Articles from the local press - submitted by Keith Willshire
News Post Leader – Oct10 – Junior Autumn Relays
Blyth
Running Club recently held their Annual Autumn Relay races around the Blyth
Industrial Estate.
The
Juniors held their relays first on the Monday night there was 12 full teams comprising
three runners per team. Each runner had to run one mile, and Jordan Wright was
the first runner back and he passed onto Calum Storey
who was never passed and he gave Robert Breeze a healthy lead which he
maintained all the way to the finish. The fastest boy was Jake Jansen, while
Charlotte Ramsay was the fastest girl.
Two
days later and the Seniors held their Relays around a course of 2.4 miles and
13 teams lined up for the start. Joe Frazer was the first leg 1 runner back,
with Helen Bruce in 4th position passing onto Dale Smith. Dale steadily worked
his way through the field to pass a lead onto Graeme Stuart, who managed to
hold onto the lead to be part of the winning team for the second year running.
Garry Jones was the fastest on the night, while Heather Christopher was the
fastest lady.
Although
not a prizewinner this time, special mention must be
made of Stevie Gillespie, who is the only person to have run in all the autumn
Relays since the event started.
The
runners would like to thank all the marshals and timekeepers who ensured that
the event went off smoothly and without whom no race could take place.
On Saturday 23rd October, Blyth Running Club
are organising a cross country race at the East Cramlington
Nature Reserve. Most of the regions top athletes will
be competing and there will be Junior races as well. Walkers and dog owners
should be aware that there will be over 300 runners using the area, with the
first race at 12:15. Blyth Running Club apologise for any inconvenience that
this may cause regular users of the Nature Reserve. Spectators will be most
welcome as the Nature Reserve provides some excellent viewing facilities.
The
first race of the Clubs popular Winter Series will be on Wednesday 1th
November, further details are on the Clubs web-site and on the Notice-board at
Blyth Sports Centre
Sunday 5th
December sees the 50th running of the
Blyth Sands race, which is unique in the north east for the handicapping
system it uses. Runners receive handicaps according to age/sex ie ladies over 55 years of age will receive 13 minutes
start on the men under 40.
Further
details and entry forms are available at Blyth Sports Centre and on-line at the
Clubs web-site: www.blythrunningclub.org.uk
Blyth
provides opportunities for young athletes between the ages of 8 and 17 years to
receive coaching in endurance athletics events and also sprints, throws &
jumping events. All coaching is by qualified UK Athletics coaches who are
trained and have been screened for their suitability for working with young
people. Anybody interested can ring Keith on 01670-362668 for further details
or they can turn up at Blyth Sports Centre on Monday nights at 18:45
Blyth
Running Club are well established as one of the leading clubs in the area and
as well as the running they also arrange various social nights/activities.
Blyth welcome any new runners of any age/ability, so if anyone wants to join
Blyth then they just need to turn up at Blyth Sports Centres on one of the Club
nights which are Monday and Wednesday at 6:45pm
enquiries@blythrunningclub.org.uk and somebody will contact them or ring
01670-362668.
News Post Leader – Sep10 – Tynedale 10M road race
The
Tynedale “Jelly Tea” 10 mile race, is a
popular race and once again over 30 members from the club made their
presence felt in the race where over 500 runners finished. With the GNR just a few weeks away this was
the perfect opportunity for runners to assess their fitness. On a tough hilly
course from Hexham to Ovingham, the runners had to
face a headwind for the first seven miles. The race was won by Darren Purvis of
Birtley who lead from the start and was never
seriously troubled.
The
first two Blyth finishers were Rob Barkley who finished in 22nd position just
two places in front of Peter Brown. Joe Frazer was another Blyth runner who had
a good run to finish second in his age category, the first Blyth Lady finisher
was Susanne Hunter.
Blyth
provides opportunities for young athletes between the ages of 8 and 17 years to
receive coaching in endurance athletics events and also sprints, throws &
jumping events. All coaching is by qualified UK Athletics coaches who are
trained and have been screened for their suitability for working with young
people. Anybody interested can ring Keith on 01670-362668 for further details
or they can turn up at Blyth Sports Centre on Monday nights at 18:45
News Post Leader – July10 – Junior
Handicap
Blyth
Running Club Juniors recently held their Annual handicap race of 2 miles which
was based on a 2 lap course using the beach path and finishing on
The
full set of results are available on the Blyth Running Club web-site:
Blyth
Running Club are well established as one of the leading clubs in the area and
as well as the running they also arrange various social nights/activities.
