June News
Tittersworth Summer Series
The first race of the Summer
Series took place on Thursday at Tittersworth Reservoir.
Last year's defending champion Ian Yates was unable to run
due to other commitments, but three other Trentham Runners
went along to race.
On a Hot and Humid evening it was nice to find some shade
whilst waiting for the 7:30pm start. (n.b. all other races
start at 7:15pm). There was a good number who turned out for
the event with 194 runners finishing the very undulating 5
mile course. It was a one lap around the lake loop, sounds
easy, but there are some hills to negotiate as the course
leaves the reservoir behind.
First Home was Adam Brearley in a time of 29:42 in 17th
place. Next to finish in 26th and a LONG way ahead of the
nearest rival in the Ladies race was Jo Donnelly who did a
time of 31:15. Looks like Jo will have to do them all now!
Last and by every means least across the line was Ryan
Procter in a time of 32:30.
The Westbridge 5 took place on Sunday starting at the Leisure Centre in Stone and doing a reletavely flat 5 mile loop along the canal and back. No reports in so far but I can tell you that Ian Yates took part and finished 5th in a time of 27:22. In the Ladies race it seems Sarah Johnson had a battle for first with Michelle Buckle of Newcastle with the Latter coming just ten seconds in front of 2nd placed Sarah who finished in a time of 30:59. Other runners for Trentham were Sam Newton, Stan Winterton, Adela Salt, Ken Bloor, Lee Jones, Malcolm Rushton, Steve Farmer & Trevor Goodwin so hopefully someone will give us a run down on the days events.
That someone has turned out to be Ken Pearson who is having a right battle at the top of Group F in the NSRRA series. Here is his report:
I can’t remember where we are with the watch story so apologies if you have heard this before. The new watch arrived and was sent back as it had no display. I wondered about changing it for one with a heart rate monitor but decided against it in the end. The replacement (Timex Ironman Triathlon 75 lap OVA) arrived after Clayton 10k. This is the first race opportunity to record all the splits without the uncertainty and hopefully, record some faster times. I spent most of Saturday decorating the bedroom, rubbing down the skirting boards and the walls and finally got some paint on Saturday night. Sore fingers and knees but looking forward to the race. I was quite enthusiastic on the Tuesday run but managed not to run on Thursday because of work commitments.
The usual thoughts about what pace to run at were sorted out while watching the TT race on ITV4. Decided not to try for the 130 mph that the winner averaged so it was the Muller 10k pace of 7:20 less a few seconds as its shorter so I will aim for 7:15 miles and finish in 36:15 minutes.
The weather on Sunday was much cooler that Saturday so that was good as I don’t (can’t) run in the heat. Got there early as usual but didn’t take any money so the car boot sale was avoided. Warmed up and had a drink as usual. There didn’t seem to be many Trentham runners about but quite few appeared towards the start. Don’t know when I did this race last but I remember the towpath gets a bit busy so its important to get off the start quickly. Unfortunately I was too busy chatting to Steve, Lee and Andrew so I wasn’t as near to the front as I ought to be. First bit included some hopping and skipping past obviously slower runners, running in pairs across the path and chatting, (touch of Grumpy old man there). The loop round the field meant that the field stretched out quickly and Lee came past after about half a mile. First mile in 6:42 which was too quick but there was another F runner in front who I recognised and he runs at about my pace so it was probably OK. I see another runner up ahead who I ran with years ago in Group D. Darren Taylor is leading Group G and has won all the races and is usually in front of me at the start but I usually catch him towards the end of the races. So why is he wearing the letter F on his back? The towpath run is uneventful as the field is stretched out but I realise that I have pushed the wrong button on the watch, instead of “Split” I have pressed Stop” so at 2 miles I have to start the watch again. I catch up with the first F runner at about 2 miles and have a quick chat, I overtake and catch Lee about 2.5 miles but Darren stubbornly stays 20 metres or so in front. I slowly catch him but he sees me behind him and ups his pace and the gap goes back to 20m. This happens a couple of times up to about 4.5 miles. We are catching a few runners and running at about 7:30 pace which is slower that I hoped for but as fast as I can go. I debate whether to have go at catching Darren but decide that I don’t have the pace so I just try to keep the gap which is how we finish, about 4 seconds apart.
Post race discussion with the other F runners is why has Darren been moved up a Group after 6 races, how will the points work out now, is this fair? Apparently he was moved up as he was winning his group by a considerable margin.
Having messed up my timing again I’m not sure what my finishing time was but I guess it’s not as quick as I had hoped. Bad news is I was second in the group but the good news is that the guy who is level on points with me and has beaten me every time we have raced, was in 4th place. So there is still a chance of winning the Group. Cup half full again! Race results say I finished in 36:53 so I can work out my splits which were 6:42, 7:00, 7:21, 8:15, 7:35. I usually run at consistent pace so I’m now confused, was it the Crown gloss white that upset my rhythm or were the mile markers inconsistent??
Roll on Potters Arf and another opportunity to press the wrong buttons again.
