Ilkley Harriers news archive 2023
We Need to Talk About Chevin Fell Race – Sat 1 Apr
Fri 31 Mar 2023
From Dave Robson…
In my bid to do some different races this year, I decided to give this one a go. Billed as the ‘worst possible scenario when touring the Chevin’, it looked a decent challenge at 650 metres climbing over a 9-mile course. Race HQ was the Black Horse in Otley and the £8 entry fee included a free pint at the end!
Despite this tempting offer I was surprised to see a small field of only around 60 with no fellow Ilkley Harriers.
The course was mostly well marked, with a few opportunities to go slightly wrong, but a map was provided so no real excuses.
Overall, I thought it was an excellent, friendly, local race, with plenty of mud, steep climbs and quick descents. I would definitely recommend it, if that’s your sort of thing.
I managed to finish in 7th place overall and 2nd in age category with my newly acquired V50 status.
Results:
1st Tim Patterson 1:10:02
7th Dave Robson 1:14:02
Blubberhouses Moor 25 – Sun 26 Mar
Sun 26 Mar 2023
From Petra Bijsterveld…
This LDWA event is a hardy perennial amongst Harriers and 2023 was no exception. For only £8 you get a super friendly event (can be run or walked) with regular checkpoints, tea and hot food at the end, and a badge and certificate. This year extra helpings of mud and bog along the course had been added free of charge. The section from Beamsley Beacon to Ellercar Pike was particularly grim. I had taken my poles for that stretch and they served me well, though flippers and a snorkel may have been equally appropriate. On the upside the weather proved much better than forecast, we had no rain and plenty of sunshine today.
Harriers taking part were Jayne Norman, Lynn Donohue, Keith Wood, Mary Fairclough, Dick Waddington, John and Sarah Hayes, Kate Lofthouse, Mark and Rebecca Mon-Williams and myself.
(1 3:24 Alistair Steele)
4 3:47 Mark Mon-Williams
10 3:59 John Hayes
21 4:19 Dick Waddington
46 4:54 Rebecca Mon-Williams
71 5:19 Petra Bijsterveld
84 5:32 Lynn Donohue
85 5:32 Mary Fairclough
86 5:32 Keith Wood
104 5:52 Jayne Norman
195 8:15 Sarah Hayes (walking)
196 8:15 Kate Lofthouse (walking)
211 ran/walked
Heptonstall Fell Race – Sun 26 Mar
Sun 26 Mar 2023
From Forrest Hamilton…
Heptonstall Fell Race, in its 11th edition, is a category BL 15 mile race with 3200ft of climbing up, down and around the Calder Valley. Without the benefit of a recce, the only thing one could be sure of was plenty of bog… at least the sun was shining.
The start on the Heptonstall cobbles (without the untimely appearance of a bus) was a flurry of chaos with barely anyone having had a chance to organise themselves appropriately. Tom Adams nevertheless raced off at the front to defend his 2022 title.
Having prepared myself for the bog, I was pleasantly surprised to find lots of fast, flowing descents to stretch out on, with the bog skipping sections mercifully short, although plenty leg sapping! Although the route is punctuated by steep, sharp climbs out of the valleys, the majority of the race is characterised by rolling hills on which you can settle into a rhythm and admire the views (perhaps I wasn’t racing hard enough).
Aside from the final climb incorporating the dreaded steps (you know a climb is bad when you’re pre warned about them) and the final leg sapping push through the field, it was a really fun day out and a cracking race. Definitely one to try out if you’re looking for an early season rust buster!
Tom did defend his title, at least being made to sweat by Harry Holmes coming home ‘only’ a couple minutes behind. We’ll put his time being a few minutes slower than last year down to extra bogginess rather than his new V40 status.
1 Tom Adams – 1:50:57
23 Forrest Hamilton – 2:18:21
143 Sacha Jones – 3:01:05
164 Robert Hamilton – 3:06:26
244 ran
Cardiff Bay 10k – Sun 26 Mar
Sat 25 Mar 2023
From Lucy Williamson…
A lovely 10K route starting in the centre of Cardiff Bay, heading past the Millennium centre and the Senedd and out and back along the barrage.
1st Omar Ahmed 29.02
143rd Lucy Williamson 37.38 (PB)
Blubberhouses Moor 25 – Sun 26 Mar
Sat 25 Mar 2023
From Petra Bijsterveld…
This LDWA event is a hardy perennial amongst Harriers and 2023 was no exception. For only £8 you get a super friendly event (can be run or walked) with regular checkpoints, tea and hot food at the end, and a badge and certificate. This year extra helpings of mud and bog along the course had been added free of charge. The section from Beamsley Beacon to Ellercar Pike was particularly grim. I had taken my poles for that stretch and they served me well, though flippers and a snorkel may have been equally appropriate. On the upside the weather proved much better than forecast, we had no rain and plenty of sunshine today.
Harriers taking part were Jayne Norman, Lynn Donohue, Keith Wood, Mary Fairclough, Dick Waddington, John and Sarah Hayes, Kate Lofthouse, Mark and Rebecca Mon-Williams and myself.
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(1 3:24 Alistair Steele)
4 3:47 Mark Mon-Williams
10 3:59 John Hayes
21 4:19 Dick Waddington
46 4:54 Rebecca Mon-Williams
71 5:19 Petra Bijsterveld
84 5:32 Lynn Donohue
85 5:32 Mary Fairclough
86 5:32 Keith Wood
104 5:52 Jayne Norman
195 8:15 Sarah Hayes (walking)
196 8:15 Kate Lofthouse (walking)
211 ran/walked
Wilmslow Half Marathon – Sun 26 Mar
Sat 25 Mar 2023
From Sally Armitage…
This race challenged me to my core. The first half was a delight, slightly downhill, pushed along by a gentle tail wind. Then…. it changed. I’d seen the elevation profile and knew the second half was going to be tough, but it felt more brutal than I’d anticipated. The headwind depleted me of all my kapow. My slowing pace meant people were passing me which is always a kick in the guts. I’m not sure how but I managed a 3 second half marathon PB, but the sheer pain of the second half has zapped my PB joy. Maybe I’ll celebrate a little tomorrow, when my tummy’s stopped cramping, the headache has gone and the post-race fatigue has lifted.
1st Male Jonny Mellor (unattached) 1:02:06
1st Female Lauren McNeil (Hallamshire Harriers Sheffield) 1:11:59
235 Sally Armitage 1:22:56
812 Emma Sheppard 1:40:14
907 Helen Waddington 1:42:55
PECO XC Relays – Sun 26 Mar
Sat 25 Mar 2023
From Adam Gerrish…
The clocks going forward signals the beginning of spring, with light evenings for running on the moor ahead, a welcome change for fair weather runners like myself. However for PECO the end of March is still considered firmly in cross country season.
Entering any of the previous 5 PECO races qualifies runners to enter a team of three for the season grand finale, the PECO relays. After an excellent XC season for Ilkley we put together 3 teams for the Bramley Fall Park event.
I had heard that Dan McKeown was assembling an avengers style elite vets team of Steve Gott and Danny Thompson. So it was down to me to organise a “youth” team of Mike AC and Ed Hobbs to rival them. (Spoiler alert – Ed Hobbs did a lot of heavy lifting in both carrying our team, and representing the youth element).
The third Ilkley contingent ‘The Old Menstonians’ was made up of Roar, David S and Matthew S.
Pre-race Ed had been briefed to remember his race bib and overtake as many people as possible. He managed one out of two – as he still forgot his race number! However once we saw Steve and Danny practising their baton change overs we knew that they meant business, and that despite our star runner it wouldn’t be easy.
