Results

The following are the results from the Southampton Half. Well done all. (Sorry no London Marathon results or any photos have been provided – please feel free to pass on to [email protected])

• Mark Stileman 1:22:08 29th overall, 6th V40
• Neil Jennings 1:22:11 30th overall
• James Battle 1:25:45
• Mark Adams 1:30:29
• Tony King 1:31:13
• Steve Geary 1:32:50
• Stephen Reed 1:38:11
• Paul Burnage 1:41:22
• Lynda Brown 1:44:18
• Becca Lurcock 1:47:18
• Alice Lane 1:47:56
• Penny Jennings 1:50:18
• Alison King 1:54:15
• Penny Overy 2:01:33
• Jacquie Bailey 2:03:20
• Deborah Rees 2:14:28
• Marion Kelly 2:19:14
• Linda Webb 2:26:57

It was the Exbury 5 on Sunday and five RRRs were there! Also pictured is Boaz Lurcock who was 4th in the Fun Run.

RRR Results:

• Neil Jennings  00:29:54
• Daniel Lurcock  00:34:28
• Penny Jennings  00:39:20 (3rd in age category)
• Anna Duignan  00:42:19 (2nd in age category)
• Wendy Couper  00:56:30 (5th in age category)

It was a 10k fest for Romsey Road Runners last weekend.

In the Eastleigh 10k, four RRRs officially finished – plus one of our second claim runners. (A couple of other RRRs were spotted but don’t appear on the results… hmm). The largest 10k in the South, with 2,800 entries, this was the 32nd running of the Eastleigh 10k. The race had a new sponsor this year, Hendy Ford, and the lead runners were led around the course by a red Mustang! Apart from a short hill around the 3.5km mark, the course is fairly flat and is known as a PB course.

RRR Eastleigh 10k Finishers:

• James Battle 36:32
• John Quayle 43:38 PB
• Colin Waters (running for New Forest Runners) 44:37
• Nicola Skeats 58:44 PB
• Bridget Wells 01:00:49 PB (over a minute quicker than last year)

On Saturday, three RRRs “endured” the Beachy Head 10K (actually 7.7 miles) in cold and windy conditions. Said Wendy, “It was, however, dry and very enjoyable – well it was when we had finished!”

Beachy Head 10k finishers:

• Alice Lane 01:29:00
• Anna Duignan 01:30:29 (1st FV60 and six minutes quicker than last year!)
• Wendy Couper 1:46:15 (one minute quicker than last year)

It was a busy Sunday for Romsey Road Runners last weekend.

Anna Duignan finished first in her age category at the Tempest 10, at Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey on Sunday. The aerodrome is the site of BBC’s Top Gear Programme! Anna’s chip time was 1:28:58 and her first place was all the more impressive given that the uppermost age category for women in this race was V55. Anna said, “The weather conditions were favourable, for a change, and as a road race I didn’t miss the usual mud and water that we’ve been experiencing/enjoying recently on off road routes!” Anna was also 26^th lady overall (out of 70).
Anna’s daughter, Marie, is no longer in RRR but she also ran the 20 mile race coming 3^rd lady out of 229, 2^nd in age category, in a time of 2:25:18. Mummy was very proud!
At Larmer Tree Marathon Tam Ryan finished 2^nd lady overall, in this rather tough, off road marathon, with a chip time of 3:56:19. The race is organised by White Star Running with several distance options and takes place in the beautiful surroundings of The Larmer Tree Gardens for the start/finish. A Rather tough off road marathon, weather conditions were perfect. Tam was also 34^th overall.

Finally, in Devon, three RRRs ran in “The Grizzly” – a 20 mile run in Seaton. Mark was 27^th of 1401 runners in 2:41:05. Sue Sleath (running for Hardley Runners) finished 144^th in 3:02:39 and John Horton, on his way back after an operation at Christmas finished in 3:39:52.

Well done to all!

Sue Sleath and Becca Lurcock took part in the Heartbreaker Half Marathon on Sunday. Sue finished in 1:36:44, 5th lady overall and 1st in category (and she wasn’t well), Becca completed the course in 1:36:44. Di Cross did the full marathon in 4:35:42 and was 4th in category.

