Author: Vicky Archer

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Club News Race Results

TWO WINS FOR FAIRLANDS

Spartan SIMON JACKSON won the Festive Five road race at Welwyn Garden City on Sunday morning.  He took just 27 minutes 56 minutes, a new personal best, to get round the tricky two lap course and finished nine seconds ahead of his nearest rival. 

Simon Jackson at the Festive 5

Next in was JOHN HARRIS at 23rd with 35:05. 

NICK KLEANTHOUS was one of many in fancy dress.  He said it was a very well organised event with great marshalling.  He finished in 43:47, that’s just over three minutes faster than last time, then enjoyed a lovely cake stall at end and the a box of chocolates handed out at the finish line. 

ANDY JAY was delighted to maintain an average of eight minutes per mile and finished 45th with 39 minutes 54 seconds. 

The fastest female from Fairlands was HAZEL SMITH in 42 minutes 20 seconds.  ERICA GRAYSON and SUE HAMER went round in 48:25 and 48:30.  Then there was a little Spartan procession of three with CATHY CRAIG in 50:40; PENNY SCHENKEL smiling in 50:50 and JIM BROWN in 50:51.  Soon along came JONATHAN JONES in 51:54 and DZENANA TOPIC in 51:56.  Twelve Spartans ran the event. 

Nick, Hazel and Andy looking pleased with their winning choclates!

Pretty miserable and damp on the way to the start but the rain held off during the race itself and only started again on the way home. 

(The full result for all twelve Spartans is near the end of this release). 

Andrew Wins At Goodwood 

Spartan ANDREW PATTERSON raced and WON the Goodwood Marathon on Sunday.  It consisted of a short out and back followed by 11 laps of the motor racing circuit.  

The wind was 18mph, whilst it was Glorious Goodwood with it behind him, the cross winds and facing the wind was tough going. The first nine laps were consistent at 13:59 to 14 minutes 12 seconds. But the last couple of laps were a slog.  He could feel his legs cramping so it wasn’t until the final mile that he knew he would finish with a new personal best (PB).  

The first half Andrew was in fourth place, but in the second half he moved up on to the podium and on the penultimate lap moved in to first.  He took the race victory in 2 hours 37 minutes 26 seconds (2:37:26) beating his previous best marathon time by 4 minutes 20 seconds. 

It was a great end to the race year for Andrew with PBs at 1500, 3000, 5K, 10K, 10 miles, half and marathon.  He won the Stevenage Half Marathon two weeks ago. 

Triumphant Andrew after his big win!

Yuko In Spain 

YUKO GORDON ran the Valencia marathon.  The course was flat, nice and warm but windier later in the morning.  She managed an amazing time of 3:29:02. 

Yuko had to run under 3 hours 48 minutes to claim the points she needed to qualify for next year’s Age Group World Championships, so she’s OK with 3:29.  Yuko says she will rest from marathons till next spring, hopefully have a good rest from the distance and back to basic conditioning over this winter.  

Three Canta With Santa 

JOHN HARRIS and deer friend took part in the Santa Canta 5K in Letchworth and ran it in 26:06. 

John and his friend Rudolph!

CAROLE SHELDRICK and new FVS member DAVID KENNEDY also enjoyed some festive fun at the NHRR Santa Canta 5K.  David ran as a Christmas cowboy with a time of 25:56 and Carole as a Christmas Elf with a time of 33:25. 

They said it was such a fun event and topped off with a medal and mince pie to finish. 

Spartans getting into the festive spirit!

Running in the Chapel 

A bit earlier than some years due to running calendar complications but many other Spartans enjoyed a festive Sunday trail run to Minsden Chapel.  There were three choices of distance – 11 miles; 8 miles or 4.5 miles. 

The annual Spartans ‘bench shot’ whilst running Minsden Chapel.

Parkrun Highlights for Saturday 4th December 2021 

As we head towards the end of another year, the first Saturday of December saw twenty-four Fairlands Valley Spartans head out to represent the club at Parkrun events. 

New personal best times were set by two runners on the Stevenage course.  ASHLEY JOHNSON finished as the first female, at only her third Parkrun, with a new parkrun personal best (PPB) time of 22 minutes and 22 seconds; and CHLOE CHAPMAN was the 12th female to complete the run in her new PPB of 26 minutes and 39 seconds. 

Also in Stevenage, both MARK BEASLEY and KAREN PALMER edged ever closer to attending 100 events with their 99th runs in times of 28 minutes and 47 seconds and 34 minutes and 31 seconds respectively. 

Other milestone runs saw JAMES MCSWEENEY complete the Littleport parkrun and his 80th event in 24 minutes and 23 seconds; MIKE REYNOLDS finish his 75th Parkrun in 27 minutes and 58 seconds on the Endcliffe, Sheffield course; MICHAEL O’KEEFE ran at Houghton Hall in 28 minutes and 40 seconds to complete 125 events; and, DARRYL STEVENS reached his 175th run at Lancing Beach Green, West Sussex in 37 minutes and 14 seconds. 

(You can find all the Spartan parkrun times near the end of this release). 

Spartans Committee for 2021 / 2022 

Fairlands Valley Spartans held their Annual General Meeting on Tuesday.  There was a tremendous enthusiastic turnout at Stevenage Hockey and Cricket Club.  The club’s chair David Scott reported that the Spartans recovery from the Covid period was good with 48 new members in just the last few months. 

It was possible to organise a very successful Stevenage Half Marathon and the club’s five and ten mile handicap races.  Now the Spartans are looking forward to two cross country leagues races before Christmas including the one they are hosting in Stevenage on 19th December.  Then next year they are already planning for the return of the mid week 10K league; the 3K Relays in the Park; the off road challenge; the remaining fixtures in the 21/22 cross country league and they already have a date for the 2022 Stevenage Half Marathon – Sunday 6th November. 

Brian White, head coach, added that despite the interruptions caused by COVID Fairlands Valley Spartans still organised 384 free coached sessions between 1st January and 30th November 2021.  The Spartans train at 7p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays with up to five groups going out.  Then there is the Spartan Starter group on Mondays; track based sessions on Saturday mornings and longer steady runs (typically about 10K and 10 miles) from various locations on Sunday mornings.  Plus access to a host of events including county championships some of which are free and many where club membership brings a discount. 

The new Fairlands Valley Spartans committee is Chair David Scott; Vice Chair Vicky Archer; Secretary Wendy Tharani; Treasurer Andrew Patterson; Head Coach Brian White; Men’s Team Captain & Committee Mark Freeman; Ladies’ Team Captain & Committee Callie Chapman; Press Officer & Committee Jim Brown (0793 968 7509); Membership Secretary Debbie Blantern; President Sophie Cowan with the additional committee members Steffan Ford, Sue Hamer, Paul Holgate, Tim Robinson, Hazel Smith, Tessa Stephenson and Hannah Sypula. 

Tables 

Full results for all Spartans when there are a lot at an event will be listed below.   

Spartans at the Festive Five 

Pos Name Cat Cat Pos Gen Pos Chip Time % 
1 Simon JACKSON MV40 1 1 27:56 82.7% 
23 John HARRIS MV50 5 20 35:05 73.9% 
45 Andy JAY MV50 10 37 39:54 63.7% 
59 Hazel SMITH FV45 4 13 42:20 62.7% 
67 Nick KLEANTHOUS MV50 14 51 43:47 59.1% 
88 Erica GRAYSON FV45 8 28 48:25 57.4% 
90 Sue HAMER FV45 10 30 48:30 56.7% 
107 Catherine CRAIG FV55+ 7 44 50:40 68.7% 
108 Penny SCHENKEL FV45 19 45 50:50 54.7% 
109 Jim BROWN MV60+ 12 64 50:51 55.8% 
112 Jonathan JONES MV50 18 65 51:54 48.6% 
114 Dzenana TOPIC FV55+ 8 48 51:56 55.6% 

Spartans at parkruns on Saturday 4th December. 

  

Parkrun Position Gender Position Parkrunner Time  
Stevenage parkrun 25 1 Ashley JOHNSON 22:22 1st Fem. PPB 
 (18 Spartans) 27 24 Barry OSBORNE 22:46  
  33 30 Toby ECCLESHALL 22:59  
  42 37 Martin DUDLEY 24:16  
  48 42 Lee PICKERSGILL 24:43  
  87 12 Chloe CHAPMAN 26:39 PPB 
  88 70 Jim BROWN 26:42 1st Age 
  91 14 Gail MACKIE 26:57  
  101 18 Fiona CLARKE 27:11  
  119 87 Mark BEASLEY 28:47  
  121 88 Matt CLARKE 28:51 99th PR 
  132 32 Debbie BLANTERN 30:15  
  163 49 Sharon CROWLEY 32:12  
  168 109 Stephen SMITHSON 32:53  
  169 52 Judy KING 33:01  
  185 60 Karen PALMER 34:31 99th PR   
  227 84 Helen HARRIS 56:49  
  228 127 Roger BIGGS 58:04  
           
Endcliffe parkrun (Sheffield) 239 154 Mike REYNOLDS 27:58 75th PR  
           
Houghton Hall parkrun 60 49 Michael O’KEEFE 28:40  
           
Evesham parkrun 24 21 Nigel STRONGITHARM 24:37  
           
Letchworth parkrun 2 2 Grant RAMSAY 20:22 2nd in race 
           
Littleport parkrun 16 15 James MCSWEENEY 24:23 80th PR  
           
Lancing Beach Green parkrun 62 34 Darryl STEVENS 37:14 175th PR  

(PPB = Parkrun personal best; 175th PR = 175th parkrun). 

Categories
Club News Race Results

SUNDAY BESTS FOR SPARTANS

21 Fairlands Valley Spartans competed in two races on Sunday.  Despite the cold three ran new personal bests (PB) and 16 ran new season’s bests (SB). 

