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Racing Round Up-w.e 7th July -Wistow 10k, YVAA 10k Champs, Boston USA…

7 July 2024 by ·

Please send race reports,  photos & results to :  ykhracereports@gmail.com

—Halifax Harriers 10k.

The inaugural Halifax Harriers 10k which incorporated the Yorkshire Veteran Assoc’ 10k Championships.

1st David Smithers 35:31      YVAA M50 Champion
15th Richard Purser 39:11    YVAA 2nd M40
51st Pete Downes 47:46
82nd Andrew Clark 52:35
106th Caitlin Clark 58:27  YVAA 3rd F35

—Chocolate Run.

Place Bib Name Gender Age
3.41 Mile Laps Completed Average Lap Fastest Lap Time
3.41Mile Laps Completed
3. 154 John Oliver M V65 3 0:28:34 0:26:54 1:25:42
34. 4 Pam Anderson F V65 3 0:41:55 0:37:39 2:05:47
43. 228 Edwina Wilcox F V55 3 0:46:21 0:43:37 2:19:04
63. 139 John Middleton M V65 2 0:32:42 0:31:47 1:05:25
190. 5 Richard Anderson M V65 1 0:42:26 0:42:26 0:42:26
194. 39 Duncan Chambers M V60 1 0:44:17 0:44:17 0:44:17
204. 1 Paul Adams M V70 1 0:58:45 0:58:45 0:58:45

—York Mile.

Three club members took part in mile race at the City of York athletics meeting on Thursday night.

—Wistow 10k – Race #6 YDRRL 2024.

Joe Firth stormed to his first York and District Road Race League title with a career-best performance in the 2024 season finale at Wistow as Pocklington Runners’ ladies claimed an historic team crown with a clutch display over 10 flat and fast kilometres.

Tadcaster Harriers frontrunner Firth had put one hand on the trophy by clinching three wins from three previous outings and a sixth-fixture personal-best 31:06 saw him grab gold in some style as his nearest opponent, team-mate Wayne Wetherhill, was over 90 seconds behind with a course-best 32:50.
James Eaton completed a Tadcaster 1-2-3 with 33:15, his best time of a fine campaign which saw him finish as second male overall from the veteran-40 class.

With three third places, York Postal Harriers’ leading man Dom Carter (34:00) took senior silver for 2024 ahead of Acorn’s Kieron Brown (34:20).

Pocklington’s ladies are celebrating a double triumph after adding the summer league championship to the East Yorkshire Cross Country League prize they secured on the cliffs of Sewerby earlier this year.
Needing to win at Wistow while hoping closest rivals York Knavesmire Harriers finished third or lower, Georgia Hird (40:07), Katie Wise (40:31), Fiona Randles (42:22) and Emily Kendra (45:39) seized four of the top 20 places for 37 points and duly watched their black-and-yellow-vested rivals drift out to fourth place.

Postal were second with 69 points compared to the 77 taken by host club Selby Striders and are therefore third overall behind Knavesmire in the final table.

Pocklington captain Rachel Dare said of her squad: “Huge congratulations on this epic win. Your hard work and determination has paid off in spades and I could not be prouder.”
There was a sixth men’s win from six for a Firth-led Tadcaster unit, who took six of the top 10 spots for 31 points courtesy of Wetherhill, Eaton, Joe Slater (34:52), Tom Derry (35:46) and David Murphy (35:48). Knavesmire placed second with 136 from York Acorn Running Club’s 179, confirming the ultimate podium order.
Charlotte Mason – a month ago crowned the senior ladies champion – wrapped up her glorious return to the competition with a 36:21 for 14th place overall and a clean sweep of six straight victories.
Nik Tarrega secured second place on the rural figure-of-eight track with 39:02 for Tadcaster, landing her silver for the summer series in the process, while Hird pipped Pickering Running Club’s Kelly Richmond (39:50) to bronze by a point for the season after they finished fourth and third respectively here.

