

Overall, this was a well-organised and very sociable event, and one that has grown massively in its short existence. In better weather, the course would be a lot faster as well, and I am sure that many of our runners will be back for future editions.

The full results can be found HERE

Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.	Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.
1	13	Jon French	M	18:12	-	-	18	205	Lesley Falkous	F35	25:03	-	-
2	14	Sam Dodd	M	18:14	1	8	19	217	Claire Mason	F50	25:35	4	6
3	30	Ian Baxter	M45	19:44	2	8	20	239	Leanne Davies	F	26:12	5	6
4	35	Rob Macdonald	M	19:53	1	7	21	249	Peter Maylia	M60	26:34	4	5
5	37	Martin Scott	M40	19:54	2	7	22	254	Gemma Harmon	F	26:37	-	-
6	46	Mark Nicholson	U20	20:20	2	6	23	260	Louise Coultate	F	27:10	-	-
7	54	Steven French	M40	20:48	1	6	24	261	Cath Young	F55	27:10	-	-
8	64	David Roberts	M50	21:10	3	7	25	263	Ewa Johnson	F45	27:11	-	-
9	73	Shaun Dodd	M40	21:43	2	5	26	310	Andrea Ponton	F35	28:19	5	5
10	80	Mark Ponton	M45	21:55	3	6	27	324	Jennifer Stewart	F	28:49	-	-
11	92	Lauren Barrett	F	22:00	-	-	28	325	Alison Lowes	F35	28:49	-	-
12	97	Claire Calverley	F35	22:23	3	5	29	329	Andrea Wilson	F40	29:04	-	-
13	153	David McGarry	M40	23:31	3	4	30	394	Simon Sellars	M	31:56	5	4
14	162	Paul Blackett	M40	24:22	-	-	31	404	Phillippa Edwards	F35	32:18	-	-
15	175	Craig Harmon	M	24:30	-	-	32	405	Lynn Munro	F60	32:19	-	-
16	179	Michael McKenna	M	24:34	4	7	33	406	Suzanne Beall	F35	32:18	-	-
17	188	Sue Browning	F40	24:45	-	-	34	416	Alison Warnes	F50	33:13	5	3
-	-	-	-	-	-	-	35	450	Dave Kitching	M65	35:26	-	-
Total No. of finishers :- 508

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Race 6 - Tynedale 10K – Wed 1st July 2015

A local 10K, renowned for being a fast course, the middle of summer, well over five hundred entries ..... what more could we ask for?

Well, for a start, most of us would have appreciated temperatures lower than the 23.5°C that it was when we parked up south of the river (Ovingham bridge remains closed to traffic), less than an hour before the start. Worse than that, I think, was the humidity, which was very high. Fortunately, the thunderstorms that made headlines that day stayed clear of the route both before and during the race but the high humidity can really sap your strength. Some are made of stronger stuff, of course, but fortunately everyone else in my division seemed to have the same difficulty as me, and I think that there were less than a handful of our runners who coped really well with these conditions.

Amongst the hundreds at the start near the top of the hill at Ovington were 24 in green and white. As always with this race, it was a bit of a cavalry charge down the first steep slope before we could then settle in to some sort of rhythm. The conditions really did take their toll - I have never seen so many runners in the first half of the field of a 10K stop and walk, give up or (in at least a couple of worrying cases) become physically unable to keep going. My mile splits for the first four miles showed a clear and disconcerting trend - 7:00, 7:15, 7:30, 7:45 - but I was passing plenty of people and hardly anyone was coming past me (apart from Paul Whalley, that is!).

Talking of Paul, it was great to see one of our past multiple overall Grand Prix champions back racing, even if he was clearly having to hold back after the weekend's jaunt in the Borders. Great credit to all of those who managed to do this race just three days after the extended (and overnight) run in the Borders, even if it possibly showed in the finishing times.

Sam was again first back for Blyth and Leanne (despite being one of those who had been running in the Borders at the weekend) narrowly won the race for first Blyth lady. Ian, Dave, Ralph and Andrea won in Divisions 2-5. 20 of the 36 Grand Prix entries were amongst our 24 runners, with Divisions 2 & 3 best represented, as the 2015 Grand Prix reached its half way point.

All in all, the Tynedale 10K was a tough race this year. Anyone who got near their previous bests or their target time should be very pleased with their efforts.

