From Jill Ezard…
Age group wins and National level events end February on a high for Harriers
It was an impressive turnout this week for the Harriers at the first Evensplits 5k event of the series. The races are held monthly from February to November at the University of Leeds Brownlee Centre and are a great way to challenge yourself consistently through the year. With ten Harriers competing, there were some outstanding performances in this first event: Dave Foyston was the first home in 17:01 taking 20th place overall and second in his age category. Ruth Kitchen was the first lady home taking fourth place in her age category in a time of 18:47; but it was Jann Smith, Petra Bijsterveld and Hilda Coulsey who really stood out each taking first place in their age categories in 21:48, 23:59 and 24:54 respectively. A great turnout and a great set of results!
On Saturday it was off the track and onto the trails for the National Cross Country Championships at Bolesworth Castle near Tattenhall, Cheshire. Anyone can enter the National Championships, so it’s a great opportunity to test yourself against the best and five Harriers set out to do just that. Emily Gibbins was the first Harrier out on the course competing in the Junior Women’s 6k race. She came home in 27th place in a superb time of 25:18. Next up was the Senior Women’s 8k race where Sarah Pickering and Petra Bijsterveld were flying the Harriers’ flag, completing the course in 36:32 and 45:53 respectively. Ed Hobbs was the Harriers’ representative in the Junior Men’s 10k race completing it in 36:42. And finally Jonathan Greenwell completing the Senior Men’s 12k race in 51:05.
On Sunday it was back on firm ground with the It’s Grim Up North Settle runs. Consisting of three distances, half marathon, 10 miles and 10 kilometres, this event is on quiet open roads from Settle towards Austwick and back. Four Harriers took part in the events with some great performances: In the 10 mile event Catherine Crawley was the first Harrier home taking eight place overall and second female in an impressive 1:17:42; Kay Pearce was third female coming in only a few minutes behind in 1:22:23; and Charlotte Smithson completed the course in 1:45:53. Tom Razazan was the only Harrier competing in the more popular half marathon event and he had a great run with a top 10 finish, completing the course in 1:30:57 in eighth place.
Continuing on the road, Tony Pye, travelled to Pocklington for the Snake Lane 10, as the name suggests, a race that contains a winding stretch that snakes its way through the countryside at the foot of the Yorkshire Wolds. On this flat and fast 10 mile course Tony had a great run, completing the event in 01:05:35.
Finally, 20 Harriers headed out on Saturday morning for the weekly timed parkruns across the country. The Roberts Park event proved the most popular again with seven Harriers taking part with some fabulous results: Matt Cox was the second finisher and first Harrier back in a time of 17:07; Steve Gott was the fifth finisher in a time of 18:05; and Kyle Bethell also took a top 10 finish coming in 8th in a time of 19:07. Elsewhere, Mike Abrams-Cohen travelled to the Northallerton event and was the first finisher in 18:42. Dave Foyston and Tom Lambe had great runs at the Fountains Abbey and Horton events respectively, both coming in as third finishers with Dave completing his run in 17:21 and Tom in 19:54. Adam Gerrish took part in the Chevin Forest event and, in a time of 20:43, was the sixth finisher.