In the age categories, F35 winner Wise held off the challenge of Selby’s Paula Fenteman (43:04) for a fourth success, with Postal’s Louise Boaz (43:24) snagging second in the final table with third in this fixture. Nicola Gover of Acorn boasts bronze in the settled standings.

Samantha Davies added the fourth win she required to take F45 gold as Easingwold Running Club’s star act notched 40:17 to lead in Randles and Acorn’s Julie Lawn (44:43), with that duo completing the 2024 podium.
City’s Karen Wood went 6-0 with a 43:05 to remain untouchable in the F55 class, where Knavesmire’s Anita Ruddock (46:10) and Sue Tindall of Tadcaster (49:52) were second and third on the night. Silver for this term, however, goes to Pocklington’s Liz Beardsley ahead of Ruddock in third.
Sally Ann Polkey returned to action to confirm F65 gold as her 51:16 booked a fourth win while Easingwold’s Sally-Anne Lardner (57:42) was second at Wistow and in the final standings, with Pickering’s Sally Brown (1:00:58) third in the race but sharing the overall honour with Knavesmire’s Margaret Oliver.

Eaton took a fourth M40 win for the top prize as Tadcaster’s Stephen Walker (35:57) and Matthew Kiddle of Acorn (36:26) came up short on Tuesday. Darren Tomlinson did enough in the series to place second for Tadcaster, with Charlie Goodwin a strong third for Knavesmire.

In the M50 battle, Knavesmire’s Dave Smithers (35:05) outpaced Paul Millgate (36:45) and Selby’s Mark Thompson (37:02) to rubber-stamp his category success, with the Tadcaster challenger second and Pocklington’s Richard Ginn third overall.

An unfortunate injury for Stephan Tomaszewski scuppered his season after his three straight wins to open the campaign and City’s Stephen Wright capitalised with a 40:15 at Wistow banking a crucial six-point haul for 2024 and with it the M60 title.

Easingwold’s Colin Fletcher (41:52) and David Lancaster (42:58) were not far behind, with the City man second in the series from his clubmate Jon Blake.
M70 champion Michael Hetherton swerved Wistow, which allowed Knavesmire’s Michael McGrath to prosper with 51:56 ahead of Tadcaster pair Mark Thompson (53:32) and Richard Millican (1:08:17). Thompson is second overall with McGrath third.

David I’Anson had already done more than enough for M80 glory and sat out the finale.