Well done Ken, another good performance even if you hallucinated a new group F runner in front of you. Maybe the paint sniffing before a race is not the best tactic. Hopefully we will have another report or maybe a few new contributors after the Potters Arf!
In the meantime results for westbridge are here!
I know at least two Trentham members took part in the recent Race For Life race at Trentham Gardens, which took place on Tuesday 8th. With 5,000 female runners there it's little wonder that the webmaster was, ahem, supporting too!
One of the runners was Kathryn Ambrose who has kindly sent in this report:
Tuesday 8th June
saw Trentham Gardens host the annual Race for Life, which,
as many of you will know, is a series of women-only 5K races
across the UK to raise money for Cancer Research. I've
completed one of these races in a variety of venues every
year since 2002, and it's a cause very close to my heart as
we lost Ben's mum to cancer just 5 months after we got
married, in 2003. This is the third year in a row that I've
done this one, and I really like the course - all off-road
and very scenic. The previous two years had seen me finish
in 39th place, so I was determined to beat that!
Lined up pretty much at the front, as I wanted to get a good
start (unlike most other races, where I hide at the back!!).
Spotted Hayley at the front too, who looked like she was
ready for a great run. Set off at a good brisk pace, but not
too fast like I did last year, and soon found myself
settling into a good rhythm in 9th place. Hang on a minute,
9th place?! What was going on here??!! I should remind you
all at this point that Race for Life is the one and only
time that I will achieve such a feat, unless I pay a hitman
to take out the front two thirds of the field in an event ;)
Smiled for Trentham's resident photographer (thanks
Webmaster, I'm expecting a dodgy FB tag anytime soon!) and
then hit the 1K marker in 4.15 (a bit quick, but I felt OK).
Tried to reel in the runner in 8th ahead of me as I could
see she was struggling, and overtook her with about one mile
gone. Now things were starting to hurt a bit and I
remembered that 5Ks are tough! Tried to distract myself by
counting in Russian (one of my favourite race tricks), but
it was still hurting. A lot. Now I knew I was slowing down,
and a few people had gone past me by the time I got to 3K.
Had a bit of a tussle with 2 other ladies in the last
kilometre when I was overtaking them on the hills and then
they were flying past me on the flats - unfortunately there
were more downs than ups in the last bit and I lost out to
both of them! My legs were absolutely dead by the time I
could see the finish line ahead of me, so I know I put my
best effort in. Bit annoyed with my Garmin because it
decided to die on me during the race, so I don't know what
time I did exactly (and I was too spaced out to notice the
gantry clock!), but I think it was about 26.50. Not a PB,
but I did finish in 13th place! Unlucky for some, but not
for me! :)
Huge congratulations must also go to Hayley, who had a
brilliant run to finish in 3rd place!
Well done ladies for competing in such a worthwhile race and raising money for charity. keep the reports coming folks........
As expected there was a HUGE turnout from Trentham runners for the 2010 Potters 'Arf Marathon. Hanley was once again taken over by runners for the day as a whopping 1500 runners and walkers turned out. The weather was absolutely perfect with a dash of sunshine before the start kept popping in and out of the clouds, but didn't raise the temperature too much to make it uncomfortable.
Star performers for Trentham were Sarah Johnson (4th in the overall Ladies) with a time of 1:26:08. Jo Donnelly completing her first Half marathon in a time of 1:34:32 and 3rd in the LV35 category. Hayley Cook who had a great run to finish 1st LV40 in a time of 1:38:11. Rose Wilson scooped 2nd in the LV50 cat. In the Men's race first home for Trentham was Rob Tabbanor in a time of 1:26:43. Stan Winterton again won the MV65 class with a time of 1:30:59 and Gerry Calvert took the MV70 category with a time of 1:52:31.
Results for Trentham Runners can be found here!!!!
First report in from the City Centre is from ken Pearson. As we all know the bearded wonder is currently grappling for the lead at the top of group F in the Road Runners series. Read below to find out how the latest clash turned out:
The race instructions said be there before 09:30 but I was earlier than that. After queuing for the Hope Street multi-storey last year I opted for the top of Clough Street this year. Dead easy as there is no traffic and the car park is empty. I remembered the pre race drink, the Vaseline and the sun tan lotion but I only used two of them. Easy walk up to the start area and the usual pre race chat about what time to aim for and who is going for a PB, who’s racing or just running round and which way round and on which foot the chip tag goes. I opted for the right foot, I think I can gain a tenth or two by crossing the start with my left leg first and the finish with my right leg first. I didn’t understand the comments about the chip clashing with the colour of the shoe but colour co-ordination was never a strong point of mine.
The problem with being early is I get bored so its time for “spot the fancy dress runners”. I’m impressed by the sunflower and the superhero but the chicken is a let down as is the rabbit.