Hatfield Five 

At the Hatfield Five which started and finished at the University of Hertfordshire’s College Lane site DAN HUKIN ran well under thirty minutes to finish 40th out of the 545 with 29 minutes 28 seconds.  MARK GOODWIN was well up in the men 60 plus category with 37 minutes 34 seconds and 209th overall. 

VISH SHAH was pleased how fast his race was and his 42:26 finish time. 

Image courtesy of ATW

PENNY SCHENKEL improved her season’s best time to 47:55; MONICA SMITHSON to 48:45; and SHARON CROWLEY to 55:55 but DZENANA TOPIC took the limelight with a brand new personal best of 53 minutes 4 seconds.  There were four Spartan women and four Spartan men. 

There were 545 finishers who also included JIM BROWN with 47:55. 

Image courtesy of ATW

Five mile races are quite rare these days but there will be another one in Welwyn Garden City this Sunday – the Festive Five. 

Bassingbourn Bass Belle 

Thirteen Spartans ran the Bass Belle Ten.  Two DARREN EMMERSON and JACKIE DOWNES ran new personal bests and ten others ran new season’s bests. 

GRANT RAMSAY was first finisher for the club with 67 minutes 25 seconds (SB).  He was 25th out of the 331 finishers.  YUKO GORDON was eighth women with 1:15:09 (SB). 

Darren Emmerson’s new personal best is 1 hour 22 minutes 51 seconds and Jackie Downe’s new PB stands at 1:27:20. 

HAZEL SMITH said, “It was bitterly cold with patches of ice.  I’m super pleased with my time as it was my first long run in a few weeks.   

KAREN ELLIS ran a season’s best (SB) of 1:28:53 and Hazel a SB of 1:28:54. 

1:43:52 was good enough for PAUL HOLGATE to beat his Ware Ten time by 19 seconds to set a new season’s best.  He said it was a bitterly cold bright day with lots of ice on the 1.5 miles off-road section so very pleased. 

The others with new season’s bests for ten miles were CLAIRE EMMERSON 1:36:22; CATHY CRAIG 1:44:19; ERICA GRAYSON 1:45:08; SUE HAMER also 1:45:08 and JONATHAN JONES 1:52:51. 

The 331 finishers also included JENNY GARRETT in 1:36:23. 

Warming up after a chilly run.

Parkrun Highlights for Saturday 27th November 2021 

Storm Arwen caused havoc around the UK but it didn’t stop 19 Spartans completing their Parkruns.  All their parkrun milestones and best positions were achieved at Stevenage on Saturday. 

NIC PATTMAN and HARRIET PACE both achieved personal bests with 28:23 and 29:56 respectively.  SUZY HAWKINS was first lady in the race finishing with a time of 20:05.  

GRANT RAMSAY was the fastest of the 17 Spartans, completing in 19:14 and finishing third overall. 

GRACE COVENTRY finished in 25:02 and was 5th lady, achieving her best time this year (YB).  THOMAS SAUKA (21:26) and CAROLE SHELDRICK (27:20) also ran year’s bests. 

DEBBIE BLANTERN achieved an unofficial milestone of 70 Parkruns. 

MIKE REYNOLDS was the only Spartan at Panshanger this time.  He finished 43rd in 24:44. 

At the Kingdom Parkrun in Penshurst, Kent MICHAEL O’KEEFE was 48th in 31:52. 

Tables 

Spartans at the Hatfield Five (Sunday 28th): 

Pos Name Gun Chip Category Cat Pos Gender Gender Position Comments 
40 Dan HUKIN 29:33 29:28 Ages 40 – 49 9 Male 36 SB 
209 Mark GOODWIN 38:02 37:34 Ages 60 – 69 11 Male 160 SB 
304 Vishal SHAH 43:20 42:26 Ages 30 – 39 42 Male 213 SB 
408 Jim BROWN 49:25 47:55 Ages 60 – 69 24 Male 238  
409 Penny SCHENKEL 49:26 47:55 Ages 50 – 59 46 Female 162 SB 
417 Monica SMITHSON 49:52 48:45 Ages 50 – 59 48 Female 168 SB 
470 Dzenana TOPIC 54:22 53:04 Ages 50 – 59 65 Female 207 PB 
500 Sharon CROWLEY 57:27 55:55 Ages 60 – 69 22 Female 233 SB 

There were 545 finishers. 

Spartans at the Bass Belle 10 Sunday 28th November): 

Pos First Name Last Name Time Comments 
25 Grant Ramsay 1:07:25 SB 
57 Yuko Gordon 1:15:09 SB.  8th woman. 
114 Darren Emmerson 1:22:51 PB 
161 Jackie Downes 1:27:20 PB 
177 Karen Ellis 1:28:53 SB 
178 Hazel Smith 1:28:54 SB 
237 Claire Emmerson 1:36:22 SB 
238 Jenny Garrett 1:36:23 x 
267 Paul Holgate 1:43:52 SB 
283 Cathy Craig 1:44:19 SB 
285 Erica Grayson 1:45:08 SB 
286 Sue Hamer 1:45:08 SB 
314 Jonathan Jones 1:52:51 SB 

There were 331 finishers. 

Spartans at parkrun on Saturday 27th November 

Spartans (17) at Stevenage Parkrun 

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Run Time    
3 3 Grant RAMSAY 00:19:14  
6 1 Suzy HAWKINS 00:20:05  
13 12 Thomas SAUKA 00:21:26 YB 
24 22 Andrew MCGUINNESS 00:22:21  
39 36 Toby ECCLESHALL 00:23:27  
57 51 James MCSWEENEY 00:24:39  
63 5 Grace COVENTRY 00:25:02 YB 
74 63 Nick KLEANTHOUS 00:26:07  
88 14 Carole SHELDRICK 00:27:20 YB 
90 15 Gail MACKIE 00:27:35  
101 79 Sam SIMMONS 00:27:59  
102 20 Chloe CHAPMAN 00:28:00  
110 25 Nicola PATTMAN 00:28:23 PB 
123 30 Harriet PACE 00:29:56 PB 
128 34 Debbie BLANTERN 00:30:07 70th 
146 41 Caroline CROFT 00:31:23  
171 51 Hilary DAVIES 00:33:55  
Categories
Club News Race Results

GOLD AND SILVER FOR SPARTANS

Sunday’s Stevenage Half Marathon was a huge success and Fairlands Valley Spartans took first and second in the 13.1 miles races. 

Spartan ANDREW PATTERSON won the event overall in a new personal best (PB) of 1 hour 12 minutes 53 seconds and also took GOLD in the Hertfordshire County Championships.  SIMON JACKSON was second in 1 hour 15 minutes 48 seconds and took SILVER in the county champs.  Together with DAVID HARRIS CHERGUIT (PB 1:19:25) and STUART ARCHER (PB 1:26:27) they won GOLD in the County team competition and won the team contest in the race. 

Mens Gold County team winners!

The Spartans won GOLD in the county team competition with LIZ SMITH after a rapid acceleration in the last five miles finishing with 1 hour 53 minutes 59 seconds; ALISON SHELLEY (PB 1:57:22) and WENDY THARANI (1:57:50).  Three to count in the women’s competition. 

Our smiling Ladies Gold County team winners!

And Bronze for Women and Men 

Then there were County team BRONZE medals for the women’s team of ANN TRYSSESOONE (2:01:14), CHLOE CHAPMAN (improving her PB by more than nine minutes to 2:01:39) and KERSTIN WEINER (2:04:07) and the men’s team of GRANT RAMSEY (1:27:32); DANNY SCANLON (1:28:56); TONY RANDFIELD (1:33:34) and PAUL SHELLEY (1:36:57). 

Ladies Bronze County team winners!
Mens Bronze County team winners!

David Harris Cherguit was first man aged 40 plus in the race and Tony Randfield, running his first half as a Spartan, was first man aged 60 plus. 

The Spartans topped and tailed the event with a total of 38 runners.  Dozens more Spartans and their friends marshaled, rode lead and sweep bikes, provided water stations, supervised the shuttle buses and did the other jobs that made it a success. 

A handful of our wonderful marshals, chief marshal, lead bike and yummy cakes that were for sale (there were lots more!)

On a cold but mainly sunny morning the race started on Ridlins Athletics track then followed two equal laps on cycleway and footpaths via Gresley Way, Six Hills Way, Fairlands Valley Park north and south, football club, Broadhall Way to cross Woodcock Road and into the second lap before finishing on the track. 

This time there was a welcome tailwind in the south part of Fairlands Valley Park.  After a one year gap due to Covid it was back and it was great. 

There were several half marathon first timers including MIKE JEFFS (1:31:22); NICK KLEANTHOUS (1:57:45); CHRIS SAUNDERS (2:12:32); NICHOLA DURENT (3:16:32) and JUDY KING (3:18:39).  LEE PICKERGILL ran a new PB of 1:47:45; NIGEL STRONGITHARM ran a new PB of 1:48:08, and NICHOLA ANDERSSON a new PB of 2:04:48.  STEPH BIGGAR ran her first ever real race, everything else has been virtual, and finished in 3:16:32. 

TIM ROBINSON was aiming for sub 2 hours and managed to improve on his target and achieve 1:54:33 in his fastest half since 2017. The long incline at mile 8 was hard going, sapped a lot of energy and lost some time but was the only part of the course that presented any real difficulty. 

JIM BROWN was apprehensive after two recent disaster half marathons including a DNF (did not finish) but improved his time from August (2:04:05) by 5 minutes 56 seconds to 1:58:09 to get under two hours by maintaining almost exactly nine minute miles all the way round. 

The first woman in the race was ELIZABETH PARRY from Garden City Runners in 1 hour 22 minutes 45 seconds with KERRIE HAMLIN from Ampthill and Flitwick Flyers second in 1:26:38 and JUSTINE LYNCH from Belgrave Harriers third in 1:26:50. 

