Kingdom of Northumbria Coastal Ultra(Sunday 9 March 2025)

Report by: David Griffiths-Allen
Distance: 54Km
Location: Bamburgh , Northumberland
Web link: wilddeerevents.co.uk/events/132/the-kingdom-of-northumbria-coastal-ultra-2025-closed/

Having run many half-marathons, I decided that I was ready to ‘step-up’, but the thought of the big crowds combined with around four hours pounding the tarmac didn’t appeal to me. So I entered the inaugural ‘Kingdom of Northumbria’ described as an introductory ultra with no hard cut-off time. I figured that if I struggled, I could walk it in 10 hours!

Following three months of long steady hikes and runs (I walked a half-marathon every Saturday and then ran a half-marathon every Sunday on tired legs), I was stood in heavy fog close to Bamburgh Castle contemplating the most challenging run of my life (at almost double the distance I had EVER attempted before).

Worcester City Runs Half Marathon (Sunday 15 September 2024)

Report by: Derek Boughton
Distance: Half Marathon
Location: Worcester
Web link: worcestercityrun.com

Event Details: It is a Thursday / Saturday / Sunday Festival of Running with a 10K and a Half Marathon on the Sunday!

Before the race: There are a lot of road closures but the Satnav picked these up and had a very easy trip to park at Worcester Race Course. There are toilets in the Race Course car park, on the start line and in the Athletes village. Hard to fit in a last minute “stress wee” if you want a good starting place. Over 2400 did the 10K and almost 1500 the Half Marathon.

Who ran: Just me! Derek Boughton

The Race:
The 10K which I did in 2022 goes into the city, then along one river bank and back down the other side. The Half Marathon is a figure of eight with the first 10K being away from the city and up to the university and then back to the racecourse. The second half is similar to the 10K. Very congested start and then uphill on quite narrow roads / paths. Took 2 miles to thin out. The pacers seemed to go too quick – I was on 2.10 pace early on and never got near the 2.10 pacer. The 2.20 pacer was at the finish in 2.16. Miles 2 to 7 seemed good to run. Then the part through the city seemed longer / steeper / twistier than I remembered from the 10K. It is badged as flat, fast and a PB course – I found it hard to get in a rhythm so not sure it is a PB course.

BDRC Results:
Derek Boughton 2.16.46

Funny Moments
Three dinosaurs giving high fives about a kilometre from the finish – really needed it as my last 5K or so was really hard – through my lack of fitness not due to it being the hardest part of the course. !

Would you recommend?
Yes – hoping to do 2025 and do better!

Hardy Half Marathon (12/05/2024)

Report by: Louise Honeyball
Distance: 13.1 miles
Location: Dorchester Rugby Football Club, Dorset, DT1 2H
Web link: hardyhalf.com

Event Details:The Hardy Half is a scenic hilly trail race across Dorset farmland looping around the Hardy Monument.

Before the race: For most, the idea of a girly weekend away includes food, booze, and relaxation. Not for us! We did of course do this, but we also threw in a parkrun, a pedalo and a ridiculously hard trail half marathon! We really should have read the bit that said ‘Only for the hardy’ when we booked it!

There was a tiny car park at the Rugby Club which was full when we arrived but there was plenty of parking along the adjacent street. Number collection was straight-forward and pre-race facilities were good. There were plenty of toilets – some ‘interesting’ composting ones and thankfully a normal one for me! There was a very short walk from the race village to the start.

Who ran: Louise Honeyball, Kim Fox, Mary de Frates, Nicola Crookes.

The Race:
We got going and the first couple of miles didn’t seem too bad, BUT then it went up and up and up some more! The ups were so steep that most runners were forced to walk them. It was a really hot day and the course had very little shade, but the incredible scenery made the climb worth it. We got some cracking selfies along the way!

The marshals were super friendly and supportive, and the signage displayed around the course was very amusing. There were at least three well-stocked aid stations along the route with food, sweets, water, and sugary drinks as well as free beer at the finish.

BDRC Results:
Kim Fox: 2:10:32, Nicola Crookes: 2:13:15, Louise Honeyball: 2:33:27, Mary de Frates: 2:33:27

Funny Moments
The start was delayed by 10 minutes – we had to wait for the bus to go by before the road could be closed!

Would you recommend?
Yes definitely, it is a well organised event. The route is beautiful, the support is amazing, it is reasonably priced, and the medal was good too.

Stratford Upon Avon – Shakespeare Half Marathon & Marathon (21/04/2024)

Report by: Melissa Boulton
Distance: 13.1 Miles & 26.2 Mile Options
Location: Stratford
Web link: shakespearemarathon.org.uk

Event Details: This flat and fast route, follows 1 lap for the half marathon and 2 laps for the marathon. The majority of the route follows closed roads around the town, with the remainder on the Stratford Greenway footpath, a hard compact footpath, ideal for pb racing!

The route heads from the town centre, past the racecourse, into Luddington & Welford-on-Avon before joining the Stratford Greenway back into Stratford-upon-Avon. The half marathon will head into the Recreation Ground from there. The marathon will complete a 2nd, extended loop, which also heads through Long Marston, before returning to the Recreation Ground for the finish.

Before the race: The queue to drop the bags was quite long, I would recommend getting there earlier than what you think, we ended up jogging to the start as it was quite tight on times. You also want to ensure you car share were possible as it gets quite busy. There was a great atmosphere at the beginning of the race, lots of crowds had come out to support as well as local businesses. You couldn’t hear the person on the microphone counting down as it was so loud!

Who ran: Melissa Boulton, Kim Fox, Keith Fox, Mary de Frates, Sara Brookes, Nicola Crookes (Half), Martin Percival (Half)

The Race:
The race itself was very scenic, going through some gorgeous villages, it also helped it was a lovely spring day with perfect running conditions. There are a few options for supporting spectators to watch particular those who are doing the full marathon. Only a couple of moderate hills, overall a very flat course. It was quite mentally tough to do two laps but also advantageous that you knew what was coming. The Greenway was not very pleasant, it was a gravel track with large rocks that made it difficult to run on, this went out for 4-5 miles, it ruined a good route, however this has apparently now been tarmacked.

The medal was very nice and there was great support as you crossed the line, there were businesses promoting their products and no bananas but water and protein cookies were given out.

BDRC Results:
Marathon: Keith Fox: 02:59:10, , Kim Fox: 03:24:48, Melissa Turner: 03:50:29, Sara Brookes: 04:15:42, Mary de Frates: 04:26:06
Half: Martin Percival: 01:32:31, Nicola Crookes: 01:42:06
Would you recommend?
Definitely, it was really nice to support a more local event, the race itself during the second loop was a lot quieter as well so it really opened up for personal best opportunities. The course itself is well marshalled with water sessions throughout. Just a note that there are no toilets available on the route until mile 13 if you are doing the full marathon so something to bear in mind.

White Horse Half Marathon (07/04/2024)

Report by: Toby Cartright
Distance: Half marathon, of course
Location: Grove, near Wantage
Web link: whitehorseharriers.uk/halfmarathon/

Event Details: A popular road half marathon organised by White Horse Harriers AC. This was the 39th edition of the event, having been cancelled in 2020 & 2021 due to Covid, and again in 2023 due to flooding.

Before the race: The official parking was a long walk from race HQ & the finish line – will be parking elsewhere next time.

Who ran: Toby, Matt, Dawn, Dave G-A, Chris (Noz), Christie, Jane plus ex-member Gareth (Chairbow)

The Race:
The race is run on a level and attractive rural course through the country villages of the Vale of the White Horse. Starting from Grove the course follows quiet country lanes through the villages of Denchworth, Lyford and Charney Bassett.

This is a well organised event which several BDRC members have run many times over the years. After it was cancelled last minute in 2023 it was good to see the event take place, with 424 finishers. However, given the rainfall over the previous days it almost didn’t happen again with parts of the course clearly only just dry enough. Parts of the course have badly deteriorated with potholes etc but WHH did a great job clearly marking these with traffic cones.

The wind really made this a race of two halves. The course follows an anti-clockwise loop with the first and last miles following the same out & back road. The wind was largely with us until about mile 7 but then turned into a vicious headwind until about mile 11. Any gains made in the first half of the race were sadly undone in the second half and everyone seemed to agree that this was as much a mental battle as physical!

WHH always offer a commemorative mug to all finishers which makes a nice change from a medal or t-shirt. There were also spot prizes and I understand Noz was the winner of a bottle of wine, although he clearly doesn’t understand the concept of sharing.

