Elvet Striders — Race Reports Archive

Sunderland 5K, 23rd July

Dave Robson

I hadn't planned to do it and only finally decided the day before. I hadn't done it before, so I didn't know it all. Got there and I was slightly confused about where to park (I parked in the tennis centre which turned out to be a good choice) and where registration was (at the ski slope), but I got sorted. Got a number and met several other people I know who I hadn't expected to be there. It's great when you have lots of people to talk to before and after a race.

The race was set at Silksworth Sporte Complex (I have never been before) and they had an impressive outdoor ski slope and indoor tennis facilities. The course was all on tarmac paths around the grounds of the Complex, so completely traffic free

It turned out that it's a/the NE championship race and there were a lot of very fast looking young runners there as well as few old timers like me. I had heard that the first corner got very crowded so Phil and I decided to start at the back and avoid all of that. The first K is downhill all the way so its a very fast start. After that it's pretty flat for the rest of the time. The plan was just to take it easy and see how it went. There were no K or mile markers.

Both Phil and I got PBs which we were both very pleased with. We got a shot glass as a finishing memento and chatted with several friends and Fetchies who all seemed to have done fast times. There have been some comments that the times in the results seem quite a bit slower than watch times.

229 finishers.

Coastal Run, 20th July

Dave Robson

This is just a fantastic run. Beach, road, beach, trail, road, trail, road, trail, road, beach. 14m of it (well my Garmin said 13.2m because the tide was way out). Great scenery and good fun.

As I approached Alnmouth I noticed a walker all wrapped up. I glanced at the thermometer and saw it read 11 degrees ! It was also pretty windy so it felt pretty cold. It was no warmer at Beadnell after the coach journey up there, so everybody was very anxious to get running.

We started from the longest start line I have ever seen (drawn in the sand) and within the first mile we had got our feet wet in the first stream. The good news was that the wind was behind us and there were almost no rivelets on the beach (not sure if that is the right term, but I mean the kind of pattern formed by the waves which is uncomfortable to run on). [ No, that's not right - think you mean "lumpy bits". Ed. ]

The wind and the removal of the gate after Craster definitely helped me to my fastest time for this race. There were some great times. The winner finished in 1hr 11min and a guy in the veteran over 60 class came home in 1hr 22min - just amazing !

Margaret Thompson also ran - what was your number, Maggie?

800 finishers

Court Inn Clamber, 16th July

Albert Park 5K Time Trial, Race 7, Middlesborough, 12th July

Dave Robson

It's great to have this time trial starting at 9.00 as it gives you lots of time for other things in the rest of the day. I am now starting to recognise some of the regulars at this event. I wasn't feeling great so I wasn't expecting too much, but after I started I was conscious I was overtaking people who had finished ahead of me last time. At 3K I looked good for a faster time than last time. I tired a bit in the last K, but overall I was pleased with a 1min improvement from last time. Incidentally, the fastest women's time at this event (after seven runs) is 21min 31sec, so there is scope for a female Strider to get the course record !

50 finishers.

Angel View Run, Gateshead, 10th July

Dougie Nisbet

A row of cars along the roadside indicated the location of the Angel Inn hotel, but a couple of signs would've helped find the Registration and Start. There was no real problem as the time-honoured tradition of following people who seemed to know where they were going did the trick. The Start was a little muddled as we were shuffled around until a white line on the gravel footpath was settled on.

I'd had a long hard stare at the course route at registration and it looked very wiggly with a series of chicanes, loops and flyovers that made memorising impossible. Any reservations I had were quickly dispelled as all the marshalling was excellent with loads of encouragement and lots of "Come on Elvet!" which gave me a boost. There is one soul-destroying energy-sapping long, straight and narrow nettle-sided climb that is punctuated by brief moments of excitement and fear as the demented Elite runners charge down towards you having turned at the top.

Even though much of the run is on leafy footpaths I have a disproportionate impression and recollection of grimy unlit underpasses and suburban pavements. And I'd like to have seen more of the Angel than the brief rear-end view as we scrambled past before heading for the road. Having said that it was a good friendly race and I'd do it again.

119 finishers.

