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EDINBURGH MARATHON FESTIVAL

Fairlands Valley Spartans enjoyed some great weather for the Edinburgh Marathon Festival.

In the full marathon RICHARD HAZELDENE ran a new personal best (PB) of 3 hours 29 minutes 18 seconds. He was 873rd out of many thousand runners.

In the half marathon MARK GOODWIN has joined the sub 100 minute club with a new personal best of 1 hour 39 minutes 28 seconds (614th). PETE SMITH was the fastest Spartan in 1:32:28 (266th out of 5,000 plus runners).

TRACY PEZ ran a new year’s best (YB) 1:42:55 (864th); ANDY PRIOR a new PB of 1:49:16 (1472nd); ANDY JAY a new YB of 1:52:34 (1887th); ROGER HARDMAN finished in 1 hour 56 minutes 21 seconds on his 65th birthday (2,362nd); ISABEL GREEN improved her personal best by six minutes, she took 1:56:49 (2,416th); NICK WITCOMBE edged closer to two hours with a new personal best of 2 hours and 29 seconds (2:00:29; 2,957th); Club Chair BEV HARLOW was 3,230th in 2:02:38; CHRIS HARDMAN was chuffed with her time of 2:02:42 (3,240th); KAREN SMITH ran a new PB of 2:03:53 (3,382nd) and TRACY STILES a new YB of 2:18:26.

Position Name Time Comments
266 PETE SMITH 1:32:28
614 MARK GOODWIN 1:39:27 PB
864 TRACY PEZ (F) 1:42:55 YB
1472 ANDY PRIOR 1:49:16 PB
1887 ANDY JAY 1:52:34 YB
2362 ROGER HARDMAN 1:56:21 65th Birthday
2416 ISABEL GREEN (F) 1:56:49 PB by 6 minutes.
2957 NICK WITCOMBE 2:00:29 PB
3230 BEV HARLOW (F) 2:02:38 The Chair
3240 CHRIS HARDMAN (F) 2:02:42 Chuffed
3382 KAREN SMITH (F) 2:03:53 PB
4965 TRACY STILES (F) 2:18:26 YB

The great support from Jayne Pinner and Amanda Prior was very appreciated by all runners

On Saturday DANNY HUKIN finished 14th in the 10K with a time of 39 minutes 46 seconds and SARAH HUKIN (plus bump) ran in the 5K. She was 353rd in 35:36.

Challenge Hub 24 Hours

DAVE BOWKER ran a 24 hour race at the weekend. A bit of a scorcher but he survived! It was the Challenge Hub Multiterrain 24 Hour Race near Herne Bay, Kent. It started at 1p.m. Saturday and finished at 1p.m. Sunday.

On laps of 6.55 miles (i.e. a quarter of a marathon) the course was flat but hard on varying surfaces. Recent rain left large puddles to negotiate. There were several miles of broken concrete farm tracks but the worst stretch was probably a stretch of grass track with tractor ruts running its length – all good fun once it got dark.

There were 26 starters. The winner ran 101 miles and Dave was sixth with 78.6 (three marathons).

Cracovia Interrun

Anne Marie and Andy Neatham competed in the Cracovia Interrun in Krakow, Poland at the weekend. Anne Marie ran the 5k event and finished in 504th place in a time of 29 minutes 57 seconds. Andy ran the 10k event finishing 15th overall and 2nd Over 40 in a time of 36.53, going through 5k with a chip time of 17.26. Both runners were slowed significantly in the second half of the race when the 5k and 10k events merged causing heavy traffic. There were over 3000 runners in both events, with a good prize list and a great atmosphere, an event to be recommended.

Leiden Marathon

ROGER BIGGS travelled to Leiden in the Netherlands, for a marathon in and around Leiden. There are canals, and bridges over them, everywhere meaning that the course was usually alongside or passing over canals. Other than the bridges and four underpasses, the course was snooker table flat. However the wind seemed to be coming from all directions, making it hard work at times. Roger kept going throughout the event, and was pleased to run his second best marathon of 2013, finishing in 3:55:31.

Mittelrhein Marathon

On Sunday CAROL PAUL ran the Mittelrhein Marathon in Koblenz, Germany. There4 was very heavy rain. She finished in 4:26:22.

Coming Events

Many Spartans will be enjoying a busy programme of races, social and training events over the next few weeks including the:

• Mid Week League 10K in Chingford on Wednesday 29th May.
• EVAC at Stevenage on Wednesday 5th June.
• Garden House 5K in Fairlands Valley Park on Sunday 9th June.
• St. Albans Half Marathon on Sunday 9th June.
• Mid Week League 10K in Harlow on Wednesday 12th June.
• Mid Week League Five Miles in Welwyn GC on Wednesday 26th June.
• County 10K track championships at Sandy on Thursday 11th July.
• Mob Match 9K in Trent Park, North London on Wednesday 17th July.
• Fairlands Valley Challenge on Sunday 21st July.
• Relays in the Park in Stevenage on Thursday 25th July.
• Handicap 5K in Stevenage on Thursday 5th September
• Herts Senior 5K Championships in WGC on Tuesday 24th September.
• County 10K Championships in Letchworth on Sunday 6th October.
• Herts Veterans 5K Championships in WGC on Tuesday 8th October.
• County 10 Mile Championships for veterans on Sunday 27th October.
• Stevenage Half Marathon on Sunday 3rd November.
• County Ten Miles Championship in Buntingford on 30th December 2013.