Great to see Chairbow who’d made the dash across from Wales to join in and smash out another stonking run.

Sadly Dave G-A had to pull out at 3 miles due to a calf injury but great of him to wait at the finish to cheer some of us in. Also Dave Herring unable to run due to injury but look forward to seeing him pounding the tarmac again soon.

BDRC Results:
Gareth B: 1:26:14
Toby C: 1:32:26 (PB)
Matt W: 1:40:38
Dawn B: 1:46:00
Chris N: 1:46:56
Christie L: 2:26:43
Jane R: 2:28:09

Funny Moments
Speaking to Christie before the race and she casually drops into the conversation that she’s fractured her elbow but is running anyway – full respect!

See above Noz not sharing his prize bottle of wine.

My brother cycling a 20 mile round trip with his daughter in a bike trailer in the howling wind to support BDRC was great!

Would you recommend?
This is one of my favourite half marathons and I’d recommend it to everyone. It’s an ideal PB course and well organised with great support from the marshals.

Milton Keynes 10km (EMGP)- Tuesday 11th July 2023

Report by: Kim Fox
Distance: 10km
Location: Willen Lake, Milton Keynes
Web link:

Event Details:This race is part of the EMGP series, which is a series of 8 road races that are held on weekday evenings throughout the summer. You can enter the races individually or enter for the entire series.

Before the race:The race started at 7.45pm so it gave people time to get there after work. There was lots of parking near the lake, although no free parking unfortunately. People who entered for this race only could collect their numbers and/or sign up on the night, previous runners of the series had to remember to bring their number that got from previous races. There were toilets to use before the race too, which was lucky as we all like a pre-race toilet visit don’t we!

Who ran: Kim, Louise, Mary, Sarah C, Loren, David, Bish, Cornish, Jayne, Sue, Rachel (Lolly), Charlotte

The Race:
The race started and finished at Willen Lake and was well marshalled throughout. It consisted of 2 loops and involved a mixture of lake-side paths and paths along the main road. There was a water station halfway but disappointingly it only had sparkling fruit flavoured water. Not very refreshing at all. To make matters worse, at the end there was a very short supply of still fruit flavoured water. Several runners didn’t even get a bottle of water. So that was a shame, because otherwise it was a well organised race. No medals either, so not one for the medal collectors among us.

BDRC Results:
Cornish – 35.33
David – 45.11
Kim – 46.30
Bish – 52.03
Louise – 52.22
Rachel – 52.25
Sarah – 52.34
Sue – 54.01
Mary – 54.17
Jayne – 54.57
Charlotte – 57.52
Loren – 63.14

Would you recommend?
Definitely, as long as they sort out the water next year! It is a relatively local, mid-week race, it always has a good turn out too.

Otmoor Challenge – 1st July 2023 2023

Report by: Richard McMahon (Macca)
Distance: Half Marathon
Location: Horton cum Studley
Web link: http://www.otmoorchallenge.co.uk

Event Details:The Otmoor Challenge has been taking place for more than 40 years, however 2023 is the first time it has been held for three years due to the pandemic. It is a mixed terrain half marathon, with roughly half on road the rest on tracks and field paths. The course is mainly flat with the big exception of a significant hill around mile 10. In the past there has been a fete on the sports ground where the race starts and finishes but sadly this year there was no fete.

Before the race:There was plenty of parking on the field, meticulously organised by the Army Cadets!!

Who ran: Lolly (Rachel Prior), Bish (Michael Bishop) and Macca (Macca!)

The Race:
There was a sprinkling of rain before we headed off, but soon hit a bottle neck as we queued to run down a single width field-path, with no room to overtake. However, many of the early miles were on quiet country roads and it was then easier to get into a consistent rhythm. As the race progressed it moved onto trail, with some particularly uneven sections a threat to our ankles!! After mile 10 there is an extended steep climb and Humphries Hills stood me in good stead until the final 20 metres which were un-runable!! This climb was followed by a steep, slippery downhill over a meadow. The final mile was in the sun and is fast and flat along quite a busy road, before turning back onto the sports field and the finish.

BDRC Results:
Michael Bishop – 1:50:22
Rachel Prior – 2:07:
Richard McMahon – 2:09:13

Funny Moments
We thought Bish has stayed in bed, but he rolled up in time for the start!

Would you recommend?
I am a reluctant cross-country runner so I entered this race knowing it was roughly half on trail paths to challenge myself. It made a nice change to be on mixed terrain, but I still prefer road and so personally I would be reluctant to enter again, but I think many Club members would really enjoy this event. The race was well organised, well marshalled and there was tea and cake available at the end!!

OX5 – 26th March 2023

Report by: Adrian Crookes (YT)
Distance: ~5miles (came up a bit short!)
Location: Blenheim Palace
Web link: https://www.hospitalcharity.co.uk/news/ox5-2023-story

Event Details: A splendid traffic free road run round Blenheim estate, if not a little hilly. All proceeds go towards the fabulous Oxford Hospitals charity, which Chooch and I love to support – frankly, without the expertise of our local big hospital, we simply wouldn’t have our eldest daughter (Lucy) with us now, so running 5 miles is a very small repayment on a lifetime of debt we have with them! I am reliably informed by all the ladies present on the day that the toilets were the BEST EVER at any event they’ve been to before! Praise indeed! I’d love to think the club could continue to support this event, it’s a beaut! 😊

Before the race: The weather was slightly inclement on the day, drizzly and chilly, so we all huddled in the car until it was time to run. We did have a moment where we boogied to Jack FM just to get warm! Chooch, obviously won the dancing competition………NOT!! Louise H had loads of ex-colleagues running so they had a nice photo all together.

Who ran: Chooch, Mary, Louise H, Froggles & Christie (with the ever present Chris in support!) & me

The Race:
The distance came up slightly short (which I have raised with them), but other than that a lovely route through Blenheim, taking in some good views of the estate. Quite a tough route (Strava tells me ~360ft of ascent – felt more!). I think we all really enjoyed it!

BDRC Results:
Adrian CROOKES 00:35:19
Nicola CROOKES 00:38:16
Mary de Frates 00:40:37
Louise Honeyball 00:43:44
Claire Frogley 00:44:24
Christie Lines 00:49:22

Funny Moments
Silly things annoy me, like a young man passing me at a mile in saying “well done, keep going”……he was never gonna beat me after that, and he didn’t. Pathetic, I know!!! 😊
Pre-race jigging around whilst stuffing our faces with Jack FM sponsored sweets.
Pointing out “Wooly Susan” on the start line……

Would you recommend?
Absolutely yes! It is a bit more expensive than “normal” races, but as a one-off charity event that’s fine.

Banbury 15 – 19th March 2023

Report by: Mary De Frates
Distance: 15 miles
Location: Spiceball, Cherwell Drive, Banbury, OX16 2BW
Web link:

Event Details: A 15 mile race which starts and finishes at Spiceball Park. It is a very undulating course!

Before the race:Race number collection , toilets and showers were available at the Race Headquarters which was situated in the spiceball leisure centre. It was then a short walk to the start of the race at the Spiceball Country Park. At the start of the race BDRC runners met for photos and some enthusiastic chatter before nervously lining up to start the 15 mile hilly race!

Who ran: Michael Bishop, Kate Capps, Mary de Frates, Frances Edwards, Kim Fox, Keith Fox, David Griffiths-Allen and Louise Honeyball.

The Race:
The race starts in S7piceball country park on grass but then the race is run on pavements and country roads. The route heads out of Banbury from the park up the Southam road and then through the villages of Little Bourton, Great Bourton and Cropedy. You then do a lollypop loop taking in some beautiful Oxfordshire countryside before heading back through the villages and into Banbury and back to Spiceball park for the finish . The route is very undulating with the main uphill climbs being at mile 1.5 -2.5, mile 8-9 and at mile 11-12. There are plenty of smaller inclines inbetween too! The final couple of miles of the race are downhill which is a great way to finish. At the finish line you receive a lovely medal and there are lots of supportive cheers from the marshalls and other runners and supporters too. A very well organised and friendly race.

BDRC Results:
Keith Fox 1:41:13
Kim Fox 1:56:53
David Griffiths-Allen 1:57:54
Kate Capps 2:07:33
Michael Bishop 2:09:28
Frances Edwards 2:19:11
Mary de Frates 2:35:11
Louise Honeyball 2:35:11

Would you recommend?
I would definitely recommend this race. It is a tough course but the sense of achievement at the end is brilliant. The marshalls and other runners on the course were all very encouraging and friendly which made it a very enjoyable morning.

