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Race Calendar
2012
VETS PAGE
BRASS MONKEY
1/2 MARATHON INFO



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Keswick Half Marathon - 6th
May.
report by Sue Adams
results . |
Six intrepid York Knavesmire Harriers made the long
journey to the Lake District. With snow on the hills and
rain to start, the very hilly course which takes in the
road along Catbells high above Derwent Water is not
easy, but the views are stunning and the spring flowers
were in profusion. The weather improved making it a
fantastic event. Susan and Paul have done this event
many times although the route has changed in recent
years due to flood damage, for others it was a new
venture. Peter Welsh 1.40.08 was our first to finish
followed by Kelly Temple 1.49.04, Dave Scoreby 1.54.44,
David Bygrave 1.55.35, Susan & Paul Adams 2.39.32. There
was an apple and a drink at the finish with the option
to buy a slate coaster for £5. Well done all and thank
you for the cheers as we finished great club spirit.
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North Duffield 10k - 5th May.
report by Daniel Sturgeon |
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The first running of the North Duffield Off Road 10k
took place on Saturday 5th May. The venue was Skipwith
Common and if that name doesn't ring any bells then
you're not alone. Until Saturday I was oblivious to its
charms but am now a big fan of this lovely little patch
of Yorkshire. The Common is an area of wild vegetation,
sandy soil, patches of woodland and marshy pools close
to Riccall. To further add to the uniqueness of the
Common a World War II airfield that has long since been
reclaimed by nature occasionally affords runners a short
stretch of broken tarmac and takes your mind off the
puddle dodging, wildlife spotting and root tripping.
The race takes in two 5 km laps across this varied
terrain and along the way throws in swing gates, short
plank bridges and 180 degree turns, making for an
interesting and testing route. Once you've added in the
friendly organisers, the worthy causes it's raising
funds for, the small entry list and the ideal weather
you have the perfect race.
The race itself was a reasonably slow affair, partly due
the route and partly due to the absence of many serious
runners. The strength of the field can best be summed up
by my 5th place overall (in the summer league you can
multiply that figure by 10) but at no point did this
feel like an event dominated by positions and times, it
was much more about enjoying the experience and the
smiles from the finishers told you it had succeeded on
that front. A shiny medal, a slice of orange, a farewell
to my companions for the run and it was back home by mid
morning. Even scheduling an early start on the Saturday
morning was a masterstroke.
I sincerely hope this becomes a regular fixture on the
running calendar and that come next May there are plenty
more Harriers lining up to enjoy this event.
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Kirkbymoorside 10k - 6th MAY.
report by Liz Matthews. |
Twenty one Harriers lined up at the start of the May
club run, in the pretty market town of Kirkbymoorside,
thanking our lucky stars that the weather was a huge
improvement on recent days.
We were well
aware of the mile long climb out of the town, but it
really was relatively tame after some of the hills of
previous club runs this year. The
route took us along quiet lanes into the countryside,
through idyllic villages, with far reaching views over
the North York Moors. The
locals were out in force, sitting in picnic chairs along
the route, clapping, cheering and encouraging everyone.
The course
had been described as fast and undulating and it
certainly lived up to its name, with plenty of uphill
undulations on the way out! It
was nice to see a little sign saying ‘Last Hill’ just
before the 8 km mark.
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But what
goes up must come down, and down we came, at a great
rate of knots! We
practically flew the last 2km, with a sprint finish
along the main street which was lined with huge crowds
of cheering supporters and even a Brass Band playing.
Everyone I
spoke to was delighted with their times, too many to
mention, but congratulations to Chris Roberts for coming
4th overall,
Sarah Douglas was 2nd lady,
Mike McGrath 3rd male
vet and Ian Baldwin with a PB. Careful
perusing of the results has shown that there was a
slight hiccup with the chip timing, resulting in myself
and Maureen Medlar being deprived of 2nd and
3rd lady
vet prizes respectively. A
steward’s enquiry is underway!
The Moss
family were out in force, with Gary and Linda’s son
Peter putting in a good performance – probably our
youngest Harrier.
Well done to
Chris Roberts, Pete Downes, Martin Smith, Nick Griffin,
Tony Kendrick, John Middleton, Maureen Medlar and Linda
Moss who all squelched round Fountains last weekend,
Summer League on Tuesday and Kirbymoorside this weekend
– true YKH dedication!