The course consisted of 2.3 miles of a fair undulating 1.5 lap course in boggy conditions. Which actually felt like real XC for once after an unusually dry season.
The first leg runners set out with Steve Gott representing ‘No (Cross) Country for Old Men’ vs myself for ‘Ilkley Youth’. Steve finished leg 1 in third place, handing over to Danny in an excellent position (with a seamless well practised baton changeover). I trailed in 68 seconds behind Steve, giving Mike AC a bit of work to do to try and catch Danny T.
An excellent leg by Danny T left the Ilkley Vets in 2nd place at the change over point, and Mike AC closed the deficit by 9 seconds and pulled Ilkley Youth up to 5th place (despite running in his famed Alphaflys on a boggy slippery course).
The final show down was left to Dan Mckeown to try and bring home the glory for Ilkley, and narrowly missed out at the end by 4 seconds to bring home second place. Ed Hobbs was the final anchor for the Youth team and a valiant effort and the fastest leg of the day overall meant that despite a leisurely start we ended up finishing in 3rd place.
This meant that two of the podium spots ended up going to Ilkley teams, and our third team finished 15th overall (3rd Vets team) cementing our position as one of the top clubs around. A good day out all round.
Coledale Horseshoe Fell Race – Sat 25 Mar
Fri 24 Mar 2023
From Jann Smith…
8.5miles / 3500ft
A big turnout of quality runners took on this classic fell race . Cold rain, sleet, hail, clag and mud made the rough terrain quite challenging .
116. Paul Carman 1:46
171. Jenny Roberts 1:56
205. Jann Smith 2:03
232. Harry Brook Dobson 2:11
Leeds Evensplits 5k – Wed 22 Mar
Tue 21 Mar 2023
From Petra Bijsterveld…
Six Ilkley Harriers made the short journey to the Brownlee circuit at Bodington Fields tonight for the second race in the 2023 Leeds Evensplits 5k series. Looking at the results the series is gaining wider traction on the Northern running scene as there were quite a few runners from beyond the immediate area, especially at the pointy end of the race. Not surprising as despite not being flat it is a very good course to run fast on, and the no-frills approach works very well. I really just go for the Snickers bar (other brands are on offer) at the end :)!
It was windy tonight, we had the wind against us on the downhill for a change, but the threatened rain held off. Star of the show was Rachel Barnicoat who ran a one minute and 20 seconds 5k PB on her first ever appearance at Evensplits, truly going from strength to strength. Matt Cox and Dave Foyston were 1st and 2nd in their category. I had only entered yesterday and was still not sure what my legs could do just 10 days after a 50 miler, but they stepped up to the task and I managed to shave another 7 seconds off my previous 5k PB from last month, which I was delighted with.
(1 15:24 Alex Birkett, Salford Harriers)
8 16:48 Matt Cox 1st MV45
12 17:14 Dave Foyston 2nd MV45
22 18:07 Mike Abrams-Cohen
42 19:26 Ruth Kitchen
81 23:52 Petra Bijsterveld 1st FV60
96 26:39 Rachel Barnicoat
107 ran
Spring Canal Canter – Marathon day 2 – Sun 19 Mar
Sun 19 Mar 2023
From Colin Williams…
On Sunday I took part in the Grim up North, Spring Canal Canter – Marathon. When I arrived there were lots of runners and I was expecting a large turnout, it became apparent that most runners had entered the half marathon or the 20 mile races and only a small group or were running the marathon with me.
The race was up and down the Leeds Liverpool canal, with support and water stops every 3 to 4 miles, with the normal great support and treats at the finish.
I was going ok for the first 20 miles then struggled a bit till for 3 to 4 miles, but got back into my rhythm for the finish. I clocked a time of 3hrs 36min and 50 seconds and came in 3rd the winner was Colin Johnstone in a time of 3hrs 13mins.
Edit: Tom Worboys also took part and came 4th in 3:47:13.
Keighley 10k – Sun 19 Mar
Sun 19 Mar 2023
Photo credit Woodentops.
Jack Cummings won the Keighley 10k in 31:58. Danny Thompson was 3rd M40, Tracey Watson 3rd F50 and Keith Wood 3rd M60.
Wakefield Hospice 10k – Sun 19 Mar
Sun 19 Mar 2023
From Beth Massey…
Not being a fan of hills and wanting to do a 10k race, I decided to travel to Wakefield instead of Keighley to avoid the hills! However, despite being billed as a flat 10k, the route is out and back towards Horbury on what can only be described as a tough, undulating course! The race was well supported with over 1300 runners taking part. I was pleased to finish in a time of 41.25 and 1st FV50. The only other Harrier I could find in the results was Mike Williams who finished in a time of 44.22.
The race was won by Mark Bostock (Wakefield & District AC) in 31.32 and the first female was Lucy Robinson (unattached) in 34.51.
YVAA XC Championships Beverley – Sun 12 Mar
Sun 12 Mar 2023
From Dan McKeown
Photo credit David Gowans
This year’s Yorkshire Veterans Athletics Association cross country championship race, saw a bare minimum three Harriers – Steve Gott, Matt Cox and I – make the trip out to Beverley Westwood to contest the M40-49 team competition. After getting boat raced (technical term) by Rotherham at last year’s event, we were eager for revenge or – more realistically – rather hoping that they wouldn’t be sending a team.
The course didn’t have the eye-watering uphills of last year’s race (which would have comfortably qualified as a cat B fell race) but it had a bit of elevation and, if the presence of a windmill at the top corner of the course wasn’t enough warning that it might be breezy, the fact the sails appeared to have blown off at some point was a definite danger sign.
The course for our race was four 1.5-mile laps, with a rolling start which then pitched downhill into a slippery hairpin, which got even more entertaining (read: hazardous) later in the race when we were lapping runners from older age categories. There was a sharp mucky climb through some woods, which then opened up into a long incline with the Humberside wind full in our faces. (Except not mine, because I spent most of the race hiding behind Foxy Coxy.) After rounding the windmill, there was an ambling descent back to the start of the lap with the breeze at our backs.
Like last year, the race was led from gun to tape by Scott Hinchcliffe, a super-quick whippersnapper of a V35 from Barnsley. It quickly became apparent that our local rivals Wharfedale would be the team to beat as two of theirs hared off into the distance and their third counter was in a chase pack which contained our entire team. Rotherham had a couple of gents in the mix, but only one in our team’s age group.
After the customary hectic start, the first trip up to the windmill stretched the field out and, by the end of lap two, Wharfedale were clearly taking home the team prize, bar some spectacular mishap. I was locked in a race for the third M40 spot; Messrs Cox and Gott were contesting the third V45 slot. (Herein lies the basic dichotomy of ‘team’ cross country running. Broadly speaking, you’re all in the same boat. But cannibalism is definitely going to be on the menu at some point.)
I went round the windmill for the last time on the heels of a V40 from Rotherham. About halfway down the slope, he suddenly let out an anguished squawk, which I took as my cue to nip in front and grab category bronze, finishing sixth overall. Matt (10th) claimed the V45 bronze ahead of Steve (12th) and our team took a creditable V40-49 silver behind the very strong Wharfedale team.
In other good news for clubs from our neighbourhood, Bingley Harriers topped the individual medals table with six golds across the various male and female age groups. We still probably brought home the greatest amount of hardware, as the YVAA supremo rather pointedly deposited a huge bag of Harriers’ unclaimed trophies from past events with me.
To be fair, he probably wanted his guest bedroom back, *as do I*. I’ve put out the call on social media to reunite you swift oldies with your hard earned gongs.