Not the Roman IX – NTRIX – Sunday 29th January 2023

Report by: Louise Honeyball
Distance: 12km
Location: Alveston Primary School, Stratford-upon-Avon, CV37 7BZ
Web link: https://stratfordac.co.uk/not-the-roman-ix-ntrix/

Event Details: An undulating 12km route starting and finishing at Alveston Primary School

Before the race:Parking was available at Stratford Bowls Club and Riverside Caravan Park, although this was limited, and the recommendation was to travel together where possible. Race HQ was at the primary school, just up the road from the car parks, where numbers were collected, facilities utilised (portaloos – but not too grotty!), and one could purchase coffee and cakes for charity. There was also a bag drop.

Who ran: Nicola (Chooch), Mary, Louise, Adrian (YT), Kevin (Cornish), Kate, Sue, Jayne

The Race:
The race started just a short walk from HQ on a closed road. It was an unseasonably beautiful sunny day for January. Perfect racing conditions. The race is categorised as undulating, the ups are tough, but the downs are amazing and there are more downs than ups for everyone to enjoy! There was a water station roughly halfway around the course, and I had a well-earned post-race coffee and cake from the charity stall at the finish.

BDRC Results:
Kevin Tustain 00:45:56
Adrian Crookes 00:53:34
Nicola Crookes 00:58:28
Kate Capps 01:00:39
Louise Honeyball 01:01:02
Mary de Frates 01:02:50
Jayne Cooper 01:04:46
Sue Torrance 01:06:20

Would you recommend?
It was a well organised and well marshalled race on a pretty route. The race memento was a pair of socks. Once size fits all, fairly naff quality, and I can’t say I’ve used them! As always, I would prefer a medal! Don’t let this deter you though, it was a great race, and I would recommend it if Stratford AC put it on again next year.

Cotswold Classic – 3rd September 2022

Report by: David Griffiths-Allen
Distance: 10 miles
Location: Witney, Oxfordshire
Web link: witneyroadrunners.co.uk/cotswoldclassic/

Event Details: Described as a ‘fundulating’ race in the Oxfordshire countryside

Before the race:Great communication, although the route looked tough with a total climb in excess of 500ft. Fortunately, the weather was near-perfect ‘on-the-day’ – cool and still.

Who ran: Adrian Crookes, Nicola Crookes, David Griffiths-Allen and Chris Noble

The Race:
A challenging undulating race with a killer climb mid-way, but very scenic and well-marshalled with perfectly-spaced drink stations.

Super-Vet Chris Noble led the way from the gun for BDRC with Adrian and David running close together before Club newcomer David eased ahead in the closing 2 miles. Nicola ran a solid sub 1 hour 30 as a returner (after a period of injury) to take 5th WV50.

BDRC Results:
Chris Noble: 1:09:39 (Gun); 27th of 272 runners; 3rd MV50
David Griffiths-Allen: 1:16:15 (Gun); 54th of 272 runners
Adrian Crookes: 1:17:34 (Gun); 62nd of 272 runners
Nicola Crookes: 1:28:09 (Gun); 125th of 272 runners; 5th FV50

Funny Moments
Watching a bunch of lean runners gulping down free beer at the finish!

Would you recommend?
Absolutely, a quintessentially English and well-orchestrated rural event 😊

Buckingham 10k – Sunday 23rd October 2022

Report by: Adrian Crookes (AKA: YT)
Distance: 10km
Location: Buckingham
Web link: https://chiptimingsolutions.com/results/result.html?race=322

Event Details: Nice small and local event. Starts in Buckingham town centre, goes up Stowe avenue, into Stowe national trust, where you do a loop around the lake, and back down Stowe avenue and back to the start.

Before the race:It was an extremely wet day, so most runners congregated in the ‘Old town Hall’ (which is now part of the Villiers Hotel). Pre-race banter and chitter chatter is always good fun! Free parking on a Sunday morning at the Waitrose car park.

Who ran: Macca, Tash, Nichola, Franko, Nat, Jayne & YT

The Race:
A really nice undulating course predominantly off road, but mainly on tracks and much of it through Stowe Gardens……apart from the weather, biblical rain, massive shin deep puddles, made it rather hard going! Still, we all still seemed to enjoy it!

BDRC Results:
YT: 45:51, Franko: 55:58, Nat: 55:59, Jayne: 56:25, Macca: 57:19, Tash: 59:56, Nichola (52:31 Strava time, No time on website!).

Big shout out to Jen Critchley also (who is a good friend of our Bobbles’) and finished first lady in 45:13!!!!

Funny Moments
All of it, mainly because of the weather!

Would you recommend?
Definitely recommend, particularly as it is so local. We should have this in BDRC champs!

Alchester 5km – Wednesday 10th August 2022

Report by: Louise Honeyball
Distance: 5km
Location: Marsh Gibbon Cricket Club
Web link: alchester-runningclub.co.uk

Event Details: A fast and flat 5km race mainly on road, starting and finishing at Marsh Gibbon Cricket Club. This race is part of the club calendar counting in both the club and handicap champs categories, and was a good opportunity for all to get a final speedy 5km in before the end of the season!

Before the race:There was plenty of parking in the field just a short walk away from the Race HQ at the cricket club in Marsh Gibbon. I hadn’t entered in advance but had no problem getting an on the day entry when I arrived. Facilities were a little limited; there was only one toilet, but I had a nice chat in the queue!! After a short run briefing we had a VERY short walk across the road to the start line – so short in fact, that some of us weren’t ready!

The Race:
The heatwave didn’t deter us mighty BDRCers – we are so hardcore! With temperatures over 30°C, we set off on this fast and flat course where the sun was melting the road and there was no shade! A two lapper with one big loop and one small loop with nice friendly marshals along the way. The finish was a lap of the edge of the cricket field and across the line where we were rewarded with an ice pop.

BDRC Results:
Christopher Noble – 00:19:51
Adrian Crookes – 00:22:07
Alan Smith – 00:22:24 (1st MV 60)
Alasdair MacSporran – 00:23:00
Claire Reynolds – 00:24:12
Nicola Crookes – 24:31
Ryan Paton – 00:25:15
Mark Poulton – 00:25:37
Jayne Cooper – 00:26:03
Sue Torrance – 00:26:05
Louise Honeyball – 00:26:25
Gareth Meade – 00:27:02

Funny Moments
Too hot to be funny!

Would you recommend?
It was a well organised and well marshalled race. In normal conditions, i.e. not a heatwave, if you are looking to get a fast 5km time this is a good opportunity. It is a flat course, and it isn’t too narrow or too busy. I think the memento, or lack of was pretty poor though. I would have personally preferred a medal or a T-shirt and I think £15 is a little expensive for water and an ice pop!

Cattle Creep – Sunday 20th February 2022

Report by: Heidi Carruthers
Distance: 10 miles
Location: Milton Keynes
Web link: bigcowsports.com/events/cattle-creep-a-little-further/

Event Details: No parking at the race HQ/start so Izzy and I parked at one of the recommended car parks where we met Sarah and we all walked to the HQ together. This was a good 10 minute or so walk and we didn’t really know where we were going as no signs anywhere but we soon saw other runners coming from other directions and their various car parks so we knew we were on the right track. Due to high winds there was no bag drop which I moaned about a fair bit! We met up with all the other BDRC’rs and we used my black bin bag that I was using to keep warm pre race to put all our hoodies in then that went into Kim’s shopping bag and we found a good hiding place for it. Passed on to Keith where it was for him to collect for us all when he finished!

The race started on time and was a kind of staggered start due to the narrow path through the woods to begin but we had chip timing so that was fine. It was a close pack to begin with but soon spread out and I was able to get into a decent pace. A long stretch of the race was alongside the canal which was extremely windy and a bit boring, I didn’t think it would end but as we turned off the canal we got to the good bit…a short off road section which led us to the cattle creep – literally a tiny, very narrow tunnel that even I had to bend down to get through. It was a fairly short tunnel so not as scary as I was imaging. After this there was a horrible uphill section on grass and the we turned back onto the path towards the finish at the pub. The commentary was really supportive and they seemed really impressed with the amount of BDRC runners. We rocked!