POS Bib Name M/F AG Race time Time
7. 580 Dave Smithers m 7. Seniors M50 1. 0:35:05 0:35:06
8. 714 Peter Ellis m 8. Senior Men 6. 0:35:17 0:35:18
20. 562 Richard Purser m 19. Seniors M40 6. 0:37:00 0:37:02
32. 509 Steve Hobson m 31. Seniors M40 10. 0:38:10 0:38:13
35. 598 Rob Whitaker m 34. Seniors M40 12. 0:38:28 0:38:30
38. 530 Geoff Marchment m 37. Seniors M40 13. 0:38:35 0:38:39
39. 502 Giles Hawking m 38. Seniors M50 8. 0:38:42 0:38:44
48. 729 Oliver Noble m 46. Senior Men 22. 0:39:19 0:39:21
49. 573 Fin Rylatt m 47. Senior Men 23. 0:39:28 0:39:30
50. 711 Elliott Briggs m 48. Senior Men 24. 0:39:25 0:39:35
51. 526 Andrew Lowson m 49. Seniors M40 17. 0:39:42 0:39:44
66. 481 Edward Dunn m 61. Seniors M40 18. 0:40:21 0:40:25
73. 505 Rory Henderson m 67. Seniors M40 22. 0:40:45 0:40:51
74. 565 Andy Richardson m 68. Seniors M50 14. 0:40:51 0:40:56
75. 594 Richard Walker m 69. Seniors M50 15. 0:40:51 0:40:58
76. 601 Luke Whiteley m 70. Senior Men 32. 0:40:49 0:41:00
77. 555 Stephen Peters m 71. Seniors M50 16. 0:40:52 0:41:02
83. 543 Kieron Niven m 77. Seniors M40 27. 0:41:27 0:41:36
86. 466 Stephen Clarke m 80. Seniors M50 17. 0:41:48 0:41:58
87. 577 Michael Shaw m 81. Seniors M40 28. 0:41:50 0:42:02
91. 576 David Seymour m 85. Seniors M40 30. 0:42:15 0:42:20
95. 454 Emma Brookshaw f 8. Senior Women 5. 0:42:26 0:42:36
99. 467 Ewan Cochrane m 91. Seniors M40 33. 0:42:48 0:42:55
109. 461 James Chambers m 99. Seniors M40 36. 0:43:01 0:43:12
112. 584 Andy Sumner m 101. Seniors M40 37. 0:43:06 0:43:15
120. 568 Ste Robson m 107. Seniors M40 41. 0:43:33 0:43:44
123. 547 Jonathan O’Neill m 110. Seniors M50 28. 0:43:43 0:43:54
124. 506 Darren Hendley m 111. Seniors M50 29. 0:43:51 0:43:56
128. 504 Andrew Heather m 115. Seniors M50 30. 0:44:07 0:44:16
130. 515 Dan Jones m 117. Seniors M50 32. 0:44:13 0:44:20
131. 508 Lance Hill m 118. Seniors M50 33. 0:44:11 0:44:22
136. 476 Thomas Dowling m 122. Senior Men 41. 0:44:36 0:44:46
140. 499 Emily Harper f 16. Senior Women 9. 0:44:45 0:44:51
147. 523 David Leese m 129. Senior Men 45. 0:45:12 0:45:23
148. 491 Graham Gill m 130. Seniors M40 45. 0:45:30 0:45:37
151. 557 Nathan Pratt m 132. Senior Men 47. 0:45:42 0:45:50
165. 571 Anita Ruddock f 26. Seniors W55 2. 0:46:10 0:46:22
169. 459 Jason Campbell m 141. Seniors M50 39. 0:46:32 0:46:40
170. 566 Edmund Roberts m 142. Senior Men 48. 0:46:26 0:46:40
177. 558 Victoria Pratt f 30. Senior Women 14. 0:46:53 0:47:01
184. 551 Kate Osborn f 34. Seniors W35 9. 0:47:09 0:47:20
190. 542 Chris Murphy m 156. Seniors M40 53. 0:47:43 0:47:55
191. 489 Simon Fricke m 157. Seniors M40 54. 0:47:49 0:47:56
195. 552 Orna Otoole f 35. Seniors W45 9. 0:47:55 0:48:09