It’s a relaxed walk to the start and its time to get somewhere near the front to try and avoid the publicity seekers at the front. I don’t see any other F group runners but they must be there somewhere and I will just have to deal with them when and if I catch them. Not a bad start and not much stopping and starting and I cross the start 30 seconds after the gun. The roads are wide enough to allow for overtaking the ones who are already walking (bit harsh that but you know what I mean). The first half mile is hillier than I remember and it’s tiring up the hills, hope that isn’t an omen for later. Bit of a chat with a few Trentham runners and Ryan skips past me on Lichfield Street then disappears for a toilet stop. I’ve spotted Colin my F group opposition ahead but don’t bother to catch up yet. I’d rather run my own race until later on. Bit boring along to Longton but the sunflower doesn’t overtake me like last year. I reach Anchor Road, I catch up with Colin and we have a chat about who’s in the race and who’s not. Darren another F group runner is ahead and we go past him half way up the hill. We are running at 8-minute miles, which is just about right. My aim is to run at that pace and maybe lose a few minutes up the hills. We run together for the next few miles never more that a yard or two apart. Who else saw the white cat crossing the road at about 7 miles? Shortly after that Gerry Calvert, also in F group, comes past us and very slowly pulls a lead on us. Although the pace is good I’m aware that I’m working hard to stay with Colin and Gerry is getting away. I’m OK on the flats but the hills are not going so well and if I’m going to make an effort it will have to be soon.
We are running along Leek Road and an ambulance comes along so we all pull over to let it past and I see an opportunity to gain a couple of yards on Colin. It’s short-lived and the sunflower comes past. He caught me very early on last year so 9 miles of flower free comments is good, Colin also comes alongside again. We turn along Leek New Road and I’ve repassed the sunflower or rather he has stopped to speak to a few children. Just after 10 miles Gerry unfortunately slows and stops and we go past. 2 miles to go and Colin and I have been running virtually together for 10 miles and we are 1 and 2 in F group on the road. We turn off Leek New Road and start up the hill. Colin edges ahead and I dig in but there is nothing left and he is better up the hills and slowly pulls away. There is a long run in soon and I’ll have to try and catch him then. Terry comes past at the top of the hill but I can’t benefit from staying with him to catch Colin. Despite my best effort Colin pulls away over the last mile and I don’t have the energy to try to catch him. So it’s second again in F in 1:48:24 gun time and a chip time of 1:47:57 which is 2 minutes faster than last year.
It’s a nice finish and I have a wander round and catch up with other Trentham runners who seem to have done well. I feel tired and my feet hurt and I didn’t get a Sainsburys bag! On the plus side it’s another 49 points, yet another different group winner and I have finally mastered the new watch. I got every mile with no errors which is a first for a long time. I was just about on the pace for all the flat miles and did the last mile in 8 minutes, but lost a minute up Anchor Road and 2 minutes up Milton Road.
So that was a hard race, my time was about what I thought it would be and the 49 points is good especially as the F group runner who was level with me didn’t run. There are no clear winners in the group so it looks like it will be a long hard year. Its very different actually racing someone compared to just running round. Not as enjoyable but satisfying in another way.
Thanks to all the members of the public and especially the Trentham support around the course, I hope the photos aren’t too horrible!
Thanks for that Ken. Great effort and a great report. Another report has come through from the weekend up Town and this one comes in from Joanne Donnelly who as previously mentioned had a great race and picked up a prize too. Here is Jo's report:
As most of you know, I always avoid half marathons or longer as I have a dodgy left leg. Whenever I try to increase my mileage I get injured and consequently grumpy (as I’m sure most of you can relate to), so many years ago I decided to stick to short distances and stay happy.
With this in mind, two weeks ago whilst running along the canal back to the club I decided I’d do the Potters half this year!!!!!! There really is no understanding what goes on in a runners head!!!!!! Anyway, unfortunately for Guy, he happened to be just in front of me at the time, and as he had never run a half marathon either, the gauntlet was thrown down.
So, with two long runs under my belt (none for Guy), there we were in Hanley on Sunday morning raring to go. We had a clear plan which pretty much centred around going off steady. Great atmosphere in Hanley before the race started, and great to see so many familiar faces to have a good gossip to.
As everyone started to gather for the start myself, Guy and Sarah managed to worm our way through to near the front. There was no way I was starting behind Oops A Daisy, Banana man or a sunflower (although I was informed that the sunflower was pretty nippy). As we set off, it was easy to see how people get carried away, but myself and Guy held back and stuck to our planned pace. It was hard though when you are being passed by – how can I put it politely – less experienced runners wearing dodgy leisure wear!!!!! (I’m such a running snob).
Anyway, to cut 13 miles short, we stuck to our 7min mile pace – just losing time on the hills as we expected. From two miles in we were pretty much overtaking people the whole time, even in the closing stages, and were both going well and feeling good. At about 9.5 miles Guy went through a bit of a bad patch, so I pushed on alone. Felt bad for leaving Guy -for a couple of seconds!!! – but I was in a rhythm and wouldn’t have minded if it had been the other way around.
Coming up Leek New Road I could see that I was closing in on a few more ladies, so pushed on hard up the hills. I had checked the route out before hand, but was still shocked to see how steep the last climb was – thanks Paul for the encouragement and dodgy photo!!!! That last climb just about finished my legs off and I struggled in to the finish, not quite able to catch the few ladies I had been closing on.