Join The Spartans
Live in or near Stevenage? Like running? Fairlands Valley Spartans is your local running club and is on the up! The club was voted the UK’s Best Running Club in 2010. It now has about 400 members and encourages participation by all. The Spartans have a varied training programme to suit those who want to run 5 kilometres through to full marathons.

The Spartans weekday training sessions are on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Go along to the new sports centre at Marriotts School – a Sports College, Brittain Way, Stevenage (SG2 8UT) at 7p.m. Up to five running groups go out on training nights – there will be one to suit you!

The Spartan Starter group starts from Marriotts at 7.30p.m. every Monday (except public holidays) and 7p.m. every Thursday.

Most long Sunday morning training sessions start 9.30a.m. sharp. Spartan track training sessions are held at Ridlins Athletics Track, Woodcock Road, Stevenage most Saturdays from 9.15a.m. There are events to enter every Sunday. Newcomers are very welcome – those who have not done very much running yet might prefer to start with a Thursday, Saturday or Monday session.

Try a few sessions before joining. Membership is only ÂŁ35 per year, ÂŁ25 without UKA membership. Concessions are available. Membership forms are available on the Spartans website www.fvspartans.org.uk Please ask if you would like a paper copy.

If you want to know more about the Spartans please contact Jim Brown (0793 968 7509 or 01438 354505), Vivienne Honey 07702 846304 or visit their website www.fvspartans.org.uk

E N D S
More from Jim Brown (Press Officer) 0793 968 7509 / 01438 354505 or Vivienne Honey (Secretary) 07702 846304

www.fvspartans.org.uk

Categories
Club News

Spartans win the first MWL match of the season

Despite the weather an excellent turn out of runners ensured FVS won the first match, now to repeat our performance at Chingford on the 29th May! Results attached.

Race1Div2 (1)

Categories
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News Release

OODLES OF MEDALS AT COUNTY CHAMPS
Plus Golds At 10K and Combined Events

Fairlands Valley Spartans won dozens of medals at the Hertfordshire County Track and Field Championships which were held at Ridlins Track on Bank Holiday Monday.

STEVE MAYFIELD went home with four individual GOLD medals and a BRONZE. He won the male (40 plus) 100 metres in 13.66 seconds; pole vault with 2.10 metres; discus with 20.93 metres and javelin with 28.10 metres and came third in the 800 metres in a time of 2 minutes 29.20 seconds.

SHARON CROWLEY was a triple GOLD medal winner in the women’s 45 plus category with the 1500 metres (7 minutes 19.89 seconds); 3000 metres walk (23 minutes 42.15 seconds) and hammer (16.40 metres).

Doubles

Vet 60 JIM BROWN was a double GOLD medal with the 1500 metres (6 minutes 22.56 seconds) and, towards the end of a very hot day, the 5000 metres (23 minutes 22.94 seconds). DAVE STEPHENSON won Vet 50 GOLDS in the long jump (4.50 metres) and shot putt (8.06 metres); and JOHN TYRELL Vet 70s GOLDS in the shot putt (7.59 metres) and discus (19.34 metres).

ANDY NEATHAM won the 40 plus 800 metres GOLD with a new club best of 2 minutes 19.75 seconds and took SILVER in the 1500 metres with 4 minutes 36.69 seconds.

TESSA STEPHENSON shot putt throw of 9.03 metres won her a GOLD medal, personal best and a new club record. It was rated fifth in the “Power of Ten” rankings for the whole country

MONICA BROWN won the women (45 plus) shot putt throwing the heavier 4 kg weight 7.08 metres.

CHRIS WESTCOTT won the male (40 plus) 1500 GOLD in 4 minutes 32.27 seconds and JOHN HARRIS the male (50 plus) 1500 in 4 minutes 59.50 seconds.

SIMON PROCTOR won SILVER in the 40 plus long jump with a new club record 4.84 metres.

While these were mainly events for veterans they also included the senior 1500 metres championship. RHIANNON GRIFFIN took SILVER in the senior women’s 1500 with 5 minutes 23.21 seconds and SIMON JACKSON also SILVER in the senior men’s 1500 with 4:31.27.

The full results for all Spartans follow.