The Last Fly 

Fairlands Valley Spartans were represented in the last Fly 5K in the current series on Saturday.  This virtual free run anywhere event on a Saturday morning helped to get a lot of people through lockdown when all in person events were cancelled.  More than 15,000 Fly 5K runs have been recorded since the series was launched.  This was race 80. 

In the MARIAN MORLEY was 55th and first woman aged 55 plus in 26 minutes 41 seconds; NICOLA ANDERSSON was 71st in 29:02 and PENNY SCHENKEL and JIM BROWN went round together to finish 100th equal in 30:56.  This was Jim’s 58th Fly 5K and he received a special not (virtual) T-shirt for running at least fifty. 

There will be a Christmas edition and a real reunion in 2022. 

St Neots 

CRAIG BACON said, “Sunday at the St Neots Half Marathon was my first mass event since February 2020.  There have been months of solo running and virtual events since the last time I lined up at the start of a race with over 1000 people ready to complete the 13.1 miles. 

There was a chill in the air as I made my way to the start and so I was glad that I had put my woolly hat and gloves in my kit bag.  We gathered at the line and at 10 o’clock we were sent on our way out of St Neots and along the Huntingdonshire country roads.  The route was a figure of eight course with a rise at about 3 miles, another before half way and then a final hill at 9 miles.  The hills did mean there was an opportunity to go downhill too, so every cloud has a silver lining. 

I finished in a time of 1 hour 41 minutes 16 seconds, which is 2 minutes 19 seconds faster than my pre-pandemic Half in 2020.  It was also my fastest Half since May 2016.  I finished 303rd overall, 233rd male and 54th male vet 50.” 

Fellow Spartan John Harding finished in 2:11:10 to finish 823rd overall and 535th male. 

Parkrun Highlights 

This week 30 Spartans participated across 8 different parkrun venues. 

A couple of first timer mentions:  KIERAN FEETHAM at Plymvalley in 23:18 and EVA RAMSEY at Cassiobury in 23:21.  

PETER CARPENTER was at Squerryes Winery parkrun at Westerham running a new PB of 44:19.  GRAHAM HOARE also got himself a new PB 23:29 at Southsea parkrun and YUKO GORDON was second female at Letchworth in 23:50. 

GRANT RAMSAY was first Spartan home out of the 21 Spartans at Stevenage in 19:06.  KEN JUDE was running his 99th parkrun at Stevenage.  MARK GOODWIN was the sole Spartan at Panshanger this week clocking 23:43. 

Tables 

Full results for all Spartans when there are a lot at an event will be listed below.   

Spartan Gun Times At The Stevenage Half Marathon 

Pos Race No Name GunTime Category Cat Pos Gender Gen Pos  
1 321 Andrew PATTERSON 01:12:55 Top3 1 Male 1 PB 
2 218 Simon JACKSON 01:15:50 Top3 2 Male 2 YB 
8 179 David HARRIS-CHERGUIT 01:19:30 Ages 40 – 49 1 Male 8 PB 
26 13 Stuart ARCHER 01:26:33 Ages 20 – 39 12 Male 25 PB 
29 346 Grant RAMSAY 01:27:35 Ages 40 – 49 8 Male 26  
31 369 Danny SCANLON 01:29:00 Ages 40 – 49 10 Male 28  
37 224 Mike JEFFS 01:31:22 Ages 20 – 39 15 Male 33 New 
46 347 Tony RANDFIELD 01:33:39 Ages 60 – 69 1 Male 42 New 
79 375 Paul SHELLEY 01:37:02 Ages 50 – 59 17 Male 69 YB 
82 384 Peter SMITH 01:37:07 Ages 50 – 59 18 Male 71 SB 
87 178 John HARRIS 01:37:29 Ages 50 – 59 20 Male 75 SB 
100 277 Reece McCULLAGH 01:40:42 Ages 20 – 39 32 Male 65 SB 
121 140 Nick GILL 01:44:47 Ages 20 – 39 33 Male 102 SB 
135 110 Toby ECCLESHALL 01:48:06 Ages 20 – 39 36 Male 112 YB 
136 399 Nigel STRONGITHARM 01:48:08 Ages 50 – 59 31 Male 113 PB 
137 329 Lee PICKERSGILL 01:48:08 Ages 20 – 39 37 Male 114 PB 
184 387 Liz SMITH 01:54:30 Ages 40 – 49 16 Female 38 YB 
189 357 Tim ROBINSON 01:54:56 Ages 50 – 59 38 Male 150 SB 
206 376 Alison SHELLEY 01:57:42 Ages 50 – 59 7 Female 47 PB 
211 241 Nick KLEANTHOUS 01:58:10 Ages 50 – 59 41 Male 163 New 
218 411 Wendy THARANI 01:58:26 Ages 40 – 49 20 Female 50 SB 
219 50 Jim BROWN 01:58:27 Ages 60 – 69 9 Male 169  
222 118 Robert EVANS 01:58:37 Ages 40 – 49 59 Male 170 SB 
243 419 Ann TRYSSESOONE 02:01:30 Ages 50 – 59 8 Female 59 YB 
244 62 Chloe CHAPMAN 02:02:15 Ages 20 – 39 20 Female 60 PB 
254 437 Kerstin WEINER 02:04:30 Ages 50 – 59 9 Female 67 SB 
257 406 Jon SYPULA 02:05:10 Ages 40 – 49 66 Male 189 SB 
259 12 Nicola ANDERSSON 02:05:23 Ages 50 – 59 11 Female 70 PB 
270 323 Carol PAUL 02:07:41 Ages 50 – 59 13 Female 75 SB 
288 367 Chris SAUNDERS 02:13:02 Ages 20 – 39 59 Male 207 New 
309 202 Paul HOLGATE 02:23:16 Ages 60 – 69 15 Male 216 SB 
312 362 Gerry ROSEN 02:27:19 Ages 50 – 59 60 Male 218 SB 
313 458 Robert WRIGHT 02:27:19 Ages 20 – 39 62 Male 219  
320 378 Karl SHREEVE 02:32:46 Ages 50 – 59 62 Male 223 SB 
334 444 Jane WHITROW 03:17:05 Ages 50 – 59 22 Female 109 SB 
335 36 Steph BIGGAR 03:17:09 Ages 40 – 49 49 Female 110  
336 107 Nichola DURENT 03:17:10 Ages 40 – 49 50 Female 111 New 
337 236 Judy KING 03:18:39 Ages 50 – 59 23 Female 112 New 

Chip times were not available at the time of writing. 

Spartans at parkrun   

Stevenage parkrun 

A total of 291 runners took part including 21 Spartans. 

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Run Time   
5 4 Grant RAMSAY 00:19:06 
21 20 Andrew MCGUINNESS 00:21:53 
68 59 James MCSWEENEY 00:24:33 
80 68 Darren EMMERSON 00:25:04 
118 21 Fiona CLARKE 00:27:11 
127 101 Ken JUDE 00:27:37 
156 117 Matt CLARKE 00:28:57 
159 37 Nicola ANDERSSON 00:29:00 
169 41 Debbie BLANTERN 00:29:36 
175 128 Toby ECCLESHALL 00:30:10 
176 44 Gail MACKIE 00:30:14 
177 45 Ashley SCHOENWETTER 00:30:17 
180 47 Catherine CRAIG 00:30:29 
190 131 Jim BROWN 00:30:55 
191 54 Penny SCHENKEL 00:30:56 
201 60 Tracy HAYGARTH 00:31:54 
210 66 Karen PALMER 00:32:55 
215 69 Beth FOLEY 00:33:43 
226 142 Stephen SMITHSON 00:34:37 
289 113 Helen HARRIS 00:53:51 
290 166 Roger BIGGS 00:59:19 

Plymvalley parkrun 

A total of 110 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Run Time   
9 8 Kieran FEETHAM 00:23:18 

Southsea parkrun 

A total of 357 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Run Time   
86 76 Graham HOARE 00:23:29 

Brockenhurst parkrun 

A total of 138 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Run Time   
138 62 Darryl STEVENS 00:45:09 

Panshanger parkrun 

A total of 247 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Run Time   
34 32 Mark GOODWIN 00:23:43 

Cassiobury parkrun 

A total of 407 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Run Time   
77 7 Eva RAMSEY 00:23:21 

Letchworth parkrun 

A total of 97 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Run Time   
17 2 Yuko GORDON 00:23:50 

Squerryes Winery parkrun (Westerham) 

A total of 86 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Run Time   
84 47 Peter CARPENTER 00:44:19 

  

Categories
Club News Race Results

YUKO A WINNER AT SAFFRON WALDEN

The Remembrance Runs were held at Debden Airfield near Saffron Walden around the perimeter of the airfield.  The airfield is in remote rural countryside in Essex and it was a challenging drive to get there. 

The course was flat, mainly dry and the surface was concrete and tarmac.  Five Spartans joined the run, Jonathan Jones, Paul Shelley, David Pattman, Dzenana Topic and Yuko Gordon.   

Yuko Gordon running the 5K finished first in her age category with 22 minutes 25 seconds  The other four Spartans ran the 10K.  Paul was sixth overall and second man 50 plus in 39 minutes 21 seconds.  David came in with 49:27, Jonathan 1:01:16 and Dzenana 1.04.55 

The Stevenage Half is this Sunday, 21st November. 

The Stevenage Half Marathon is this Sunday and it’s full but you can turn out to cheer on the hundreds of runners on 21st November.  The race starts at 10am and is two laps of the course noted in the picture below. 

Choose your favourite spot to cheer on the runners! 

Escape From Meriden, the Centre of England  

Spartan ADRIAN BUSOLINI has escaped from Meriden.  Starting from the stone cross in Meriden which marks the traditional centre of England, he was given a bright orange boiler suit, and 24 hours to ‘escape’ from Meriden – to get as far as one can, as the crow flies.  Adrian wound up at Heathrow Airport; quite a way short of his target, but nonetheless a novel self-supported run along a mix of roads, towpaths and trails for 100+ miles.  The canal sections were a highlight, along with various cries of “what the **** is he wearing” in Coventry city centre (the orange boiler suit was a hit!)  

