A DOZEN PB’S AT DEWSBURY 10K FOR HALIFAX HARRIERS
Yet again at the Dewsbury 10k, Halifax Harriers runners set numerous PB’s on this fast course. The race starts and finishes on Dewsbury ring road close to the market. The route is along Bradford Road out towards Birstall and returns the same way. There is only a slight incline going out of 40m or so, but the return leg seems so much easier and runners are able to pick up the pace on the way back. This year the runners were greeted with temperatures hovering around zero, but, with no wind, some good times were achieved.
Halifax Harriers had 30 runners at the race out of a field of 1,700, an increase of 500 on last year. Possibly the most outstanding run by a club member was by Johanna Sutcliffe with a PB of 37:42 (2nd F40). Three other ladies set PB’s – Rachael Beaumont 41:53, Helen Ward 42:24 and Deborah Kirkbride 54:09.
The Halifax Harriers men were led home by Niall Smith in a PB of 35:22, with Michael Gaughan running 36:01 and Andrew Wiggins setting a PB of 37:00. PB’s were also set by the following men – James O’Rourke 38:44, Tom Paget 38:57, Will Carver 39:15, Tim Baxter 41:56, Nigel Taylor 43:07, Paul Bunker 47:54.
Geoff Cumber won the M70 age group in 44:36 with Raymond Hall second M70 in 47:35.
Other runners for the club were David Ingle 39:02, Robert Hick 43:15, Keith Lemon 45:08, Nigel Rigg 45:44, Wayne Stevens 47:34, Mark Gaughan 47:55, Sophie Baxter 49:15, Margaret Deacon 49:40, John Moore 52:53, Kirsty Carver 56:53, Monica Gallagher 57:44, Susan Hall 59:44, Audra Naylor 62:48, Dene Townend 67:58.
At the Inskip Half Marathon, April Caulfield was the ladies winner in a very respectable time of 1:27:53. She led the ladies team to victory in the race with Rachael Beaumont 1:33:08 (PB) and Angela Clarke 1:40:29 making up the team.
Halifax Harriers had 22 runners at the race which started and finished at Blackpool Dog Showground, which is basically a field stuck out in the countryside. The race itself was run on pleasant country lanes in excellent conditions for the time of year. With the route being almost flat, good times were recorded with a number of PB’s.
First to finish for the club was Niall Smith in a PB of 1:22:33, followed by Andrew Wiggins 1:24:09 and Will Stewart 1:24:59 (PB).
PB’s were also set by Will Carver 1:29:32, Wayne Stevens 1:42:56, Erika Nightingale 1:45:41 (2nd F40), Deborah Kirkbride 1:58:24 and Kirsty Carver 2:15:29.
Other runners were – James O’Rourke 1:27:53, David Ingle 1:31:06 (2nd M55), Marc Rocheteau 1:39:52, Robert Hick 1:40:28, Hanni Maeer 1:49:33, Daniel Ryan 1:51:25, Sophie Baxter 1:52:11 (3rd F40), Martin Ellis 1:55:35, John Moore 1:57:06, David Parrington 2:04:11, Susan Hall 2:12:36 (1st F65).
On 31st December, some people go to bed early because it’s just another day. Some people sit in to watch the countdown on tv with family or go out and party with friends. April and Will wanted to do something completely different, so they welcomed the New Year on a start line.
The Neujahrsmarathon in Zurich starts at 00:00:01 in the Schlieren sports hall, where runners must pass through after each lap. The route consists of a 6.55 mile trail loop along the river and back. The beauty of this is that runners can decide during the race if they want to drop down to a shorter distance.
After being closer to zero all week, the temperature increased to 5 on the night to make it the perfect weather conditions for running. The first lap was full of excitement as the sky was lit up for an hour with fireworks. However, due to the time of the race, there were no spectators and the course got very lonely in the later stages - it became mind over matter.
Will ran the Half marathon in 1:31:59 then provided the best support for April as she decided to run the full. She finished in 3:19:21, 4th lady and 1st in her age category.