Men
Event Name Age Group Performance Position Notes
100m Steve Mayfield M40 13.66 1st
800m Andy Neatham M40 2.19.75 1st M35, 40, 45, CB (club best)
Steve Mayfield M40 2.29.20 3rd
1500m Simon Jackson Senior 4.31.27 2nd
Chris Westcott M40 4.32.27 1st
Andy Neatham M40 4.36.69 2nd
Liam Herbert Senior 4.46.48 5th
John Harris M50 4.59.50 1st
Jim Brown M60 6.22.56 1st
5000m Jim Brown M60 23.22.94 1st
4x400m Dave Stephenson
Liam Herbert
Steve Mayfield
Andy Neatham Senior 4.16.78 2nd CR (club record)
Long Jump Simon Proctor M40 4.84 2nd CR
Dave Stephenson M50 4.50 1st M50 CB
Steve Mayfield M40 4.19 5th
Triple Jump Simon Proctor M40 10.00 ?
Pole Vault Steve Mayfield M40 2.10 1st
Shot Putt Dave Stephenson M50 8.06 1st
John Tyrrell M70 7.59 1st M70, 75, CB
Discus Steve Mayfield M40 20.93 1st
John Tyrrell M70 19.34 1st M70, 75, CB
Javelin Steve Mayfield M40 28.10 1st

Women
Event Name Age Group Performance Position Notes
1500m Rhiannon Griffin Senior 5.23.21 2nd
Sharon Crowley W35 7.19.89 1st
4x100m Monica Brown
Peta Wilson
Julie Simmons
Anne Tryssesoone W35 66.77 1st
4x400m Sharon Crowley
Peta Wilson
Julie Simmons
Anne Tryssesoone W35 6.10.57 1st
3000m Walk Sharon Crowley W45 23.42.15 1st CR
Shot Putt Monica Brown W45 7.08 1st 4kg
Tessa Stephenson W50 9.03 1st 3kg. PB. CR.
Hammer Sharon Crowley W45 16.40 1st

(CR = Club Record; CB = Club Best (age record); PB = personal best)

Gold In County 10K

Spartan DAVID BOWKER won the GOLD medal in the Hertfordshire 10K Championship for veterans (50 plus) which was incorporated in an open race at St. Albans on Sunday. He was also first in that category in the open race and eleventh overall with a time of 40 minutes and 1 second.

Gold in Combined Events

STEVE MAYFIELD added another county gold by winning the veterans’ category in pentathlon at the county championship for combined events. In cold conditions with a headwind in the home straight and crosswind for throwing events, it was not the weather for outstanding performances. He opened with a Long Jump of 4.21 metres, followed by 26.89 in the Javelin and a time of 27.4 seconds in the 200m was his fastest time without wind assistance. The high point was a Discus throw of 22.27m, both a PB and club 2kg record, albeit this was followed by disappointing 5:26.2 in the 1500m. Total score of 1631, adjusted to 2213 on the MV45 age grading. This ended a spell of 15 events in 3 competitions held over 11 days for Steve.

Spartan Women Take The Lead in EVAC League

Spartans ladies and men’s teams both got their Eastern Veterans (EVAC) track and field campaign off to a good start at the first league fixture which was at Sandy on Wednesday evening. The ladies continued where they left off last year, narrowly beat Milton Keynes by 76 points to 71, with Kettering third on the night with 44 points and Biggleswade fourth on 16 points. In the men’s match Milton Keynes were clear winners on 95 points, with Spartans comfortably second on 75 points, Biggleswade third with 38 ppoints and Kettering fourth on 27 points.

There were positive signs for both Spartan teams, boosted by new Spartan members and a change in rules to allow 35-39 year old men to compete. Nine athletes represented the club in EVAC for the first time; BERNIE BARNABY, MARK CHEADLE, SIMON JACKSON, CHRISTINE LATHWELL, LOUISE OLIVER, GRANT RAMSAY, TIM SAUNDERS-MULLINS, ANDREA WESTCOTT & CHRIS WESTCOTT.

Amongst a string of fine performances in the ladies match, there were wins for MONICA BROWN clearing 1.30m in the F45 High Jump and running 14.0 seconds in the 100 metres. ROSIE CANHAM won the F35 400 metres in 67.1 and just missed a sprint double, beaten by 0.1s in the 100m with 14.7s. CHRIS FEELY’s 72.0s for 2nd in the F45 was a club F50 age best and an outdoor personal best (PB). CHRISTINE LATHWELL was a comfortable winner in the 1500m for the F35 in 5:20.7 as was JULIE SIMMONS for the F55 in 6:05.8. Julie also won the F55 Long Jump with 2.63m. There were further wins in the field events for TESSA STEPHENSON in the F35 High Jump (1.35m) STEPHANIE MAYFIELD in the F35 Hammer (16.75m) and a club record of 9.82m for LOUISE OLIVER in winning the F35 Shot.

The men also produced some excellent individual performances and broke 10 club age bests. The highlight was Spartans dominance in the 1500m, with GRANT RAMSAY winning for the M40s in 4:32.0, followed home by SIMON JACKSON, first M35 in 4:35.6 and CHRIS WESTCOTT (non scoring) in PB of 4:38.9. All three, plus the fourth placed Milton Keynes athlete, had recently completed the London Marathon. JOHN HARRIS also ran a 1500m PB in 5:06.4, taking second place for the M50s. ANDY NEATHAM held on to win a very close M40 400m in 60.6s and DAVE BOWKER won the 2km walk outright in 11:31.3. A lap behind him there was an almighty battle between three other Spartans, with just 0.3 seconds separating PAUL PICKARD, PAUL HOLGATE and STEPH MAYFIELD!