Adrian looking extremely happy in his boiler suit!

Alton Towers 

FIONA, MATT, ETHAN and TALA CLARKE had a great family weekend at Alton Towers.  On Saturday they all did the 10K race. 

The lead up to the race was a bit messy but once they got going it was a fun race, passing all the major attractions through the theme park. 

The entry fee got them a medal, a t-shirt and park entry for the rest of the day.  Great value if like them you enjoy running and rollercoasters.  Best of all said Fiona it was easy to get the kids involved. 

Someone recognised their Spartan vests and acknowledged that they were a long way from Stevenage.  It was lovely to get a shout out 130 miles from home. 

Ethan and Tala both finished with new personals bests (PBs) – Tala with 57 minutes 40 seconds and Ethan with 1:06:59.  Tala was 619th and Matt 621st in 57:41.  Ethan was 1,107th and Fiona 1,110th in 1:07:03.  Fiona added it was so good to have this shared experience. 

On Sunday Matt ran the half marathon in 1 hour 49 minutes 37 seconds and was 395th out of the 1,865 finishers. 

The Clarke family enjoying their adventure at Alton Towers.

Blesma 11K 

CAROLYN LINSELL should have been running the BLESMA 11k Remembrance Day virtual event with NICOLA ANDERSSON. 

However due to her little ‘misadventure’ last Sunday she could no longer take part.  KAREN ELLIS very kindly took her place and ran with Nicola.  Carolyn met them at the start for two minutes silence and to cheer them on. 

Carolyn’s son pushed her in the wheelchair to the football ground side of the park and then she hobbled on her crutches all the way back to the start point.  The girls caught her right near the end so they finished together!  

Well done ladies! Happy smiles all round and we wouldn’t expect to see anything less!

The Last Fly 

The last Fly 5K in the current series will be the 80th on Saturday 20th November.  This virtual free run anywhere event on a Saturday morning helped to get a lot of people through lockdown when all in person events were cancelled.  More than 15,000 Fly 5K runs have been recorded since the series was launched.  There will be a Christmas edition and a real reunion in 2022. 

In the penultimate and 79th Fly 5K JIM BROWN was second in his age group and 25th overall in 26 minutes 31 seconds; NICK KLEANTHOUS was just behind at 26th in 26:33 and NICOLA ANDERSSON 48th in 27:15. 

Nick and Jim ‘flying’ round their Fly 5K at Stevenage Parkrun.

Parkrun Highlights 

In this week’s roundup of Spartans on the Parkrun circuit, Grant Ramsay grabs a top five finish and Ashley Schoenwetter was first female home at Stevenage. 

Stevenage Parkrun Results where 283 runners including 17 Spartans took part.  GRANT RAMSAY 19 minutes 18 seconds (4th), TOBY ECCLESHALL 22:04 (20th), ASHLEY SCHOENWETTER 22:43 (33rd), JAMES McSWEENEY 24:45 (65th), SUSAN McANENY 25:34 (84th), GRACE COVENTRY 25:47 (88th); JIM BROWN, first in age group with  26:31 (105th), NICK KLEANTHOUS 26:33 (106th), MARK BEASLEY 26:43 (110th), NICOLA ANDERSSON 27:15 (121st), GAIL MACKIE 27:19 (123rd), CATHY CRAIG 30:39 (173rd), TRACY HAYGARTH 31:02 (179th), BETH FOLEY 33:10 (210th), SALLY PHILLIPS 33:50 (217th), ROGER BIGGS 57:37 (280th), HELEN HARRIS, the volunteer tailwalker 61:01 (283rd). 

Away days: 

Brockenhurst (Dorset): Darryl Stevens 47-56 (133rd out of 133 runners) 

Gunpowder (North London): Paul Jennings 31-40 (101st out of 152 runners). 

Letchworth (Hertfordshire): John Harris 21-46 (11th out of 108 runners), Georgie Hooper 29-23 (67th), Nick Gill 29-24 (68th).  

Panshanger (Hertfordshire): Mike Reynolds 27-31 (95th out of 229 runners). 

Squerryes Winery (Kent): Peter Carpenter 44-46 (90th out of 98 runners). 

Categories
Club News Race Results

ROBERT AND VICKY WIN 10 AND 5 MILE RACES

Fairlands Valley Spartans woke up to sunshine but a moderate breeze from the west for their Bryan Moore Shield and Paul Maguire Memorial 10 and 5 mile handicap road race events in Stevenage on Sunday morning. 

48 Spartans took part.  28 in the 10 and 20 in the five mile race.  21 women recorded a time.  There were some close finishes between people who may have started more than half an hour apart. 

ROBERT EVANS beat his handicap time by a substantial 6 minutes 36 seconds to win the 10 mile Bryan Moore event just 18 seconds ahead of his nearest rival with a net time of 1 hour 30 minutes 24 seconds.   

In the five mile race VICKY ARCHER beat her handicap by 2 minutes 14 seconds to win the Paul Maguire trophy.  She beat second placed PAUL SHELLEY by just 28 seconds.  Vicky completed her run in 45 minutes 46 seconds. 

In the ten CHARLIE WHITE came in second with a 6:18 improvement and a total time of 68 minutes 42 seconds.  Two others were less than two minutes behind – ANDREW PATTERSON with a fantastic time of 55 minutes 33 seconds, the fastest on the day and an improvement of 5 minutes 27 seconds, 1 minute 9 seconds behind the winner and JIM BROWN improving by 4:41 to 1:26:19 and 1:55 behind Robert. 

KELLY EVANS was first woman in the ten and eighth overall.  She improved by 1 minute 18 seconds to 1:31:12.  TRACY PEZ was second female and tenth overall almost matching her handicap time of 1:22:30 with 1:22:27.  SUZY HAWKINS was third and 14th overall but went round in a rapid 1 hour 11 minutes 21 seconds. 

Bryan Moore was a founding, in 1984, and life member of Fairlands Valley Spartans. 

First Ten in Ten – Bryan Moore Shield 

Position Name 1st lap 2nd lap Total Behind Winner 
1 ROBERT EVANS 45:01 45:23 1:30:24 Zero 
2 CHARLIE WHITE 35:28 33:14 1:08:42 @ 18 seconds 
3 ANDREW PATTERSON 27:48 27:45 55:33 @ 1:09 
4 JIM BROWN 42:52 43:27 1:26:19 @ 1:55 
5 ADRIAN DONNELLY 32:32 34:59 1:07:31 @ 2:07 
6 SIMON JACKSON 28:14 29:02 57:16 @ 2:52 
7 ADRIAN BUSOLINI 30:00 31:10 1:01:10 @ 4:16 
8. KELLY EVANS (1st F) 46:46 44:26 1:31:12 @ 5:18 
9. JON SYPULA 46:27 46:36 1:33:03 @ 6:19 
10. TRACY PEZ (2nd F) 41:50 40:37 1:22:27 @ 6:43 
14. SUZY HAWKINS (3rd F) 35:23 35:58 1:11:21 @ 7:57 

Paul Shelley’s time in the five was 32 minutes 14 seconds.  Three others were less than a minute behind the winner – THOMAS SAUKA at 36 seconds with 36:52; STUART ARCHER at 42 seconds in 32:28 and STEVE MAYFIELD at 58 seconds in 38:44. 

ALISON SHELLEY was second woman and seventh to finish.  She was 2 minutes 17 seconds behind the winner in 41:03.  The third woman and tenth overall was PENNY SCHENKEL at 3:03 with 48 minutes 19 seconds. 

First Ten in Five – Paul Maguire Memorial Five 

Position Name Time Behind Winner Comments 
1. VICKY ARCHER (1st F) 45:46 Zero 1st woman 
2. PAUL SHELLEY 32:14 @ 28 seconds  
3. THOMAS SAUKA 36:52 @ 36 seconds  
4. STUART ARCHER 32:28 @ 42 seconds  
5. STEVE MAYFIELD 38:44 @ 58 seconds  
6. BARRY OSBORNE 35:31 @ 1:15  
7. ALISON SHELLEY (2nd F) 41:03 @ 2:17 2nd woman 
8. VISHAL SHAH 46:11 @ 2:25  
9. MICHAEL O’KEEFE 47:35 @ 2:49  
10. PENNY SCHENKEL (3rd F) 48:19 @ 3:03 3rd woman 

In handicap events estimated times are based on recent performances.  The slowest runners start first with others following at intervals that should, in theory, get everyone over the finish line together.  First over the line, the best improver, is the winner even if they weren’t the fastest in the race. 

This is not an easy event to organise.  A huge thanks to STEFFAN FORD and the event team for making it happen.  And it raised hundreds of pounds for Feed Up, Warm Up. 

Paul Maguire was an inspirational Spartan, a former Spartan of the Year, who passed away a few years ago.  He lost a long battle with cancer, still running for several years following his diagnosis, in 2008 at the age of 42. 

Chilly looking Spartans at the end of the Handicap races – The sun shone and the wind even helped drive them up the hills!

Here Comes The Stevenage Half!  It’s on 21st November 

The Stevenage Half Marathon is almost full.   

Entries for the Stevenage Half Marathon are open but going fast!  To secure your place please follow this link to enter Stevenage Half Marathon 

Fast Parr At Dorney Lake 

JONATHAN PARR came second at the Dorney Lake 5K Sunday morning with a time of 16 minutes 20 seconds. 

The Last Fly 

The last Fly 5K in the current series will be the 80th on Saturday 20th November.  This virtual free run anywhere event on a Saturday morning helped to get a lot of people through lockdown when all events were cancelled.  More than 15,000 Fly 5K runs have been recorded since the series was launched.  There will be a Christmas edition and a real reunion in 2022. 