Fantastic atmosphere as we entered the finish area which really spurred me on. I pretended for a minute that I’d won, the cheers were so good!!!! Sad I know!!! Got a new PB of 1.34.32 which I was well pleased with. Guy had got a second wind and finished just a minute behind. Was also pleased to find out I was 10th lady and 3rd age group – got 2nd prize though, because Michelle Ross Cope was first Vet, so even covered my entry fee!!!!
Thanks to all the support and cheers around the course, it really did make a difference. Afterwards I was so glad to have at least done one Potters Half to experience the great event that it is from start to finish. Well done to all other finishers, there seemed to be plenty of Potters PB’s around.
Pleased to say, dodgy leg was fine – legs sore Monday though!!! Trouble is I’m already thinking of looking for a flatter half so I can beat my PB. The mind is willing, lets just hope my legs can hold up!!!!!!
Thanks Jo and congratulations on such a fantastic run. As they say, things always come in threes and the next report comes in from Stephen Burrowes, who has been recovering from injury lately. Stephen also reports on the other races he's done of late as well as the Half Marathon on Sunday. Here is his report:
The year
had been going well until the end of March when
achilles tendonitis reared its ugly head. Thank you
to Jayne Dickens for helping to keep it under
control and giving me excellent advice which
involved not running until I was pain free in the
mornings. This hasn’t quite happened – either the
not running or the pain free bit but I compromised
by stopping training for a while and the pain hasn’t
gotten worse. Users of Market Drayton Swimming
Centre may have been mystified and entertained by my
attempts at ‘aqua jogging’ and I can’t really say
that I took to this like a duck to water.
However it was better than nothing and having logged
my greatest pre Belfast long run mileage as 20 miles
on 23 March this had to do since I didn’t run at all
between then and the Hawkshead Trail race on 24
April. Being ‘tight’ by nature I don’t like paying
the entry fee for races and then missing them, so I
did run this extremely hilly, 11m off road trail
race at a much reduced speed. The first 3 miles went
swimmingly, apparently my body hadn’t forgotten race
pace and was keen to get on with it. After this my
legs and lungs told me to forget any ideas that I
might have had for keeping this up until the end and
I had to admit defeat and slow down. However, I did
finish without having made the Achilles worse and
was grateful for that. It was a lovely day and is a
great race, well worth trying at some stage.
Hawkshead taught me an excellent lesson, just in
time for the Belfast Marathon on 3 May. I needed to
go out a sensible pace if I wanted to stand a chance
of finishing it in reasonable shape. So I abandoned
my pre-injury target time of sub 3:30 and set myself
a new target of 8:00/m for as long as possible,
anticipating that I might be able to hold this up to
the 13 mile mark when I would have to slow down. I
actually managed to hold this pace up to the 18 mile
mark even though this included stopping at each
water station to stretch my achilles and calves by
way of injury management. However all good things
came to an end and the next 8 miles were more in
line with my expectations – rather uncomfortable and
much slower! Given the sad lack of training since
the end of March, I was happy with the final time of
3:49 which was about 18 minutes slower than last
year. I was even happier to find that the injury
appeared to be no worse and went back to following
Jayne’s advice to go easy.
However, not being the most patient person in the
world and having paid for the next Lakeland Trail
race at Kentmere, I did ‘run’ this on 5 June. This
was my second worst race ever and I had to jog/ walk
a significant percentage of it. Going out
ambitiously fast, lack of training and some sort of
bug all combined to make this a disappointing
experience and I finished in a time of 1:50 for the
11 miles, which was about 15 minutes slower than I
might have expected if things had been going well.
Again, the weather was ideal and the course is good
so another recommendation if you like scenic,
challenging, off-road, marshalled races.
As Ryan can confirm since he must have had a similar
idea, my inclination to be careful with money meant
that I took advantage of the early bird offer of
reduced entry to the Potters Arf by turning up to
the Potteries Centre ridiculously early one Saturday
morning quite a few months ago to register at the
very first opportunity. Of course having entered it,
I had to run it despite injury and lack of training
and decided to treat it as a good training run and
hold a consistent close to marathon race pace. It
was good to see so many Trentham runners and
enthusiastic supporters and I enjoyed the race. It
went according to plan and I was still smiling at
the end, unlike the Lakeland Trails. Of course this
could also have been down to a higher standard of
support and company on the way round. I was slower
than last year by about 9 minutes but don’t appear
to have suffered any ill effects and have decided
that it’s kill or cure with regard to training. A
decent time at the Berlin Marathon at the end of
September is still a target and it won’t happen
without me putting in some quality miles. So fingers
crossed…….
Well done Stephen! I can confirm that being as 'frugal' with my money as Stephen I was in the Potteries Centre at stupid O'clock one Saturday morning to get a discount entry to the Potters Arf. It turned out that the two of us ended up doing it a little steadier than we'd planned to. Thanks for the reports folks, and if there are any more don't be shy, send them in!
Some Pictures from The Arf!!!!
