Caroline Mcintosh and Joanne Bouttell enjoy Stowmarket Scenic 7 on Remembrance Day

November 14, 2023

STOWMARKET SCENIC 7, Stowmarket, Sunday Nov 12th: Two Joggers chanced their luck in the popular Stowmarket Scenic 7, held annually on Remembrance Sunday, with start/finish at the Mid Suffolk Leisure Centre in Stowmarket. The 7-mile race started at 9:30am and there was 2 minutes silence in the main hall at 11:00am, before the awards were presented. Caroline Mcintosh (1:16:40, 395th of 428 overall, 174th F of 203, 2nd in F70+) was first Jogger home, over 2 minutes quicker than she clocked in 2021 and only 1m:21s outside her PB for this race, set in 2019. Joanne Bouttell (1:20:54, 187th F, 20th in F55-59) was not far behind, in her first ever attempt at this race. Both Joggers are having a very good year of running.

 

 

Caroline has defied age and improved her Run Britain Rankings Handicap from 45 in 2013 to a current 28.6 in 2023. Note that there is no allowance for age or gender in the Handicap rating; it’s just down to how fast you can run. Most of her improvement in actual times came from 2013 to 2019, after which she has solidly maintained running speed, despite entering the 70-74 age group last year. This is the exact opposite of what you might expect from an age group of 60-64 (2013) to 70-74 (2023).

 

Above, the graph financial investors dream of: Caroline Mcintosh’s steady progress on runbritainrankings.com since 2013. Thanks to Run Britain for this graph.

From concentrating mainly on cycling in previous years, Joanne has done a lot more training runs this year, and has competed in a much higher than usual number of road races. Her form has been improving steadily as a result, with her Run Britain Handicap going from 31 at the beginning of 2023, down to a current 28.8.

 

Above: Jo Bouttell’s solid progress on runbritainrankings.com since 2022. The slight dip at the end is down to a niggling injury problem. Thanks to Run Britain for the graph.

 

ATW ESSEX REMEMBRANCE RUNS, Carver Barracks, Saffron Walden, Saturday Nov 11th: Andrew Taylor (20:26, 15th of 98 overall, 1st of 10 in M50-59) opted for the 5K race and did well to finish 1st in his age group.

 

REMEMBRANCE photos from Joggers:

 

Above: Sarah Last and Gillie Green stop to remember in Newmarket; above right: Bridget Wallwin’s medal for her virtual Lest We Forget Remembrance Run; her first ever run of 10 miles (although she has done half marathons), in a time of 1:44:07 (according to Strava), with very even splits. She was running together with Joggers Lucy Hartley and Lynda McCormack. Thanks very much for the photos.