This really
was a great race; very friendly, terrific atmosphere
and lots of tea-shops and pubs in the town for our band
of non-running supporters.
More photos in galleries below. |
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Sarah
Douglas was 2nd lady |
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Greater Manchester Marathon Race Report - 29 April.
by Mike McGrath. |
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The weather forecast was fine
rain to start then heavy rain and wind - don't believe it !
The rain started before the
race and got worse, by the second half people were dropping out
with hypothermia. Its the hardest marathon I have ever run. You
tend to think that people running marathons in hats,
waterproofs, tracksters and gloves are overdressed or doing a
mountain marathon, they were the lucky ones.
Stephan Durkin was first
Knavesmire home in 3:35:02 followed by Colin Lee 3:42:47 (he
passed me at 20 miles leaning into a gale), me, Mike Mcgrath
3:55:23 (my hands went numb about 16 miles, at 20 I couldn't
pick up jelly babies on offer). Then David Darton 4:23:02 ( I
met him at half way) and Vivianne Fraser at 4:48:16. We got 62nd
team out of 90. I think we all did very well to finish in
abysmal conditions.
The worst was yet to come at
baggage collection, waiting 45+ minutes for your bag in the wind
and rain was not pleasant.
Anyway we survived to run
another day. Oh and Monday, the day after was an ideal marathon
day!
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Fountains 10K Race Report – Sunday 29th
April
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by Nick Griffin. |
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The wettest April on record. Flood warnings. Over 25mm of rain
predicted in one day. 3.5 degrees plus windchill. None of these
things deterred the 17 Knavesmire Harriers who made their way to
Grantley for the Fountains 10K. Neither did the pre-race information
which described the course as ‘undulating’ (always a warning sign)
and declared that ‘the short section that crosses the moor has been
known to become very boggy if the weather has been wet.’
After a slightly delayed start the runners who had been huddled in
the primary school were persuaded out into the downpour to be warned
by the race director that conditions were the worst in his 20 years
of organising the race and some puddles on the course could be half
a metre deep. The multi-terrain course commenced with a steady climb
out of the village before a right turn onto the moorland track and
straight into the teeth of the wind and rain which had now turned
sleety so that a pair of goggles would have been advisable. Puddles
were deep, the bog was boggy and small boulders and sharp rocks were
helpfully positioned to break your fall.
One of my shoes was temporarily lost to one of the deeper puddles
and those without goggles were so blinded by the rain that they
often stumbled - I witnessed two runners go headlong into the mire
(one of whom I even stopped to help up). Leaving the moor the course
began to turn back towards the village and although now downhill the
wind conspired to stay mostly head on despite several changes in
direction. At 5 miles we turned for home and as the wind dropped the
road rose up for a final sharp hill back into the village and the
reward of a piece of flapjack and a cup of tea.
Despite feeling more like a winter than a spring race there were
some great times recorded with Chris Roberts being the first Harrier
home in third place in an excellent 36m18s. The race for the ladies
prize was very close with 50 seconds separating the first three.
Emma Yates was the first Harrier lady claiming third, just 6 seconds
from second place and first in her category!
Traffic control was a bit ‘hit and miss’ for the tail end runners
but other than the weather (did I mention the weather?) this was a
great scenic little race. Congratulations to Pete Downes, Martin
Smith, Tony Kendrick, Iain Baldwin, John Middleton, Gill Barker,
Martin and Maureen Medlar, Emma Gradwell, Garry Moss, Liz matthews,
Darren Leaf, Linda Moss and Keith Hillsden (and me) who alongside
our placing runners, Chris & Emma braved the elements for this, the
first in this year’s Yorkshire Dales Race Series. Results can be
found on the
Results page. |
Paris Marathon - 15.04.2012.
report by
Andy Falconer |
New member, Andy Falconer, ran his first marathon on Sunday in
Paris. He was aiming for a 4.30 time but finished in 4hrs 11mins. He
also managed to raise over £2,000 for Martin House Children’s
Hospice at the same time. ‘It was an amazing experience being in an
event with 35,000 others. The route is great in that it goes past
many of the famous sites in Paris and there were runners from all
over the world. I’ve now got the marathon bug and am trying to get a
charity place for Berlin in September!”