Do not delay – my cover story that they’re family heirlooms isn’t going to wash if Sarah checks the label on any of them.
race 2 (6 miles, M35-69, F35-44)
6 Dan McKeown 36:17 (3rd V40)
10 Matt Cox 36:45 (3rd V45)
12 Steve Gott 37:01
(Ilkley Harriers 2nd team, V40-49)
Inverness Half Marathon – Sun 12 Mar
Sun 12 Mar 2023
From Alison Bennett…
I was tempted into trying this half marathon after booking a holiday in the area. The race was subsequently selected to be a Scottish Championship event attracting a field of around 3000 runners.
It’s many years since I have taken part in a half marathon, and haven’t much experience at this distance so I just ran and felt relieved every time I saw another mile post to tick off. The slightly undulating course was well marshalled and it was fun to finish on an athletics track, just before the forecasted heavy rain started.
Edit: This is a new FV60 club record for the HM distance, which had stood at 01:48:07 since 2014 (set by Hilda Coulsey)
(1 01:05:24 Fraser Stewart, Cambuslang Harriers)
19 01:11:52 Ruaridh Mon-Williams
413 01:38:32 Alison Bennett 2nd FV60
1968 ran
Dentdale 14 – Sat 11 Mar
Sat 11 Mar 2023
From Colin Williams…
I have to thank Dan for putting the Dentdale 14 in this years Harriers League, it was a really enjoyable road race, if you haven’t entered before, I recommend you give it a go next year.
I was a little concerned that getting to Dent would be a problem with all the snow, I need not have worried, there was far less snow there than here in Ilkley.
When I arrived the friendly marshals directed me to one of the parking areas. The race started in the middle of Dent with both the 7.9 and 14. 2 mile races starting together, while it is a road race it is mostly run on very quiet small roads if some what hilly, there are plenty of marshals keeping you on route and providing regular water stops. The race starts with a 7 mile loop towards Sedbergh and back to Dent, at the end of which the 7.9 miles turn off to the finish, while the rest of us set off on a loop via Cowgill to the finish line. After the race, tea, sandwiches and cake was served in the school hall. I came 17th in a time of 1hr 42mins and 13 seconds.
(1 1:23:33 Matt Sims, Black Combe Running Club)
17 1:42:13 Colin Williams
112 ran
Welcome Way – Sat 11 Mar
Sat 11 Mar 2023
From Petra Bijsterveld…
Photo credit Kim Roden
The Welcome Way is an existing waymarked circular long distance walking route connecting Otley, Burley and Baildon, with an optional loop around Shipley Glen and Bingley. Local ultra-race organiser Punk Panther stages a running event which largely follows this route. Last year I completed a 42 mile version of the course. This year there were options to do 50 miles (6000 ft), 34 miles (4300 ft), 20 miles (2200 ft) or a half marathon. Eventually four Harriers made the start line: Gavin Lamb for the 20 miles, James Batterley and Matthew Kennedy to take on the 34 miles, and myself for the 50 miles. Sadly Jeff Green, who had been very much looking forward to venturing into the ultra world by doing the 34, had to withdraw just a few days before the race due to injury.
After flagging part of the course on Burley Moor on Friday and falling into some dangerously deep bogs and holes that were very difficult to extract yourself from the race directors made the decision to divert the course along the road and avoid that moor section for safety reasons. This meant after the climb out of Hag Farm we had to run along Moor Road and Bingley Road until we rejoined the Welcome Way just before the Weecher Reservoir. An unpleasant section but thankfully not as busy with traffic as it would have been on a weekday. And slightly shorter (my 50 mile course was 49.75 in the end; we were offered the chance to run laps on the finish field to make it up to 50 but funnily enough I didn’t feel the urge:))
After the 07:30 start we tackled the first section which goes north from Otley mainly through fields via Clifton and Askwith to arrive after a nice little downhill stretch on the road at CP1 (9 miles) at Denton. The snow was knee-deep on the fields, but at least for me, not being anywhere near the front, a good path had been trodden ahead of me. Still, it was tiring stuff and gave us all a clear sign that the legs would have to work extra hard today. But we were rewarded for our efforts with beautiful views, sunshine aplenty and blue skies. I was very much at the back of the field, but was not unduly worried about the lack of runners behind me as I know from experience that my time will generally come in the second half! I had some brief chats with a few runners I had met on earlier events and ran for quite a long way with Sarah, a runner I had spent half the Dalesway with in August, and who was doing the 34 mile version this time.
After Denton we ran to Carters Lane, crossed over the Iron Bridge and headed up Ben Rhydding Drive to descend into Burley and CP2 (14 miles). It was pleasantly warm by now, hat and gloves could even be removed and stowed away! We made our way to Hag Farm, then along the road diversion, which was tedious to say the least, but better than having a nasty experience in a bog. From Bingley Road the Welcome Way goes through a couple of fields with the very worst mud imaginable, I knew this from last year but it was still no fun, though at least it was now snowy mud rather than foul-smelling, but still knee deep, downhill, and with rocks to add to the difficulty. One of my fellow runners lost a shoe in the quagmire, she was helped to retrieve it by others. Obviously if we had been on our own I would have helped but as it was I pressed on, I was definitely in competing mode during the entire event. Minimal checkpoint stops, just a quick cup of coke, grab a snack and onwards, no faffing, no photos. That’s not to say I ran that fast! My speed is limited at the best of times and terrains, and the underfoot conditions certainly slowed all of us down. Now that the sun had warmed the ground we were no longer striding through nice crips and powdery snow, but slushy mud became the theme for the rest of the day.
We reached Shipley Glen and CP3 (mile 21). The 34 mile runners were turning for Baildon Moor here whilst the 50 mile runners headed out on the 8 mile loop. This takes you to Eldwick and Micklethwaite, crossing the canal via the Morton Swing Bridge. Back along the canal via Five Rise Locks to Bingley where you cross the main road and pick up the riverbank to Saltaire and Roberts Park, then climbing steeply back up to Shipley Glen. There was some confusion as the checkpoint marshal had sent some runners clockwise around the loop. It is of little consequence as obviously distance and elevation are the same, but the gpx goes anti-clockwise so it may have made things more complex for them, I am not sure. Anyway, I said I would rather go the way I know which is anti-clockwise and that was fine, two runners followed me (I seem to exude that air that I know what I am doing LOL). Unbeknownst to me, the strange clockwise v. anti-clockwise situation made life difficult for the Turners, who had driven out to Roberts Park trying to catch up with me! Due to tracker foibles they had missed me at the railway crossing in Burley in the morning and were now determined to find me, but couldn’t work out why there were runners going in the ‘wrong direction’. In the meantime I was running for a bit with a runner called Chris from York, he was wearing last month’s Harrogate Hustle t-shirt so that provided a nice conversation starter as I ran it as well. Just as Chris started to flag at Bingley Five Rise Locks (or maybe he was bored of my conversational abilities by then and was slowing down to lose me!) the Turners came towards me which was absolutely delightful and a total surprise to me. The three of us ran together to Roberts Park where they returned to the car and I climbed back up to Shipley Glen to return to the checkpoint.