Daniel
Jo & Guy
Lee
Ken
Stephen & Terry
Ryan
Andy
Jo
Kerry
Chris
Whilst most of us were applying rubbing oil and vaseline in preparation for the Potters Arf, Guy knows what I mean, a certain Mr Ian Yates was tackling a lesser known 10K just off our radar map. The Hoar Cross 10k raises money for charity so the ever generous Ian went along to find out more:
Bryan Dale had
been advertising the Hoar Cross and Newborough 10K on his
photos website for a while, and being the curious type, I
decided to look at what it offered. It was a 10K I hadn’t
run before, round some quiet country lanes. There was an
added bonus when I Googled the results from last year, and
found it was won in just under 37 minutes. This is way over
my standard 10K time, so I could dream of a morale-boosting
winning performance to power me through the summer.
While warming up, I noticed there was a distinct shortage of
club vests (I spotted a few Chase Harriers, Stone Master
Marathoner and Uttoxeter vests, but that was it. I suppose
most people were saving themselves for the Potters ‘Arf the
next day.) Not many others did any warm up and most of the
competitors seemed to be wearing ‘pub’ trainers, rather than
proper running trainers. It was obvious this was a local
community race really. But, it was a chip-timed event (where
the chip was on the race number itself, not worn on the shoe
or ankle). I suppose this was one reason why the race entry
fee was quite high, but it was also raising funds for the
Holly Prince Trust.
After a short delay for the chip-timing mat to be
calibrated, we were off. I was straight into the lead, but
was surprised to be accompanied by another runner, as it
wasn’t a slow start. However, he’d dropped off by the first
kilometre sign (which I’m sure was out; else I’d gone off
much slower than I thought on a flattish section, this was
just under 5 minutes!)
Around 2K, the course starts to climb, steeply at first then
more gently in an undulating manner over the next 3K. When I
got to 5K, I was told there was no-one in sight behind me,
so that enabled me to relax, and my pre-race hopes of a race
win were starting to come true.
The profile of the course over the next 4 kilometres was
generally downhill, and there was just one more hill over
the last kilometre to negotiate. The finish took a sharp
left into a field, which was a little uneven (given my dodgy
off-road pedigree), but thankfully only about 100 metres
long.
I crossed the line according to my watch in 35.23. The
official results show a gun time of 34.56, and a chip time
of 34.34. So, I don’t know which to take as my time (the
quickest I suppose!) I was almost 3 minutes ahead of the
second placed runner, so all-in-all, it was a job well done.
I was told later that it was slightly over 10K, so any of
the above times are OK with this in mind!
It was nearly 2 hours to the presentation, but this was
fine, as there was a craft and farmer’s market to look round
afterwards. The cake stall had to be recommended for some
excellent chocolate brownies and a delicious lemon cake.
There was a stand selling fruit wines, and the stall holder
was more than happy to give samples of each, so samples of
Damson, Strawberry, Elderberry, Ginger, Sloe and a few
others were accepted with much pleasure (we bought 12
bottles off him in the end, so I’m sure he didn’t mind too
much!) Try this simple equation though: 11 o’clock + body
fluid depletion after a race on a warm day + many samples of
wine = sleep before 12 o’clock.
In the end, I got a decent glass plaque, and (a massively
oversized XL) sweatshirt with the words WINNER in large
letters on the back.
Would I do the race again? Almost certainly. Not just
because I won it, but because it had one of the friendliest
race atmospheres I’ve encountered, it was in some fantastic
countryside, I only saw about 3 cars in total during the
race (and one of those was the lead vehicle), and the market
was pitched just right in terms of product mix (and taste!)
well done Ian on getting a fantastic win. I'm sure Ian will be wearing his 'Winners' Jersey to the club later so make sure you stay for a drink if you want to see it! Sounds like Ian had a great day down there so one to bear in mind for next year.
On another note, weight is being slowly added to the rumour that Ian will be attempting another Half Marathon at the back end of this season, once all the 10k's are out of the way so we will keep you posted if this happens!!!!!!
In the meantime, results for the race can be found here.
and here are some pictures of the winner in action!
Ian In action
Ian picking up his Prize
The host sings the American
national anthem before
the World Cup Match
The latest round of the Summer Series which is well underway took place at Buxton on Thursday evening. Ian Yates and Adam Brearley have been representing Trentham and Adam has kindly sent in a report:
Not sure what is more difficult, running this race or writing the report as promised to Mr Procter!! Anyway, have been enjoying the Summer Series races so far, and had arranged with Dave Piper to run Buxton. Unfortunately Dave had to pull out on the day having still being a bit sore from the Potters Arf on Sunday, let you off Dave seen as you did a great time ! Decided to leave the house in good time to get there and register, get a good warm up in etc. However, reckoned without traffic in Hanley and road works outside Leek so having an hour of stress beforehand wasn’t the best preparation. Arrived at 7.05 for 7.15 start, but fortunately the race was delayed until half past.