This time JIM BROWN was third in his age category with 26 minutes 43 seconds.  Wonder how many people will register with Fly 5K and run on the 20th. 

Knebworth House 

Five Spartans were at the Knebworth House events.   

Luke casually showing us all how a PB is achieved!

ROBERT WRIGHT; LUKE GURNEY, MARK WILLIAMS and new member TONY RANDFIELD ran the Hertfordshire Half Marathon.  Tony was 80th out of the 1,065 runners with a new personal best (PB) of 1 hour 35 minutes 54 seconds.  He was second man 60 plus.  Robert was 190th in a new course best 1 hour 43 minutes 55 seconds and Luke was 477th in a new PB of 1:56:08.  Mark Williams ran round the half at what he called a gentle pace for 1:58:46 and was 559th but then he had run the Thames Meander Marathon the previous day, Saturday, which he finished in a new personal best of 3 hours 46 minutes 1 second.   

JANE McFARLANE was encouraging friends new to running and ran the 10K in 68 minutes 20 seconds.  The Stevenage Half Marathon is on Sunday 21st November. 

Tony and Robert proudly showing off their medals after both getting a PB!

Parkrun Highlights  

On Spartan stripey Saturday, the first Saturday of November, thirty Fairlands Valley Spartans ventured out to represent their club at Parkrun events around the country. 

EVA RAMSEY was the first female to finish the Stevenage course in 22 minutes and 42 seconds, closely followed by ASHLEY JOHNSON, running her second Parkrun, who was the fourth in a time of 23 minutes and 2 seconds. ANDREW MCGUINNESS was the fastest of the 23 Spartans, finishing in 22 minutes and 18 seconds. 

Continuing the trend, in Letchworth GEORGIE HOOPER was the third female to finish with a time of 26 minutes and 22 seconds.  A Top 20 finish was also recorded by TIM SABAN in 23 minutes and 48 seconds on the Bideford course (19th male). 

CATHY CRAIG did the Brockenhurst parkrun, a New Forest trail which is described as undulating. Although there were lots of horses hanging around at the start, luckily none were actually on the gravel path route. Since she was on my holidays, she just walked up the hills, and finished first in her age group in 32 minutes exactly. 

(You can find all the Spartan parkrun times near the end of this release). 

Tables 

Spartans at parkrun on Saturday 6th November: 

  Position Gender Position Parkrunner Time 
Stevenage parkrun 30 29 Andrew MCGUINNESS 00:22:18 
  35 1 Eva RAMSEY 00:22:42 
  45 4 Ashley JOHNSON 00:23:03 
  54 48 Martin DUDLEY 00:23:46 
  71 59 Lee PICKERSGILL 00:24:53 
  75 63 Tim ROBINSON 00:25:09 
  76 64 David PATTMAN 00:25:11 
  87 73 Chris SAUNDERS 00:25:49 
  90 75 Danik BATES 00:25:54 
  94 79 James SOUTH 00:26:11 
  106 86 Jim BROWN 00:26:44 
  108 87 Nick KLEANTHOUS 00:26:51 
  110 89 Mark BEASLEY 00:26:54 
  119 25 Fiona CLARKE 00:27:14 
  120 94 Matt CLARKE 00:27:14 
  127 96 Barry OSBORNE 00:27:35 
  139 36 Nicola ANDERSSON 00:27:57 
  179 125 Paul JENNINGS 00:29:32 
  199 63 Caroline CROFT 00:30:59 
  201 64 Debbie BLANTERN 00:31:04 
  233 85 Theresa KEAST 00:32:49 
  237 88 Beth FOLEY 00:33:03 
  304 129 Helen HARRIS 01:03:44 
          
Houghton Hall parkrun 79 56 Michael O’KEEFE 00:28:33 
          
Brockenhurst parkrun 118 31 Catherine CRAIG 00:32:00 
          
Pomphrey Hill parkrun 230 134 Darryl STEVENS 00:40:29 
          
Lee-on-the-Solent parkrun 183 136 Edward HARE 00:27:53 
          
Bideford parkrun 21 19 Tim SABAN 00:23:48 
          
Letchworth parkrun 24 3 Georgie HOOPER 00:26:22 
  25 21 Nick GILL 00:26:22 
Categories
Club News Race Results

BRUTAL BALDOCK BEAST

Baldock Beast Half Marathon 

It was brutal for the beast on Sunday.  Fairlands Valley Spartans NEIL ROBINSON, KAREN ELLIS, TIM ROBINSON, MICHAEL O’KEEFE, TRISH HOPPER and KAREN LIDDLE ran the Baldock Beast half marathon. 

Weather conditions were terrible with a yellow warning issue by the Met office, the organisers were considering cancelling the event but the forecast was for it to clear at around 11am and with five minutes to go, the runners were called to the start line. 

The first mile and a half are up hill and the runners were exposed to horizontal rain and high winds, with ankle deep water, but once over the brow of the hill and into Wallington the conditions improved and running was easier. 

Tim still had the Beachy Head Marathon in his legs and adopted a strategy of walking up the steep hills. 

The last couple of miles the sun came out and the rain stopped but the wind still made running very difficult. 

Tim said it was another superbly organised event by local runners. 

Neil Robinson was first back for the Spartans with 1 hour 58 minutes 58 seconds.  The first female from Fairlands was Karen Ellis in 2:05:23.  Tim Robinson came in with 2:07:35 and Michael O’Keefe with 2:20:28.  Tricia Hopper and Karen Liddle finished together in 2:31:47 and 2:31:48.  Not a race for personal bests! 

     
Place Name Category Chip Time Grading 
     
119 NEIL ROBINSON MV40 1:58:58 51.60 
150 KAREN ELLIS FV45 2:05:23 60.75 
160 TIM ROBINSON MV50 2:07:35 52.38 
191 MICHAEL O’KEEFE MV50 2:20:28 49.67 
211 TRICIA HOPPER FV45 2:31:47 50.75 
212 KAREN LIDDLE FV55+ 2:31:48 55.85 
Baldock Beast Half results

Lulworth Cove Marathon – and a bit 

“Actually the hardest things I’ve ever done” said WENDY THARANI about Sunday’s Lulworth Cove Marathon.  This was off road either going steeply uphill or steeply downhill for almost 30 miles.  She said there was typical coastal changeable weather weather but some lovely sunshine and stunning scenery including Lulworth’s Cove and Durdle Door.  Wendy completed the 29.41 miles in 8 hours 58 minutes 20 seconds. 

Amazing Wendy at Lulworth Cove!

Serpentine  

There were two Spartans at the Serpentine Last Friday of the Month 5K in Hyde Park. 

Spartan YUKO GORDON scored the highest age graded score in the race 94.2% with 22 minutes 25 seconds. 

The fastest woman raced round in 18:28.  She was an FV50 but that ONLY scored 93.5%. 

The fastest man went round in 15:26 but that was only good enough for 85.5%. 

The Last Friday 5K can be an amazing event at the top end but also a great way to spend a Friday lunch-time.  Of course several went for coffee in the Serpentine Kitchen afterwards. 

Conditions were described by the organisers as mild, dry but wet underfoot and windy. 

Compared with recently JIM BROWN made a marginal gain of seven seconds to finish with 26 minutes 44 seconds.  A bit disappointing but his quickest “real” 5K for a long time (real in the sense of an accurately measured and properly timed race with other people). 

Position Name Time Comments 
75 YUKO GORDON 22:25 Best age graded 
115 JIM BROWN 26:44 Seven second improvement 

Two Weeks To Go!  Here Comes The Stevenage Half!  It’s on 21st November. 

Inspired by the London and Manchester Marathons?  Now you can be one of hundreds running in Stevenage on Sunday 21st November as entries for the town’s half marathon are open.  This year the race is a couple of weeks later than usual.   

Entries for the Stevenage Half Marathon are open but are going fast!  To make sure that you secure your place visit the following link to enter the race!  Go to https://stevenagehalfmarathon.org.uk/   

This years medal is awesome!

Parkrun Highlights for Saturday 30th October 2021 

Twenty two Spartans headed out to run at seven different Parkrun venues on Saturday. 

Congratulations to JONATHAN PARR who came first at Stevenage with a time of 17 minutes 7 seconds. This was Jonathan’s 16th win.  He is currently at third place for the most first place finishes at Stevenage. 

There were four other top ten gender positions this week with GRANT RAMSAY third (19:20, Stevenage), KELLY EVANS 6th (26:34, Erddig, near Wrexham), DAVID PATTMAN 10th (19:58, Gunpowder, Waltham Abbey) and GAIL MACKIE 10th (26:30 , Stevenage).There were no official Parkrun milestones this week but MONICA SMITHSON and BETH FOLEY have both reached an unofficial milestone of 40 Parkruns at Stevenage.Well done and congratulations to all.(You can find all the Spartan parkrun times near the end of this release). 

The rain doesn’t stop play at Stevenage Parkrun.

Tables    

Spartans at parkrun on Saturday 30th October: 

Position Gender position   Time Comments 
Stevenage parkrun         
1 1 Jonathan PARR 17:07   
3 3 Grant RAMSAY 19:20   
17 17 Thomas SAUKA 21:38   
28 28 Toby ECCLESHALL 23:06   
35 33 Andrew MCGUINNESS 23:37   
78 10 Gail MACKIE 26:30   
79 11 Ashley SCHOENWETTER 26:30   
111 87 Nick KLEANTHOUS 28:41   
140 31 Monica SMITHSON 30:15 40th 
154 39 Caroline CROFT 31:28   
178 53 Beth FOLEY 34:07 40th 
Gunpowder parkrun         
11 10 David PATTMAN 19:58   
74 22 Nicola PATTMAN 28:16   
Houghton Hall parkrun         
73 51 Michael O’KEEFE 28:36   
Erddig parkrun (Wrexham)         
46 6 Kelly EVANS 26:34   
Higginson parkrun, Marlow         
76 20 Tracy HAYGARTH 33:34   
The Great Field parkrun         
336 174 Darryl STEVENS 41:26   
Westmill parkrun         
19 16 Andy JAY 25:37   
Ferry Meadows parkrun         
75 61 Steve WELLS 23:44   
Categories
Club News Race Results

CROSS COUNTRY IS BACK !