Summer Handicap Series, Round 4, 9th July

Colin Blackburn

A big thank you to Peter Brooks for running the handicap in my absence and thanks to everyone else for coming along and taking part on what sounded like a wet night. Nina was first across the line and Tom the fastest runner on the night, Mike Bennett was second fastest contrary to earlier reports!

The next handicap will be on Wednesday August the 13th. Everyone is welcome!

30th Saunders Lakeland Mountain Marathon, Helvellyn, 5th July

Nigel Heppell

Tom Reeves and myself both ran the Saunders Lakeland Mountain Marathon for the first time in 2007. For those who don't know about it, this is a 2-day event in the Lake District where pairs of runners compete as a team to navigate round a series of checkpoints as fast as possible. The checkpoints must be approached in the specified order and each team carries food and accommodation (a tent) for an overnight stop in a remote location. Day 1 has more controls and greater distance than day 2. There are 6 categories of varying difficulty for teams of two, and 1 class for the elite 'billy no-mates'. Each category has a different set of checkpoints, some of which can be close together so you have to be sure you stick your electronic dibber in the right one. If you don't, or if you miss a control or get them in the wrong order, you're disqualified.

Last year Graham Daglish and myself ran in the basic entry level coming 25th out of 104, having been out on the fells for 4 hours on day 1, and 3 hours on day 2. The terrain was mainly rounded hillsides in the eastern lakes, nothing too serious, and the weather turned out warm and sunny. Graham and I were a bit concerned when Tom turned up at the overnight camp 4 hours after us looking like he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. He had stood in, at only 2 days notice, for Stewart Gardener's partner who was unable to make it. All I know is that Stewart G is a strong hill runner and he and Tom were running in a class 4 levels up from Graham and me. At the end of day 2, despite hanging around, we'd gone home before Tom and Stewart finished.

So what happened in 2008?

Tom wanted to have a go in a lower class with a friend of more equal abilities, and Graham and I thought we could manage the next class up. But, ultimately, Graham couldn't make it, and neither could Tom's friend, so Tom suggested I join him. Now I don't know if you've noticed, but Tom's been having a really good season; he's been winning races; he's done well in the Harrier League; he's supported people on the Bob Graham Round; and he's even learnt how to run fast downhill - and that was the only chance I ever had of keeping up with him!

Reluctantly I agreed.

We cobbled together the necessary lightweight equipment and supplies, begged, stolen, and borrowed, and set off for the Lakes on Friday night. Saturday morning came and we lined up at our start time of 8.17am on the lower slopes east of St John's in the Vale. And then we were off - to sit down amongst the bracken and plan our route between control points. Control 1 was easy, couldn't miss it - but we did, well it wasn't where it should have been. The trouble is that the grid ref relates to a square of 100m side on plan view. In real life, on a 45degree slope, the knoll we should have been looking for was 50m above the one we were standing on! And lets face it, who wants to climb up 50m of hillside if you might not have to?

Never mind, we got it eventually, probably lost 10 mins on that one, but next one was easy, couldn't miss it - we didn't, but have you ever heard of contouring? This is where you walk/run around a hillside at constant elevation so you don't use up energy climbing unnecessarily, but after an hour+ it becomes a form of exquisite torture, as if someone is trying to wrench your feet off your legs by twisting them sideways. Bits of shoe you didn't know existed make rubbing contact with bits of foot you didn't know you had, and the pain begins to build. One of my inner soles ended up on top of my foot. Life got better when it was pulled out and stuffed in a pocket.

3rd checkpoint was another hour away, contouring all the time, except we weren't, we unwittingly dropped elevation and undershot the marker, spent another 10 mins hunting it down. For the sake of everyone's sanity I'm not going to describe each control point. Some we got OK, some we had to hunt for.

I might not have mentioned that it was raining, hose-piping, horizontally; and every now and then the wind hit us with a gust strong enough to send us 5 paces off to one side and down the hill. Believe me, map reading under these conditions isn't easy.

Route choice between controls is another area benefiting from experience and local knowledge that we didn't possess, and to our detriment, we took the scenic route through a boulder field on one occasion, and probably tackled some steeper climbs that strictly necessary - we're talking about being on all-fours here, map between clenched teeth, clinging on to tufts of grass, and trying not to look too much like Gollum from Lord of the Rings.