Blyth welcome any new runners of any age/ability, so if anyone is interested in
coming along to training nights, or learning more about the club, then leave
your name and contact number at Blyth Sports Centre and a member of the Club
will contact you to discuss, or Blyth Running Club can be contacted by e-mail
at enquiries@blythrunningclub.org.uk
We also have a thriving Junior section
and are looking for new members, so if anybody between the ages of 9 and 17 are
keen then they can either turn up at Blyth Sports Centre on Monday nights at
18:45 or ring 01670-362668
News Post Leader – July10 – Young
Athletics League
Blyth
have organised specialist coaching sessions in the various disciplines of
athletics and these include the long jump, high jump, javelin, shot, discuss, pole
vault, triple jump and sprint coaching. These sessions are starting to pay
dividends as the Juniors start to improve in the track and field.
In
the third fixture in the Young Athletes League, Blyth produced their highest
total as they amassed over 500 points as they won by over 140 points from
second placed Harrogate, with Scarborough in third place. The favourable
conditions were near perfect for competing and many personal best times and
distances were set.
Several
Blyth athletes tried new events with varying degrees of success. In the field
events, Scott Povey
won the triple jump, Sam Bell the discus, Tamsin
Brown the shot, Kalvin Hurst , Rebecca Nail and
Charlotte Ramsay all won their long jumps. Sam Bell equalled the club high jump
record, while Chris Lillico gained a National Grade 3
standard in the high jump and he also gained a grade 4 in the 400m hurdles.
Another athlete who gained a grade 4 standard was Jacob Hall who finished
second in the 1500M.
Junior’s
coach Keith Willshire said ‘That was a well deserved
win. Everyone who took part worked hard and contributed to a fantastic
result and it was pleasing to see so many athletes try new events. But we
cannot afford to be complacent and we need as many club athletes to turn out as
possible for the final match.’
After
three matches, points standings are: Middlesbrough Mandale
1986.0pts, Blaydon & Elswick 1730.0pts, Morpeth
1136.0pts, Alnwick & Blyth 1116.5pts,
Chester-le-St 1090.0pts, Harrogate 1009.5pts, Birtley
1003.0pts, Houghton 851pts, Scarborough 503pts.
The
final Young Athletes League match takes place at Churchill Playing Fields on
18th July.
The
second race of this year's Summer Cup series, (a 4 km handicapped series of 4
races), saw 51 runners start and finish the slightly modified course (due to
work on the footpath between the car park and the bandstand), along the coastal
cycle path.
15
year old Joseph McDonnell was first back, showing a 40sec improvement from his
second place finish in the first race, passing second place Joanne Straughan in the final 200 metres, with Mark Nicholson in
third place (fourth in the first race). The fastest time on the night was set
by Andrew Henderson, who had a top ten finish despite setting off last of the
51 runners. The fastest lady was Heather Christopher.
Thanks
from the organisers to all the marshals, timekeepers and helpers.
Monday
12th July sees the Junior section hold their annual 2 mile handicap race, and
all Juniors should be at the Beach Car park by 18:45
Blyth
currently have an expanding and active Junior section and are looking to
recruit new members, so if anybody between the ages of 9 and 17 are interested
in running, then if they turn up at Blyth Sports Centre on Monday nights at
18:45 with their parents then they will be met by a Club official or they can
send an e-mail to enquiries@blythrunningclub.org.uk
and somebody will contact them.
News Post Leader – April10 – Good
Friday Relays
Blyth
Running Club Juniors enjoyed some success at the annual Elswick
Harriers
Good Friday Road Races, held at Newburn's Business
Park on April 2nd.
The
Under 15 boys won the team competition as they beat Jarrow and Hebburn by three points. They were led by Jake Jansen who
covered the 2.4 mile course in 13:35 and finished 6th, with Scott Povey in 9th position and Chris Arkless completing the team in 13th position.