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Helmsley Multi-Terrain
Challenge - 8th April
report by Liz Matthews |
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A cloudy but dry Easter Day
saw a good turn out of Knavesmire Harriers at the annual Helmsley
10K Multi Terrain Challenge. Many of us had run the race before and
remembered with dread the long uphill slog along the road to
Carlton. Once the hill was behind us, we headed off-road for some 4
km along a bridle track which was lined with cowslips and primroses.
Very pretty, and the views over the Howardian Hills were truly
breathtaking. All too soon, we were heading across slightly sticky
fields and back into Helmsley, but the race had a nasty little
'sting in the tail' - a 500 metre climb to the finish which really
tested our aching legs. However the lure of the Easter Egg at the
finish line kept us focused, and resulted in some really good times.
First Harrier home was
Darren Hendley in 39:57, followed by Pete Downes who came in as 3rd
M45. Mike McGrath was 1st M60, I managed 2nd F50, and Susan Adams
finished as 3rd F60.
Welcome to Kate Atkin,
running for the club for the first time, and finished with a huge
smile on her face!
This is proving to be a
popular race with entries on the increase - over 300 completed the
course this year. Well worth putting the date in your diary for
next year! |
Hull Marathon - Easter Sunday 8th April
report by Tony Kendrick |
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The new Hull marathon is an
event well worth considering next year for Harriers who miss out on
the London, being run two weeks before. Starting at the early time
of 8am in the historic heart of the city, the 876 runners stayed
cool throughout the morning, with mist shrouding the far side of the
Humber Bridge and only a light wind coming inshore in our faces as
we ran along the marina either side of the Deep. The flat course
offered fast times, and Ian Anderson ran a really impressive race,
coming third overall with a fast time of 2.41.12, and first in the
40-49 year age category.
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Other Harriers finishing well
included Stefan Durkin, Colin Lea, David Darton, and Tony Kendrick (who
managed a PB of 3.26.39).
This wasn’t the first ever Hull
marathon: a Hull to Grimsby marathon was run in 1981 soon after the
Humber Bridge was built. Hopefully this event will grow and grow,
and can be recommended to YKH members as a scenic flat course
conducive to fast times.
(The photo shows Tony Kendrick,
David Darton, Colin Lea and Stefan Durkin at the finish). |
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Olympic Glory for 4 York Knavesmire Harriers
report by Sarah Douglas.
(Link to York Press Report.) |
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Saturday 31st March 2012 is a day that will
always be remembered by Caroline Warrington, Joan Heron, Sarah
Douglas and Simon Collins. It is the day that they were amongst the
first people to cross the Olympic Stadium’s finish line. Over 43,000
members of the public entered the ballot to get a place in the
Olympic Park Run, organised by the National Lottery, however only
5000 places were available so our 3 Harriers were very privileged to
be there. The run was a five-mile race around the Olympic Park,
taking in landmarks such as the Velodrome and Aquatics Centre and
finished in the iconic Olympic stadium. For Caroline, Sarah and
Simon the most memorable part of the race will have been the final
300m when they actually ran on to the Olympic track to cross the
finish line. All runners were allocated 2 spectator tickets so
runners were greeted by 10,000 cheering spectators including their
own friends and family. A number of famous faces and former
Olympians including Princess Beatrice, Sally Gunnell and Roger Black
also took part and helped raise the profile of the race. The winning
man’s time was 25.11 and Nell McAndrew was the first lady in 29.21.
Our 4 Harriers all ran fantastic races too and did themselves, their
family and their friends proud. Simon finished 119th
overall in a time of 30.47 which is an exceptional performance.
Caroline took Harrier silver claiming 475th place with a
time of 34.47 and Sarah took bronze finishing in 488th
place in 34.52. There were 2634 women running and Caroline and Sarah
claimed 52nd and 55th lady, a great
achievement indeed. Joan finished in a very good time of 46.24. This
event really was a once in a lifetime opportunity for the 5000
runners who took part and when watching the likes of Usain Bolt, Mo
Farah and Jessica Ennis crossing the Olympic finish line in the
summer Caroline, Joan Sarah and Simon will recount the euphoric
feeling they had when they competed in the Olympic Park Race.