Much relief was had when we actually ran down off the tops to the final checkpoint for Day 1. We were so wet with fresh rainfall that all our kit was clean and shiny, so what were the last 500m like? Thigh-deep peat bog, farm mud and sheep shit! Just to make us feel at home, eh? Saturday night greeted us with at least 3 thunderstorms but we were, eventually, quite comfortable in a decent tent (thanks Geoff), and with some interesting food cooked up on a stove that is also capable of welding mild steel (thanks Graham).

Halfway results showed us in 68th position with a time of 8hrs 24min for 18.8km (straight line on-plan measure), and 9 control points. Tom and I reckon we only managed a total of 2km running all day, the rest of the time conditions were only suitable for yomping, crawling, or scrambling. Out of 144 starters only 88 managed to complete day 1 intact.

Day 2 dawned wet but not so windy. And after Tom's hyperglycaemic breakfast porridge concoction we were raring to go. The controls for day 2 looked a bit easier than they might have been and we suspect there may have been some adjustment overnight on account of the numbers dropping out. Still, off we went into the clouds again, but at least there were quite a few tracks to follow which certainly speeded things up. We were running a lot more now. Quite a bit of contouring followed but at least it was 'opposite-slope', giving the previous day's foot damage some relief. The controls were easier to identify too, being placed in sheepfolds or cairns on high spots, etc. The final descent was tough for a lot of folk. This was on a track, but it dropped 330m in about 0.7km. Most of the various classes were directed to this track and loads of competitors fell on the loose, wet, slippery surface. I went down once but Tom descended in style.

At the end we ate our free meal of veggie Bolognese + coleslaw + pitta bread, cake and tea, and gratefully drove off in a dry vehicle.

Our day 2 result was 37th with a time of 4.08 hrs. So our overall position is 53rd out of 122 starters, with a total time of 12hrs 33mins 02secs.

Now, I'm not sure what this really means for the overall results, but it could be where I come in useful: there is an age discount on time for vet categories. Due to our combined age (mainly mine!) our overall time is adjusted to 11hrs 55mins 22secs.

Given free rein, I'm sure Tom could have got round a lot faster, and I have to thank him for sparing me the last 15m climb to many of the checkpoints, but I think we worked well together as a team and retained our good humour whilst others around us were not quite so compatible.

Did I enjoy it? Ask me next week.
Would I do it again? Ask me in 6 months' time.

PS. Don't believe the weather forecast - ever - especially not for the Lake District.

Carrock Fell

Day 1: Distance 18.8km, Climb 1185m
Day 2: Distance 14.6km, Climb 705m

122 starters, 84 finishers.

Chevy Chase, Wooler, 5th July

Shaun Roberts

The Chevy Chase is a 20-mile/4,000 feet fell run that takes in the Cheviot Summit and Hedgehope Hill. I was a bit apprehensive about doing this one straight after two weeks of lounging on a beach - when Geoff Davis says a race is "hard", I tend to expect the worst - yet it started so well...

Quite steady undulating running for the first seven miles or so to the base of Cheviot, and then the expected plod up to the top. Emma passed me around here, and I was to follow her round for the next couple of hours. Reaching the top, you feel the race is now halfway done. But it isn't. Now there's a long steep knee-trembling descent down to Harthope Burn. I tried to get some momentum up and slide down, but it didn't work - a fellow runner cried out "8.5", having mistaken my manoevre for an advanced piece of gymnastics. Really looked forward to some uphill for a bit of relief after reaching the bottom, and my God it came in spades - seemed to take an age to get to the top of Hedgehope Hill, two and a half hours after starting, and I'd only done ten miles, just half the course!

Now I was rather optimistically looking forward to some steady descending, but no, it was more knee-trembling stuff, and at this point my right knee started to turn to jelly, or perhaps blancmange. Or was it Angel Delight? At any rate, not something ideally suited for running another eight hilly miles or so. Luckily the terrain wasn't too bad now - I had to favour the right leg on the downhills, and just kept plugging away.

More than pleased to get to the finish, also pleased to get round in a shade over four and a half hours. Dave wasn't far behind, having had a similar experience to mine. Phil had been trying to help a fellow-runner with wonky hips and no insoles get round in under five hours, which he managed with thirty seconds to spare. As for Emma - she pulled twenty minutes ahead of me to finish very strongly indeed.