Then up to Baildon Moor, by now almost 30 miles in, so I got my poles out for this climb up and they stayed out until the finish, taking some of the load of the legs and helping me to stay upright on the mud which seemed to increase in slipperiness. Down from the trig point, on to Hollins Hall golf club and then to Esholt and through the woods to Guiseley. I was climbing out of the woods and remembering how the next section, the disused railway line to Yeadon, had been my low point last year. That 1 mile stretch of tarmac looks so flat and runnable but it is actually very marginally uphill, quite deceptive. And it comes at a bad time. Tired, but still so far away from the finish. Anyway, just as was garnering my mental strength who do I see coming running towards me but Jeff Green! So lovely to see him and so kind to come out on his bike looking for me. We ran together and chatted and before I knew it we were at Yeadon where Jeff returned to his bike and I pressed on turning north towards West Carlton and the Chevin. Another checkpoint at Surprise View and then 12 miles (and a fair bit of up and down) to go on the loop out to Bramhope, Arthington and Pool Bank before reaching Otley. This is not part of the official Welcome Way but has been added to create the 50 mile route. I asked the checkpoint marshal how far ahead I was of any others and I managed to ascertain that the only other F50 was half an hour behind me, so my position as potential F50 winner, barring any incident and if the trackers were correct, was feeling fairly safe. That gladdened the heart and I cracked on with a spring in my step. I had reccied this additional section recently, especially as I knew it would be dark at some point during it. I ran east along the Chevin, down and then a long climb up and after some fields reached Bramhope where there is quite a long road section which I ran at a good pace (strangely enough Strava doesn’t quite agree and tells me it was an ultra shuffle but I tell you I was motoring along!) The light was fading, it had become noticeably breezier and colder and started snowing. Hat and gloves and mittens back on, buff back round my neck, but not so cold that I needed to stop and put on more layers though I was carrying plenty, just in case! More fields until I was above Arthington where I descended, coming out by the church and reaching the final checkpoint at the village hall where I turned my head torch on. Another ‘fast’ stretch along the road until I turned left at the railway viaduct for more paths and fields, in one of them a large flock of sheep decided to follow me en masse! It was quite a sight (and sound), all those shiny eyes reflected by the light of my head torch in the dark. Down to Pool Bank New Road via Staircase Lane, a bit messy and rocky in the dark, and then the long steep climb up the Avenue des Hirondelles, the one with the big stone gate at the bottom. When I reccied it I said to my friend, I bet I will be crying here, about 47 miles in, but when it came to it yesterday I was about as far from crying as I could be. Almost deliriously happy! There is something very special about being on your own in the dark in an ultra. Though I might have been crying if I didn’t know the way. The final stretch goes from the corner at the top of Old Pool Bank through some very muddy fields, quagmire is the right description, back to Otley.
With just under a mile to go to the finish I saw a light ahead of me. A head torch with a runner attached, albeit a runner who was walking. This was on a short bit of flat road, obviously someone who was tired. As I got closer I saw it was a woman. The only woman ahead of me in fact (there were four women in the race). Game on! I said ‘come on, let’s run’, but then I regretted it and thought maybe I should have just sped past, she might not even have seen I was a woman? She said despondently ‘oh, I got lost so many times…..’ But I was already off. This was no time for friendly chatting, or going over the finish line together like I have done in my last two ultras (with runners I had spent about 30 miles of the race with). This was time for winning if it was in my grasp. But I knew she had to be a much faster runner having been quite a long way ahead. And all she had to do was follow my light now. I ran with all the remaining speed that I could summon from my legs and lungs, through muddy fields, over stiles, praying not to stumble now, finally hit the Otley streets and belted down to the Cricket Club not daring to look back as I was sure she had to be be right on my heels. She wasn’t though, she was a minute behind, and I was delighted to finish as first lady. We became instant friends over tea and pasta which we were treated to by the ever-wonderful Punk Panther team.
Having dropped 2nd lady Ewa off at her guest house at Chevin End (Punk Panther’s Ryk suggested that would be suitable compensation for snatching the win away from her :)) I had enough energy left to drive straight on to the ultra-chat in Bar T’at where I met up with lots of Harriers including Matthew Kennedy who had finished 5th overall and 1st M50 in the 34 mile version. James and Gavin came 4th in the 34 and 20 miles respectively. A lovely end to a brilliant day out.
20 miles
(1 2:54:12 Adam Stirk)
4 3:10:57 Gavin Lamb
56 ran
34 miles
(1 4:28:45 Michael Harris)
4 5:36:52 James Batterley
5 5:39:45 Matthew Kennedy 1st M50
44 finished
50 miles
(1 8:42:38 Marcus Williams)
6 12:18:06 Petra Bijsterveld 1st F
11 finished
Haworth Hobble – Sat 11 Mar
Fri 10 Mar 2023
The Haworth Hobble route had been shortened to 21 miles due to snow.
(1 02:43:01 Ed Hyland, Calder Valley Fell Runners)
20 03:23:25 Ben Sheppard
36 03:31:57 Kate Archer 3rd F
195 04:43:20 Simon Stokes
342 06:50:04 Jacqui Foster
360 finished
Brian Sweet Predictor Run – Tue 7 Mar
Tue 7 Mar 2023
From Bernie Gibbons…
Thanks to everyone who completed the Predictor run on a cold but fine Tuesday evening, we hope you all enjoyed it. Also, thanks to all those who helped in various ways out on the course.
Incredibly, almost half of you were within a minute of your predicted time, but the clear winner was Natalie who was just 4 seconds off her predicted time. Well done Natalie. We will get a bottle of wine to the three who were closest to their predicted time, Natalie, Jeremy and Sam as soon as possible.
Tokyo Marathon – Sun 5 Mar
Sun 5 Mar 2023
From Andrew Merrick…
Having not done a road run since 2017 (Chicago), I did think more than twice as to whether I should complete the set by heading to Tokyo this year, 3 years after covid got in the way of the original 2020 plan….
A lot of (slow) ultra runs had flowed under the bridge since 2017 and I struggled to get excited about going back to road but eventually FOMO (yes I’ve spent time with my daughter recently) took over and I took the plunge.
Happily, the aforementioned daughter then decided to book a holiday to Japan, albeit she had to fly back the evening before the marathon, so helpfully I was met at the airport and could leave Clo in charge of getting us to the expo. I had flown out on Thursday morning, a day later than Hilda, so it was Friday afternoon before Clo got us to the usual located-well-away-from-the-city-centre exhibition venue and headed off for a green tea whilst I collected my number in a very regimented process which included having my health app checked. We had been required to load an app at least a week before the race and submit daily temperature data (amongst other items) plus a photo which was then “locked” at the expo to avoid switching presumably. At the expo we were also given two covid tests to take pre race, and, whilst there, I took the opportunity to say hi to the charity to which I had donated back in 2019 to get into the race in the first place. I am not sure good for age places exist at all for Tokyo, so you pretty much have to buy your way in unless you are very lucky in the ballot.
Clo found a bar on Friday evening whilst I was faffing at the hotel (a Nell Bank video call to be precise) and she helpfully sent me a pin from the bar she was in. Finding it was my first real experience of Tokyo – it was at full capacity with 7 of us in including the two guys Clo had got talking to, both of whom had been convinced I had fallen asleep. In my defence it was a very narrow alley way and it took me a while to work out that walking in a straight line towards the pin wasn’t going to get it done.
My next pin challenge featured finding a park not too far from the hotel the next morning after I was allowed a lie in…. This time a straight line would have been a much better solution….
After some compulsory blossom shots and lunch in a traditional tea room, I was allowed to have a try on the Tokyo underground unsupervised, on the strict understanding I messaged as soon as I got back to the hotel and the sanctuary of wifi. This worked pretty well so I felt confident to get home by the same route post race. I had also made a plan with Hilda to meet at her hotel, which was pretty much at the start, the next morning at 7:30 with the race due to start at 9:10. Clo headed off to the airport at about 9pm on the Saturday evening leaving me to try to get some sleep.