The full results can be found HERE.

Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.	Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.
1	32	Sam Dodd	M	37:31	1	8	14	317	Hayley Raithby	F35	50:18	-	-
2	86	Ian Baxter	M45	41:02	2	8	15	346	Ralph Dickinson	M60	51:42	4	7
3	127	Tony Holland	M40	42:56	-	-	16	361	Julie Lemin	F35	52:20	3	4
4	133	Martin Scott	M40	43:14	2	7	17	399	Davina Lonsdale	F45	54:03	-	-
5	140	Steven French	M40	43:27	1	7	18	402	David McGarry	M40	54:11	3	3
6	159	Mark Nicholson	U20	44:10	2	6	19	439	Peter Maylia	M60	56:30	4	6
7	165	Steve Dobby	M40	44:21	2	5	20	474	Claire Mason	F50	59:33	4	5
8	187	Paul Whalley	M40	45:15	1	6	21	492	Andrea Ponton	F35	61:02	5	6
9	200	David Roberts	M50	45:48	3	7	22	501	Louise Rawlinson	F40	62:23	4	4
10	231	Leanne Herron	F35	47:08	2	4	23	519	Joanne Stobbart	F50	66:07	5	5
11	236	Claire Calverley	F35	47:16	3	6	24	538	Alison Warnes	F50	70:33	5	4
12	245	Mark Ponton	M45	47:30	3	5	25
13	272	Richard Shillinglaw	M35	48:26	-	-	26
Total No. of finishers :- 546

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Race 5 - Newburn River Run 6.5M – Wed 17th June 2015

The fifth race of the 2015 Grand Prix season was close to home and a perennial favourite, not least because it is nearly all dead flat (and therefore well attuned to the preferences of most Blyth runners) and a very friendly event, efficiently run by Elswick Harriers out of Newburn Leisure Centre.

It was a windy evening but seemed quite warm and humid all the same. The first half heads west along the northern bank of the river to Wylam bridge (so that was into the wind) and then it is across the bridge, east along the southern bank and back over Newburn bridge to the Leisure Centre and the finish. Mostly off road but very straightforward. What could go wrong?

Well, 20 of our Grand Prix runners (and five other members as well) finished the race, with several having proved that all was not quite so straightforward but everyone seemed to enjoy the race overall. Many of our runners were witness to the distressing sight of one of the faster runners having collapsed in the fourth mile - several competitors had stopped to help - but it turns out that he recovered later, and so that was relief to us all.

Sam Dodd was again first back for Blyth and Leanne Herron was also first lady again. Divisions 1, 3, 4 & 5 saw repeat victories for Sam, Dave, Ralph and Leanne Davies, while young Mark Nicholson was first back from Division 2 in only his second Grand Prix race.

Division 4 were very well represented, with 6 of the 7 entrants running on the night, and Divisions 2 (5 out of 8) and 5 (4 out of 6) also saw good turnouts. Perhaps Divisions 1 and 3 need to buck their ideas up!

All in all, a good race and good to see a better turnout for this one as well.

The full results can be found HERE.

Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.	Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.
1	16	Sam Dodd	M	39:10	1	8	14	220	John Mallon	M55	55:50	4	6
2	46	Robbie Barkley	M40	42:56	1	7	15	221	Louise Coultate	F	55:55	-	-
3	57	Mark Nicholson	M	43:59	2	8	16	223	Cath Young	F55	55:57	-	-
4	58	Ian Baxter	M45	44:00	2	7	17	226	Davina Lonsdale	F45	56:05	-	-
5	63	Martin Scott	M40	44:32	2	6	18	234	Claire Mason	F50	56:52	4	5
6	74	Martin Gaughan	M55	45:08	-	-	19	235	Peter Maylia	M60	56:56	4	4
7	98	David Roberts	M50	46:41	3	7	20	241	Leanne Davies	F	57:29	5	6
8	104	Shaun Dodd	M40	47:20	2	5	21	242	Michael McKenna	M	57:41	4	3
9	111	Mark Ponton	M45	47:50	3	6	22	265	Louise Rawlinson	F40	60:15	4	2
10	122	Leanne Herron	F	48:29	2	4	23	279	Andrea Ponton	F35	61:49	5	5
11	168	Ralph Dickinson	M60	51:54	4	7	24	302	Joanne Stobbart	F50	65:36	5	4
12	188	David McGarry	M40	53:12	3	5	25	317	Alison Warnes	F50	70:33	5	3
13	214	Hayley Raithby	F35	55:34	-	-	26
Total No. of finishers :- 328