Very welcome tea, buns and cakes at the finish - the heavens opened towards the end, but to be fair the weather had been very kind for most of the day. A hell of a day out - follow the link below for some great photos from Rob Stephens.

165 finishers.

Burn Valley Half, Masham, 5th July

Dougie Nisbet

I'm still relatively new to running and so every race brings something unexpected and lessons to be learnt. This was my first wet-weather race and by the time we'd walked from the car park to the start everyone was soaked through. I was warm, clammy and uncomfortable, and I hadn't run a step. I had a sense of foreboding that leaving the Lanacane at home was a bad idea.

I'd read Dave's report from last year and studied the route so had a pretty good idea what to expect. (I find the old race reports very useful and always check them out before running a new race.) The bunch left the market square and I instantly spotted the stonewashed running vest of Alan Purvis, and we ran the first mile together discussing the course and how bored our wives would be while we were away, perhaps sitting in a nice DRY tea shop in the town.

The course is described as hilly, and so it is. It undulates outwards and upwards for about 6 miles, and then it undulates backwards and downwards back to the finish, overlapping some of the outward route. Sometimes it undulates quite considerably and provides a fascinating study in biomechanics and the different shapes of runners. I found I wasn't a strider, but a climber. I would pass people on the climbs, only to be passed a few minutes later by the same runners as they strode past me on the descents. Some of the descents were just a little too steep to 'let go' completely and I could feel the thumping on my upper thighs as I tried to balance speed against stability.

On the subject of thighs, by the end of the race the insides were rubbed raw, a sort of sandpaper pink, and a lesson was learnt. And it stung like a bee when I stepped into the shower a few hours later. I'm already considering the 'Shaun Roberts look' and getting myself a pair of long shorts to wear under my short shorts. [ Keeps the wedding tackle well under control and very fashionable to boot. Ed. ]

Alan wasn't the first person to approach the finish and ask the crowd where it was. The approach is clear enough but there was nothing as vulgar as a big banner proclaiming FINISH. It was discretely nestling in a bottleneck in the alley next to the school, and many weary runners ran optimistically rather than specifically in the direction of where they thought the finish must be.

This is one of my favourite races to date (although I've got my eye on the Chevy Chase for next year). With the varied terrain and hills it offers a complete body workout. It was quite atmospheric and broody with the mist lurking around the upper slopes. The crowd and marshals and support were all great with plenty of water stations and even a sponge stop.

250 finishers.

Tynedale 10K, Ovingham, 2nd July

Tom Reeves

This was my third Tynedale 10k and as with the previous two I had hopes of beating my PB (although not as high as the previous two races). The turnout as usual was very good and as usual the weather felt warm and muggy. How do they manage to organise the weather to be like this every year? It rained a little just prior to everyone heading up to the start which is about a mile from where the parking is at the school at Ovingham. There was a good turnout of Striders.

The start is as always a real cavalry charge being down hill for virtuall the first mile. Then for the next three it's pretty undulating all the way. Fiona and Conrad were in front of me - I think I passed Conrad somewhere around the two mile mark and had Fiona in my sights for much of the race. This year I've not been timing my races and just focusing on running and breathing. but I thought for this one I would check my time at the 4 mile mark which I duly did. I was really pleased to find I was on target for a PB. The last two miles are along footpaths through woods and when (as it always seems to be) it's warm it is very warm on this section. Now this is my excuse for blowing up and crawling over the finish line in 40 minutes and 41 seconds which was about 10 seconds after Fiona.

It is a good race even though I vowed never to run it again. I'm not sure whether it is a race to get a PB - although some people seem to think it is? Most importantly you do get pie and peas and a cuppa afterwards and it is generally a very pleasant run along the Tyne.

P.S. I've put my watch away again.

633 finishers. *Running as Dave Robson.

Saltwell Harriers Fell Race, nr Stanhope, 1st July

I missed the Saltwell Harriers Race this year but it looked like a fair dip in the burn for some! If anyone who ran or swam would like to submit a report then please do send something to me.

The results below have been slightly corrected by me. In the official results Debs seems to have been overlooked as a woman and Mike ran with the surname Elvert.

Rob and Pat of NFR have once again taken some excellent photos of the event, see the links below.

82 finishers.