Funny Moments

– Not funny for Kim and Keith who both took a wrong turn and had to play catch up
– The commentator calling SYBT Susan and several of us shouting back ITS SUZANNE at her

Would you recommend?
I would recommend this event, i liked the 10 mile distance and the variety of road, track, canal and off road and the cattle creep is a bit of an unusual element. Nice medal too.

Yorkshire Marathon – Sunday 17th October 2021

Report by: Mark Poulton (AKA: Del Boy)
Distance: 26.2 miles
Location: York
Web link: letsdothis.com/gb/e/the-yorkshire-marathon-16691

Event Details: Around 7,000 runners start and finish in York taking in the lovely surrounding countryside and villages. A 10 mile race also took place starting just after the marathon.

Before the race: I stayed in a hotel close to the train station in York, where a regular shuttle service took runners and spectators to and from the event village. There was a real friendly atmosphere and buzz in the air and everyone eagerly awaiting the start of this re-arranged marathon. There was plenty of indoor space at the campus to keep warm and dry, a well organised event village with baggage store and stalls to buy food, drinks and discounted running gear.

Who ran: Me

The Race:
The race started at York University, running through the City Centre, passing York Minster just before the 2 mile mark. There was a large enthusiastic crowd even though the weather was not ideal for spectators, although perfect for runners, being still with a little drizzle. The start is perfect to get into a good stride being either flat or a slight downward trend for the first few miles.

After 4 miles you’re leaving the city behind you and start to take in the lovely Yorkshire countryside. In the village of Stockton-on-the-Forest you get to see the vicar standing outside his church high-fiving and blessing runners as they go past. The second half of the marathon is characterised by two out-and-back sections, the first of the U-turns being at Stamford Bridge where there was plenty of encouragement. These sections seemed never-ending, but the crowd support made it easier. The route returned to York, the sun came out for the last few miles and it was back to the university and the finish line, having being outran by “that sodding Rhino” but finishing comfortably before the Minions.

BDRC Results:
Mark Poulton: 04:47:58

Funny Moments
High-Fiving a Vicar, I’m not sure if any amount of prayers would have helped me on the last 10k though!

Would you recommend?
Yes, lovely location, well organised and supported. Plenty of water and gel stations.

London Marathon – Sunday 3rd October 2021

Report by: Julian Chronicle (AKA: King Julian)
Distance:26.2 miles
Location:London
Web link: virginmoneylondonmarathon.com

Event Details: The marathon that everyone wants to run! A huge event which generates world-wide interest, is televised in multiple countries and sees huge crowds cheering runners on. Getting into the marathon is not easy, you either have to be a) really good and get a “good for age place” b) raising lots of money (minimum of £2000) for a charity place or c) really lucky and get a place in the ballot. Your other option is to enter the draw for the BDRC club place, which has its own criteria!

The race starts on the outskirts of London in Greenwich, gradually working its way along the Thames to Tower Bridge, then looping around Canary Wharf before the iconic finish on The Mall.

Before the race: The London Marathon experience starts days before the actual run, with a trek out to Docklands to pick up your number and, if you’re like me, spend a fortune on new running kit!

On the day itself you need to get to Greenwich, which is easy enough as TfL have free travel for runners. Be warned, from the station it’s still quite a walk to the start. As well as the usual maaahooosive queues for the loos there was a real sense of excitement amongst runners, with lots of friendly encouragement and banter being exchanged. This year the run was started in waves, which I think worked well and controlled the numbers crossing the start at any one time, which helped runners settle into their pace more easily.

Who ran:
London: Sarah Scott, Stuart Coomber, Julian Chronicle, Karen Heslop
Virtual: Deb Payton, Sara Brookes, Kim Fox, Keith Fox, Mary de Frates, Holly King-Gubbins, Heidi Carruthers, Christie Lines

The Race:
After the start the race runs through Greenwich Borough and to be fair, it was pretty non-descript! The first real highlight was the iconic loop of Cutty Sark, at around mile-9, followed shortly after by the Thames crossing on Tower Bridge. Both of these had huge crowds, bands and a chance to wave to the cameras.

After Tower Bridge the halfway point was passed and it was into Docklands and Canary Wharf. Truth be told I don’t recall this area much, I hit “the wall” around mile-17 and wasn’t really taking much in. I do vaguely recall some huge shiny buildings! Heading back into Central London you pass the Tower of London and hit mile 20 and huge numbers of supporters – if you get this far the atmosphere will get you home. I honestly couldn’t believe the wall of noise you run through and it really helped me in the last few miles, before you make that final turn in front of Buckingham Palace for the “sprint finish” on the Mall. Then, as with any race, it’s finding your kit bag, posing for photos with your shirt and medla and trying to find your supporters amongst the tens of thousands of people!

Around the course there were water, gels, toilets at frequent intervals. Together with regular first-aid points. From a health and welfare perspective, I’ve never run a better set up race.

While there were a few quieter points the support from the crowd was phenomenal – people handing out sweets, drinks, calling out encouragement and running past a church a priest blessing runners!

BDRC Results:

London:
Karen Heslop: 3:26:44
Sarah Scott: 4:12:13
Stuart Coomber: 4:29:19
Julian Chronicle: 4:33:05

Virtual:
Keith Fox: 3:17:30
Kim Fox: 3:31:45
Heidi Carruthers: 4:00:14
Sara Brookes: 4:25:56
Mary de Frates: 4:35:23
Holly King-Gubbins: 4:57:52
Christie Lines: 5:10:25
Deb Payton: 5:22:52

Funny Moments
1. That sodding rhino – when you’re dying the last thing you want is to be overtaken be a rhino, I think Scotty had the same issue.
2. One of the bands playing YMCA and watching 50 tired runners trying to do the arm movements.

Would you recommend? Without a doubt yes – the hype is real – whatever you can do to get in, do it! I’ve already entered ballot for 2022. If you’ve never run a marathon before and not sure you can – let me tell you this – you can! I did

A final word:
As most of you know I am very keen to promote mental health awareness and to get everyone talking openly and honestly about it. Although I got in through ballot, I used the opportunity to raise money for MIND. To date I raised over £1600 which makes me doubly pleased I did it!

Stratford 10km – Sunday 5th September 2021

Report by: Adrian Crookes (AKA: YT)
Distance:10km
Location:Stratford
Web link: tempoevents.co.uk/events/stratfords-big-10k/

Event Details: Very established race, with quite a large field of runners, starts at the park in the centre of Stratford and runs South west out of the town towards Clifford Chambers and further Welford on Avon.

Before the race: With so much parking available at that time of day in Stratford it is dead easy to park pretty much anywhere and walk to the start/finish area. Gathering in the big playing field on a lovely warm day, it is then a further few hundred metre walk to the actual start out on the Shipston Road. There were some “loosely” arranged starting pens, but all got mixed up in the walk out to the start!

Who ran:
Cornish, Noz, The Power, YT, Choochi, Holly KG, Sue T, Blue, Del Boy, Karen D, CP#1

The Race:
It is a very nice countryside route. Starts by heading South West out of the town towards Clifford Chambers and further Welford on Avon. There is a sharpish turn off the main road at around halfway when you then head back towards Stratford along the Greenway. An old railway line with a decent packed shingle surface. It’s a very peaceful part of the course! The finish is back at the big wheel in the centre of town.

People tell me there were a couple of decent climbs on the route, I wasn’t pushing hard so didn’t really notice them, but the second one is a drag (apparently!) – the hills are both in the first half. Once on the Greenway it is dead flat!

It was mine and Chooch’s first proper race in 18 months, having both recently had Covid we couldn’t race it as we’d have liked to, but was great to be back in race!

BDRC Results:

Kevin Tustain 00:38:09
Christopher Noble 00:40:43
Serge Daval 00:42:14
Adrian Crookes 00:47:40
Nicola Crookes 00:51:43
Holly King-Gubbins 00:52:27
Sue Torrance 00:53:43
Karine Peter 00:55:19
Mark Poulton 00:55:04
Sanjeevpal Rai 00:58:21
Karen Dykes 01:01:35
Chloe Plester 01:03:59

Cornish arriving (with Noz obviously!) before the lark, and before the course was even set up. Me forgetting my wallet so couldn’t pay for the car park, so Delboy, who also kindly drove us there, had to pay…..I then found my wallet in another pocket! 😉 (Not called YT for nowt!!)

Would you recommend? Yes, definitely. Great venue, nice route!