 

Cross Country is back and despite many other races elsewhere 27 Spartans, 15 men and 12 women, ran the first Sunday League fixture of 2021 at Cheshunt on Sunday morning.  A little bit of rain loosened up what is usually a very dry event at the start of the season. 

The fastest Spartan, eleventh of about 400 runners, was JONATHAN PARR who raced around the just under five miles event in 28 minutes 48 seconds.  Four other Spartans were in the top one hundred overall.  They were ADRIAN BUSOLINI (25th in 30:31); STEVE WELLS (81st in 32:53); DANNY SCANLON (88th in 33:18); and GRANT RAMSAY (98th in 33:41).  The men’s “A” team of eight was completed by JOHN HARRIS (36:04); TOM SAUKA (37:03) and TOBY ECCLESHALL (37:50). 

It was teams of five for the women’s race and the Spartans “A” team were CHRISTINE LATHWELL (32:30); TRACEY JACKSON (38:19); WENDY THARANI (43:44); NICOLA ANDERSSON (45:06) and PENNY SCHENKEL (47:47). 

FVS men at cross country (teams of eight): 

Overall Position Name Time Comments 
11 JON PARR 28:48 A team 
25 ADRIAN BUSOLINI 30:31 A team 
81 STEVE WELLS 32:53 A team 
88 DANNY SCANLON 33:18 A team 
98 GRANT RAMSAY 33:41 A team 
145 JOHN HARRIS 36:04 A team 
164 TOM SAUKA 37:03 A team 
178 TOBY ECCLESHALL 37:50 A team 
213 DAVE PATTMAN 39:35  
214 STEVE DOBNER 39:36  
290 ANDY JAY 43:19  
303 NICK KLEANTHOUS 44:26  
336 JIM BROWN 47:36  
351 KEN JUDE 48:29  
368 SIMON SYPULA 51:30*  
Steve and Dave enjoying the mud!

FVS women at cross country (teams of five): 

Overall Position Name Time Comments 
74 CHRISTINE LATHWELL 32:30 A team 
195 TRACEY JACKSON 38:19 A team 
293 WENDY THARANI 43:44 A team 
309 NICHOLA ANDERSSON 45:06 A team 
341 PENNY SCHENKEL 47:47 A team 
371 CATHY CRAIG 53:19 B team 
375 SHARON CROWLEY 54:33 B team 
384 CALLIE CHAPMAN 57:11 B team 
385 KAREN ELLIS 57:11 B team 
386 HAZEL SMITH 57:11 B team 
387 BETH FOLEY 57:11  
390 JANE WHITROW 59:27  
Callie, Hazel & Karen are all smiles as usual!
  • The next cross country league race will be in Trent Park, North London on Sunday 12th December. 

Chelmsford Marathon 

PETE SMITH said the Chelmsford Marathon was a well organised race, great marshals (like ours) a touch undulating and with a few tight turns, but generally a good course.  Pete was well happy with his 3 hours 26 minutes 24 seconds.  MARIE COLUCCI just wanted to get round but got a brilliant 4:03:10. 

Marie & Pete both ran a fabulous marathon!

Paris Marathon 

JOHN NELMS travelled to Paris to run his 102nd lifetime marathon and his 16th and probably last of 2021. 

Hot, sunny and surprisingly humid conditions slowed the times and he finished in a comfortable 4 hours 19 minutes.  A beautiful course passing most of the famous Parisian sights and a VIP tent at the finish line (thank you Tom Robinson ) 
 

Bedford Autodrome 

STUART ARCHER ran Bedford Autodrome on Sunday.  He did the half marathon distance in 1:29:15, under one and a half hours.  He said that it was a breezy course but he enjoyed it and even got a picture with the Stig afterwards. 

Stuart was all smiles after meeting The Stig!

Oxford Half 

Spartan RICHARD COWLISHAW completed the Oxford Half on Sunday in 1 hour 33 minutes and 32 seconds.  That’s his fastest ever competitive half marathon.  He was 491st out of 12932 runners. 

Richard said, “This is one of the best half marathons I have run.  It was flat, perfect weather, great crowds and a good wide route, with a park run towards the end.  I would recommend this event to anyone.” 

Cambridge Half 

CAROLYN LINSELL ran the Cambridge Half Marathon in 2 hours 26 minutes 12 seconds.  Carolyn said, “On Sunday I ran my fourth Cambridge Half Marathon with my friend Hannah Morgan Gray (we ran the virtual VLM – Virtual London Marathon together  two weeks ago).  We were going well when Hannah felt a niggle in her ankle/foot & we had to slow right down & she had to walk several times.  I kept running & zig zagging as I promised we would run this together & I would not leave her.” 

Great South Run 

JENNY GARRETT ran the Great South Run ten miles event in 1 hour 31 minutes 33 seconds. 

She said there were perfect running conditions on Sunday with lots of support around the whole course and it was nice to be out showing off the Spartan stripes.  ED HARE finished in 1 hour 26 minutes 17 seconds and JONATHAN JONES in 2:00:51. 

Inspired by the London and Manchester Marathons?  Here Comes The Stevenage Half! 

Inspired by the London and Manchester Marathons?  Now you can be one of hundreds running in Stevenage on Sunday 21st November as entries for the town’s half marathon are open. 

With only five weeks to go to the Stevenage Half Marathon it’s time to start getting ready and entered.  This year the race will be on Sunday 21st November (a couple of weeks later than usual). 

Entries for the Stevenage Half Marathon are open.  Go to https://stevenagehalfmarathon.org.uk/  This club and community event has a history going back 37 years and is organised by Fairlands Valley Spartans.  With a break due to Covid 19 in 2020 it’s back for 2021.   

Parkrun report for Saturday 9th October 2021 

In this week’s roundup of Spartans on the Parkrun circuit, SUZY HAWKINS just missed out on a sub-20 minute at Stevenage and was second female to finish (finishing eight seconds behind the first female runner). 

Stevenage Parkrun Results where 327 runners took part.  SUZY HAWKINS 20-05 (8th), ASHLEY SCHOENWETTER 22-14 (24th and 4th female), CRAIG BACON 23-38 (47th), MARTIN DUDLEY 23-48 (51st), HAZEL SMITH 24-22 (63rd), DANIK BATES 25-14 (83rd and with a buggy), MATT CLARKE 26-46 (126th), NICK KLEANTHOUS 27-34 (137th), JIM BROWN 28-01 (141st), PENNY SCHENKEL 28-11 (142nd), TOBY ECCLESHALL 28-35 (150th), CHLOE CHAPMAN 28-42 (155th), ERICA GRAYSON 29-13 (172nd), JO BOWDERY 29-18 (176th), STEVE SMITHSON 29-34 (184th), PAUL JENNINGS 30-16 (195th), TRACEY HAYGRATH 31-34 (231st), CAROLINE CROFT 31-41 (237th) and BETH FOLEY 33-53 (266th).  

Parkrun Away days:  

Gunpowder (Waltham Abbey): STEVEN DOBNER 23-34 (40th out of 152 runners), DAVID PATTMAN 23-34 (41st).  

Letchworth (Hertfordshire): NICK GILL 21-48 (12th out of 94 runners), GEORGIE HOOPER 26-01 (38th). 

Panshanger (Hertford): MIKE REYNOLDS 25-06 (62nd out of 207 runners).  

Rushmere (Bedfordshire): MICHAEL O’KEEFE 29-31 (73rd out of 141 runners).  

Rutland Water (Rutland): DARRYL STEVENS 41-39 (210th). 

Categories
Club News Race Results

MAGNIFICENT MANCHESTER

Eight Spartans In Manchester!  Entries are open for our own Stevenage Half Marathon! 

Eight Spartans excelled themselves by finishing the Manchester Marathon on Sunday. 

For PAUL and ALISON SHELLEY it was their second ever marathon.  It was warmer than they’d expected it to be and they both gave it their all.  Paul improved his personal best by 14 minutes and finished in 3 hours 13 minutes 36 seconds.  He was 1,098 out of the 9,473 men and 61st out of 929 men aged 50 plus.  Alison took 23 minutes off her personal best (PB) with 4 hours 13 minutes 16 seconds and was 84th out of the 415 women aged 50 plus. 

MATT CLARKE was pleased to get under four hours, 3:58:01, despite disruptions to his preparation.  For FIONA CLARKE it was an emotional run but she completed her target of three marathons this year with 4 hours 52 minutes 21 seconds.  Fiona was raising money for the East and North Hertfordshire Hospitals Trust.  She said that for her it was an ugly race, very scrappy, the hardest of the three but she did it! 

WENDY THARANI ran the London Marathon only a week earlier but she still finished Manchester in 4 hours 38 minutes 55 seconds.  DAVID PATTMAN came in with 4:01:07 and STEVEN DOBNER with 4:12:53. 

Wendy and Fiona are all smiles at the Manchester finish line!

For LIZ SMITH it was an experiment to see if her prodigious cycling fitness could get her round a marathon.  It did. She finished with a smile in 5 hours 10 minutes 34 seconds. 

Position Name Time Comments 
1148 PAUL SHELLEY 3:13:36 PB (13 minutes) 
4948 MATT CLARKE 3:58:01  
5366 DAVID PATTMAN 4:01.07  
6476 STEVEN DOBNER 4:12:53  
6527 ALISON SHELLEY 4:13:16 PB (23 minutes) 
9036 WENDY THARANI 4:38:55 Ran London 
10130 FIONA CLARKE 4:52:21 Three Done 
11402 LIZ SMITH 5:10:34  

Metropolis 

On Sunday, ADRIAN BUSOLINI participated in the inaugural running of Metropolis, a story-driven night time ultra experience through central London.  Starting with some properly engaging & atmospheric immersive theatre, runners were given new identities and tasked with completing a range of mandatory and optional missions to help the RUN resistance network.  