A combination of jet lag and the usual pre race sleep made this challenging….. 5+ hours later I was able to check the UK football scores before finally falling asleep a few hours before the alarm went off….. I recalled the time in Cartmel pre Lakes in a Day when I heard every single hour rung out on the church bells, and realised that at least I was getting rest so tried to stay relaxed despite the lack of actual sleep…
Fortunately the Tokyo marathon organisers had relented and allowed runners to dispose of spare clothing pre-race (in a small number of helpfully provided bins in the various corrals), unfortunately I hadn’t done a great job of assessing just how cold it would be, despite checking the weather forecast. My orange long sleeve (Chevin Chase, I think) t shirt wasn’t really cutting it as I arrived at the hotel to meet Hilda. She looked as alarmed as I was when her running group organiser suggested she follow me to find her starting gate……
However we got to the right place and headed off in our different directions, the next challenge being to get our health app checked before we were allowed in to the relevant runners area. I remembered to locate a wifi signal and was slightly concerned when their check came back amber rather than the required green….. The third time this happened I was fully concerned, but fortunately the volunteer marshal took pity on me and allowed me in to my corral anyway…. [a review of the health app during my post race bath concluded I had failed to correctly save the results of either antigen test – oops!]
Apart from the cold, which was solved when I bumped into an Irish runner who was about to throw away a down jacket, the rest of the pre race period was pretty calm. He said the jacket might be a bit sweaty, I assured him that wasn’t going to be an issue.
The only badly organised element of the race, I concluded, was the loo queues. Long queues to loos arranged on two adjacent sides of a square was never going to be a route to happiness. It was impossible to work out where the queue ended, or indeed which queue it was…..
Ah yes, the race….. My plan was to aim for 3:30 (I promised myself marathon training wouldn’t get in the way of my life this time round…), fortunately I spotted the 3:30 pacers as we set off, since my Garmin was immediately confused by the tall buildings and told me I had done a mile, before we had even got to the 1km mark…
I pretty much stuck with them till halfway on wide roads with various different switch backs to keep us in central Tokyo, with crowds therefore lining the whole route. Despite the width of the roads, which were more undulating than I had expected, I did see a few tripping incidents and elbows were required early on, particularly round the various corners. I did get ankle tapped from behind at one point but was more fortunate than some others and managed to stay upright.
The drink stations were well organised with different pick-up zones corresponding to the last digit on your race number, with both water and isotonic (the delightfully named Pocari Sweat) drinks available.
The lack of training kicked in during the second half of the race and a number of us found the final out and back section quite challenging mentally too.
I finished eventually in 3:42, slightly disappointed that I didn’t at least manage to keep it to sub 3:40, and my previous times now feel a lifetime away, but the less than fully focused training meant that was always a likely outcome!
Happily I met my London friends as we queued for our fancy (big 6) medal – some other races deserved it more than this one – and we were able to keep each other company as we managed the poncho clad long walk out to bag collection and the charity area. There was no time to stop and reflect as we were permanently moved on until we had exited the entire area – I didn’t recall getting even a glimpse of the emperor’s palace which was apparently somewhere near the finish….. My training with Clo served me well – my tube ride back after a short massage in the charity area and a nearby refuelling beer and burger was eventless.
I decided I had just about earned another beer and happily met a few Milton Keynes runners in a local bar that evening, only one of whom was still wearing the poncho…. Apparently jaeger-redbulls (Clo, how am I supposed to spell this?) don’t prevent you from sleeping…. Their company made for a fun end to the day.
I very much enjoyed my stay in Tokyo, including a reflective Mount Fuji spotting trip on Monday (I have concluded hills are more fun), and a wander round Tokyo on Tuesday – the manic nature of the Shibuyu Crossing in stark contrast to the calm of one of a number of large city centre parks.
I don’t look back on the race itself with particular fondness, for multiple reasons, but I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Tokyo, not least because of my guide (thanks Clo!). Also it was a materially more accessible place than I remembered from my last visit (some decades ago!), whilst having retained its strong culture for respect, which made it a pleasure to spend time in despite how very manically busy it is in places.
From Hilda Coulsey…
This has been an amazing marathon journey for me from London in 2013 to completing the six world marathon majors in Tokyo aged 70.
Whilst being conscious of the cost, both the money and to the environment, I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to follow a dream. My original marathon target was to run Boston because of its long marathon history, where the fight to allow women to access these longer races was not realised until after events of 1967 paving the way for the first women’s Olympic marathon to be run in 1984 – I’d been to uni, got a job and had two young children by then. Age too – in 1910 an 54 year man was turned away as he was deemed to be too old! Also Boston has quite tough qualifying times to enter, the challenge therefore for me was to see if I could do it, hence my first step in London to qualify for Boston in 2014.
Then one thing lead to another! I could write much more, suffice to say here I was in Tokyo to run the last of the big six and get my six star medal.
The rules to enter the expo and the start line were strict particularly regarding general health and covid concerns. I felt that as I’d chosen to take part I should be sympathetic to local sensitivities and accept the rules. Social media, as you might imagine, was generally less enthusiastic. The expo was poor as was the mechanise i.e. very limited with significant queues, which did seem like a major lost opportunity for the organisers and Asics. The cut off times in the race are strict, you must get to various points by certain times based on gun time otherwise the course is roped off, a DNF and no medal – harsh for the slower, 6 hour runners expected to start nearer the back. These, the 14 hour flight and 9 hour time difference all added to the stress.
The race itself started in one long crush, no separation between corrals but I seemed to have chosen an ok position and was able to start at an acceptable pace about 15 mins after the gun. The weather was ideal, 10-12C and dry. The course is relatively flat through the main city centre districts.
I was really pleased that I could keep going, my pace didn’t drop off much. My training had been, by and large, injury free and unconventional in that my longest run in the build up was 2hr40 and I had increased my total weekly miles up to about 45 knowing that longer runs and more mileage would require longer recovery and potentially a higher chance of injury (at my age!). Having a best case target of 4hrs30, I completed it in 4:29:51. Very happy particularly as my watch struggled with the high rise and concrete city deciding I’d done 44k. Hence pacing wasn’t easy but I seemed to find a steady pace so actually I just ran!
I enjoyed collecting the bling. I felt proud to have seized the opportunity. I enjoyed the chance to see some sights, get a flavour of the culture and history and the people were friendly and helpful. I enjoyed representing Ilkley Harriers, grateful too for your friendship and encouragement and it was lovely that Andrew Merrick was there too to share the experience.
(1 2:05:21 Deso Gelmisa)
8394 3:42:37 Andrew Merrick
18878 4:29:51 Hilda Coulsey
36785 ran
TTP Cambridge Half Marathon 2023 – Sun 5 Mar
Sat 4 Mar 2023
From Helen Waddington…
A lovely day for this event which feels more like a full marathon due to its size (nearly 11,500 starters), superb organisation and fantastic crowd support along the whole route. The beautiful sights of the city and the intricate nature of the route keep you distracted and, quite literally, on your toes! It’s a breathtaking experiencing running through King’s College and the varying surfaces underfoot and tight turns meant that my size 4 feet gave me a slight advantage over some of my competitors. Despite all this it proves to be a fast course with the winner crossing the finish line in just over 65 minutes and the first female finishing in an impressive 1.13.49.