On Sunday, 21st February John Quayle and Paul Whitaker ran the Winchester 10k – a race that seems to be predominantly uphill with long inclines and sharp downhills. John finished in 45:11 and Paul was first in his age category in a time of 46:17.

Remember to send your results to [email protected] and try and include a picture and a short description of the race if possible.

Julie Shanker and Francesca Hough completed the Riverside Marathon in Walton-on-Thames on 22nd November.

The route is run along the Thames River towpath between Walton-on-Thames and Hampton Court with the runners of the full marathon having to do four laps.

Both ladies finished together in a time of 4:51:55. Well done to both!

Last month, on 11th October, Steve Reed, Paul Burnage and Brenda Topliss ran the Chalke Valley Challenge 10k in times of 44:52, 46:00 and 54:11 respectively. This race is run on quiet, undulating country roads through some magnificent scenery, starting and finishing at Broadchalke sports field south west of Salisbury. A small, very friendly race, it comes recommended, albeit not for PBs. Congratulations to Brenda for winning her age category.

Romsey Road Runners Brave the Elements

The bad weather didn’t put off our intrepid RRRs last weekend. Anna Duignan and Wendy Couper smashed the 10k Endurance Life event on the Gower Coast. Hurricane Kate meant that the event came very close to being cancelled but, as with all Endurance Life events, giving up is not an option and the event went ahead.

To say the conditions were pretty awful is an understatement but Anna and Wendy ran together and were delighted to finish first and second in their age category with times of 2:13:49 and 2:13:52 respectively. The event was described as strenuous – very hilly with lots of mud and rivers to run through – and actually measured 7.7 miles which is good bit longer than a 10k. Well done to both ladies.

In Gosport, three RRRs took part in the 30th running of the Gosport Half Marathon which was run in very challenging conditions with some mighty headwinds to contend with. The Gosport Half is part of the Hampshire Road Race League and attracts a strong field. The three Romsey finishers were Sue Sleath, who won her age category in 1:33:02; Tony Peelo whose time of 1:45:04 was only 26s off his effort four years ago and finally Brenda Topliss who also won her age category in a time of 1:58:18.

Well done to everyone that ran last weekend. Don’t forget to send your results in to [email protected].

Romsey Runner, Richard Vie with his daughter Charlotte finished a sunny, dry Great South Run in Southsea on Sunday. ‘It was a great day out with perfect weather and we both did better than our respective target times which was nice!’ said Richard after the event.  Richard finished in 1:37:31 and, just a little behind Charlotte who managed 1:12:36.

Great South Run Results

• Jackie Bailey 1:32:47
• Richard Vie in 1:37:31
• Lindsay Dunford 1:40:33

The week before had seen a number of RRRs heading to Oxfordshire to complete the Abingdon Marathon. The event has a tradition for fast times, as the course is one of the flatter courses. The weather assisted runners and the many finishers were rewarded with good times. Becky Tovey managed a ‘good for age’ time, guaranteeing a place in the London Marathon 2016.

Abingdon Marathon Results

• Toby Burrows 3:09:25
• Becky Tovey 3:43:16 – AG spot for London accomplished
• Tam Ryan 3:43:19
• Alice Lane 4:20:01

Elsewhere, Angela Burnikell completed the Thruxton Duathlon and was first lady home in 1:06:02, coming 10^th overall. This event used the race circuit in Thruxton, north Hampshire for both the run and cycle, making it traffic free and ideal for those wanting to try a duathlon for the first time.

8 RRRs took part in the New Forest (formerly Minstead) Stinger organised by local club, Totton Runners. The Stinger offers a variety, views and mixed terrain.

Runners have a choice of distances, 5 or 10 miles which consist of a mix of trails, gravel tracks and paths in a looped course through undulating open forest. Runners are afforded in places, long views of open heath land with dense forest in the background.  This is a tough route, as the name suggests, challenging runners with several steep ‘stinger’ inclines.

