There was an huge turnout of 57,430 participants for the Schneider Electric Paris Marathon on Sunday, April 12th, where the weather was bright and sunny, though starting off nice and cool at about 10°C. Two Newmarket Joggers (NJs) were involved: Dan Bainbridge (4:08:31, 22,797th M of 39,213, 3,011 of 4,922 in M18-39) judged his pace very well in his first marathon for the club. He was generously supporting Red Hen and Brainstrust charities and seemed to enjoy every part of his race. Caroline Mcintosh (6:25:37, 17,973rd F of 18,217, 26th of 31 in F70), a veteran of many marathons, had discomfort in her back from halfway but stuck it out determinedly to the finish, using her effective run/walk method.
Above from left: Start of Paris Marathon, looking down the Champs-Élysées; Dan Bainbridge nearest camera, with Eiffel Tower behind the trees.
Above: Dan Bainbridge with medal, Arc de Triomphe behind; Caroline Mcintosh with medal.
Meanwhile, nearer home on the Sussex coast, four NJs were among 14,028 participants in the Brighton Marathon, where the weather was also sunny and reasonably cool, but with a strong southwesterly wind. First to finish was Jack Imrie (3:09:16, 406th M of 9,237, 300th of 6,155 in M18-39), who was running in support of Alzheimer’s Society. He maintained a clockwork pace of a little under 7 min/mi for 18 miles and then his pace slowed noticeably, but not too seriously; he did well to hold out and achieve a PB of just over 2 minutes. Second NJ home was Charles Rolfe (3:30:18, 1,431st M, 1,108th in 18-39), who did very well in his first known marathon. However, he was disappointed to ‘hit the wall’ seriously at 22 miles, likening it to a “death march” to the finish. He will no doubt have learned from his experience. Then came Helena Salo (4:13:45, 1,036th F of 4,753, 748th of 3,250 in F 18-39), who put in a brave effort, considering that she fell off a horse and broke her wrist only a few days before and was running with a plaster cast and her left arm in a sling. It was also the fastest marathon time achieved by a female NJ this year; that took some determination and courage. She will surely be back, when her wrist has healed, to gain a well-deserved PB. The fourth NJ Jason Beeton (representing 1st claim Thetford AC) unfortunately had to call it a day at 18 miles. He was struggling with a dragging back leg and sensibly reasoned he would do more damage to carry on.
Above from left: Helina Salo at Brighton, with left arm sling evident; view of the race by Helina; Charles Rolfe (centre) with medal after the race.
Up in Lincolnshire, it was the Boston (UK) Marathon, with the more famous US equivalent still to take place on Patriot’s Day, Monday 20th April. Three NJs took part in Boston (UK), where the strong wind made conditions very difficult on the exposed, more-or-less flat, terrain. First to finish was Jimmy Smith (3:06:44, 145th of 1,020 overall, 15th in M45), who put in a big effort and achieved the fastest marathon time of any NJ this year. However, he was suffering badly from an upset stomach and did not exactly enjoy the experience. Then came Richard Defries (3:38:53, 432nd, 30th in M50), with another sound effort; he has a marathon PB of 3:32, dating back to 2010. Third home was Andy Fryatt (4:02:05, 649th, 34th in M55) in his first marathon since 2023. He was disappointed to have an upset stomach and sickness later in the race, possibly caused by experimenting with new gels. His PB stands at 3:45 in 2022.
Above from left: Andy Fryatt, Jimmy Smith & Richard Defries after Boston (UK) Marathon; Richard, with his dog.
Also on Sunday, three NJs took part in the London Landmarks Half Marathon, which attracted a huge field of 19,870 overall. First NJ to finish was Jason Singh (2:27:15, 12,785th overall, 399th of 521 in M50), from Sarah Last (2:30:33 PB, 7,274th F of 12,227, 400th of 763 in F50) and Gillian Green (3:01:46, 10,681st F, 210 of 253 in F60). It is believed to be a well-deserved half marathon PB for Sarah, by about 1 min, though this race will not appear on Power of 10.
Above from left: Gillian Green & Sarah Last at Trafalgar Square; Sarah’s bib & medal; Gillian’s bib and Young Lives vs Cancer vest.
Up in Rutland, Angela Drury (2:04:49, 362nd of 695 overall, 85th F of 269, 12th of 33 in F45) enjoyed taking part in the Rutland Spring Half Marathon, with all the beautiful scenery around Rutland Water. She has a PB of under 2 hours.
Above: Angela Drury during Rutland Spring Half Marathon; her medal close up.
Eight NJs had an enjoyable run in the High Lodge Wild Trail 10km in Thetford Forest, organised by Wild Deer Events on Sunday. First to finish was Bridget Wallwin (1:00:03, 54th of 184 overall, 7th in F50) who ran with Martin Smith (1:00:04,12th in M40). Then came Jason Clarke (1:00:32, 7th in M50) and Sarah Clarke (1:01:49, 8th in F40). Joanne Bouttell (1:14:14 5th in F60) and Sarah Kinston (1:14:14, 21st in F50) both kindly stayed back to support Suzanne Bailey (1:14:17, 6th in F60), who had tripped over late in the race. Then came Pearl Fay (1:20:51, 8th in F60).
Above from left: Sarah & Jason Clarke with medals; Suzanne Bailey, Bridget Wallwin, Martin Smith, Joanne Bouttell, Pearl Fay and Sarah Kinston after the race.
Ian McClements (1:39:20), still tapering for a possible marathon or ultramarathon target, took part in the Feisty Phoenix multi-lap challenge in Bedford on Saturday. He did 3 laps for a total distance of 9.8 miles.
Also on Saturday, Wendy Ancill & her husband Mark Geddie, competed in the Endurance Life Giant’s Causeway Trail Run along the Northern Ireland coast, over an official distance of 20.4 miles. The scenery was beautiful but the weather was very windy and the course technically difficult, over rugged cliffs and along rocky pathways, including clambering over slippery boulders along the shoreline and some wading through sea water. Wendy unfortunately slipped over a boulder and sustained an injury about halfway through the challenge and decided to withdraw at the next checkpoint. Mark was able to carry on and finished 293rd of 330 finishers, in a time of 5:11:18. They both enjoyed the challenge.
Above from left: Mark Geddie etched against the rugged scenery; Wendy Ancill at the race start; Mark completing his race.
Above: Scenery along Giant’s Causeway and coastline trail
Little Bromley 10K, Essex, Sunday April 12th: Apologies for missing this race, which included three Newmarket Joggers. Hoping it’s OK to squeeze the results in before the coming weekend. This is a favourite event of Brian Munns and Jim Withers, who like the course and do it almost every year. First NJ to finish was ace veteran Neville Clarke (46:26, 157th of 481 overall, 1st of 5 in M70-74), who was in his usual, brilliant form, earning 79.79% age grade. Then came Brian Munns (57:15, 347th, 18th of 25 in M60-64) and Jim Withers (1:07:35, 427th, 4th in M70-74), who both enjoyed the race but got slightly faster times in the Wymondham 10K on New Year’s Day.
Many thanks for all the photos, which are much appreciated.