196. 474 Simon Dixon m 161. Seniors M50 44. 0:48:01 0:48:10
197. 497 Kristiina Hanson f 36. Seniors W45 10. 0:47:58 0:48:10
203. 495 Nick Griffin m 165. Seniors M50 47. 0:48:10 0:48:23
207. 713 Emma Coster f 39. Seniors W45 12. 0:48:24 0:48:31
209. 448 Kevin Blount m 169. Seniors M50 49. 0:48:16 0:48:38
210. 533 Thomas Mccusker m 170. Senior Men 55. 0:48:24 0:48:39
218. 717 Emyr Rees m 178. Seniors M50 54. 0:49:16 0:49:24
220. 592 Louise Venables f 42. Seniors W35 11. 0:49:17 0:49:31
222. 607 Stephen Wilson m 179. Seniors M50 55. 0:49:24 0:49:35
227. 447 Jeremy Benson m 184. Seniors M60 11. 0:49:43 0:49:59
228. 475 Chris Doble m 185. Senior Men 57. 0:49:49 0:50:02
231. 731 Michael Ratcliffe m 187. Seniors M60 12. 0:50:19 0:50:32
233. 453 Daniel Brookshaw m 189. Senior Men 59. 0:50:54 0:51:02
234. 586 Kelly Temple f 45. Seniors W45 13. 0:50:40 0:51:05
237. 501 Emma Hartley f 47. Seniors W35 13. 0:51:01 0:51:14
240. 438 Toby Adair m 193. Seniors M40 60. 0:51:04 0:51:15
245. 492 Rachel Gillespie f 51. Senior Women 19. 0:51:10 0:51:31
246. 595 Louise Walley f 52. Seniors W35 14. 0:51:11 0:51:31
248. 604 Alan Wilkinson m 195. Senior Men 61. 0:51:09 0:51:32
252. 512 Frann Ireland f 56. Senior Women 20. 0:51:51 0:52:04
253. 534 Michael Mcgrath m 197. Seniors M70 1. 0:51:56 0:52:04
257. 485 Don Formhals m 198. Seniors M50 64. 0:52:12 0:52:22
262. 605 Andrew Wilkinson m 202. Seniors M50 67. 0:52:34 0:52:44
264. 463 Andrew Clark m 203. Seniors M40 62. 0:52:47 0:52:58
271. 517 Paula Kelly f 67. Seniors W35 21. 0:53:01 0:53:22
272. 591 Adrian Turner m 205. Seniors M50 69. 0:53:03 0:53:27
274. 579 Mike Smith m 207. Seniors M50 70. 0:53:37 0:53:48
278. 602 Nat Wikocki f 68. Seniors W35 22. 0:53:41 0:53:51
279. 443 Lynette Banks f 69. Seniors W55 6. 0:53:27 0:53:53
297. 606 Ellie Wilkinson f 82. Seniors W35 27. 0:55:28 0:55:58
300. 590 Sally Tierney f 84. Seniors W55 11. 0:55:48 0:56:14
303. 464 Caitlin Clark f 87. Senior Women 25. 0:55:55 0:56:24
308. 524 Emily Lenderyou f 92. Senior Women 27. 0:56:06 0:56:33
309. 514 Hannah Johnson f 93. Senior Women 28. 0:56:06 0:56:33
322. 472 Michael Denner m 220. Seniors M60 19. 0:58:13 0:58:40
328. 610 Richard Yeomans m 222. Seniors M50 74. 0:59:10 0:59:35
330. 511 David I’Anson m 224. Seniors M80 1. 0:59:29 0:59:56
336. 445 Vanessa Barrett f 110. Seniors W55 19. 1:00:31 1:00:57
344. 550 Margaret Oliver f 117. Seniors W65 5. 1:02:14 1:02:29
345. 549 John Oliver m 228. Seniors M60 22. 1:02:14 1:02:29
355. 439 Pam Anderson f 126. Seniors W65 6. 1:04:03 1:04:30
356. 556 Liz Piper f 127. Seniors W65 7. 1:04:03 1:04:30
360. 462 Jonathan Champion m 230. Senior Men 65. 1:05:28 1:05:55
364. 567 Ruth Robson f 133. Seniors W35 40. 1:09:29 1:09:57