In the men’s field events there were two Spartan victories in the Long Jump with SIMON PROCTOR winning for the M35s with 4.61m and MICK SHORTLAND for the M60s in 3.08m. Mick also won the M60 Shot in a club age best of 9.58m and by doing the M50 Hammer (2nd) and M60 100m (2nd) was the busiest Spartan on the night. TIM SAUNDERS-MULLINS threw a club age best of 27.78m in winning the M40 hammer and his 7.47m in the Shot was a club best by an M50 using the 7.26kg weight.

The evening ended with the medley relays (200m, 200m, 400m, 800m) and with strong teams available it was inevitable club records would tumble. The F35s set the ball rolling with TESSA STEPHENSON, ROSIE CANHAM, LOUISE OLIVER and CHRISTINE LATHWELL taking over 10 seconds off the previous club best, winning with 5:00.4. Despite a terrible mix up in changeover at the end of the 2nd leg, SHARON CROWLEY, MONICA BROWN, CHRIS FEELY and JULIE SIMMONS still shaved 2 seconds off the F45 record posting 5:37.1 for 2nd place. A strong M40 team of STEVE MAYFIELD, SIMON PROCTOR, CHRIS WESTCOTT and GRANT RAMSAY came off second best in a very tight race with Milton Keynes, but their 4:10.7 smashed the club record by 25 seconds. Immediately afterwards the M50 team contested another exciting race, not only against Milton Keynes, but a non scoring team of rival M35-49 Spartans. DAVE STEPHENSON, BERNIE BARNABY and JOHN HARRIS built up a good lead for the M50s over MARK CHEADLE, PAUL PICKARD and SIMON JACKSON, but despite a determined 800m from M50 DAVE BOWKER, he was chased down by ANDY NEATHAM who brought the non scorers home in 4:28.6. The M50s finished in 4:35.7 breaking the previous M50 club best by 29 seconds.

Spartans will be hosting the next match at Ridlins End, Stevenage, 7pm on Wednesday 5th June.

Full Spartan results below.

MEN
EVENT PLACE NAME PERFORMANCE NOTES

100 Metres
M35 3 Simon Proctor 13.6
M40 3 Steve Mayfield 13.7
M50 2 Dave Stephenson 13.1 M50 Club Record
M60 2 Mick Shortland 16.1

400 Metres
M40 1 Andy Neatham 60.6 M45 Club Record
M50 3 Bernie Barnaby 67.7

1500 Metres
M35 1 Simon Jackson 4.35.6
M40 1 Grant Ramsay 4.32.0 PB
M50 2 John Harris 5.06.4 PB
M40 Non Scoring X Chris Westcott 4.38.9 PB

2K Walk
A String 1 Dave Bowker 11.31.3
B String 3 Paul Pickard 14.37.1
M50 Non Scoring X Paul Holgate 14.37.2

Long Jump
M35 1 Simon Proctor 4.61
M40 2 Steve Mayfield 4.21
M50 2 Dave Stephenson 4.14 M50 Club Best
M60 1 Mick Shortland 3.08 M60 Club Best

High Jump
M40 4 Paul Pickard 1.15
M50 2 John Harris 1.25

Shot
M35 3 Mark Cheadle 5.50
M40 3 Tim Saunders-Mullins 7.47 M50 7.26kg Club Best
M50 2 Mark Glading 8.04
M60 1 Mick Shortland 9.58 M60 Club Best

Hammer
M40 1 Tim Saunders-Mullins 25.78 Senior 7.26kg Club Record
M50 2 Mick Shortland 27.76 M50 Club Best

Medley Relay (200m, 200m, 400m, 800m)
M40 2 S Mayfield, S Proctor, C Westcott, G Ramsay 4.10.7 Senior Club Record
M50 2 D Stephenson, B Barnaby, J Harris, D Bowker 4.35.7 M50 Club Best
M35 Non Scoring X M Cheadle, P Pickard, S Jackson, A Neatham 4.28.6

LADIES
EVENT PLACE NAME PERFORMANCE NOTES

100 Metres
W35 2 Rosie Canham 14.7
W45 1 Monica Brown 14.0
W55 2 Carolyn Shortland 21.1

400 Metres
W35 1 Rosie Canham 67.1
W45 2 Chris Feely 72.0 PB & W50 Outdoor Best
W35 Non Scoring Peta Wilson 89.8

1500 Metres
W35 1 Christine Lathwell 5.20.7
W45 3 Monica Brown 7.36.6
W55 1 Julie Simmons 6.05.8 W55 Club Best

2K Walk
W35 A 2 Sharon Crowley 14.01.8
W35 B 2 Stephanie Mayfield 14.37.4

Long Jump
W35 2 Tessa Stephenson 3.29
W45 2 Chris Feely 3.30
W55 1 Julie Simmons 2.63

High Jump
W35 1 Tessa Stephenson 1.10
W45 1 Monica Brown 1.30

Shot
W35 1 Louise Oliver 9.82 Senior Club Best
W45 2 Chris Feely 5.30
W55 3 Carolyn Shortland 5.31 W55 Club Best
W35 Non Scoring X Andrea Westcott 4.22

Hammer
W35 1 Stephanie Mayfield 16.75
W45 3 Sharon Crowley 13.18
W55 2 Carolyn Shortland
hortland 18.34
W35 Non Scoring X Andrea Westcott 11.21

Medley Relay (200m, 200m, 400m, 800m)
W35 1 T Stephenson, R Canham, L Oliver, C Lathwell 5.00.4 W35 Club Best
W45 2 S Crowley, M Brown, C Feely, J Simmons 5.37.1 W45 Club Best

Halstead Marathon

Saturday, 11May13
Orpington Marafun. 2 lap course, with 3 nasty hills on each lap. Good running weather Roger produced his usual consistent run to finish in 4:04:02.