Guided by What 3 Words locations, they had to devise optimised route choices on the fly, accounting for factors such as time windows, deadlines, water supply, and the practicalities of navigating around London on a Saturday night; all the while evading ‘The Eyes’ who were trying to hunt us down with the help of GPS tracking. Ultimately we had to connect with a resistance leader to learn of our extraction location, and make it to the rendezvous point before ‘the last transport from Metropolis’. Billed as a 50 kilometres race, Adrian ended up exceeding 75 from targeting a number of the bonus missions. 

The race directors Richard and Mark put a lot of effort into devising this experience, crafting the backstory, preparing the theatrical elements & actor roles, the technological live tracking for the missions, and practicalities of the Eyes hunting participants; down to the details such as the witty mission locations, origami birds, and the extraction location embedded in a fortune cookie. If you fancy a memorable, immersive experience that also happens to involve a fair amount of running, then keep an eye out for what Richand and Mark come up with next. 

Results are yet to be finalised, but according to the current state of the leaderboard I finished in second, somehow… 

Adrian taking on Metropolis

Jonathan Second At Windsor 

Spartan JONATHAN PARR was second at the Windsor Autumn 5K around Dorney Lake in 16 minutes 7 seconds. 

Yuko Is World Champion 

YUKO GORDON from Fairlands Valley Spartans is a marathon world champion.  She won the World Age Group Championships which were incorporated in the London Marathon.  Her time was 3 hours 25 minutes 30 seconds.  She was 6 minutes 54 seconds ahead of her nearest rival Sharon Smith (3:32:24) and 13 minutes 8 seconds ahead of third placed Jeannie Rice from the USA 3:38:380.  

Having cleaned up Yuko went straight back into London for the WANDA age group marathon party. 

(Yuko’s victory was confirmed after last week’s release had been distributed.  Twenty Spartans finished the race). 

Yuko, our very proud World Champion celebrating in style!

Royal Parks Half 

GERRY ROSEN has had a really difficult year with Covid and other issues but he beat his half marathon personal best by seven minutes with 2 hours 35 minutes 30 seconds at the Royal Parks Half Marathon. 

Run With Willow 

Two Spartans CAROLYN LINSELL and JIM BROWN ran the Willow Foundation 10K at Hatfield House on Sunday.  Jim said it was a really relaxed and friendly wind down after the previous week’s London Marathon though he was woken up by a cattle grid at about five kilometres.  Carolyn finished in 55 minutes 26 seconds, her third fastest 10K, and Jim in 58:20.  Carolyn was 39th and Jim 51st out of the 131 runners.  This was a mixed terrain event with the start very close to Hatfield Station. 

Carolyn & Jim at the Willow 10K

Inspired by the London and Manchester Marathons?  Here Comes The Stevenage Half! 

Inspired by the London and Manchester Marathons?  Now you can be one of hundreds running in Stevenage on Sunday 21st November as entries for the town’s half marathon are open. 

With only six weeks to go to the Stevenage Half Marathon it’s time to start getting ready and entered.  This year the race will be on Sunday 21st November (a couple of weeks later than usual). 

Entries for the Stevenage Half Marathon are open.  Go to https://stevenagehalfmarathon.org.uk/   

Parkrun Highlights – Saturday 9th Oct 2021 

Although many were enjoying an England Athletics track training session at Ridlins or preparing for races the next day a warm October morning saw twenty two Fairlands Valley Spartans attend Parkrun events. 

In Stevenage, CHARLOTTE KEARNEY ran a personal best (PB) time of 29 minutes and 44 secondss, completing the course in the top 40 females.  On her 75th Parkrun outing, GAIL MACKIE finished as the 8th female in 25 mins and 32 secs closely followed by ASHLEY SCHOENWETTER in 25 mins and 33 secs (9th female).  TOBY ECCLESHALL was the first male Spartan to complete the course in 22 minutes and 13 seconds. 

Elsewhere MICHAEL O’KEEFE and JAMES McSWEENY respectively ran the Henlow Bridge Lakes and Hillsborough Forest routes for the first time in 28 mins and 48 secs and 24 mins and 08 secs. 

HELEN HARRIS and JIM BROWN were both running their 60th parkruns. 

(All the Spartans running parkruns on Saturday are included near the end of this release). 

Time To Get Muddy 

The cross country season starts this Sunday 17th October with a Sunday League race at Cheshunt. 

Tables 

Full results for all Spartans when there are a lot at an event will be listed below.   

Spartan Parkrun Results: 

  Position Gender Position Parkrunner Time   
Stevenage parkrun 27 24 Toby ECCLESHALL 00:22:13   
  72 8 Gail MACKIE 00:25:32   
  73 9 Ashley SCHOENWETTER 00:25:33   
  94 81 Jim BROWN 00:26:37   
  97 83 Mark BEASLEY 00:26:43   
  119 96 Matt CLARKE 00:27:47   
  133 24 Nicola ANDERSSON 00:28:31   
  145 112 Paul JENNINGS 00:29:04   
  146 28 Penny SCHENKEL 00:29:08   
  149 31 Fiona CLARKE 00:29:17   
  159 117 Danik BATES 00:29:41   
  160 37 Charlotte KEARNEY 00:29:44 PB! 
  161 38 Chloe CHAPMAN 00:29:44   
  218 62 Theresa KEAST 00:32:58   
  221 65 Beth FOLEY 00:33:15   
  284 102 Helen HARRIS 00:51:01   
  286 163 Roger BIGGS 01:06:49   
            
Wimpole Estate parkrun 233 87 Sally PHILLIPS 00:35:21   
            
Canons Park parkrun 18 15 Tim SABAN 00:22:27   
            
Henlow Bridge Lakes parkrun 83 66 Michael O’KEEFE 00:28:48   
            
Hillsborough Forest parkrun 22 18 James MCSWEENEY 00:24:08   
      
Westmill parkrun 23 17 Andy JAY 00:26:06   

www.fvspartans.org.uk 

Categories
Club News Race Results

SPARTANS IN LONDON

Inspired by London?  Now run in Stevenage! 

After an absence of 889 days the massed start London Marathon returned to the streets of London on Sunday and dozens of Fairlands Valley Spartans were there either running or helping as volunteers in the finish area.  The Spartan finish line volunteers were still handing out bags at 6.45p.m! 

Twenty Spartans finished the 26.2 miles race. 

Among them was YUKO GORDON who missed a world record by less than a minute.  Yuko’s time was 3:25:30 and she beat the current world W70 record holder Jeannie Rice (USA) who was also running.  She missed the world record by 43 seconds but she said the London course is not easy particularly from the red start which is hillier.  Having cleaned up Yuko went straight back into London for the marathon party. 

SUZY HAWKINS enjoyed her run.  She set a new record of 3 hours 11 minutes 36 seconds for women over 45 and has qualified for another championship place.  Her mum Eileen said… “This amazing young woman has just completed the London Marathon in 3 hours 11 minutes even though she said she was not fit having completed a ¾ Ironman triathlon two weeks ago and a full Ironman just a few weeks before that.  We are so proud of you.  You are truly awesome Suzy Hawkins.” 

New Spartan ASHLEY JOHNSON was delighted to beat her 3 hours 40 minutes target with 3:39:09 in her first “real” marathon.  She ran the virtual London Marathon in the rain last year. 

DANNY SCANLON ran 3 hours 6 minutes 22 seconds in his first ever marathon. 

There was a new personal best (PB) by 23 seconds for HAZEL SMITH with 4 hours 23 minutes 24 seconds.  It’s unusual for a mother and daughter to come out of the same London Marathon ballot but Hazel’s mum CATHY CRAIG went round in 5 hours 40 minutes 21 seconds. 

JIM BROWN also qualified for the Age Group World Championships but after some running setbacks in the last few weeks he adopted a “sensible” get round strategy.  He was determined to get round his twentieth London Marathon. 

ADA JANUSIENE said her first London Marathon was a truly wonderful experience.  She finished in 5 hours 3 minutes 5 seconds. 

Three Spartans beat the three hour barrier – SIMON JACKSON in 2:44:54; ANDREW PATTERSON in 2:47:58 and ADRIAN BUSOLINI in 2:48:52. 

This was a different London Marathon with changed starting and finish arrangements and many entries dating back to 2019 but it was great to see the thousands back to running the usual course from Blackheath, past the Cutty Sark, over Tower Bridge, around East London, then back passing the Tower of London to finish on the Mall.  All the Spartan runner were extremely grateful to the volunteers, many from running clubs, that worked for many hours to make the event possible. 

ADA JANUSIENE 5.03.05, ADRIAN BUSOLINI 2.48.52, ANDREW PATTERSON 2.47.48, ASHLEY JOHNSON 3.39.09, CATHY CRAIG 5.40.21, DANNY SCANLON 3.06.22, DAVID PRICE 4:38:32 , HAZEL SMITH 4.23.24, JAN FRY 5.49.14, JIM BROWN 4.44.11, JOHN NELMS 4.19.57, JON SYPULA 4.19.20, MARTIN DUDLEY 4.40.50, PAUL JENNINGS 5:32:59, SIMON JACKSON 2.44.54, STUART HAYCROFT 3.01.44, SUE HAMER 4.40.38, SUZY HAWKINS 3.11.36, WENDY THARANI 5.00.22, YUKO GORDON 3.25.30 

(A table of all the Spartan finishers can be found near the end of this release). 

Inspired by the London Marathon?  Here Comes The Stevenage Half! 

Inspired by the London Marathon?  Thousands running round London.  Now you can be one of hundreds running in Stevenage on Sunday 21st November as entries for the town’s half marathon are open. 