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Joan Heron |
Simon Collins(left) |
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Caroline
Warrington(right) |
Sarah Douglas (far right) |
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Thirsk 10 mile - 25th March
report by Dick Hunter |
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A fine day greeted the five
Harriers who raced Thirsk 10 (and Yorks champs.). Pete Downes (M45)
had another fast race (chip time 1:04), as did Joannne Hunt (F35) in
1:15. And David Varley (M65) was 5th in his age category, running
1:19. Other Harriers were Dave Bygrave (M50) running 1:22, and Dick
Hunter (M65) 1:24. |
Club Run Harewood House 10k - 18th March
report by Tony Kendrick |
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This was
a well run event with good facilities provided considering the
reasonable entry fee, including food and drink vans and lots of
toilets, a DJ, group warm-up and even a band! It was great to be
running on a sunny Spring day with a cooling breeze. The undulating
circular course on tracks around the estate took us past the
imposing mansion house and along the edge of the Dales to the west.
The uneven surfaces and long hill between 7.5k and 8.5k slowed some
runners down, so Janet Cordingley, Pete Downs and John Bullock all
did especially well to come first in their age categories with
excellent times of 49.03, 42.02 and 44.20 respectively. Altogether
20 Harriers ran in this Inaugural event, and we can recommend it to
other members for next year. |
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MONKEYS IN MALAGA - MARCH 2012. |
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Three mad monkeys - Sarah Douglas, Chris Roberts and
Alistair McQueen - recently flew to Spain to compete
in the Malaga half marathon.
It was something of a victory tour for Sarah and
Chris, for at the recent club dinner they had won
the ladies' and men's gold medals, respectively.
Alistair carried no medals, but travelled with a
spring in his step and a long-standing love for
tapas.
Malaga - a new destination
Sun, sand, sea and the occasional sangria helped
the monkeys prepare for the big day. Malaga was a
new destination, and it didn't disappoint. Friendly
people, fascinating culture and fabulous weather
made for a fantastic weekend.
Great performance on a great day |
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On race
day, 3,000 runners gathered in the city's modern athletics
stadium to prepare for battle. The sun brightly beat down as the
temperature gently rose to a challenging 26 degrees.
The foreign
conditions, however, were not enough to slow the Harriers.
Records fell as Chris
raced to a PB of 1.21.57 and Sarah to a PB of 1.38.35. Chris
finished in a stellar 95th place overall and Sarah was a
brilliant 28th fastest lady. Our
monkeys did us proud.
Alistair
meanwhile was just delighted to complete the course. Scottish
genes mixed with Spanish sun made for a tough run. He did
however win the race to the free bar at the finish line and
celebrated with a complementary glass of chilled beer.
If you want
to combine running with great weather and a fascinating city,
Malaga 2013 is one to add to your list. For more information,
contact alistair_mcqueen@yahoo.co.uk
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Meltham 10k - January Club Run.
report by Sarah
Douglas |
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This certainly wasn’t a race for the faint
hearted with temperatures only just reaching above freezing and more than a
handful of hills to tackle. 16 of us journeyed over to Meltham near Huddersfield
for the first of this year’s club runs. I have to say when I got to the start
line I worried I had underdressed for the occasion, sporting only a club vest.
Most people had jumpers on or at least a t-shirt under their vests. My logic
however was I would have to run faster to keep warm. Don’t know about the rest
of you but the exertion of getting up the hills did certainly help raise my
temperature. Luckily the snow topped ones were in the distance and we didn’t
have to attempt those but they were nice to look at. The positive to going
uphill is that it’s pretty likely that at some point you’ll have to go downhill
and there were some long downhill stretches to compensate, particularly the
final stretch of the course, but it was pretty cruel putting a final uphill slog
at the finish.
A big well done to all
of our runners who completed the course. Chris Roberts once again ran a
fantastic race finishing in 8th place in a time of 37.43. Anyone
would think it was a flat course with that time! Stef Durkin was our 2nd
male home in 43.48 and Dan Sturgeon 3rd in 43.54. Great performances
also by John Bullock who finished 3rd in his age category in a time
of 44.07 and Mike McGrath who came 2nd in his age category in 46.41.
