Six Newmarket Joggers (NJ) competed in the Ipswich Twilight 10K on Friday July 17th, which started and finished at the rear of the Ipswich Town FC stadium. It was a record turnout of participants at this popular event on the calendar, held over a hectic 2-lap course, twisting and turning its way along the closed, cobbled streets of the old town centre. The fastest runners, on their second lap, were soon surging past the slower runners, still on their first lap, making for an exciting atmosphere.
First home for the Joggers was Neil Pollard (33:58 SB, 22nd of 1,384 overall, 22nd M of 818, 3rd of 70 in M45, AG 87.00%) in his best 10k time this year and also his highest age grade of 2026. Hugh Tawell is the only Jogger to have recorded a quicker 10k time this year, at 33:54 in the Breckland 10K in May. Not far behind was Oliver Daykin (34:30 PB, 29th M, 14th of 305 in MS, 77.44%), who was in great form and continues to progress steadily. Then came Jonathan Pye (36:52 SB, 66th M, 9th of 103 in M35, 74.19%), with an encouraging performance in his first 10k this year and excellent result in his age group. New member Hicham Bouabe (38:03 SB, 83rd M, 4th of 64 in M55, 83.14%) did very well in his age group, earning a very high age grade. He has no previous form record on Power of 10 and is definitely one to watch. The only female Jogger was Hannah Pollard (41:09 PB, 18th F of 566, 4th of 57 in F45, 78.86%), who was bang in form, achieving a well-deserved PB; she goes from strength to strength. Final Jogger to finish was Chris Aylmer (1:09:40, 790th M, 6th of 6 in M75), who enjoyed the atmosphere and the challenge.
Above: Views of Hannah Pollard in the Ipswich Twilight 10K.
Last Thursday evening was the fourth fixture of the Arkwright & Co/Turners Summer 5K League at Carver Barracks, near Saffron Walden. It should have followed the June fixture at Kedington, near Haverhill, which unfortunately had to be cancelled by Haverhill RC due to the heat. There was a good turnout of Joggers for this well-established event; the weather conditions were ideal and the going was fast and furious, as always. The route was mainly along service roads surrounding the old wartime airfield, with a lap of the marvellous athletics track to finish. Results have not yet been released and will be discussed next week.
Above: Joggers before the Saffron Striders’ Summer 5K League fixture at Carver Barracks
UTMB Eiger 53km Ultra Trail, Grindelwald, Switzerland, Saturday, July 18th: Richard Defries (11:22:21, =733rd of 873 finishers overall, 551st M of 645, 61st of 80 in M50-54) and Carol Cienna Carter (11:22:21, =733rd overall, 183rd F of 228, 9th of 12 in F55-59) thoroughly enjoyed the experience and the scenery of this event. It involved around 10,000 ft of climb and was a severely technical course, with rocks, boulders and steep climbs to negotiate, rather than grassy hillsides. Richard and Cienna were most likely content to take a more relaxed approach and enjoy the fresh air and scenery, rather than race themselves into the ground.
Above: Scenes and photos of Richard & Cienna in the Eiger Ultra Trail race.
How the male and female winners of this event took only 4:45:07 and 5:53:44 to complete the course, at a pace of 5:22/km (8:50/mi) and 6:41/km (10:45/mi) respectively, is hard to conceive, considering the sheer amount of climb and the difficulty of the terrain. They are obviously experts in this type of running, akin to advanced fell running in the UK. Interestingly, the first male finisher was Luke Grenfell-Shaw from the UK, while the first female was from Finland.
Above: Richard Defries’s elevation profile of the Eiger 53km Ultra Trail race in Switzerland; right: the GPS profile on his watch.
Felixstowe Sprint Triathlon, Saturday, July 18th: This event included a swim of 750m in the sea, 20.5km bike ride in the Suffolk countryside and 5km run along the Felixstowe promenade. NJ Reuben Smith managed a total time of 1:30:36, finishing a very respectable 18th of 98 overall and 4th of 13 in M40-49. He excelled in the swim leg (16:45), finishing 10th of 98 overall, came 18th in the bike ride (43:25) and 59th in the run (27:55). Particularly impressive were his transition times, coming 8th of 98 in the first transition and 10th in the second. He was with his daughter Isla, who competed in the Super Sprint Triathlon event. Her best result was also in the swim leg, coming 69th of 91 overall, so swimming ability runs in the family.
Above: Reuben Smith & Isla after the Felixstowe Triathlon.
Many thanks for all the photos.
Good luck in your running,
Chris Aylmer