Sunday, 12May13. Halsted Marathon
2 lap course in lanes & roads around this Essex town. With Orpington still in his legs, Roger decided to use a run/walk strategy to finish in 4:30:27.

Today carol Paul ran the halstead marathon her 5th marathon in 5 weeks. On a very undulating course that was exposed and windy at times Carol completed the race in 4:22:38. She was third in the female veterans (50 plus) category.

PB at Park Run

CLAIRE COKER did the St Albans park run on Saturday morning. She finished 63rd out of the 189 finishers in a new personal best of 22 minutes 56 seconds – an improvement of 1 minute 1 second. She was tenth lady and second women veteran (35-39)!

Spartans Beat The Heat

Hundreds of runners wilted in the heat at the Milton Keynes Marathon. More than 800 starters failed to finish. 2,850 started but only 2,041 finished.

GRANT RAMSAY was one of the pacers and led the sub 3 hour group. The race was evenly run, with runners being led to half way in 1hr28:15. He finished 13th out of the survivors in 2 hours 58 minutes 35 seconds.

Despite the conditions JON SYPULA improved his personal best with 3:55:57. His previous best was over four hours. He said it was very hard work and far too hot! Great support though and lovely scenery.

SARAH PRICE was running her first marathon and finished in 3 hours 59 minutes 41 seconds.

The other successful Spartans who beat the heat were PAUL MARSHALL (4:20:40); HADRIAN COOPER (4:30:13); STEPHEN BLOCK (4:34:36); LORRAINE WYATT (5:05:06); and PAUL HOLGATE (5:42:19).

Bowker Bronze in County Five

DAVE BOWKER had to go all the way to Pednor, near Chesham for the recent County Five Mile Championships. He won bronze in the veteran (50 plus) category in 32 minutes 23 seconds.

This was the day after he came 91st out of 1557 runners in the Gear 10K race at Kings Lynn with a sub 40 time. 39 minutes 53 seconds was good enough for sixth in the competitive male veteran (50 plus) category.

Help The Spartans

Fairlands Valley Spartans host the first event in the 2012 Mid Week Road Race League series in Stevenage on Tuesday evening 14th May. Lots of volunteer helpers, including marshals, are needed to ensure the success and safety of the event. Can you help? Please contact BERNIE BARNABY [bernie.barnaby@btopenworld.com]

Coming Events

Many Spartans will be enjoying a busy programme of races, social and training events over the next few weeks including the:

• Mid Week League 10K in Stevenage on Tuesday 14th May.
• Main County Track and Field Championships on 25th May.
• Mid Week League 10K in Chingford on Wednesday 29th May.
• EVAC at Stevenage on Wednesday 5th June.
• Garden House 5K in Fairlands Valley Park on Sunday 9th June.
• St. Albans Half Marathon on Sunday 9th June.
• Mid Week League 10K in Harlow on Wednesday 12th June.
• Mid Week League Five Miles in Welwyn GC on Wednesday 26th June.
• County 10K track championships at Sandy on Thursday 11th July.
• Mob Match 9K in Trent Park, North London on Wednesday 17th July.
• Fairlands Valley Challenge on Sunday 21st July.
• Relays in the Park in Stevenage on Thursday 25th July.
• Handicap 5K in Stevenage on Thursday 5th September
• Herts Senior 5K Championships in WGC on Tuesday 24th September.
• County 10K Championships in Letchworth on Sunday 6th October.
• Herts Veterans 5K Championships in WGC on Tuesday 8th October.
• County 10 Mile Championships for veterans on Sunday 27th October.
• Stevenage Half Marathon on Sunday 3rd November.
• County Ten Miles Championship in Buntingford on 30th December 2013.

Join The Spartans

Live in or near Stevenage? Like running? Fairlands Valley Spartans is your local running club and is on the up! The club was voted the UK’s Best Running Club in 2010. It now has about 400 members and encourages participation by all. The Spartans have a varied training programme to suit those who want to run 5 kilometres through to full marathons.

The Spartans weekday training sessions are on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Go along to the new sports centre at Marriotts School – a Sports College, Brittain Way, Stevenage (SG2 8UT) at 7p.m. Up to five running groups go out on training nights – there will be one to suit you!

The Spartan Starter group starts from Marriotts at 7.30p.m. every Monday (except public holidays) and 7p.m. every Thursday.

Most long Sunday morning training sessions start 9.30a.m. sharp. Spartan track training sessions are held at Ridlins Athletics Track, Woodcock Road, Stevenage most Saturdays from 9.15a.m. There are events to enter every Sunday. Newcomers are very welcome – those who have not done very much running yet might prefer to start with a Thursday, Saturday or Monday session.