Managed to do a small warm up but felt really heavy legged from Tuesday, having run 11 ½ miles with reps. However reminded myself what I quoted to Carl on Tuesday, no excuses if I don’t run well, just get on with it ! Aim before the race was to consolidate position in the top 20 have managed 17th & 16th in the past 2 races. Anyway the start consisted of a long climb to the monument, first thing I noticed was the leading guy who shot off like an express train, leaving the usual suspects trailing. Wasn’t until afterwards that Yatesey told me this guy is a Great Britain Fell runner ! At this point I was around 30-40 mark and was keen to get out of this tight group. Once on the long downhill into the woods, which was quite treacherous in places, there was another long steady climb back out, including a couple of punishing hills. Heading back up to the monument for the 2nd lap I spotted Yatesey who was a good couple of minutes ahead and looked a bit more like his old self after last week. The last lap I intended to push on, but just didn’t feel like I had any spring in my step at all, so just tried to hang on to the small group I was in the best I could. Was aware at this point was around the 20ish mark so just didn’t want anyone else to catch and pass me. On the last steep climb, I was a couple of seconds behind the moorlands runner who had been having a good battle with all the way around, and intended to take him on the last straight. However when we hit the top of the hill the finish line was there about 20 yards away! Eventually finished 18th overall, with a time of 28:34. So having not felt good and not thinking had ran well, actually got my best time of the series so far. Weird sport this running lark !!!
Of course had to reward ourselves with a pint or two afterwards, so me, Yatesey and a couple of Moorlands lads headed to the Rock Inn where I enjoyed a nice pint of Caffreys…..didn’t think they did that stuff anymore !!!
Here’s to the Roaches next week !!
Well, sounds like Adam is
really enjoying the racing so far and he really is doing
tremendously well in his first season, even though he is
a Vale fan!
Thanks for the report Adam. Maybe Ian will provide one
from the next instalment?
For those interested latest results can be found on the Moorlands site HERE!
Please Note
Just a reminder that the Club Barbeque and summer fun night which includes the Club Handicap relays will take place on Thursday 8th July (2 weeks this Thursday). For more information read more HERE!
On Saturday Trentham RC and GB athlete Adela Salt headed down to Boddington to compete in the Ultra National Championships. Del has kindly sent us this report:
Bloody 'el -
I've done it! 18 months ago I swore blind that I would
never do another ultra, but there I was on Saturday
morning at 8am, lining up for the national 50km champs
in Boddington. The foot niggle that had made me withdraw
from the Chester marathon had gone, and apart from
couple of aches and pains from a bit of gardening the
day before, I actually felt ok - nervous admittedly, but
ok.
I've done the Boddington race twice before but knew
there was no way I was going to get close to my PB of
3.24, so the main aim was to get round in one piece,
target a time of about 3.30/3.35 and maybe, just maybe,
come away a national medal and England selection for the
World 50km IAU Championships in Galway in August.
Today was also the British 100km Championships and the
Anglo-Celtic Plate, so there were plenty of familiar
faces from the home nations out on the course, both
running and spectating, and it was nice to see City of
Stoke athlete Brian Cole donning his England kit at the
start.
Just after 8am, the race started and I got myself
mentally prepared for the 14 laps around the country
lanes near Boddington, finding it easier to count down
the laps rather than the 31 miles that I was about to
run. The start was nice and steady as I settled into my
rythm of 6.40 pace, but behind me was an old ultra
running pal that does nothing but talk (and you wonder
why his nickname is Gobi!), and today was no exception.
I found myself getting annoyed as he was distracting me,
and I ended up speeding up a little to get away from
him, which I was to pay for later.
I was actually leading the race for the first 7 or 8
miles, but the quicker pace started to take it's toll
and it wasn't long before Gobi, along with 3 or 4 other
athletes including a lady, went past me. There was still
a hell of a way to go, so didn't worry too much, and was
more relieved that I could now focus on my own race
instead of hearing about sex symbols, who's got the
nicest backside, how much beer they'd drank in the past
week, football and, well, you get the picture.
The next few laps were pretty uneventful and I just
enjoyed - yes, enjoyed - running around the loops, and
seeing Andy every couple of miles to fill me up with
energy gels and water. I could still see the leading
lady ahead of me, but had to have a pit stop, and ended
up losing 2 minutes waiting for a marshall to get out of
the loo, so by the time I got going again, I'd obviously
lost time and could no longer see her, so it became a
case of running for 2nd place and just focusing on
getting the qualifying time to gain automatic selection
to run for England in August.
With 3 laps to go, I started to slow, and I found my
pace had dropped by about 30 seconds per mile.
Fortunately I stopped myself from walking, and just
gritted my teeth to make myself keep going, and finally
the finish line was ahead. I dived for the line,
finishing as 2nd lady in 3.38.07, but more importantly,
I would be representing my country once again in a World
Championship in August. I'm not going to deny that I
would love to have won, but the competition today was
much stronger than in previous years, which is fantastic
for British ultra running. In terms of damage, I came
away with 4 bruised toe nails and a little bit of
sunburn - but no blisters, pulled muscles, or achy feet.
Mind you, it is only Saturday night and by morning the
stiffness may have set in - I think a few beers are
required just to numb the pain before it starts!