Headington 5M – 29th August 2021

Report by: Frances Edwards
Distance: 5 miles
Location: Oxford
Web link: hrr.org.uk/h5m

Event Details: Organised by Headington Road Runners it is a fast flat 5 mile loop with chip timing and a 75 minute cut off.

Before the race: More towards the edge of Oxford and so relatively easy to get to. The car park was very well signposted with marshals ensuring people parked sensibly. Race HQ was a short walk from the car park and the race start a further short walk.

Who ran: Alan Smith, Frances Edwards, James Olliffe, Karen Dykes, Mark Poulton, Sue Torrance

The Race:
The race was extremely well marshalled and signposted. There was even some humour in the signage as one closer to the end reminded us at least it was flat! While you might expect a race in Oxford to provide stunning views of the Spires this race instead gave a great view of the northern bypass. But what it lacked in historical glamor it made up for in wide flat uncrowded pavements. There were even various supporters out round the route. It was obviously a fast race as when I made it to Barry’s first photo spot at 1.4m he had just finished packing up to move to a spot closer to the finish.

BDRC Results:
James Olliffe 28:16
Alan Smith 35:31 (A special well done for setting a club record)
Frances Edwards 40:04
Sue Torrance 41:19
Mark Poulton 43:07
Karen Dykes 46:52

Funny Moments
They called people to the start line based on expected finish times. They did this in small increments until they got to 40 minutes and then they just asked for everyone else… which was quite a lot of us! 119 out of 230 finished in over 40 minutes. James was once again probably home and showered before I finished. The race organisers had seem to have a working crystal ball as they issued me race number 113 and I finished in position 113. Mark managed to almost live up to his race number of 151 but seemed to somehow finish in joint(!?!) 152th place.

Would you recommend?
I would definitely recommend. The tshirts are great quality and it is a well organised race. They even had water and bananas which seem like a real luxury in this new covid world.

Cattle Creep 10km 17 June 2021

Report by: Rachel Prior
Distance: 10km
Location: Wolverton, Milton Keynes
Web link: bigcowsports.com/events/cattle-creep-10k-run

Event Details: Cattle Creep 10km Starts and ends near the Wolverton House pub is a fairly flat picturesque route that takes in paths, through fields, canal towpaths, river paths, cattle grids and the ‘Cattle- Creep’ which is a 15m low dark tunnel, under the Grand Union Canal.

Before the race:We arrived in good time and there was plenty of parking around the start location, ample toilet facilities and friendly race organisers to answer any questions.

Who ran:
Kevin Tustain, Rachel Prior, Sue Torrance, Jayne Cooper, Karen Dykes, Chloe Plummer and Abbey Palmer.

The Race:
At the time of booking we were offered start times 15 minutes apart, and so at our allotted time after a very detailed pre race briefing we were walked down to the start location, and set off at 10 second intervals. The weather was perfect not too hot or windy and so quite pleasant to run through the open countryside, past the friendly Marshall’s who were very supportive and also kept the gates open. The route takes you across parkland, past the Wolverton Viaduct, then a bit of boardwalk and a short section of road side path, along the canal towpath and through the Cattle Creep, (where even I had to duck to get through without banging my head !) And then back through the fields to the finish line, to be rewarded by sweets and a fabulous wooden medal.

BDRC Results:

Kevin Tustain 38.31- Overall Winner
Sue Torrance 50:02
Rachel Prior 52:07
Abbey Palmer 54:22
Jayne Cooper. 55:25
Karen Dykes 59:07
Chloe Plummer 1:02:08

Would you recommend? Yes definitely. A well organised race, friendly Marshall’s and and a very inspiring route. I really enjoyed it and would do it again.

The Cotswolds Hilly 100 – 12th May 2019

Report by:
Julian Chronicle (AKA: King Julian) – Leg 1 – 7
Chloë Plester (AKA: CP#1) – Leg 8
Chris Noble (AHA: Nozzle) – Leg 9 – 10

Distance: 100-miles (split into 10-legs of roughly 10-miles)
Location: All over the Cotswolds!
Web link: click here

Event Details:

The Cotswold Hilly 100 is a road relay race divided into 10 legs each of approx. 10 miles. The race starts at the American Fountain, Market Sq., in Stratford-upon-Avon and finishes at the Stratford Sports Club. The route follows mainly minor roads that meander through the Cotswolds.

The race has been held for over 25 years and as the name suggests there are a number of ‘undulations’. However, it is the club spirit this race generates that is the main attraction. Teams are responsible for supporting each runner (logistics / support / marshalling / first aid etc) and ensuring a successful handover at the end of each leg. But sometimes, the best laid plans…😂

All race profits are donated to Charity, the Shakespeare Hospice.

Before the race:

KJ: My god it was early!!! And cold! However, undaunted the Brackley runners met at 03:45 to load cars with bikes, food, drinks and everything else needed for a 14-hour mobile picnic. It was obviously a bit early for Bish as he realised that he’d forgotten his running shoes! Luckily early enough to pick them up. With runners from other clubs a small group gathered in the centre of Stratford, not quite sure why they were there and really hoping it would warm up. A very low-key check on the teams and then the first runners were off.

CP#1: As a Hilly 100 virgin, I had little idea of what I had let myself in for and naively agreed to be signed up on the promise of a fun day out! After experiencing the joyous camaraderie of cheering on my fellow team mates on their legs, I was more than a little apprehensive about my turn. I had already seen that the ‘hills’ were indeed hills not ‘undulations’ or ‘inclines’ and that the vast majority of the other participants were very serious much faster runners than myself. Thank goodness I belong to Brackley! The only pressure and expectations put on me where to enjoy it.

Noz: Organisation of the highest order by Power & Karine had meant that at the start of leg 6 my bike and I had been transferred from its roof top view on KJ’s vehicle to The Power’s love bus. We supported Rachel through leg 6, but then halfway through supporting Nichola on leg 7 we had to head for the start of Power’s leg 9. This mean missing supporting CP1. After a few e-map checks we got to the start point in what we thought was plenty of time for Power to do a warm up. We faffed around getting ready (see ‘Funny Moments) and before we knew it, Meadester and Jockey had arrived saying CP1 was not far away. This was way sooner than we anticipated, CP1 putting in a riiight quality shift for the BDRC cause.

Who ran | supported:

1. Nicola (Choochi) | Chris (Noz)
2. Gareth (Meadster) | Michael B (BBB)
3. Jamie (Jockey) | Rachel (Lolly)
4. Clip Clop (Tash) | Nicola (Choochi)
5. KJ (Julian) | Nicola (Choochi)
6. Rachel (Lolly) | Suzanne (SPYBT)
7. Nichola | Suzanne (SPYBT)
8. Chloë (CP#1) | Michael P (Mike the Bike)
9. Serge (Power) | Chris (Noz)
10. Hannah | Eoin (ET) and Michael B (BBB)

The Race:

KJ
The event had three start times of 5am, 6am and 7am, your start time dependent on your expected arrival back in Stratford, with the organisers aiming to have most teams arriving back around 5pm.

As one of the many teams there to enjoy the day, Brackley had the early start time of 5am – and boy was it freezing! Choochi had the honour of leading Brackley off, ably supported by Noz on the bike, with Leg 1 heading out through Welford upon Avon and down through Long Marston.

The first order of the day for the rest of us was food, caffeine and a loo stop – not necessarily in that order! Not surprisingly, as it was still the middle of the night, nothing was open. So it was a case of looking for “wild wee” spots, a recurring theme for the day! Fields, pub car-parks, walls and woods all received “visits” throughout the day.

Our first hand over to Meadster, with Bish running support, will probably go down in history as the worst change over ever – given that Meadster wasn’t there! Luckily Bish grabbed the baton and found Meadster a few hundred yards down the road.

Heading into the Cotswolds proper, the pair headed into the Cotswolds proper, passing through Chipping Camden (Toilets open – yay!) and onto Snowshill taking in some proper serious hills. It was on the hills that Meadster decided to actually run for Brackley and show his top.

A slick change over to Jamie at the start of Leg 3 as the sun finally began to warm us up and we were into tiny back lanes and I think the 18th century. Jamie, supported by Lolly on the bike, had the “honour” of having a leg closer to 11-miles – we didn’t tell him that before – and also managed to throw in a few hurdles, over geese as well!