The weather was perfect on the day and with firm and dry ground underfoot, conditions were good.

RRR results

5 Miles:

Anna Duignan 3^rd in age category in a time of 51:41

Wendy Couper 6^th in age category in a time of 63:48

10 Miles:

Mark Stileman 1:06:08 – 6^th overall

Mark Adams 1:13:44

Jim Wright 1:14:54

Daniel Lurcock 1:18:38

Lynda Brown 1:20:43

Penny Jennings 1:32:36

Last weekend was just perfect for running and enjoying the outdoors; many RRRs did just that.

The Clarendon Marathon, stretching from Salisbury to Winchester, using as the name suggests, the off road Clarendon Way to transverse across from Wiltshire to Hampshire. Runners were afforded some stunning long views as they negotiate the undulating route. The half way point is Broughton in Test Valley, Where the half marathon starts. There is also the option of a marathon relay.

Marathon results:
Mark Adams 3:32:18
Sue Sleath 3:42:38
Both Mark and Sue took a wrong turn at Broughton and had to cover an extra
0.4 of a mile.

Half Marathon results:
Mike Roberts  1.48.50
Becca Lurcock  2.05.19
Penny Jennings 2.05.41
Hannah Richardson 2.12.15
Lindsey Friedman 2.20.27
Marion Kelly    2.31.28

On the South Coast participating in the Bournemouth Runfest 10km were:

Trevor Band, finishing in 51:18 – 6th in his age group and Elaine Band,  finishing in 1:10:36 and 7th in her age group.

At the longer marathon distance were Dave and Sue Gardener, who finished in 4:24:16 and 4:51:07 respectively.

And finally, Anna Duignan ran the Great Scottish Run half marathon on Sunday in Glasgow. Anna got a massive PB with a finish time of 1:59:51, breaking the magical 2 hour mark. Anna came 2nd in her age (F65-69) and 1095th female out of 3520. Her family were very proud.

Missing the 30th Birthday celebrations, but representing their club at the New Forest Half Marathon on the same day were RRRs Anna Duignan and Keith Whitaker. Anna had a good run, finishing quicker than on previous occasions in a little over 2 hours – in a chip time of 2:06:15. Keith finished in 1:43:05.

Also at the New Forest, Mark Stileman, finished the full marathon distance in just over 3 hours and this was despite starting 15 minutes late due to traffic congestion reroute, he ran well and finished in a placing of 3rd Male V40 and 11th overall in a time of 3:09:51.

FIVE RIVERS, FOUR HILLS…..

On a gloriously hot Sunday (9th August), several Romsey Road Runners crossed over into Wiltshire for Salisbury’s 5-4-3-2-1 – that’s 5 rivers, 4 hills, 3 country estates, 2 castles and, of course, 1 cathedral.

Certainly one of the most scenic races on the local calendar, the trail event – with distances ranging from 50k down to 10k, and open to walkers as well as runners – starts opposite the city’s fire station and then heads off around Wessex, taking in English Heritage sites as well as private land not normally open to the public.

Nick Day definitely checked off all the landmarks listed, finishing the Ultra – his first run over this distance – in 6:16:14. Mike Roberts ran the marathon (42k) in 4:40:57 with Di Cross following him in 5:09:08.

Three runners completed the half marathon (21k), with Anna Duignan winning the FV65 category. Mark Adams was the third M40 in 1:41:31 with Paul Burnage next home in 1:57:46.

“One of my favourite events of the year,” said Di, “though I looked like a bright pink panda by the time I’d finished – less chatting and admiring the scenery, more sunblock next time!!

Romsey put out two teams at the Mile of Miles event on 15th July. Some 37 teams competed and RRR put in a very creditable performance. The event was won by Eastleigh RC in a time of 52:44. Top 5:

• Eastleigh – 52:44
• SAC – 52:58
• Lordshill – 53:10
• Stubbington – 53:52
• Hardley – 55:44

Romsey Rippers – our mens team finished in 58:44 while the ladies – the Romsey Rockets – finished in 72:45.