Well done Del, Congratulations on making the selection for the World 50K championships and also on a great time. Just over 7 minute mileing for 30 miles is some going and personally a pace I could not contemplate! And what's this about waiting for a toilet????? Did you not see Paula demonstrate the correct technique?
Well done again and good luck for the Worlds!!!
It's also worth noting that Brian Cole from Stoke AC won the 100K event. Results for Boddington can be found HERE!
Trentham Running Club took a number of competitors along to Shugborough Relays on Wednesday evening to take part in the annual event. Always a relaxed atmosphere and plenty of fun, but whilst everyone is laid back and having fun there was also some racing to be done. The weather was fantastic and whilst it was warm and dry it was slightly cooler than of late to allow for good running conditions. We managed to field a total of 5 teams. 2 senior Men's Teams, 1 Senior Ladies Team and 2 Mixed Teams.
The supposed 1st Team was made up of Adam Brearley(1), Carl Platt(2), Ryan Procter(3) and Rob Tabbanor(4), whilst the supposedly 2nd Team was Dale Colclough(1), Guy Martin(2), Alan Evans(3) & Dan Clowes(4). All was going well for the Men's team until the flow of sub 11 minute legs was disrupted by the Tub Munster, This allowed the 2nd team to gain some ground and it was a race to the line between Rob & Dan. Rob did have a reasonable head start and with around 1/4 of a mile to go seemed to have enough to see off the challenge.
The Ladies Team was made up of Sarah Johnson(1), Christine Holmes(2), Del Salt (3) and Eva Berril(4) who was filling in for the missing Jo Donnelly. I haven't had a report from the ladies yet and as the results are not out can't tell you exactly how they got on. I do know that they were very competitive however and were in the running for the lead places.
The other two teams were mixed teams made up of Rose Wilson, Ken Pearson, Paul Gibbings, Sam Newton, an ex-member (who's name escapes me) and Eva, Adam & Sarah who all ran 2 legs on the night! Again, no reports, but results will appear when we have them.
Well Folks The results are out and they show that Trentham had a very good night indeed! The Men's A Team (The Flying Men) just about managed to hold off the late charge from Dan's B team (The Off Road Men) to finish a very creditable 6th just ahead of the B team in 7th!
The Ladies team (The Flying Women) came 2nd in the Ladies Open race.
The Mixed team (The Mixed Flyers) came 4th in the Mixed Open.
Finally, the Mixed Vet Team (The Mixed Chargers) came 3rd in the 160+ Vet category so a real good night with some fantastic results.
Full results HERE!
The flat as flat can be St. Michaels 10K took place in Stone at the weekend with a number of Trentham runners taking part. With Ian Yates now Concentrating on his Half Marathon Training it was left to Rob Tabbanor to lead the way for Trentham completing the course in a time of 37:30. In the Ladies Race is was 2nd place for Sarah Johnson who was 3 minutes behind someone who came from Lancashire to take part. Sarah finished in a time of 39:01.
A couple of members have kindly sent in reports for you to read so with no further ado, here they are. First is from Daniel Jordan, a relatively new member who has not long been with us, so welcome to the club and thanks for the report. Here it is:
Hot, hot, hot
and hot, is the best way to sum up the St. Michael’s
10K! A good Trentham turnout, although I don’t yet know
most of the names of the other runners, being the newbie
at the club. The race was really well organised, loads
of marshals, from the car parks at the start and all
through the race to the free bananas at the end. My race
didn’t go to plan, and chatting to others at the end it
was a similar story, with personal bests out of the
window, no doubt due to the temperature. The start was
fine (although the starter decided to aim the loudhailer
away from the runners!), and off we trotted towards
Stone town centre. Nice and flat start, left and towards
the A34 and the first mile marker. Sub 7 here, looking
good, but early days! Quite a few people lining the
route and cheering us on, and nearly every marshal was
giving words of encouragement as we went past. Onto the
A34 and this is where the shade stops, all the way down
the A51 in full sun, with the first shade as you turn
back towards the start. Probably just me but the A34 and
A51 just seemed so long and straight, so I looked at the
ground instead to check my feet were still moving.
Towards the end of the first lap and some great support
from Club Trentham, nicely laid out in the shade of a
tree, shouting encouragement as we go by. For me at
halfway I would really liked to have just stopped, not
because anything was hurting really, just would have
been nice to have a little rest! This is my first 10K
and I now realise I did go off to fast! Second lap and
starting to slow on my way towards the A34, a club
runner goes past me at the pace I should have been going
and so I try to keep her close and reel her in. I’ve got
the plan to keep her within 50 metres and then sprint
past her at the end, but she’s much fitter than me and
my sprint isn’t quite what I was hoping for! I finish
truly knackered, just sub 44 mins, thinking 10K might
not be my preferred distance!
Great report Daniel and keep training, I'm sure you'll
soon be eating up those 10k's. Next report is from our
wordsmith Dan Bowman who by the sounds of things is just
about to enter race hibernation. (always thought he
looked a bit like a hedgehog). Here is Dan's report:
I thought I’d
send in a brief report of the St Michaels 10k because
I’m not planning on racing for a while, which is good
for you lot because you won’t have to sift through my
frequent walls of text.