Leg 4 started on a very narrow road, where a few people were demonstrating their inability to park out of the way! But not to be deterred, Tash was ready to run with Choochi supporting (the first of 2 legs) on the bike. Tash I think had one of the hilliest legs to run, with some proper tough climbs to conquer, but true to her nickname she clip-clopped her way up them all and even managed a trade-mark jump passing us!

Gulp – my turn to run! First 4-legs had been completed in record time, with the old-hands saying we were at least an hour up on normal, and I was worried I was about to bring the average time crashing down. A smooth handover and I was off on a steady downhill section for the first few km, with the only problem being Choochi and I not managing the drinks bottle handover very well.

The heat of the day was now very much in evidence (and I have the burnt shoulders to prove it) and the fast runners from the 7am start were now coming through and making it look easy. The last hill into and out of Northleach broke me and I walked for a bit, before handing over to Rachel for Leg 6.

With Suzanne supporting on the bike, Rachel was off heading back towards Stratford, including tourist dodging in Bourton on the Water and the almighty hills around the Slaughters. At this point the team split, with the runners and supporters for Leg 8 onwards heading off to the 1pm mass start. The first time BDRC have taken this option, however we all agreed it worked well as it meant finishing with other teams around 5pm and being able to join in the festival atmosphere back in Stratford.

A hilltop finish for Rachel and a handover to Nichola for Leg 7, with Suzanne still supporting on the bike. Poor old Nichola unfortunately had a lonely run, as myself, Choochi and Tash finally broke out the frying pan and had a fry-up and everyone else headed up to the later stages. I then went off course, so we went straight to Morton-in-Marsh to see Nichola home, and for Tash and Chochi to sneak in a quick beer.

A fantastic run by Nichola saw her finish off Leg 7 and then we all headed off to catch the finish back in Stratford.

CP#1
My leg (8) had a mass start at 1pm, at Moreton in the Marsh. I was lucky to have the excellent support of Michael Prior (Mike the bike) who had gone above and beyond with his navigation responsibility and driven the course the day before to make sure I didn’t take any wrong turns. He also kept riding back to make sure the two ladies behind me went the correct way. He didn’t lose me once and kept me informed in advance of when and where to turn off. Top notch service.

Pro’s of leg 8:

• I had an exact start time so could prep easier, when to eat, drink, have a nervous wee, etc.
• Started opposite a pub so had the joy of an actual toilet, rather than a field with a view to have said nervous wee in.
• Started with a crowd of runners to initially follow, until they all disappeared rapidly over the hills and far away.
• Due to leg 6 and 7 taking place during my run, I had less Brackley members to watch me struggle up the hills.

Con’s of leg 8:

• Due to leg 6 and 7 taking place during my run, I only had one car load of support members to encourage me along. Thanks Jockey and Meadster for making up for the lack of numbers with quality cheering.
• There were hills ! (surprise, surprise). I can only remember two significant ones though.
• The sun had got rather high in the sky by 1pm and it was a little toasty.
• The last mile or so was on a main road and I had to dive into the hedge to avoid being snuffed out by a lorry.
• I missed out on being handed a baton

Noz
Leg 9 – The Power lives up to his name!
Start point was bedlam as there were cars and people all over the shop. Fortunately, Serge & Karine had parked further away from the start and the course. CP#1 came speeding down the lane, handed over the baton for Power to then run back up the lane and join the main route where I was waiting on velo support duty… eeeasy, but it must have been a right hassle for Karine to drive through to join the course to follow us.

Crikey, what a super consistent run. Basically, he smashed it!!! Up hills, no problem, smashed ‘em. Flats, smashed ‘em! The leg 9 massive, long downhill section, smashed it! That downhill section is worse than running uphill. There was a huge great farm machine hurtling down the hill and I hoped it managed to get by the runners without killing them.

Halfway down I pulled over, let the huge tractor thing by and saw the very much still alive Power pelting down. I shouted ‘remember the Boggy downhill style’ and later Power did say it actually worked. There were a few crossroads to navigate, but unlike previous years there were marshals at every one, a very pleasant surprise. Some parts were run on busier roads, where I’d cycle behind Power as a bit of protection when he ran on the left side of the road. Most of the time though, along with Karine in the supporting love bus, he’d be powering on relentlessly on the right side and I’d be going ahead to suss the route and potential hazards. The leg finished with a small climb and handover to the waiting Hannah in the shady woods. Faaantabulous!!

Leg 10 – Nervous Hannah, relaxed awesome Hannah!
Hannah had looked a bit nervous before the start and pretty sure the attempted calming words by several of us didn’t actually help. However, she seemed to quickly relax into her run coz every time we drove by or pit-stopped for a HT run-by, she’d have a big old beaming smile on her face. She was ably escorted by ET and BBB, so they must have eased her worries… right?? We all got back to Stratford to a packed sports ground, a very strange feeling for those who’d done the H100 before, seeing other Clubs runners/support. That didn’t stop us once again, setting ourselves up on the finish line to do the ceremonial BDRC archway for Hannah to run through, take the applause and us all to put on our event t-shirts, pose for silly pics and have a well deserved drink from the bar.

Funny Moments:

KJ
There are just too many to mention as this was such a fun day out, of note are:

• Choochi’s adventures behind the wall
• Noz’s comment about finding his Garmin on Tash’s leg
• Tash’s issues with long grass
• Jamie and the geese
• Noz being frozen solid on his bike support leg
• Loo stops with a view

CP#1
Due to the support vehicles being separated for overlapping legs. Meadster and Jockey missed out on the famous KJ bacon baps. Taking that as a Vegan win!

Noz

• Power realising he didn’t have his running shorts with a pocket in, therefore no place to put phone and listen to the Spanish F1 Grand Prix while running.
• Serge & Karine sat in their camper chairs basking in the sun with their sun hats on.

Would you recommend?

KJ – Without a doubt! While there were some fantastic individual runs throughout the day, the main thing was the team-spirit and enjoyment of the event. Despite the length of the day, the hours flew by in a whirl of cake, encouragement, cake, supporting, cake and did I say cake.

CP#1 – Whole heartedly. It did indeed live up to the brief of a fun (long) day out. I felt like I had passed some initiation ceremony into BDRC. I hope for it to be a yearly date in my diary.

Noz – Absolutely!! Not only great running routes and camaraderie, but BDRC’ers getting to socialise with fellow Club members that maybe they wouldn’t normally see or spend time with… and getting to realise what eejits we all are! Also, see how superior the BDRC camaraderie and eejitry is compared to other Clubs/runners.

White Horse Half Marathon – 7th April 2019

Report by: Julian Chronicle (AKA: King Julian)
Distance: Half Marathon
Location: Grove
Web link: whitehorseharriers.uk

Event Details: Starting and finishing in Grove, the course quickly heads out into the countryside onto an anti-clockwise loop around the Vale of White Horse and finally back on the same road into Grove. Race is mainly flat and run on quiet country lanes which are generally well surfaced, eagle eyed BDRC runners will have spotted a couple of miles are run (in reverse) along the Hanney 5-mile course.

Before the race: It was easy to spot those who’d never run this event before! They followed the signs to the official race car park and as a result had walked miles before they got to the HQ! Old timers sensibly parked on road closer to start. The HQ itself was in local primary school and had changing, loos and a bag-drop. From here it was a 5-min walk, or chance to warm up for the serious runners, to the start. As always the BDRC runners sought each other out for chat/micky taking/support and encouragement and the odd photo.

Who ran:
Being a Club Championship event there was an impressive turnout: Karine, Nicola, Claire, Maxine, Louise, Chloe, Julie, Kelly, Chris, Kevin, Adrian, Stuart, Gareth, Mark, Julian

The Race:
A very relaxed start with runners gathering on closed road near Rugby club, the BDRC runners spaced at intervals throughout the pack based on how “up for it” we were feeling! If there was a pre-race briefing it was inaudible and those of us at the back didn’t even hear a gun/hooter – only realised race had started when we looked up from chatting to see runners heading up the road!

Race headed around outskirts of Grove, with some lively support from local residents, before heading out into the countryside. As a small event, runners quickly spread out and found their pace. Around the 2-mile mark there was a very short hill to turn onto the circuit, shortly after this it was SMILE for Barry – and jump if you had the energy (I didn’t). Around the 5-mile mark race turned left, which in my head was the second segment of the circuit, and passed a welcome drinks station.