Rippers

1 NEIL JENNINGS 5:18
2 CHRISTOPHER BROWNE 5:53
3 JAMES BATTLE 5:14
4 STEVE GEARY 5:45
5 MARK ADAMS 5:50
6 JOE PELLING 6:12
7 JOHN QUAYLE 6:05
8 NICK DAY 6:33
9 MARK STILEMAN 5:28
10 DAVE GARDINER 6:26
Total 58:44

Rockets

1 BECKY TOVEY 6:10
2 TAM RYAN 6:29
3 LYNDA BROWN 6:17
4 BECKA LUCOCK 6:44
5 SUZANNE GARDINER 7:07
6 JULIE SHANKER 8:27
7 VICKY PELLING 8:48
8 PENNY JENNINGS 6:58
9 NAOMI FARRINGTON 8:21
10 ALICE LANE 7:24
Total 72:45

Four of the Romsey contingent took part in the annual New Forest 10 mile race on Sunday and three members were rewarded with personal bests for their efforts.

The race is popular as it combines a series of off-road route paths and tracks within a forest setting. The start and finish are at New Park just north of Brockenhurst. This mid-summer event has suffered in the past from extremes of weather, ranging from dizzy high temperatures to heavy rain and flooding. This year proved no exception and a light drizzle and cooling temperatures prompted the organisers to opt for space blankets at the end!

Neil Jennings 1:00:37  PB
Stuart Cripps 1:17:25  PB
Penny Jennings 1:23:13
Rebekah Lurcock 1:25:22 PB

Romsey Road Runners, entered a ladies team in the South Downs Relay on Saturday, 20th June. The route starts in the grounds of Slindon College just outside Chichester and uses the Monarch Way and the South Downs Way. Runners then follow the National Trail west towards the Queen Elizabeth Country Park for the finish. The Romsey team consisted of Tamatha Ryan, running the 1st leg, passing the baton on to Jo Weguelin. The third leg was run by Becky Tovey and Lynda Brown, the 4^th member, brought the team across the finish line.

The ladies team completed the course in 3:35:12, placing them in 6th position in the female standings and 30th overall; with 112 teams finishing.

Three Romsey Road Runners travelled to Royal Wootton Bassett in Wiltshire on 31st May to take part in a sprint triathlon.

The triathlon consisted of a 400m pool swim, 20km bike ride and a final 5k run. ‘Conditions were wet and windy making the event a little more interesting,’ reported Derek Kelly.

The fastest time from the Romsey contingent came from Derek Kelly – who won his age category. Derek had a combined time of 1:30:35, (9:25 swim, 47:09 bike, 30:17 run).

Alice Lane followed in second place, finishing 10th in age category. Alice’s total time was 1:34:11 (9:09 swim, 52:39 bike, 28:39 run) and third was Julia Abab. Julia, finished 4th her in category, in a time of 1:46:28 (12:55 swim, 1:00:58 bike, 28:17 run). Julia’s time included an unscheduled pit stop to replace her chain, adding an additional 7 minutes to her time.

The Lymington Lifeboat 10k took place last weekend. Organised to support the work of the RNLI; this scenic off road 10km takes runners on a single lap of the nearby quiet lanes and coastal path, offering views across the Solent to the Isle of Wight and bracing sea breezes.

RRR finishers

• Jo Weguelin 47:19
• Andrew Archibald 47:31
• Ann-Marie Skill 55:59

Also, well done to Mike Roberts who ran a swift 1:12:30 to complete the Alton 10 mile last Sunday. Starting at finishing at Treloars College the race follows an undulating route through the picturesque Hampshire countryside and villages to finish back at the college a few metres from the start.

Elsewhere, Steve Reed, who completed the notoriously hard-core Swashbucklers Middle Distance Duathlon, comprising a 5k run followed by an 80k bike and a 22k run to finish. Steve managed to complete the first 5k run in 19 minutes, followed by 2 hours 29 min for the 80k bike ride and a 2 hours for the final run of 22k. Steve topped his age-group rankings and came in 5th overall!!