There weren’t as many Trentham peeps running yesterday
as I’d imagined, probably about 10 of us? I arrived in
Stone around 9 and loitered about for a bit. Pleased to
see my dad there, so I chatted to him. He plays hockey
for Stone and they were hosting a tournament that day so
he thought he’d come and watch a bit of the race whilst
he was down. (Though the tournament didn’t really go
that well apparently because a lot of the players/teams
came down with mysterious illnesses which wouldn’t
subside until about 4:45pm, provided it didn’t go to
extra time/penalties)
Saw Ben Gamble wandering around and had my usual star
struck moment (incidentally, I was shopping with Deanne
last week and Ben Gamble walked past me with his
girlfriend, shopping! Like normal people do! I tapped
Deanne on the shoulder and whispered “PSSSST, Look
it’s…” at which point she cut me off with “Yes I know”
turned out she’d already spotted him and hoped I didn’t
see him because I act like a little excited puppy when I
see him, ie losing control of my bladder, that sort of
thing)
Erm… Anyway, last year I ran this race (which was
earlier, I think it was on the 21st)
Followed by the Burton Midsummer 10k the following
Tuesday, and I hadn’t run a 10k since. My PB stood at
45:26 going into this race. My first race after starting
running was this one in 2008, which I ran in 52:06, then
I got my PB a year later, knocking 7 minutes off, so
ideally I wanted another big PB, about 42-43 minutes.
On the day though, it became apparent that a PB would be
difficult due to the insane heat. Now, I must have done
about 40 races or so in the two years that I’ve been
running, and never have I experienced that sort of
temperature at 10am in the morning. Crazy crazy heat. I
spotted the Dougie Mac Sunflower. Now I was gutted last
year when he beat me at Potters arf. I’ve had a good
record against him this year though, beating him 3 times
already. Imagine my surprise when not one, but Two
Dougie Mac Sunflowers lined up at the start! One of them
leaned in and whispered to me “You’re going down punk,
by the end of this race, you’re going to know the
meaning of defeat. Also lose some weight you beardy div”
That didn’t really happen, they just waved at kids and
stuff, but I knew that they were secretly plotting my
downfall, and possibly kicking me in my gonads.
Anyway off we went, the sun beating down on my face like
an angry homeless person trying to open a tin of beans.
I noticed a lot of women swooning just ahead of me so I
figured Chris wasn’t far ahead. I drew level and decided
to try and stay with him for as long as possible, which
was a whole 7 minutes before he galloped into the
distance, picking up hankies for damsels in distress and
that.
Saw Bryan Dale and got ready for my close up (ruffle up
hair with sweaty hands, make sure to take big strides so
as not to look like a zombie at a Northern soul night)
but some bloke jumped in front of me off the pavement
and the photo has been reduced to a little bit of my
generous head. I’ve always had quite a big head. I
ordered a cowboy hat off the internet once and it didn’t
fit so I had to buy another one. Also I shut my own head
in a car door once which was pretty painful. I looked
like a lolly pop when I was a baby.
Anyway, I started off on 4 minute k’s but that faded
before 4k and then I just turned my watch off because I
knew I wasn’t going to get a time I was happy with.
I was feeling a bit sorry for my sweaty self when I saw
a group of brazen hussies cooing from the grass at the
side of the road, waving at me and chanting my name. I’m
used to this so I just waved, flashed ‘em a bit of leg,
keep ‘em happy, you know, and carried on, starting the
second lap.
Anyhoo, I came up to Bryan Dale again and struck a pose
(I’ve just seen the photo actually and it’s not too
shabby. One of my better ones. Walt’s got a really good
one too) and I thought I must be on for about 44
minutes, though I wasn’t sure anymore. I plodded along
the final straight, and spotted the group of gorgeous
women on the grass again, shouting my name, but they’d
been joined now by a fifth member of the Dan club.
“Oo-er, she’s a bit rough that one” I thought, “don’t
fancy hers much”. Upon closer inspection it was Ken.
Waved again and proceeded to the finish area.
As I turned the final corner I spotted the clock, on
45:20. Grrrr thought I, and got a wriggle on, passing
the finish line in 45:26. Which is exactly what I got
last year. Missing out on a new PB by 1 second. I think
anyway, the results aren’t out yet, I might have been a
couple of seconds over, depends where they took my time.
Saw Sarah afterwards, asked her how she did and she
replied “Alright, came second” Alright!? That’s like
saying, “I only had a small breakfast, I ate a garden
shed” Insane, and well done!
Erm… That’s about it really. Quite an average event but
usually good for a PB. I don’t know of anyone that got
one though. It was, as they say in Spain, el very hotto.
Also my big toenail is probably going to fall off today,
it’s hanging by a thread. If anyone wants it let me know
and I’ll bring it to the club Tuesday.
Thanks for the report Dan. Always a great read :-)
Full results for the St. Michael's 10k can be found HERE!
Shugborough Relays
Potters 'Arf
Race For Life
Westbridge 5