It was then a long stretch up to the top of the circuit and onto third section of circuit (in my head it was squarish ok) and another welcome and enthusiastic drinks station. Hitting the 9/10 mile mark a few people were beginning to flag, of which I was very much one and it was a real effort to force a grin for Barry who was lurking at the 11-mile mark. With Del Boy, Mini Max and myself running close together at this point a marshal asked if this was a club championship event – I just about managed to answer yes. Finally the circuit was completed and it was the home straight towards Grove, a couple of railway bridges seemed like Everest, but by now the finish was audible. The 13-mile marker was finally here and a final sprint (or crawl) on a brief grass section to the line.

BDRC Results:
Ladies:
Karine – 1:44:40 (PB)
Choochi – 1:46:00
Froggles – 1:49:32 (PB)
Mini Max – 1:57:13 (PB)
Chloe – 2:09:19
Wazzer – 2:18:13
R Kelly – 2:21:27

Men:
Noz – 1:25:22
Cornish – 1:27:10
YT – 1:37:10 (PB)
Serge (Power) – 1:39:35
Disco Stu – 1:42:53
Meadster – 1:51:12
Del Boy – 1:56:15 (PB)
King Julian – 1:57:02

Funny Moments:
Much amusement in the Men’s Changing area at the size/height of the toilets! I didn’t check the ladies…….

Cornish complaining afterwards that he was having to walk the furthest to post run drink as the “old gits” couldn’t face going further than Flag.

Would you recommend? Yes, it is a small well organised event and an ideal race for anyone looking to attempt their first half. As the results show, the flat course also has plenty of PB potential for those looking for a fast time. My one slight criticism is that the car-park, HQ and Finish were somewhat spread out across Grove.

MK Festival of Running – 17th March 2019

Report by: Richard McMahon (AKA Macca)
Distance: 5k, 10k, half marathon and 20 miles.
Location: Milton Keynes
Web link: mkrun.co.uk

Event Details: MK Festival of running claims to be the ‘biggest festival of running in the country’, and it certainly attracts a large field. This well-established event is a Club favourite as with the variety of distances there is something for everyone. For that reason, the Club subsidises the entries and as a consequence almost half of all our members participated in one race or another. The run village was based outside Xscape and had plenty of portaloos, a baggage drop off and registration tent.

Before the race:Despite there being several thousand runners, parking within easy walking distance is not a problem, even if you are arriving for one of the later races. The start times were staggered, with the 20 miler away first at 9.50AM, and the half away last at 10.45AM. Despite this there were a larger contingent of BDRCers at the meeting point before the 20 milers headed off. The weather was brass monkeys, so there was a lot of debate about the merits or otherwise of base layers, shorts and running vests!! As well as Club members, there were a lot of familiar faces from other clubs and local parkruns. I ran the half marathon, which had the advantage of seeing all the other races start, and even some of the 5k racers finishing!!

Who ran:
5k:
Claire ‘Froggles’ Frogley, Maxine ‘Mini Max’ Sutton, Julie ‘Wasler’ Waller, Anne-Marie Gordon, Tom ‘Tommo’ Frogley, Gareth ‘Meadster’ Meade, Alasdair MacSporran.

10k:
Nicola ‘Choochi’ Crookes, Karine Peter, Alexandra Raschke, Nicola Olliffe, Sara Brooks, Siobon ‘Shiv’ Herring, ‘Our’ Kelly Llewelyn, Adrian ‘Yorkshire Terrier (YT)’ Crookes, ‘Power’ Serge Daval, Andrew Gardner, Michael ‘Bish Bash Bosh’ Bishop, ‘King’ Julian Chronicle, Jamie ‘Jock’ Horseman.

Half Marathon:
Chloe ‘CP#1’ Plester, Chloe ‘CP#2’ Plummer, Emily Cowing, Rachel ‘Lolly’ Prior, Kevin ‘Cornish’ Tustian, Richard ‘Macca’ McMahon, James Olliffe, Toby Cartwright, Tom Weedon, Paul Brown.

20 Miles:
Heidi Lewis, Sarah Scott, Louise Follner, Louise Stephens, Frances Cartwright, Chris ’Noz’ Noble, Mark ‘Del Boy’ Poulton, Dave Bowen, Ian ‘Mazzo’ Marriott.

Sorry if I have missed anyone!!

The Race:
I ran the half, and positioned myself halfway back from the start so as to keep out of trouble! The course started on the dual carriageways which even with the high numbers allows runners to have reasonable space within half a mile or so. After 2 miles the course became more park than urban, with the route going through Woughton on the Green, and then heading towards Willen Lake. I gradually caught the 2:10 pacers and had to make my presence known to get past as the pack of runners with them were spread across the whole width of the path. The course takes a large, 10 mile, loop, incorporating the two well manned water stations before heading to Campell Park and the notorious hill. The 20 mile and half marathon routes come together about three miles from home making the course quite crowded with runners with a greater variety of paces. A few miles from home I spotted CP#1 ahead and managed to tag along next to her. Tom Weedon soon joined us, but clearly having plenty left in the tank pulled away and was soon out of sight. Whilst the course is relatively flat, the last mile is up hill, with the energy sapping Beacon Hill drawing the last bit of determination out of runners before the sprint to the finish line.

BDRC Results:
5k Women:
Claire Frogley 22:53 (First in age group)
Maxine Sutton 26:30 (First in age group)
Julie Waller 28:08
Anne-Marie Gordon 28:46

5k Men:
Gareth Meade 23:32
Alasdair MacSporran 24:04
Tom Frogley 25:20

10k Women:
Nicola Crookes 47:04 (First in age group)
Karine Peter 48:02 (second in age group)
Alexandra Raschke 50:42
Nicola Olliffe 54:08
Sara Brooks 55:31
Siobon Herring 58:28
Kelly Llewelyn 1:02:03

10k Men:
Michael Bishop 43:04
Serge Daval 44:05
Adrian Crookes 45:05
Julian Chronicle 52:30
Andrew Gardner 1:00:53
Jamie Horseman 1:02:03

Half Marathon Women:
Emily Cowing 2:00:42
Rachel Prior 2:02:58
Chloe Plester 2:08:10
Chloe Plummer 2:57:47

Half Marathon Men:
James Olliffe 1:22:33
Kevin Tustian 1:33:01
Toby Cartwright 1:39:39
Paul Brown 1:58:08
Tom Weedon 2:07:15
Richard McMahon 2:08:10

20 Miles Women:
Heidi Lewis 2:48:42
Louise Follner 3:06:31
Frances Cartwright 3:15:01
Sarah Scott 3:16:01
Louise Stephens 3:46:45

20 Miles Men:
Chris Noble 2:21:43
Dave Bowen 2:36:20
Ian Marriott 2:37:09
Mark Poulton 3:16:02

Funny Moments:
King Julian’s interview to camera, hopping from one leg to the other, whilst Froggles tried to get a word in!!

Would you recommend? Yes. The race is well organised, well marshalled and at the end you get a bottle of water, a banana and a medal! As is becoming more common, if you want a shirt you have to pay extra for it. The courses are fairly flat, and whilst MK has the reputation of being all roundabouts and dual carriageways, the routes are predominantly through parks and away from the main roads. The large numbers of entrants gives a good atmosphere, without being so crowded you can’t get in a decent rhythm.

Leighton 10K – 31 March 2019

Report by: Eoin Tweeddale (AKA ET)
Distance: 10km
Location: Long Marston Cricket Club
Web link: leightonfunrunners.org.uk

Event Details: Annual Leighton Buzzard 10K organised by Leighton Fun Runners. A different route to their normal race due to building works in Leighton Buzzard.

Before the race: Entertainment by the Ukie-Toones – a 10 piece ukulele ensemble playing fun songs including Hi-Ho Silver Lining, Friday I’m in Love, Yellow and many more. Great fun.

Who ran:
Running Royalty (King Jules), Nobility (Noz) and the extra-terrestrial (ET)

The Race:
An early 9am start (especially as the clocks had gone forward the night before). A flatish route taking in country and residential roads with a challenging section along the Grand Union Canal towpath.

BDRC Results:
1. Noz: 39:18
2. ET: 49:43
3. King Jules: 51:28

Funny Moments:
Realising that BDRC were represented solely by the V50s. Now known as the BDRC Saga Louts.

Would you recommend? Yes, fun being serenaded by Ukie-Toones, inexpensive race fee, good course, well marshalled with good facilities

Millennium Way Ultra – Sunday 3rd March 2019

Report by: Gareth Meade (AKA Meadster)
Distance: 41 miles
Location: Newport, Shropshire – Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire
Web link: BeyondMarathon.com

Event Details: It’s a point to point race From a car park in Newport to Shobnall leisure centre in Burton Upon Trent. Run mainly along canal tow paths, Old railway lines, Riversides and fields.