Try a few sessions before joining. Membership is only ÂŁ35 per year, ÂŁ25 without UKA membership. Concessions are available. Membership forms are available on the Spartans website www.fvspartans.org.uk Please ask if you would like a paper copy.

If you want to know more about the Spartans please contact Jim Brown (0793 968 7509 or 01438 354505), Vivienne Honey 07702 846304 or visit their website www.fvspartans.org.uk

E N D S

More from Jim Brown (Press Officer) 0793 968 7509 / 01438 354505 or Vivienne Honey (Secretary) 07702 846304

www.fvspartans.org.uk

Categories
News

News Release

EVAC CAMPAIGN BEGINS
Hot MK Marathon * Father and Daughter at Letchworth

Spartans ladies and men’s teams both got their Eastern Veterans (EVAC) track and field campaign off to a good start at the first league fixture which was at Sandy on Wednesday evening. The ladies continued where they left off last year, narrowly beat Milton Keynes by 76 points to 71, with Kettering third on the night with 44 points and Biggleswade fourth on 16 points. In the men’s match Milton Keynes were clear winners on 95 points, with Spartans comfortably second on 75 points, Biggleswade third with 38 ppoints and Kettering fourth on 27 points.

There were positive signs for both Spartan teams, boosted by new Spartan members and a change in rules to allow 35-39 year old men to compete. Nine athletes represented the club in EVAC for the first time; BERNIE BARNABY, MARK CHEADLE, SIMON JACKSON, CHRISTINE LATHWELL, LOUISE OLIVER, GRANT RAMSAY, TIM SAUNDERS-MULLINS, ANDREA WESTCOTT & CHRIS WESTCOTT.

Amongst a string of fine performances in the ladies match, there were wins for MONICA BROWN clearing 1.30m in the F45 High Jump and running 14.0 seconds in the 100 metres. ROSIE CANHAM won the F35 400 metres in 67.1 and just missed a sprint double, beaten by 0.1s in the 100m with 14.7s. CHRIS FEELY’s 72.0s for 2nd in the F45 was a club F50 age best and an outdoor personal best (PB). CHRISTINE LATHWELL was a comfortable winner in the 1500m for the F35 in 5:20.7 as was JULIE SIMMONS for the F55 in 6:05.8. Julie also won the F55 Long Jump with 2.63m. There were further wins in the field events for TESSA STEPHENSON in the F35 High Jump (1.35m) STEPHANIE MAYFIELD in the F35 Hammer (16.75m) and a club record of 9.82m for LOUISE OLIVER in winning the F35 Shot.

The men also produced some excellent individual performances and broke 10 club age bests. The highlight was Spartans dominance in the 1500m, with GRANT RAMSAY winning for the M40s in 4:32.0, followed home by SIMON JACKSON, first M35 in 4:35.6 and CHRIS WESTCOTT (non scoring) in PB of 4:38.9. All three, plus the fourth placed Milton Keynes athlete, had recently completed the London Marathon. JOHN HARRIS also ran a 1500m PB in 5:06.4, taking second place for the M50s. ANDY NEATHAM held on to win a very close M40 400m in 60.6s and DAVE BOWKER won the 2km walk outright in 11:31.3. A lap behind him there was an almighty battle between three other Spartans, with just 0.3 seconds separating PAUL PICKARD, PAUL HOLGATE and STEPH MAYFIELD!

In the men’s field events there were two Spartan victories in the Long Jump with SIMON PROCTOR winning for the M35s with 4.61m and MICK SHORTLAND for the M60s in 3.08m. Mick also won the M60 Shot in a club age best of 9.58m and by doing the M50 Hammer (2nd) and M60 100m (2nd) was the busiest Spartan on the night. TIM SAUNDERS-MULLINS threw a club age best of 27.78m in winning the M40 hammer and his 7.47m in the Shot was a club best by an M50 using the 7.26kg weight.

The evening ended with the medley relays (200m, 200m, 400m, 800m) and with strong teams available it was inevitable club records would tumble. The F35s set the ball rolling with TESSA STEPHENSON, ROSIE CANHAM, LOUISE OLIVER and CHRISTINE LATHWELL taking over 10 seconds off the previous club best, winning with 5:00.4. Despite a terrible mix up in changeover at the end of the 2nd leg, SHARON CROWLEY, MONICA BROWN, CHRIS FEELY and JULIE SIMMONS still shaved 2 seconds off the F45 record posting 5:37.1 for 2nd place. A strong M40 team of STEVE MAYFIELD, SIMON PROCTOR, CHRIS WESTCOTT and GRANT RAMSAY came off second best in a very tight race with Milton Keynes, but their 4:10.7 smashed the club record by 25 seconds. Immediately afterwards the M50 team contested another exciting race, not only against Milton Keynes, but a non scoring team of rival M35-49 Spartans. DAVE STEPHENSON, BERNIE BARNABY and JOHN HARRIS built up a good lead for the M50s over MARK CHEADLE, PAUL PICKARD and SIMON JACKSON, but despite a determined 800m from M50 DAVE BOWKER, he was chased down by ANDY NEATHAM who brought the non scorers home in 4:28.6. The M50s finished in 4:35.7 breaking the previous M50 club best by 29 seconds.