(1 1:05:11 Nick Bowker, Clapham Chasers)
2141 1:37:58 Helen Waddington
11382 finishers
North Lincolnshire Half Marathon – Sun 5 Mar
Sat 4 Mar 2023
From Jane McCarthy…
Travelling to Scunthorpe when half the Club were preparing for the brilliant Ilkley Fell Race felt like a strange thing to be doing – it was unfortunate that I hadn’t connected the dots when I entered – but it was a perfect day for a road race, cool and no wind, and the North Lincs course is known for being fast and flat. I was the only Harrier that ran in either the 10K or the HM, but the event definitely didn’t lack atmosphere and was extremely well organised, well catered (toilets-wise!) and generally a pleasant experience. I wasn’t there for an eyeballs out, fast as I could sufferfest, and it is amazing how much more enjoyable road running can be this way. I stuck to a plan of a comfortable first half, and then pushing the pace over the last 6 miles, was pleased that my final mile was my fastest. An hour and a half drive is not ideal to get to a race, but all things considered, I would definitely recommend it, particularly as a PB potential course, or simply a pre-marathon workout.
(1 66:56 Daniel Haworth, Matlock Running Club)
259 89:17 Jane McCarthy
1402 finished
PECO XC 5 Roundhay Park – Sun 5 Mar
Sat 4 Mar 2023
From Dan McKeown…
Photo credit Nigel Pepper
As is often the case, the final race of the PECO cross country season at Roundhay Park was a fixture clash with our very own Ilkley Moor Fell Race, which didn’t augur well for a good team turnout.
In particular, our men’s team needed to hold onto second place in their division to secure a prestigious promotion to the PECO Premier Division. We started the day tied on points with Nidd Valley, but ahead on away goals or some other weird tiebreaker voodoo. There were also a few other teams ready to pounce if we slipped up.
As a great philosopher once observed, squeaky bum time.
Not being eager to let a poor turnout scupper our promotion push (and being by nature a bit over competitive), I’d hit the phone and done a vigorous recruitment drive during the week. By the time entries closed, I’d strengthened our hand with Lawrence ‘The Red Menace’ McCourt, Mike ‘Nike’ AC, and some lad called Jack Wood. I enforced a strict Saturday night curfew on our three newcomers and further mitigated our chances of mishap by making them travel to the fixture in separate vehicles.
As it turned out, we had quite a decent number of the team that had guided us through most of the PECO season, including Ed Hobbs, who had two top-10 finishes to his name in the season to date. My optimism was by now through the roof as we only needed eight runners to score, and I was half tempted to take the morning off and go and feed the ducks instead. However, the Ilkley vest is much like a Gurkha knife: once you’ve got it out of the drawer, you can’t put it back until it’s got muddy. Except that obviously you then wash it before putting it back, unless you want your drawer to end up smelling like a wildlife sanctuary.
The Roundhay XC course is pretty much the opposite of a fell race in that it starts off *down* a hill and, where the usual uphill start of a fell race separates the wheat from the chaff in fairly short order, the chaff is still very much part of the equation by the time the XC course screeches into a sharp, overcrowded right-hand bend at the bottom of the slope. Just for added hilarity, this is the one race of the season where the men and women set off at the same time, so the fine tactical sparring of the ladies’ race is somewhat lost amid the testosterone-fuelled melee that ensues.
After dead man’s corner, there is a short, sharp hill and a long trek round the wide open expanse of Soldiers’ Field for the runners to settle into some sort of rhythm, before skirting a couple of sport fields and wandering off into the woods to negotiate a couple more ups and downs. The course eventually returns and dog-legs back up the slope we started on, to conclude the league season in somewhat breathless style.
As we elbowed our way onto Soldiers’ Field I was treated to the site of the race leaders disappearing into the distance with our very own Lawrence to the fore. After a lively battle, he finished in third, with Ed also making the top 10 in seventh place.
This was just the shot in the arm our men’s team needed and we went on to finish with easily our best score of the season and wrap up our promotion spot. (Although it STILL wasn’t enough to beat Wharfedale, who were promoted in first place with five straight victories from the year – very well done to them.)
Our women’s team finished a creditable mid-division on the fixture, despite only having three scorers with six required. This was spearheaded by a superb top 10 finish for Ruth Kitchen (eighth place), with Alison Bennett earning top spot in the FV60 category and a fine supporting run from Sarah Lambert.
Alison’s run also earned her the overall win in the FV60 category for the season. Likewise, a strong race from Steve Gott on the men’s side enabled him to snatch the MV45 prize for the year.
Having run the numbers, I’ve determined that without our trio of eleventh-hour entries for the men’s team, we’d have finished some way down the table, so I feel rather less guilty about badgering them all week and promising them a bunch of favours. (I have to help Mike AC with his computing homework, and my Harrier of the Year nomination is already promised to Jack.)
Still, now we have PREMIER LEAGUE cross country to look forward to, we can look forward to being sold off to some shadowy overseas regime, shipping a massive points deduction for violating financial fair play rules, getting relegated through successive divisions faster than a fruitbat’s breakfast making its way through its small intestine, and eventually having to wind up the whole operation, rebrand and start over.
Grassroots sport at its finest.
Well done to everyone who represented Ilkley through the PECO season. If you’ve kept hold of your number, there’s one more opportunity to do battle at the PECO relays on 26 March. Details will be available on the PECO League website (although the page hasn’t been updated yet.)
Edit: The ladies xc cumulative race results are now available and Alison Bennett secured first place in the F60 age group in the league. Also, Archie Budding (juniors) came first in his age group Yr 9-11, he had won every one of the four races he took part in. Archie will be moving up to the senior Harriers this year.
Women’s race (271 ran)
8 Ruth Kitchen 00:32:23
68 Alison Bennett 00:37:44 (1st V60)
247 Sarah Lambert 00:53:25
Men’s race (375 ran)
3 Lawrence McCourt 00:26:07
7 Edward Hobbs 00:27:08
21 Daniel McKeown 00:27:59
24 Steven Gott 00:28:18 (1st V45)
31 Jack Wood 00:28:35
40 Danny Thompson 00:29:16
52 Michael Abrams-Cohen 00:29:53
115 Adam Gerrish 00:32:22
183 David Singleton 00:34:40
211 Robert Budding 00:35:37
226 Matthew Snow 00:36:18
306 Alan Travis 00:41:02
338 Roar Leijssen 00:44:35
Ilkley Moor Fell Race – Sun 5 Mar
Sat 4 Mar 2023
From John Hayes…
Thank you to all who organised and helped out at this year’s Ilkley Fell Race. I enjoyed it greatly. So too did my dad (Mike Hayes aka Spike) who at 85 was – I think – the eldest runner.
From Petra Bijsterveld…
A very successful 2023 edition of the Ilkley Moor Fell Race saw both the men’s and women’s records broken. Our own Ben Rothery took the win and broke Simon Bailey’s 19 year old record by 3 seconds. Junior Wharfedale Harriers runner Amelie Lane, after a very successful cross country season, broke Emma Clayton’s 10 year old record by 3 seconds to emphatically take the women’s win, arriving more than 2 minutes ahead of the second woman. Jeff Green won the M50 age category. Not to take anything away from their fantastic achievements, the good weather and dry underfoot conditions were no doubt favourable for fast times, and certainly increased the enjoyment for all runners. This year the race incorporated the Yorkshire Senior and U23 Fell Running Championships, where thanks to the performances by Ben, Jack Cummings and Oli Murphy Ilkley won the Senior Men’s Team gold. The Senior Women’s Team gold went to York Knavesmire Harriers. In the individual results Ben retained the Yorkshire Championship title and Jack Cummings gained the bronze.
The race was very well supported by a legion of Harrier volunteers offering their time and energy, very ably led by Peter Roll in his first year as Race Director. There were lots of smiley runner faces and a really positive vibe in the finish area.