Before the race: Signing on is at Shobnall leisure centre. When you sign in you get your number, a timing chip and a GPS tracker which had to be fitted high up on your body. You are then loaded on to a coach that takes you to Newport town centre car park for the start. Once at the start there was the usual explanation including “don’t fall in the canal or the slurry pit”.

Who ran:
Who ran: Pete “Boggy” Faulkner and Gareth “Meadster” Meade

The Race:
It all started off well none of the forecasted showers or high winds. The first couple of miles were through Newport and then you head out of town on cycle route 55 which is an old railway line. You basically follow this to checkpoint 1 at 11 miles. Nice running. I was lucky and got talking to a young lady from Nantwich called Suzanne Lynn and three guys from Manchester. After checkpoint 1 you run through Stafford and follow the river Sow and then along the Worcestershire and Staffs canal to check point 2 at mile 21. From here you carry on with the canal eventually turning on to the Trent and Mersey canal through Rugeley. At this point you head under the railway lines and across the ploughed, muck spread fields to Yoxall for check point3 at 31 miles. The fields did smell quite badly with all the muck that had been spread across them and in some places were ankle deep in slurry. Yeuggh. Luckily unlike one of the Manchester guys I managed to stay on my feet. There were a couple of hills at this point which were very slippy and yes your right the guy from Manchester slipped over again, sliding back down the hill. From here you carry on across the fields dodging the Bullocks and sheep to Wychnor and then back down onto the Trent and Merseyside canal which runs alongside the A38. This you follow for the remaining 6 miles into Burton and then Shobnall, passing Branston water park and Burton Marina, where you head up onto the small road section back into the leisure centre. Getting back in time for a warm pie and a warm cup of coffee. Aah nice. Although relatively flat (it only has about 200 feet of elevation) it is fairly arduous as there isn’t any rest up, as it’s full on running. The checkpoints were well set for food and drink. We did have a number of showers but nothing like what was forecast. (Think you guys had it worse) but it did get very very windy for the last 10 miles due to Storm Freya.

BDRC Results:
Pete “Boggy” Faulkner a fantastic 4th place in a time of 6:26.40, 40 minutes quicker than he did last year and only 16 minutes behind the winner. Awesome work on that terrain. I finished 98th out of 209 in a time of 9:44.51

Funny Moments:
Typical as Jasper Carrot (70’s comedian) would say, I got the “Nutter” on the bus sit next to me. First he decided to eat six bananas and then wouldn’t shut up telling me about his running, so I didn’t get any sleep. Not really funny more demoralising, during the run just when I was starting to struggle I got overtaken by a bloke in a Scooby Doo costume.

Would you recommend?Yes. A good race for a first time Ultra runner but more gruelling than you would think. Well organised. You will need to self-navigate (or cheat like I did and follow the others around you).

Gayton – Sunday 27th January 2019

Report by: James Ollife
Distance: 5km & 10km
Location: Gayton, Northants
Web link: onyourmarksevents.org/events1/running-events/gayton-10k-5k-run.html

Event Details: The Northamptonshire village of Gayton sits on top of a hill, overlooking Northampton. The 5k run is a fairly flat route, taking runners through the village of Gayton on quiet, mostly single track roads. The 10k event takes runners from Gayton down single track roads over the Grand Union Canal and railway bridge, with breathtaking views of Northampton. The sting in this run is the Gayton Hill to climb back into the village to join the 5k route back to the finish line.

Before the race:Absolutely fricking freezing!!! Waking up in the early hours to hear the wind whipping around the house had already pre warned that it was going to be nasty out there but nothing could have prepared us for the icy gale that was blowing on Sunday morning!! The long trudge uphill from the school car park to the race hq at the farm was soundtracked by complaints of grumpy cold runners (why oh why do we do this again and again?!). Once at the farm it was a case of collecting your number, trying to ensure it didn’t blow away before you pinned it on, and finding a spot in amongst the farm machinery in the corner of a barn. 2 portaloos was about right for this many people and strangely enough inside one was probably the warmest spot to hang out pre-race!! The call to race start came at 10:50 and we all duly filed along to the start, which in itself was a bit of a farce, runners dodged cars that were still driving along the open country lane whilst the organisers spread out the start mat (and lifted it again to let said vehicles through). Hanging around and starting late there were a fair few grumbles from those around me. When we finally did get underway an organisers car parked in the middle of the road created a quick chicane within the first 20m. I’ve heard a few negative remarks about On Your Marks events and to be honest they didn’t cover themselves in glory here unfortunately!!

Who ran:
10km – James, Kevin (Cornish), Heidi, Claire (Froggles), Sue, Mark (Del Boy), Louise, Alex, Richard (Macca), Nicola O, Chloë and Andrew

5km – Nicola C (Choochi), Eoin (ET) and Tom (Tommo).

The Race:
After the shaky start it was an ok, yet lonely race for me in the end. A small group of us were together at the start, annoyingly I ended up on the front with a couple of smaller guys tucked in sheltering behind through the first km. A chap I recognised from Leighton Buzzard AC as being faster than me pushed on slightly and I knew there was no way I was going to stay with him for the whole race so made the decision to let him go. My main aim today was to keep it nice and controlled and not go mad, I was not expecting a pb by any stretch but really didn’t want to blow up and hate the day. The first 5km are undulating with a nice long downhill and a few short sharp uphill’s, the large railway bridge being one of them, I ended up having to dodge a couple of cars waiting at the traffic lights so I imagine this could have caused a bit of grief in the middle of the pack where it was a bit busier. The wind was really quite crazy and there were a couple of times where I was almost blown off the road (no exaggeration I promise!), there were a fair few swear words spat though gritted teeth at this point!! Next up I had to focus on the notorious hill at 5km, I intentionally dialled it back a little so as not to be on the edge when I got there, as I did this I could hear the chap behind gaining on me, he sounded like he was struggling a lot more than me and I knew if I could keep him behind on the hill chances are that would be the last I saw of him. Luckily this was the only point of the whole day where the wind was a blessing, it was a tailwind all the way uphill so gave a nice gentle nudge up the incline, I did manage to keep in front and sure enough I didn’t hear him again. Over the top and through a village, a special mention must go to the marshal manning the water station, she gave me a cheery wave as I ran passed and she looked absolutely frozen. Around 7km ish the 5km racers joined the 10km route, this is always a welcome distraction and it was nice to see plenty of youngsters running; I always try to make a point of giving them a well done as I pass. There were a few more ups and downs as we approached the finish with a nasty little uphill before the final turn back to the farm. I picked it up for the last few hundred metres and crossed the line 2nd overall, two races and two trophies as a BDRC member, orange must be my lucky colour!! 37:18 today, better than I predicted pre race but some way off what I know I am capable of so bitter-sweet I guess.

After chucking on a few layers it was nice to cheer new clubmates on at the finish (apologies for when I inevitably cheer the wrong name at you – it took me over 3 years to learn half the names at my previous club and I still got those wrong!!)

Well done to all that finished on what was a tough day, if you managed a decent time today then you are in a great place for a flat course on a calmer day!!

BDRC Results:
Two more trophies for the club this weekend (4 in the space of 7 days I believe!).
Both 2nd places today, Nicola Crookes in the 5k and myself in the 10k.

10km Results
James Olliffe 0:37:18
Kevin Tustain 0:38:15
Heidi Lewis 0:47:15
Claire Frogley 0:47:27
Sue Torrance 0:48:51
Mark Poulton: 0:51:44
Louise Follner 0:51:59
Alex Raschke 0:52:52
Richard Mcmahon 0:54:35
Nicola Olliffe 0:56:09
Chloë Plester 0:57:27
Andrew Gardner:0:58:41

5km Results
Nicola Crookes 0:22:51
Eoin Tweedale 0:23:56
Tom Froggley 0:25:12

Not so much a funny moment but a relief at being handed a trophy immediately after crossing the line meaning there was no need to wait around in the cold (did I mention it was cold?!) for a presentation. Apparently, it was because the podium couldn’t be set up due to the wind!!

Would you recommend? On a day when it’s not blowing a gale then maybe it’s an ok, local race, but a few quid overpriced. If the weather is anything like this one then no way!!