—Eccup 10 Mile Road Race.

644th Susan Adams 2:13:05

—Boston Marathon U.S.A

Apologies to David Morrison, he sent me this great report back in April ! on the premier U.S marathon and I missed it, so giving the report and his great result their due now.

Learning to suffer in Boston.
In 2022 I ran the 100k version of the UTMB – an ultra marathon race that takes in 3000m/10,000ft of climbing over mountain passes around tbe Mont Blanc massif.
Taking on the final 700m climb up to La Flagere at close to midnight after 14 hours of running was daunting – an indeed it was a depth of pain and suffering I thought I would struggle to repeat in future races, let alone go beyond. That was, until I ran the Boston Marathon.
The race has a reputation for being tough. It often has severe weather, with headwinds and driving rain being common. The course is also known for being hilly, and despite being net down hill, takes in a gain of 250m.
This year, the weather was ideal (by Boston standards): clear and sunny, a  slight tail wind and a starting temp of 15 deg C. Everyone at the start line commented however, of how the heat of the sun already felt noticeable – an onomous feeling for anyone who has lined up for a long distance race.
My build up for the race was a story of two halves. I ran close to 100% of my planned sessions and easy runs from January to early March – everything was trending towards a PB in Boston – until I hit a snag in early March. What felt like a calf strain developed into something much more bone related – a suspected tibial stress fracture forced me to take it easy. Two trips to the physio (shout out to Kevin at Athletica) over the course of the next three weeks encouragly put the pain down to a stress response rather than a fracture – and as such I was given the okay to run – but not necessarily to race – at Boston.
As an aside, with close to no running for 44 days leading in, I thought it would be an interesting experiment to see if I could hold running fitness via cross training on the bike. Spoiler alert: whilst I’m sure it’s better than nothing, cross training is a bit like bringing a knife to a gun fight…
Race morning in Boston starts early; the aim is to get onto the American school buses bound for the start in Hopkington at 7am. After milling around the start area for an hour or two, the gun goes at 10am sharp.
The veterans warn Boston first timers to not get carried away in the first 5k. It’s significantly downhill, and temps foolish runners to roll down the hills and to push the pace on the climbs. Of course, being overly optimistic about my cross training and fitness on the day, I get carried away and go through the first 5k at faster than PB pace. Looking back, this may have been the biggest mistake of my race, but hey, I had faith that my cross training kept me fit.
The second 5k quickly gave me pause for thought. My heart rate wouldn’t drop below 172 – essentially my lactate threshold. I also started to realise just why the course has such a tough reputation – it’s constantly rolling. The first 10k is supposed to be a gimmie and a way to ease in, but my experience was the course just never flattens out.
10k through to 16k was all about settling into what felt like a more sustainable pace, and battling mental demons. The heat of the day had me throwing water over my head at every opportunity. My heart rate still wasn’t coming down below 170, and at this point I just started running to feel, hoping that I would come good. It’s a long way to home, so I try not to entertain thoughts that I may blow up or DNF – I’ve been off training for so long, can I still do this?
16k through to half way was when things started to hurt. This section goes past one of the colleges at Boston (Wellesley). The “scream tunnel” is an overwhelming experience that I just about managed to take in (incredibly the crowds were constant and loud for the whole race). I managed to pick up my pace and iron out my form for this 400m section, and I actually hit my planned half way split bang on (1:22). I planned this split hoping to run 2:50, knowing that even on a good day, the hilly second half would be worth a minimum 6 minute positive split.
Unfortunately (but predictably) my pace  slowed and slowed after halfway. The section from 25m through the end of the Newton hills (32k) was my first real taste of suffering in the marathon. A lack of specific conditioning from not running in the past six weeks meant that the unrelenting course was chewing me up and spitting me back out. By this point I was running, jogging and death marching – but just about still moving forward. The four Newton hills get a mixed write up – some say they’re over exaggerated, some say they are hell. I’m a firm supporter of the latter.
32k to 37k has you past the worst of the hills, but for me, it was more of the same – run for 500m, circum to quad pain, walk for 50m, get shouted at by hundreds of American spectators, run for 500m.
At 37k I realised that I had approx 30 minutes to run 5k for a sub 3 hour finish. In training or at parkrun I’d think nothing of this, but at this point in the race, this seemed the same as running a 15 minute 5k. I steeled myself and powered on – telling myself that a sub 3 at Boston was an achievement worth the pain.
The first km clicked by in 4:32, then 4:17 then I had to walk again. The thought crossed my mind that I’d been over zealous in trying to run this fast – my calves were cramping, quads ruined. The image of athletes collapsing when they’re in sight of the finish came to the forefront of my mind. 4:45 for the 3rd of my final parkrun kms – almost there!
Anyone who’s run Boston will know the end of the race is ‘right on Hereford, left onto Boyleston’. What they don’t tell you is the cruel cruel underpass climb just before you reach the right turn onto Hereford St. Some more forced walking gave me a 4:45km, and then I gave it everything (including walking right before the finish) for a final 4:50km).
A 2:57 finish and two very tired legs.
Despite the pain, the Boston Marathon was an amazing experience that – it you get the chance – you should do what you can to take!
Now, get me back to the lovely flat Knavesmire.
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