1 35:28 Ben Rothery
4 36:33 Jack Cummings
9 37:54 Sam Bentham (junior) 1st U18
12 39:14 Oli Murphy
25 42:26 Jeff Green 1st M50
43 44:44 Gavin Lamb
47 45:18 Samesh Chotai (junior)
48 45:47 Christos Tzelis
49 45:53 Forrest Hamilton
60 47:00 Steven Bysouth
83 49:22 Rob Cunningham
85 49:24 Peter Shelley
89 50:21 Richard Joel
91 50:30 Tim Ashelford
104 51:21 Jim Ryder
110 52:10 John Hayes
117 53:03 Jenny Roberts
128 54:29 Justin Pierce
138 55:24 Alison Weston
140 55:40 Alistaire MacGregor
142 55:52 John Marsham
147 56:33 Jeremy Greenwood
158 57:28 Bob Hamilton
178 59:53 Catherine Crawley
183 60:07 Chris Oxlade
192 61:53 Pete Kulik
207 64:17 Peter Chippindale
208 64:17 Abbie Rothery
246 ran
Ilkley Gazette report w/c 27/03
Wed 1 Mar 2023
From Jill Ezard…
Photo credit Mick Hall photos (L) and Paul Carman (R)
Personal bests and team success for Harriers in a busy race week on fell and road.
Early in the week, six Harriers took part in the second race in the Leeds Evensplits 5k series at the Brownlee circuit at Bodington Fields. An increasingly popular event, there were some great performances on the track for the team: Matt Cox was first Harrier home in 16:48 taking first place in his age category with Dave Foyston taking second place in 17:14; Petra Bijsterveld took first place in her age category in 23:52; and Rachel Barnicoat, in her first Evensplits event, did a personal best time of 26:39.
The first race of the weekend saw four Harriers tackle the Coledale Horseshoe in the Lake District. Starting at Braithwaite Lodge, the 13.7 km race with over 900m of climb, takes in Grisedale Pike, then Crag Hill before heading through Barrow back to the Lodge. Winter weather conditions made the route very challenging underfoot. Paul Carman was the first Harrier home in 1:46:00. He was followed by Jenny Roberts in 1:56:59, Jann Smith in 2:03:10 and Harry Brook-Dobson in 2:11:10.
Sunday was the busiest day with contrasting races on road and off. Three teams, each of three Harriers, set off in the PECO Cross Country relays, the finale of the race series. Each runner in the team had to tackle a 2.3 mile undulating lap of the course which this year was at Bramley Park. Two of the three teams finished on the podium: The “No (Cross) Country for Old Men” team of Steve Gott, Danny Thompson and Dan McKeown took second place in a total time of 43:16; the “Ilkley Youth” team of Adam Gerrish, Mike Abrams-Cohen and Ed Hobbs took third place in 43:52; the “Old Menstonians” team of Roar Leijssen, David Singleton and Matthew Snow took 15th place in 55:32.
Tackling a longer distance off road were 10 Harriers who took part in the Blubberhouses Moor event. Run by the LDWA, the event is over 23 miles taking in the local landmarks of Swinsty, Fewston and Thruscross Reservoirs, Rocking Hall, Bolton Abbey, a climb up Beamsley Beacon to Round Hill and back to the start via Ellercar Pike and Timble. Mark Mon-Williams was the first Harrier home, taking fourth place overall.
Road runners went a little further afield for their races on Sunday. Three Harriers took on the Wilmslow Half Marathon, a course which takes runners along country lanes closed to traffic towards Mobberley before winding back to Wilmslow. Known as a fast course enabling personal bests, it certainly delivered for the Harriers: Sally Armitage was first home in 1:22:56, a PB for this distance; Emma Sheppard was next in 1:40:14, again a PB and only just behind was Helen Waddington in 1:42:55.
Even further West Lucy Williamson took on the Cardiff Bay 10k. A flat and fast course, the route takes in all of Cardiff Bay’s most iconic landmarks, starting and finishing in Roald Dahl Plass and passing the Wales Millennium Centre, Mermaid Quay, the Pierhead Building, Senedd, Porth Teigr and the Cardiff Bay Barrage. Lucy had a great race finishing in 37:38 both giving her both a personal best time and a top 10 age category position.
Parkrunners kept up the great performances this week with 11 Harriers taking part in the timed 5k events: Mike Abrams-Cohen was the first finisher in 19:31 at the Wetherby event; Jacqui Foster continued her 5k success with a seventh place finish at the Lancaster event in 27:06; Adam Gerrish was fifth at the Chevin Forest event in 21:18; and finally it was a day for PBs at the Roberts Park event with William Wood posting a time of 21:33 and Paula Reynier 25:55.
Ilkley Gazette report w/c 20/03
Wed 1 Mar 2023
From Jean Sullivan…
A race win for the Ilkley Harriers this week!
Jack Cummings stole the show this weekend, winning the Big Keighley 10km race, with Jack over three minutes ahead of the second finisher, completing the race in a superb 31:58. This challenging 10km race follows a circular route, going through the parks, paths and roads of Keighley. This race is always staged on Mother’s Day and raises funds for the Sue Ryder Manorlands Hospice. Danny Thompson was the second Harrier home finishing in 12th place overall in a sub-40 finish time of 37:59, with Danny taking an impressive third place in his age category. Rob Cunningham was the third Harrier home, with another impressive sub-40 finish time of 39:04.
Yasmin Cunningham led the Ilkley ladies home, finishing as the seventh lady overall. She was followed by Tracey Watson who took third prize in her age category. Erin Keating was the third Ilkley lady across the line.
Another notable performance was from Keith Wood, who took third place in his age category and had a great sub-50 finish.
There was also a 5km option at this event, with Ilkley Harrier Joanne Williamson taking first in her age category at that distance.
Also on the Yorkshire roads, the Wakefield Hospice 10km took place this weekend, with all funds raised going towards Wakefield Hospice. This undulating 10km out-and-back road race starts and finishes at Thorne Park in Wakefield. Two Ilkley Harriers took part; Beth Massey who finished in a superb time of 41:25, with Beth taking first prize in her age category. Mike Williams also ran and had another speedy finish time of 44:22.
Eighteen Harriers took part in various parkruns around the country this weekend. Sally Armitage was the first lady to finish at the Fountain’s Abbey parkrun, with Sally completing this scenic course in a rapid time of 18:51. A joint first place finish at the Harrogate parkrun this week for Michael Abrams-Cohen, with Mike completing this course in a personal best time of 18:54. There was a second place at Fountain’s Abbey for David Foyston in an impressive 17:16. Rob Cunningham also had a great parkrun this weekend, with Rob the third to finish at the Bradford parkrun, in a time of 18:36, a personal best on this course. There were lots more top 10 placings for Ilkley Harriers at various parkruns including Tony Pye and Steve Newell at the Bradford parkrun, finishing in seventh and eighth respectively, Mark Mon-Williams was seventh place at the Perth parkrun in Scotland and John Hayes was the eighth finisher at Chevin Forest. Sarah Hayes also had a great run on the Chevin in her personal best time. A PB too for Rachel Corrigan at the Robert’s Park parkrun.
Across the Irish Sea at Portrush parkrun Hilda Coulsey set a new VW70 course record in 25:57, and also topped the age grading there this week with a fantastic 85.81%.
HDSRL entries now open
Wed 1 Mar 2023
From Paul Stephens….
The entry system for this year’s Harrogate District Summer Race League is now open, please go to the HDSRL website for all information, and enter via the link provided there.
This series of 5 evening races in May/June/July is open to both first and second claim members of the club, with a single entry fee of £20 which covers all races, so excellent value for money. Some of the races include post-race food.