Well done also to David Darton, Tony Kendrick, John Middleton and Colin Lea for
running sub 50mins on what was a tough course.
Liz Matthews and I were
the only Knavesmire ladies to enter but as they say it’s quality not quantity.
Big congratulations to Liz for finishing 3rd in her age category in a
time of 52.21. Hilly courses usually defeat me but I’ve been putting in some
hill training and made it round in 45.38 finishing as 8th woman (I
think!).
Not
our greatest turn out to date but still an enjoyable race and great to catch up
with everyone. Good luck to all those people who managed to get a place for
Snake Lane, sadly I didn’t but look forward to hearing how you all get on.
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York Parkrun
- 14th January.
report by Daniel Sturgen |
This Saturday saw the long awaited arrival of the parkrun phenomenon to our
city. Before I get into the details of "who, what and how fast", I feel parkrun
probably needs an introduction to the uninitiated. About 7 years ago a group of
friends started running 5k time-trials every Saturday morning around Bushy Park
in West London. The simple idea of a free to enter weekly timed event was a hit.
The number of participants grew as did the number of venues - initially in
London but spreading nationwide thereafter. There are now well over a 100
separate parkruns taking place every Saturday morning all over the UK, and the
concept has even been successfully exported to Australia, South Africa, Denmark,
Poland and Iceland. Incredibly there are now 140,000 people signed up as
parkrunners, representing 1,659 running clubs. On Saturday York finally joined
the parkrun family, which segues nicely to the details of the debut run,... and
what a debut it was.
With the race scheduled to start at 9am the early arrivals were treated to a
race course shrouded in mist, but following a breathtaking sunrise, the race
took place under clear blue skies that showed the frost covered Knavesmire at
it's best. I can't believe a single one of the runners can have failed to be
impressed by the setting. For an event with minimal promotion (a facebook page
and some word of mouth) a field of 215 was much more than expected (by
comparison the Millennium Bridge 5k race 1 had 210 entrants) but must have been
hugely rewarding to the event organisers. That said, the field was boosted by
entrants from parkruns in Bradford, Barnsley, Middlesbourgh, Leeds, Sheffield
and many others who had turned out to show support for the new kid on the block,
so may fall a little in the coming weeks.
Among the local entrants I was pleased to count at least 9 Harriers lining up
alongside club runners from York Acorn, Pocklington, Pickering and the other
usual suspects. It was even nicer to see that some of our Harriers had brought
along friends and family who perhaps wouldn't be running at our usual events.
Despite the less clubby feel of the race there were still some fast times at the
sharp end of the field and some 46 runners posted times under 20 minutes. Will
New (second claim member) and Chris Roberts (mens U35 champion this year) were
both well placed in the top 10 and both Chris and Sarah Douglas reported hitting
new PBs on this remarkably flat and very fast course.
So a free to enter, timed event that offers huge PB potential. What could be
better... well the fact that it all happens again this coming Saturday and every
Saturday going forward (subject to racedays). Just think what a great means of
tracking progress a weekly, timed run provides. So, like a preacher coming to
the end of a sermon I feel I should urge you all to give this a go over the
coming weeks. If you want to find out more, or like what you've heard and want
to get yourself registered, check out
http://www.parkrun.org.uk/york/home |
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Your Free
training
t-shirts

-how to collect them.
Keswick Half Marathon
-report.
Message
from
Sheila Latto
RU
taking
the P?
'Men only' 5k-17th
June
Entry details
& help needed.
Club Championship
results after Race 5
North Duffield 10k
race report
Kirkbymoorside 10k
Club Run report.

York
Road Race League
Report-Race1 Pocklington
Greater Manchester Marathon
-report
Fountains 10k
-report
York & District
10k Summer League
Entry form & dates.
(Race 2 @Tadcaster 15.May)
Paris Marathon
-report

Helmsley
Multi-terrain Challenge
- report
Hull Marathon
- report

Olympic
Park Run
-report

Baildon
Boundary Way
Half Marathon-report.
Thirsk 10 mile
race report
Club Run Race
report
Harewood 10k
Malaga 1/2
Marathon
-report

Club Subs'
now over due!
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