The Under 13 boys finished as third team on the day, with Jacob Hall in 8th
position well supported by Joseph Dungworh, Liam
Henderson, Lewis Jansen, Alex Joice and Joseph Woods.
Charlotte Ramsay was the only girl to run and finished in 10th
position.
The
Under 17 girls ran with the Senior Women and Emma Freeman was the first Blyth
Lady home and with Helen Morris and Cath Young they
finished as 8th team
The
Senior Mens teams finished 22nd team,
while the Mens Vets finished 11th team.
Craig Birch set the fastest time by a Blyth man.
On Sunday 25th
April Blyth Running Club will be holding the “Spirit Of The Staithes” 10 kilometre run. The race will start at Blyth Quayside at 10:00am. All finishers will receive a
T-shirt.
Walkers and cyclists using the beach path should be aware that the
runners will be running along the path from about 10:10 but hopefully they will
not be too inconvenienced.
Entry
forms and further details are available at Blyth Sports Centre or online at www.blythrunningclub.org.uk.
Entry costs £8.00 for Club runners while unattached runners pay £10.00.
On Monday 26th
April, Blyth Juniors will be holding their annual handicap race at the Beach
Car-park at 19:00. The race is only open to Club members, full details are on
the Club’s Notice-Board at Blyth Sports Centre.
Blyth
Running Club are currently holding some indoor mini athletic sessions for the
under 11’s. The sessions will take place at Blyth Sports Centre and the aim is
to provide young children with a fun and active experience of being part of a
sports club. We will introduce the FUNdamentals of
the basic physical skills of running, jumping and throwing. With the main aim
of all round physical development in a fun athletics setting. Children will
also have the opportunity to work towards recognised UK:Athletics
awards. The sessions are on Wednesday evenings at 17:00 at Blyth Sports Centre.
All sessions will be held by UK Athletics qualified coaches and will last about
one hour. Anybody wishing to register or wanting more information should ring
01670-362668
Every
Monday night at Blyth Running Club will be a beginners night. Newcomers will be
encouraged to come along to Blyth Sports Centre at 18:45,get some advice and go
for run with a group at their own pace.
Further
details are available at enquiries@blythrunningclub.org.uk
News Post Leader – January10 – Winter
Series Race 3
The cold weather conditions did not deter nearly 50 members of
Blyth Running Club competing in the third race of the clubs annual winter series,
although the stiff wind they faced on the return journey may have contributed
to some slower times. As usual several runners took the lead over the last
mile, and it was Ron Ingram who came out on top to win by 3 seconds from Kenn Turnbull, with 12 year old James Young in third place.
Peter Brown set the fastest time on the night, with Heather Christopher the
fastest lady. As usual the handicapping was extremely tight as over 50 runners
finished within two minutes of the winner.
Once again mention must be made of all the helpers who ensure that
the races go ahead smoothly without any problems.
On Saturday 9th January, Blyth Running Club are
organising a cross country race at the East Cramlington Nature Reserve. Most of
the regions top athletes will be competing and there will be Junior races as
well. Walkers and dog owners should be
aware that there will be over 300 runners using the area, with the first race
at 12:30. Blyth Running Club apologise for any inconvenience that this
may cause regular users of the Nature Reserve.
The date of the Clubs Annual General
Meeting is Wednesday 6th January 2010, commencing at 8:45pm upstairs
in the Sports Centre. All members are invited to attend
Blyth Running Club are currently holding some
indoor mini athletic sessions for the under 11’s. The sessions will take place
at Blyth Sports Centre and the aim is to provide young children with a fun and
active experience of being part of a sports club. We will introduce the FUNdamentals of the basic physical skills of running,
jumping and throwing. With the main aim of all round physical development in a
fun athletics setting. Children will also have the opportunity to work towards
recognised
Anybody wishing to register or wanting more
information should ring 01670-362668
During
the month of January,every Monday night at Blyth
Running Club will be a beginners night.
Newcomers will be encouraged to come along to Blyth Sports Centre at 18:45,get
some advice and go for run with a group at their own pace.
Further
details are available at enquiries@blythrunningclub.org.uk