Spartans will be hosting the next match at Ridlins End, Stevenage, 7pm on Wednesday 5th June.

Full Spartan results below.

MEN
EVENT PLACE NAME PERFORMANCE NOTES

100 Metres
M35 3 Simon Proctor 13.6
M40 3 Steve Mayfield 13.7
M50 2 Dave Stephenson 13.1 M50 Club Record
M60 2 Mick Shortland 16.1

400 Metres
M40 1 Andy Neatham 60.6 M45 Club Record
M50 3 Bernie Barnaby 67.7

1500 Metres
M35 1 Simon Jackson 4.35.6
M40 1 Grant Ramsay 4.32.0 PB
M50 2 John Harris 5.06.4 PB
M40 Non Scoring X Chris Westcott 4.38.9 PB

2K Walk
A String 1 Dave Bowker 11.31.3
B String 3 Paul Pickard 14.37.1
M50 Non Scoring X Paul Holgate 14.37.2

Long Jump
M35 1 Simon Proctor 4.61
M40 2 Steve Mayfield 4.21
M50 2 Dave Stephenson 4.14 M50 Club Best
M60 1 Mick Shortland 3.08 M60 Club Best

High Jump
M40 4 Paul Pickard 1.15
M50 2 John Harris 1.25

Shot
M35 3 Mark Cheadle 5.50
M40 3 Tim Saunders-Mullins 7.47 M50 7.26kg Club Best
M50 2 Mark Glading 8.04
M60 1 Mick Shortland 9.58 M60 Club Best

Hammer
M40 1 Tim Saunders-Mullins 25.78 Senior 7.26kg Club Record
M50 2 Mick Shortland 27.76 M50 Club Best

Medley Relay (200m, 200m, 400m, 800m)
M40 2 S Mayfield, S Proctor, C Westcott, G Ramsay 4.10.7 Senior Club Record
M50 2 D Stephenson, B Barnaby, J Harris, D Bowker 4.35.7 M50 Club Best
M35 Non Scoring X M Cheadle, P Pickard, S Jackson, A Neatham 4.28.6

LADIES
EVENT PLACE NAME PERFORMANCE NOTES

100 Metres
W35 2 Rosie Canham 14.7
W45 1 Monica Brown 14.0
W55 2 Carolyn Shortland 21.1

400 Metres
W35 1 Rosie Canham 67.1
W45 2 Chris Feely 72.0 PB & W50 Outdoor Best
W35 Non Scoring Peta Wilson 89.8

1500 Metres
W35 1 Christine Lathwell 5.20.7
W45 3 Monica Brown 7.36.6
W55 1 Julie Simmons 6.05.8 W55 Club Best

2K Walk
W35 A 2 Sharon Crowley 14.01.8
W35 B 2 Stephanie Mayfield 14.37.4

Long Jump
W35 2 Tessa Stephenson 3.29
W45 2 Chris Feely 3.30
W55 1 Julie Simmons 2.63

High Jump
W35 1 Tessa Stephenson 1.10
W45 1 Monica Brown 1.30

Shot
W35 1 Louise Oliver 9.82 Senior Club Best
W45 2 Chris Feely 5.30
W55 3 Carolyn Shortland 5.31 W55 Club Best
W35 Non Scoring X Andrea Westcott 4.22

Hammer
W35 1 Stephanie Mayfield 16.75
W45 3 Sharon Crowley 13.18
W55 2 Carolyn Shortland
hortland 18.34
W35 Non Scoring X Andrea Westcott 11.21

Medley Relay (200m, 200m, 400m, 800m)
W35 1 T Stephenson, R Canham, L Oliver, C Lathwell 5.00.4 W35 Club Best
W45 2 S Crowley, M Brown, C Feely, J Simmons 5.37.1 W45 Club Best

Bowker Bronze in County Five

DAVE BOWKER had to go all the way to Pednor, near Chesham for Monday evening’s County Five Mile Championships. He won bronze in the veteran (50 plus) category in 32 minutes 23 seconds.

This was the day after he came 91st out of 1557 runners in the Gear 10K race at Kings Lynn with a sub 40 time. 39 minutes 53 seconds was good enough for sixth in the competitive male veteran (50 plus) category.

Runners Wilt At Milton Keynes Marathon

Hundreds of runners wilted in the heat at the Milton Keynes Marathon. More than 800 starters failed to finish. 2,850 started but only 2,041 finished.

GRANT RAMSAY was one of the pacers and led the sub 3 hour group. The race was evenly run, with runners being led to half way in 1hr28:15. He finished 13th out of the survivors in 2 hours 58 minutes 35 seconds.

Despite the conditions JON SYPULA improved his personal best with 3:55:57. His previous best was over four hours. He said it was very hard work and far too hot! Great support though and lovely scenery.

PAUL MARSHALL completed the very hot event in 4:20:40

Daughter Wins Tussle In Letchworth Greenway Half

Father and daughter team ROGER HARDMAN and ISABEL GREEN ran the Letchworth Greenway Half Marathon. The course was off road and undulating, circling through the fields and woods just outside the town. Isabel Green beat her father for the first time ever, with a time of 2 hours 3 minutes. Roger came in four minutes later, at 2 hours 7 minutes.