Ilkley Gazette report w/c 13/03
Wed 1 Mar 2023
From Jill Ezard…
Snow, ice and strong winds couldn’t deter the Harriers this week
Challenging weather conditions couldn’t keep the Harriers down this week with some superb road performances and feats of endurance on the fells. On Saturday four Harriers braved waist high snow drifts and high winds to tackle a reduced course for the Haworth Hobble. The weather conditions forced the organisers to reduce the 32-mile race to a 21.1-mile event. With over 900m of climb taking in Top Withins and the Pennine Way, this was not an easy option and there were gutsy performances from all four participants. Ben Sheppard was the first home securing a top 20 finish in 03:23:25. Close behind was Kate Archer, 36th overall and third in her age category in 03:31:57. Simon Stokes was next home in 04:43:20, followed by Jacqui Foster in 06:50:04.
Saturday also saw four Harriers take part in a variety of distances along the Welcome Way, one of the local Punk Panther trail running events. The routes largely follow the Welcome Way, a circular trail through moorland landscapes, alongside rivers, canals and reservoirs, across farmland and through woodland. For the longest 50-mile route, high points include Otley Chevin and Burley and Baildon moors with a seven-mile additional loop around Bingley and Shipley Glen. Petra Bijsterveld had an amazing race in the 50-mile event, somehow summoning a sprint finish after 12:18:06 on her feet to secure first lady! James Batterley and Matthew Kennedy took on the 34-mile event, coming fourth and fifth respectively in 5:36:52 and 5:39:45. And Gavin Lamb was also fourth in the 20-mile option, completing it in 3:10:57.
The final off-road outing was at the Yorkshire Veterans Athletic Association 10k Cross Country event at Beverley Racecourse. Steve Gott, Matt Cox and Dan McKeown turned out for the club and could barely be separated at the line, coming in with less than one minute between them: Dan was first over the line in sixth place overall and third in his age category in 36:17; Matt was 10th overall and third in his age category in 36:45 ; and Steve was 12th in 37:01. As a result they went home with the second prize in the M40-49 team event.
On the road, Colin Williams was the sole representative on Saturday at the Dentdale 14-mile road race taking in the lanes around beautiful Dentdale in the Yorkshire Dales. An undulating course but participants are rewarded with scenic dales views. Colin had a superb race taking 17th place overall and first in his age category in 1:42:13.
Further afield, two Harriers took on the Inverness Half Marathon on Sunday. The route starts alongside the banks of the River Ness near the centre of Inverness and takes in many of the city’s icons, finishing on the running track at the Queen’s Park Stadium in the city. Ruaridh Mon-Williams, running in his second claim Edinburgh University Hare and Hounds vest, had a superb run, coming 18th overall in 01:11:52. Alison Bennett, not used to running the half marathon distance, also had a fantastic run coming second in her age category in a superb time of 01:38:32, beating the previous all-time club record by nearly 10 minutes!
Finally Friday night saw another race in the EvenSplits York 5k series. Held at the University of York Sport Village Cycle Circuit, the course is flat and fast offering participants the opportunity achieve their 5K personal best. Three Harriers took part: Michael Abrams-Cohen came in first taking a top 20 place in 17:30; next was Brit Tate in 18:42 taking second place in her age category; and third home was Helen Waddington in 22:05.
Despite many events being cancelled due to snow and ice, 10 Harriers headed out on Saturday morning for the weekly timed parkruns across the country. Despite the conditions there were some great performances. Fresh from his 5k race the night before, at the Wetherby event Mike Abrams-Cohen was the third finisher in 20:41 and further afield Simon Lorimer was the fifth finisher in the Tsujido kaihin koen event in Japan in 20:38. The Roberts Park event proved speedy for two Harriers: Will Worboys posted his fastest finish this year in 23:31 and Andrew Smith was one tenth of a second off his PB in 21:51.
Ilkley Gazette report w/c 06/03
Wed 1 Mar 2023
From Jean Sullivan…
Ilkley Harriers steal the show at the Ilkley Moor Fell Race
This weekend saw the staging of the very popular Ilkley Moor fell race, which has been organised by the Ilkley Harriers since 1990. This challenging 8km fell race, with 400m of climbing involves lots of rocky and technical terrain for runners to contend with. Conditions were good – calm, sunny and dry. Eighteen Harriers took part, with many achieving personal best times on the course this year. And this year’s race incorporated the 2023 Yorkshire Senior & U23 Fell Running Championship race.
Harrier Ben Rothery stormed to the finish to win the race outright in a great time of 35:28, breaking the race record by three seconds. Hot on his heels to finish in fourth place was clubmate Jack Cummings. Third Harrier home was junior Sam Bentham, with Sam taking first prize in his U18 age category.
Jenny Roberts led the Ilkley ladies home, completing the race in 53:03. She was closely followed by Alison Weston, with Catherine Crawley the third Ilkley lady home.
Other notable performances at this race included from Jeff Green and Bob Hamilton, who took first and third places in their age categories respectively.
Overseas in Japan, Hilda Coulsey and Andrew Merrick took part in the Tokyo road marathon. This point-to-point race passes by many of Tokyo’s main tourist spots including the Imperial Palace, Tokyo Tower and the Ginza area. Hilda had a very impressive run, completing this marathon distance in 4:29:51. Andrew also had a great run, finishing in 3:42:37. Both Hilda and Andrew have now completed the Abbott World Marathon Series, a series of six of the largest and most renowned marathons in the world, namely Paris, New York, Berlin, Chicago, Boston and this, their last one, Tokyo. A very impressive accomplishment for both.
Back in Yorkshire, the fifth race in the PECO cross country series took place this weekend at Roundhay Park in Leeds. The senior course consisted of a mix of grass, woodland trails and concrete paths. Ruth Kitchen led the Ilkley ladies home, finishing in an impressive eighth place overall, completing the course in 32:23 and taking second prize in her age category. Alison Bennett was the next Ilkley lady home, finishing first in her age category, followed by Sarah Lambert.
Ilkley men were very well represented with 13 taking part in this event. Lawrence McCourt led them home, completing the course in 26:07, taking third place in his age category. He was closely followed by Edward Hobbs who completed the course in 27:08. Third Harrier home was Dan McKeown who ran the course in 27:59, with Dan finishing third in his age category. Another impressive performance from Steven Gott who was the first M45 to finish and their combined efforts – and those closely behind them – have seen the Harriers promoted to the Premier League of the series next season!
There was also a win for Ilkley Harriers in the junior PECO race, with Archie Budding coming in first place, completing the two mile course in a superb time of 9:25.
Back on the roads, down south, Helen Waddington took part in the Cambridge half marathon, one of the biggest half marathons in the country. This flat fast course passes many of the city of Cambridge’s finest historical landmarks. Helen finished in a speedy 1:37:58, an impressive fourth place in her age category.
Also on the roads, Jane McCarthy took part in the North Lincolnshire half marathon. This flat and fast half marathon finishes with a lap of Quinell Park, North Lincolnshire’s outdoor athletics track, in Scunthorpe. Jane completed the course in an impressive 1:29:16, taking fourth place in her age category.
Ilkley Harriers continued their commitment to the weekly parkrun series with some great results both locally and further afield. Particularly impressive was Adam Gerrish who completed his 100th parkrun this weekend, by being the fifth finisher at the Chevin Forest parkrun. Michael Abrams-Cohen was the second finisher at the same parkrun in 19:31. David Foyston was the third finisher at the Fountains Abbey parkrun, completing the course in a great time of 17:10, his best time to date on this course. Jacqui Foster completed the Morecambe Prom parkrun and also ran her personal best time on this course. The PB’s continued with Paula Reynier achieving her personal best time at the Robert’s Park parkrun, Paula completing the course in 26:04. Overseas Simon Lorimer was the seventh finisher at the Tsujido kaihin koen parkrun in Japan.