In the Essar Chester Half Marathon on Sunday May 17th, Carol Cienna Carter knew she had to finish in the top two in her F55-59 age group to earn a coveted GB vest. She did it in style by coming home 1st of 121 in F55, in a gun time of 1:27:34 (1:27:23 chip), almost 12 minutes ahead of her nearest rival Fleur Culshaw. She was 238th of 7,077 overall and 15th of 2,690 female runners, showing what a huge effort she put in over this tough, undulating course, with a long, gradual incline to the finish. This Chester race earned Carol Cienna 90.23% age grade, though she did record a faster time (1:23:58) in the Cambridge Half earlier this year, which was a much flatter course.
Above from left: Carol Cienna Carter with medal; in action in the Chester Half Marathon
Nice to see that Keith Williams (2:20:02, 5,593rd overall, 64th of 79 in M65) also ran in the Chester Half. He has been a long standing member of Newmarket Joggers but has raced infrequently in recent years.
While on half marathons, Ian McClements (2:36:49, 12th of 19) ran in the Phoenix Action Hero Run HM in St Neots on Sunday, keeping his mileage ticking over nicely.
Above: Ian McClements in Phoenix Action Hero Run, with friend.
Looking at 10K races, Oliver Daykin (35:34 PB, 8th of 807 overall, 3rd of 21 in M20-39) put in a great PB effort in the Woodbridge 10K in East Suffolk on Sunday, finishing high up the order.
Meanwhile, four Joggers took part in the Colchester Zoo Stampede 10K in Essex. First home was Sarah Clarke (58:19 SB, 273rd F of 1,231, 20th of 94 in F45), from Jason Clarke (58:20 SB, 601st M of 1,008, 20th of 55 in M50), Sarah Last (1:03:56 PB, 545th F, 23rd of 61 in F50) and Gillian Green (1:21:58 SB, 1,119th F, 7th of 9 in F65). Some excellent season’s best (SB) times recorded there, and a well-deserved PB for Sarah Last, at last.
Above from left: Sarah Last rings the PB bell; giraffes, not overly concerned; Gillie Green & Sarah Last with medals.
Above from left: elephant and rhinoceros have their own agenda.
BURY TO CLARE
Joggers at Bury to Clare Challenge, from left: Chris Aylmer, Malcolm Osbourn, Caroline Mcintosh, Pearl Fay, Jonathan Ollington, Stuart Janes, Marc Drury, Richard Gash, Ellie Bithell, Helen Hilario and Sianie Painter.
The popular, annual, Bury to Clare Challenge, a trail run or walk of about 18 miles (18.4 on GPS), which helps to support St Nicholas Hospice in Bury St Edmunds, attracted 313 participants this year, including 12 Joggers. The conditions were perfect for the event, being cool with sunny intervals and a refreshing breeze. Any mud on show was fully hardened by the dry weather.
First Jogger home was Helen Hilario (2:46:01, 7th F of 159, 2nd of 28 in F50) who enjoyed every part of her run and has been in great form all season. Not far behind was Ellie Bithell (2:48:01, 8th F, 2nd of 30 in F45), beating her previous best time by a good margin.
Above from left: Helen Hilario and Ellie Bithell finishing Bury to Clare.
Above from left: close-up of medal; the way to relax after the race, by Helen Hilario.
Then came Jason Beeton (2:48:45, 46th M of 154, 8th of 19 in M40) representing 1st claim Thetford AC, Marc Drury (2:52:32, 55th M, 10th of 27 in M50) and Jonathan Ollington (2:53:35, 58th M, 9th of 26 in M55), all doing very well.
Above: Marc Drury & Jonathan Ollington finishing.
Enjoying the run, somewhat further behind, were Sianie Painter (4:10:15, 4th of 9 in F60), Pearl Fay (4:11:30, 4th of 9 in F65) and Richard Gash (4:15:00, 20th of 26 in M55), who all kept a very even pace throughout the run and seemed very relaxed.
Above from left: Sianie Painter, Pearl Fay & Richard Gash finishing.
The final four Joggers included Chris Aylmer (4:29:35, 2nd of 6 in M70+), Stuart Janes (4:49:54, 22nd in M55), Malcolm Osbourn (4:49:54, 3rd in M70+) and Caroline Mcintosh (4:49:54, 1st of 3 in F70+), with the last three sticking close together for mutual support.
Above: Chris Aylmer, Malcolm Osbourn, Caroline Mcintosh & Stuart Janes finishing.
TWO ULTRA RACES
From Friday evening and all through the night to Saturday, Barley Woodcock took part in the UTMB Snowdonia Ultra event in Wales, which included options for 25K, 50K, 80K, 100K and 100M. Barley (M45) went for the 80K, which he completed in 12:59:58, finishing 181st of 393 overall. It was a huge challenge, and one that he embraced with his usual enthusiasm, including a massive 8,704 ft of climb.
Above: Barley Woodcock at start of the Snowdonia 80K Ultra, fully kitted out for night running; with medal at the finish, exposing NJ vest
Over in East Suffolk, John Beardsworth took on an even greater challenge in distance, if not in height, taking on the Five Rivers 100M Ultra, which started in Blaxhall in Suffolk and snaked its way up and down the various riverside routes, from upstream to estuary, passing through Aldeburgh, Woodbridge, Ipswich, Shotley and Manningtree and eventually arriving at the finish in Harwich. The total distance worked out at 107 miles on John’s watch. The event started on Saturday morning and went on all through the night until Sunday. He did exceptionally well to finish 2nd overall in a time of 21:29:05. Only 25 participants managed to complete the course, four of them women. The winner clocked 17:13:49.
Above: John Beardsworth at start of 100M ultra at Blaxhall; at finish in Harwich next day; runner-up trophy.
Above: Scenes from the Five Rivers 100M Ultra, by John Beardsworth
Many thanks for all the great photos.