DEAN CARPENTER “dragged” himself round in 1 hour 32 minutes 22 seconds, and finished in eighth position. He was more than happy with a top 10 finish.

Salzburg Marathon

On Sunday CAROL PAUL ran her fourth marathon in four weeks at Salzburg Austria. Running in a temperature of 23 degrees on a very beautiful course Carol completed the race in 4:27:67

Hanover Marathon

As Chairman of the UK 100 Marathon Club, ROGER BIGGS was invited to Central Germany, for the Hanover Marathon. This was to witness a German Runner Christian Hottas becoming the 1st person on the planet to finish 2000 marathons/Ultras. Christine, Roger plus another 80 runners from around the world, duly ran the marathon together to finish in a time of 5:30:31.

The course was virtually flat, but run on a warm almost cloudless day.

Southern Track and Field

DAVE and TESSA STEPHENSON had started their outdoor track & field season by travelling to Portsmouth on Monday (29th) to take part in the Southern Counties Veteran League. It was a cool and breezy evening with the track situated by the waters edge near the harbour. Dave started in the Over 50 category which he has just reached, and took part in his first high jump competition, finishing fifth with a height of 1.35m. Following on immediately, Dave then raced 100m, dropping down to the 35 to 49 year old age group coming fourth in 13.3 seconds, his best for several years. Tessa opened her competition in the 100m for over 50 women, coming third in a time of 16.6 seconds. She then came 2nd in her 400m in 80.5 seconds. Again racing in the younger age group, Dave then won the 2 kilometre race walk outright in a time of 11 minutes 58.8 seconds. Relays traditionally end the evening meetings and this time it was a 4 x 100m event. Tessa & Dave both took part with the women finishing second and the men sixth.

Oodles To Come

Fairlands Valley Spartans won oodles of gold, silver and bronze medals at the Hertfordshire County Track and Field Championships on Bank Holiday Monday. All the details will be in next week’s release.

Help The Spartans

Fairlands Valley Spartans host the first event in the 2012 Mid Week Road Race League series in Stevenage on Tuesday evening 14th May. Lots of volunteer helpers, including marshals, are needed to ensure the success and safety of the event. Can you help? Please contact BERNIE BARNABY [bernie.barnaby@btopenworld.com]

Coming Events

Many Spartans will be enjoying a busy programme of races, social and training events over the next few weeks including the:

• County Veterans 10K Championship at St. Albans on Sunday 12th May.
• Mid Week League 10K in Stevenage on Tuesday 14th May.
• Main County Track and Field Championships on 25th May.
• Mid Week League 10K in Chingford on Wednesday 29th May.
• EVAC at Stevenage on Wednesday 5th June.
• Garden House 5K in Fairlands Valley Park on Sunday 9th June.
• St. Albans Half Marathon on Sunday 9th June.
• Mid Week League 10K in Harlow on Wednesday 12th June.
• Mid Week League Five Miles in Welwyn GC on Wednesday 26th June.
• County 10K track championships at Sandy on Thursday 11th July.
• Mob Match 9K in Trent Park, North London on Wednesday 17th July.
• Fairlands Valley Challenge on Sunday 21st July.
• Relays in the Park in Stevenage on Thursday 25th July.
• Handicap 5K in Stevenage on Thursday 5th September
• Herts Senior 5K Championships in WGC on Tuesday 24th September.
• County 10K Championships in Letchworth on Sunday 6th October.
• Herts Veterans 5K Championships in WGC on Tuesday 8th October.
• County 10 Mile Championships for veterans on Sunday 27th October.
• Stevenage Half Marathon on Sunday 3rd November.
• County Ten Miles Championship in Buntingford on 30th December 2013.

Join The Spartans

Live in or near Stevenage? Like running? Fairlands Valley Spartans is your local running club and is on the up! The club was voted the UK’s Best Running Club in 2010. It now has about 400 members and encourages participation by all. The Spartans have a varied training programme to suit those who want to run 5 kilometres through to full marathons.

The Spartans weekday training sessions are on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Go along to the new sports centre at Marriotts School – a Sports College, Brittain Way, Stevenage (SG2 8UT) at 7p.m. Up to five running groups go out on training nights – there will be one to suit you!

The Spartan Starter group starts from Marriotts at 7.30p.m. every Monday (except public holidays) and 7p.m. every Thursday.

Most long Sunday morning training sessions start 9.30a.m. sharp. Spartan track training sessions are held at Ridlins Athletics Track, Woodcock Road, Stevenage most Saturdays from 9.15a.m. There are events to enter every Sunday. Newcomers are very welcome – those who have not done very much running yet might prefer to start with a Thursday, Saturday or Monday session.

Try a few sessions before joining. Membership is only ÂŁ35 per year, ÂŁ25 without UKA membership. Concessions are available. Membership forms are available on the Spartans website www.fvspartans.org.uk Please ask if you would like a paper copy.

If you want to know more about the Spartans please contact Jim Brown (0793 968 7509 or 01438 354505), Vivienne Honey 07702 846304 or visit their website www.fvspartans.org.uk

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