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Race 4 - George Ogle 6M – Wed 27th May 2015

The evening of the last Wednesday in May saw 21 of our runners (and exactly half of this year's 36 Grand Prix entrants) decide to brave the elements for the George Ogle 6 Mile race, on trails near Swallwell Cricket Club, just south of the river Tyne. I say 'brave' because it was decidedly cool and had poured with rain for about 2.5 hours until we got to the car park and the forecast was for more of the same. However, right on cue, the rain stopped and it was actually sunny during the race. By the time we got home it was pouring again, so the weather gods were really smiling on us after all.

This race has been going for a few years now (it is in honour of a noted but now departed runner and volunteer from those parts and is organised by the PB Fitness Running Club, who many of us have seen at races) but it was making its debut in the club Grand Prix and this had encouraged more than 10% of the places in the race (which had sold out in advance) to be taken up by Blyth runners. It was great to see such a lot of green-and-white there and some other local clubs were also very well represented - I saw a lot of Blackhill Bounders and Sunderland Strollers, and there were others besides.

Unsurprisingly, given not only the part of the world that it was in but also that this was advertised as a Trail Race, the course was hardly flat, however despite all of that rain the underfoot conditions were easy enough and most people were able to get round in road shoes without even the slightest slip. A lot of the course was actually not very hilly at all but the few bits that were could reasonably be described as fairly short but very sharp! However, all of the way round we had excellent support from a hugely enthusiastic marshalling team provided by PB Fitness Running Club, and the race turned out also to be a bit shorter than the advertised 6 miles - maybe about five and three quarters, according to most of the Garmins.

Most Grand Prix Divisions had at least 50% representation and first back for Blyth was Sam Dodd, with another impressive run to finish sixth, followed not too far behind by Robbie Barkley. Winners for the other divisions were Ian Baxter, Dave Roberts (both repeating earlier successes), Ralph Dickinson and Leanne Davies (both making their first appearances of the year).

A great addition to the Grand Prix and I am sure that this will not be the last time that this race is selected for inclusion.

The full results can be found on the Run Britain web site HERE.

Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.	Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Div.	Pts.
1	6	Sam Dodd	M	34:43	1	8	12	93	Hayley Raithby	F35	45:07	-	-
2	13	Robbie Barkley	M40	37:22	1	7	13	95	Claire Calverley	F35	45:21	3	5
3	26	Rob Macdonald	M	38:27	1	6	14	98	Julie Lemin	F35	45:58	3	4
4	29	Ian Baxter	M45	39:21	2	8	15	111	Ralph Dickinson	M60	47:43	4	7
5	35	Steven French	M40	40:01	1	5	16	115	Cath Young	F55	47:55	-	-
6	52	Mark Nicholson	M	41:46	2	7	17	128	Davina Lonsdale	F45	49:08	-	-
7	55	Shaun Dodd	M40	42:00	2	6	18	148	Michael McKenna	M	52:19	4	6
8	57	David Roberts	M50	42:18	3	7	19	154	Leanne Davies	F	52:39	5	6
9	61	Steve Dobby	M40	42:44	2	5	20	165	Andrea Scott	F35	54:48	5	5
10	65	Leanne Herron	F	43:09	2	4	21	187	Joanne Stobbart	F50	60:58	5	4
11	75	Mark Ponton	M45	43:46	3	6
Total No. of finishers :- 195

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Race 3 - Keswick Half Marathon – Sun 3rd May 2015

The Keswick Half Marathon took place on Sunday 3rd May 2015 and was the 3rd race in this year’s Grand Prix. Despite the travelling distance and various other running events taking place on the same Bank Holiday weekend, 10 BRC runners made the journey west to the Lake District.

The weather that morning was appalling and the added complication of the boat journey to the start made things a little more difficult than expected; that said the arrangements made by the race organisers worked very well. As the 11:30 start approached the bad weather abated, making for clear conditions for the race ahead.

Although I’m told the course has been simplified over the last few years, the first 4 miles of gradual climbing were a bit of an effort and a steeper incline at around the 5.5 mile mark was definitely a challenge. At the top of that hill however, the course changed to a mostly downhill gradient leading onto the main ‘undulating’ road back into Keswick. There was also good support en route from BRC members Martin Gaughan, Mal Darbyshire and Steve Gillespie who happened to be in Keswick for the Bank Holiday weekend.

Sam Dodd had a great race and was first back for Blyth with a magnificent 12th place overall and a time close to his half marathon PB. Next back was Robbie Barkley with a good performance. Ian Baxter was first back in Division 2 to claim maximum points for the 3rd GP race in succession. Shaun Dodd was next to finish, 4 seconds ahead of Steven French, the gap might have been closer had it not been for an untimely slip by Steven in the last 100m.

Claire Calverley finished as the first Blyth lady and took max points in Division 3. Claire Mason and Louise Rawlinson were next to finish taking 1st and 2nd place points in Division 4 followed by Joanne Stobbart claiming maximum points in division 5. Also a special mention for newcomer Lesley Falkous, who although not in the GP ran a solid time on a tough course.

The full results can be found HERE.

Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Pace	Div.	Pts.	Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Time	Pace	Div.	Pts.
1	12	Sam Dodd	M	1:25:39	6:32	1	8	6	175	Claire Calverley	F35	1:51:33	8:31	3	7
2	37	Robbie Barkley	M40	1:31:32	6:59	1	7	7	292	Claire Mason	F50	2:01:51	9:18	4	7
3	65	Ian Baxter	M45	1:37:27	7:26	2	8	8	362	Lesley Falkous	F	2:11:15	10:01	-	-
4	80	Shaun Dodd	M40	1:39:06	7:34	2	7	9	372	Louise Rawlinson	F40	2:12:54	10:09	4	6
5	81	Steven French	M40	1:39:10	7:34	1	6	10	917	Joanne Stobbart	F50	2:33:50	11:45	5	6
Total No. of finishers :- 440

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Race 2 - Thirsk 10M – Sun 22nd March 2015

The Thirsk 10 mile road race was included in this year's Grand Prix as a replacement for a cancelled race a couple of weeks later. I think that it is nine years since this race was last included in the Grand Prix, and in those days it was a summer race. Whether it is the same course or not I cannot report, having missed the pleasure of what was a apparently a very hot day back in 2006. However, the race has been established in its present march slot for a while now, and it was easy to see why it has gained a reputation for being both flat and fast.

Attracted by this reputation no doubt, but also by a gloriously sunny day with only a breeze to take the edge off the rising temperatures, well over 1,000 runners lined up for the start and to those of us unfamiliar with the course it soon became clear that there was decision to be made, as it was going to take quite a while to get everyone across the start line. With Grand Prix races being decided on gun time and finish position (and not on chip time), you didn't really want to be giving too much of a start to your fellow Blyth runners, although clearly getting too closer to the front would result in becoming a pain to the rest of the runners as well as a lot of being overtaken, which can be a bit soul destroying. Needless to say, some of us got this wrong and started way too far back - and perhaps some started too far forward as well.

The first three miles were on a closed country lane but the next three and a half were at the side of busy main roads and although the traffic seemed to be well behaved towards the runners, the fumes - particularly from a fleet of motor scooters with dodgy exhausts - were not pleasant at times. After 6.5 miles, there was an out-and-back section for a mile each way and what you thought of this seemed to depend on how well your race was going. Then it was a straight line for the last mile and a half to the finish at Thirsk Racecourse.

Weather conditions as well as the course were conducive to good times - witness Morpeth's Jonny Taylor destroying the field with a time of 48:45 at the front - and some of our runners recorded their best times for a few years as well as at least two knocking well over two minutes off their personal bests. Congratulations to David McGarry and Claire Calverley for such big steps forward and also to new member Joanne Stobbart for her first Grand Prix race.

Claire was first Blyth lady finisher and Robby Barkley (making a welcome return to competitive form after some injury woes) was first male back. With only 11 of our runners (numbers perhaps limited by the later inclusion of this race in the GP) spread out across the five divisions, there were not many close finishes, although most of the competitive action seems to have been in Division 3 where the four runners changed positions a few times between five and nine miles.

All in all, this is a well staged race and is not too bad for accessibility from Blyth (70 minutes each way) as well as being a fast course at a good time of year. Definitely one to keep on the list of potential future Grand Prix races.

The full results can be found HERE. (Note some race categories are incorrect on the results website so have been omitted from the table below).

Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Chip Time	Gun Time	Pace	Div.	Pts.	Pos.	Race Pos.	Name	Cat	Chip Time	Gun Time	Pace	Div.	Pts.
1	84	Robbie Barkley		1:02:44	1:02:49	6:17	1	8	7	396	Claire Calverley		1:15:08	1:15:56	7:36	3	5
2	161	Joseph Woods		1:06:01	1:06:13	6:37	1	7	8	408	Mark Ponton		1:16:37	1:16:53	7:41	3	4
3	242	Ian Baxter		1:09:32	1:09:43	6:58	2	8	9	738	Claire Mason		1:28:14	1:28:18	8:50	4	7
4	271	Shaun Dodd		1:11:01	1:11:12	7:07	2	7	10	917	Andrea Scott		1:38:25	1:38:08	9:49	5	6
5	330	David Roberts		1:12:49	1:13:37	7:22	3	7	11	999	Joanne Stobbart		1:48:22	1:48:26	10:51	5	5
6	362	David McGarry		1:14:37	1:14:54	7:29	3	6	12
Total No. of finishers :- 1059

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Race 1 - Haweswater Half Marathon – Sun 1st March 2015

The first race of the 2015 Grand Prix season was attended by only 4 of the 35 runners who have entered this year’s competition, plus Darren ‘Ironman’ Noble who was racing for the second time in a week after his good showing at Snake Lane the previous Sunday. No doubt the reasons for so many absentees are many and varied, including injury and fitness, and it is worth noting that the Harrier league Cross Country the previous day had a good turnout. Well, whatever their reasons, a lot of our runners missed a chance for plenty of easy points to start the season off with.

The weather was not the cause of the poor showing as all of those who pre-entered from Blyth turned up, and there was a desk for entries on the day that was still doing some business despite the weather actually being rather poor. OK, when I say poor ….. The severe gales of the night before had at least calmed to some extent, so that the snow, sleet and hail showers occasionally even came down at something close to the vertical. To be fair, the worst of the weather seemed to save itself for just before and – even more so – just after the race. It was not too cold once we got running and although t-shirts were the order of the day, those with more clothes on soon regretted it.

As ever, the tiny village of Bampton put on a good job of hosting the race and there was plenty of support at the start and finish despite the fact that those supporters must have longed to be in front of the log fire in the local pub. The course was the same as always, with the bulk of the race being out-and-back along the reservoir with impressive views of the bleak Far Eastern Fells, made quite forbidding by the partial coverage of snow near the tops. The first half was mostly into the teeth of what was still a very strong wind and was a properly tough run, not helped by all of the overnight rain and snow having flooded the road in several places. We all finished with very wet (and very cold) feet.

As for the race itself, there were over 500 finishers, many with times well outside their usual best, so all of our runners can be satisfied with sound performances, and we were all well inside the top half of the field. As ever, this not an easy course to judge your pace on with the miles being so variably hilly (although very evenly marked, according to the Garmins being used!) and was made even tougher by the strong headwind in the first half. The downhill-with-the wind-behind nature of much of the last five miles did create an opportunity to recover lost ground for those who got their effort level right, though. A special mention should go to Rob MacDonald, who was first Blyth finisher in his first race as a Grand Prix competitor and did very well to place 60th.

The usual hot mug of tea and flapjack at the finish were more than welcome and then it was back to the warm and dry in the car, avoiding the vehicles that were getting stuck in the field and away off home (OK, some of us might have stopped for a pub meal in front of a log fire) with some good points banked to start the season.

The full results can be found HERE.

Pos.

Race Pos.

Name

Cat

Time

Pace

Div.

Pts.

Pos.

Race Pos.

Name

Cat

Time

Pace

Div.

Pts.

Robert Macdonald

1:29:49

6:51

188

David Roberts

M50

1:43:08

7:52

121

Ian Baxter

M45

1:37:08

7:25

220

Claire Calverley

1:45:55

8:05

177

Darren Noble

M40

1:42:10

7:48

Total No. of finishers :- 503

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Mistakes/corrections etc., please contact Steve Walker by clicking on the link.