With only seven weeks to go to the Stevenage Half Marathon it’s time to start getting ready and entered.  This year the race will be on Sunday 21st November (a couple of weeks later than usual). 

Entries for the Stevenage Half Marathon are open.  Go to https://stevenagehalfmarathon.org.uk/   

Dorney Marathon 

Three Spartan ran the Dorney Marathon on Sunday.   

SUSAN and CIARAN McANENY ran Dorney Lakes Marathon together, coming in pretty much bang on the 4 hour mark; 4:00:08.  Annoyingly close to that attractive sub 4 hour for Susan (Ciaran is usually a sub 3 when he’s not keeping his wife company on a course!!) but still a 36 minute PB (personal best) for her! 

It’s well organised and a great spectator course.  They said it was good to see friendly Spartan Ken Jude working there for the event too!  

ROBERT WRIGHT ran the same event in 3 hours 47 minutes 11 seconds. 

Virtual Carolyn and Marian 

CAROLYN LINSELL and MARIAN MORLEY ran Sunday’s virtual London Marathon nearer home.  Despite some problems with the tracking app Carolyn and Marian both completed the 42.2 kilometres. 

Marian Morley ran her virtual London Marathon at a 5.3k laps event run by ZigZag at Hinchingbrooke Country Park.  She said, “The course was mostly trail and in parts was very muddy.  I could have done with trail shoes as some areas very slippery after the rain.  The London Marathon App didn’t work properly.  The GPS was faulty and my time was filed as 4 hours 12 minutes.  The more realistic reality was 5 hours 30 minutes – I’m not sure I could have done better as I’ve had a bad cold all week, although at the half way point I was on track for a sub 5 hour run but faded in the second half – the glitching with the Marathon App was not emotionally helpful once I’d realised it was faulty. 

Parkrun Highlights – Saturday 2nd Oct 2021 

This week saw a less than usual number of Spartans running at various Parkrun likely due to a packed Autumn racing calendar, with the London Marathon and many others taking place on Sunday3rd October.  Despite the reduced number, the enthusiasm for the ones who turned up was as high as usual. 

NIC and DAVID PATTMAN were tourists at Sizewell Norfolk, taking on this scenic seaside parkrun finishing in 22:55 and 31:37 respectively. 

MICHAEL O’KEEFE tried out Banbury parkrun for the first time (30:36), having tried out 35 different venues previously. 

The fastest Spartan was STEVE WELLS finishing with a time of 19:44 (10th male) at Stevenage.  The fastest Spartan lady was ASHLEY KING (4th female) also at Stevenage, completing in 22:27. 

(All the Spartans running parkruns on Saturday are included near the end of this release). 

Tables 

Full results for all Spartans when there are a lot at an event will be listed below.   

Spartans at the London Marathon 

First Name Last Name Time Position 
SIMON JACKSON 02:44:54 631 
ANDREW PATTERSON 02:47:48 791 
ADRIAN BUSOLINI 02:48:52 3,574 
STUART HAYCROFT 03:01:44 2,163 
DANNY SCANLON 03:06:22 2,586 
SUZY HAWKINS 03:11:36 299 
YUKO GORDON 03:25:30 766 
ASHLEY JOHNSON 03:39:09 1,539 
JON SYPULA 04:19:20 12,084 
JOHN NELMS 04:19:57 12,174 
HAZEL SMITH 04:23:24 5,093 
DAVID PRICE 04:38:32 14,670 
SUE HAMER 04:40:38 6,679 
MARTIN DUDLEY 04:40:50 14,968 
JIM BROWN 04:44:11 15,375 
WENDY THARANI 05:00:22 8,625 
ADA JANUSIENE 05:03:05 8,884 
PAUL JENNINGS 05:32:59 49,353 
CATHY CRAIG 05:40:21 11,552 
JAN FRY 05:49:14 11,995 

(Women’s positions are gender positions) 

Spartan Parkrun Results: 

There were eighteen Spartans at the Stevenage parkrun. 

11 10 Steve WELLS 19:44 

29 4 Ashley KING 22:27 

48 39 Mike REYNOLDS 23:52 

59 48 James MCSWEENEY 24:20 

87 70 Barry OSBORNE 25:47 

88 71 Steven DOBNER 25:48 

133 106 Nick KLEANTHOUS 27:57 

142 23 Fiona CLARKE 28:13 

158 29 Chloe CHAPMAN 29:20 

179 36 Erica GRAYSON 30:12 

182 138 Tim ROBINSON 30:25 

185 140 Toby ECCLESHALL 30:31 

187 141 Stephen SMITHSON 30:33 

188 39 Gail MACKIE 30:39 

189 40 Monica SMITHSON 30:41 

203 48 Tracy HAYGARTH 31:31 

231 67 Karen PALMER 33:04 

239 72 Beth FOLEY 34:14 

MICHAEL O’KEEFE completed the Banbury parkrun in 30 minutes 36 seconds which gave him 113rd place. 

Ed HARE was 89th at the Lee-on-the Solent parkrun in 26 minutes 7 seconds. 

In Sizewell DAVID PATTMAN was eighth in 22:55 and NICOLA PATTMAN 47th (and eighth woman) in 31:37 and at the Charlton parkrun DARRYL STEVENS was 320th in 44 minutes 14 seconds. 

Categories
Club News Race Results

SPARTANS AT STANDALONE

Women Win EMAC * Here Comes London 

Twenty two Spartans raced around the Standalone 10K in Letchworth on Sunday and their women won prizes at opposite ends of the age spectrum.  ABBIE PEZ was first junior lady (under 20) with 50 minutes 2 seconds and YUKO GORDON was first woman over 65 with 45 minutes 53 seconds.  CLAIRE PULLEN was first woman over 55 with 47:12. 

The Standalone 10K included the Hertfordshire County Championships for veteran runners and the Fairlands Valley Spartans first team of four consisted of DEAN CARPENTER 100th out of 747 overall (including seniors) in 44 minutes 10 seconds; JON FILBY 110th in 45:06; MARK GOODWIN 157th in 47:19 and ANDY JAY 227th in 50:21. 

Yuko Gordon led in the Spartan women in 120th in 45:53 with Claire Pullen 153rd in 47:12; TRACY PEZ 171st in 47:47.  It was teams of three for the women’s event.  A second women’s team was brought in by KAREN ELLIS and NICOLA ANDERSSON 326th and 327th in 53 minutes 31 seconds and completed by CAROL PAUL 401st in 56:29. 

(All the Fairlands Valley Spartan times can be found in a table towards the end of this release). 

Spartan Women Win In The East 

The ladies track and field team saw off competition from the best athletics clubs across the East of England to regain the masters (veterans) championship trophy they last won in 2017.  The team dominated from start to finish, cruising to victory with 255 points.  Second placed Peterborough/Nene Valley AC scored 235.5 points, and Marshal Milton Keynes AC placed third with 232.5 points. 

The team were out in force, fourteen Spartan women, and really enjoyed the competition and great conditions. 

Wins came from JOYLYN SAUNDERS-MULLINS (once again dropping down an age group) – W50 (women aged 50 plus) 100 metres and W50 javelin throw (also finishing a very close second in the W50 200m).  TESSA STEPHENSON – W60 200 metres (also finished 2nd placed W60 100m and W60 shot put).  ALISON WOOD – W50 800m (also 2nd placed W50 in the 1500m).  CHRISTINE LATHWELL – winning both W35 1500m and W35 3k.  NIKKI WILBY – W35 high jump (also 2nd W35 pole vault, 2nd W35 triple jump, and 2nd W35 400mH).  ANDREA WESTCOTT – W50 triple jump (also 4th place W50 high jump and 6th place W50 long jump). 

YUKO GORDON won an additional trophy having clocked an amazing age graded 99.5% in the W60 3km and also easily won the W60 800m. 

The team’s strength in depth meant that all events were covered, earning vital points.  

Team members bolstering the tally were CALLIE ‘Cocktail’ CHAPMAN – third place W35 long jump, 5th placed W35 100m, and 6th place W35 200m.  SUZY HAWKINS – 3rd place in both W35 400m and W35 800m.  KAREN DODSWORTH – dropping down an age group to cover W50 400m and finishing 5th, also placed 5th in W60 discus throw and W60 long jump, and 4th place in W60 triple jump.  SHERYL HANN – also dropped down to cover W50 3km and placed 7th.  SHARON CROWLEY – first place B string 2km walk and 6th placed W60 hammer throw.  CATHY CRAIG – fourth place in the A string 2km walk (also bravely covered the W50 300mH, finishing in 5th place).  STEPHANIE BIGGAR – 2nd place W35 hammer throw, 3rd place W35 shot put, 4th place W35 javelin throw, and 5th place W35 discus throw.  MARIAN MORLEY – 2nd place in both W50 shot put and discus throw, and 4th place W50 hammer throw. 

A full day of events, which started at 10:30 am, finished with the (usually) all important relay races.  In reality, victory had already been sealed!  The W35 team (Suzy Hawkins, Cocktail Chapman, Nikki Wilby, and Christine Lathwell) still battled well and finished second.  The W50 team (Joylyn Saunders-Mullins, Sharon Crowley, Karen Dodsworth, and Tessa Stephenson) finished third. 

It was a truly excellent day, with great team spirit and support throughout.  Mike Crowley and Chris Westcott should also get a mention for their help and support during a very long day. 

Jonathan Second In Surrey 

JONATHAN PARR finished 2nd in the Mercer Surrey 5k at Woking on Sunday morning with a time of 16 minutes 18 seconds. 

Happy Spartan at Bedford Autodrome 

CAROLE SHELDRICK was the solo Spartan at the Bedford Autodrome 10K on Sunday. 

She said, “What an amazing event they put on.  I have got to say, I wasn’t too sure how this run would go for me.  I felt under trained, so was just hoping I’d manage to get round in one piece so I was very happy with my time of 56:28.  One happy Spartan.” 

Running Through The Glen 

ZOE JACKSON was celebrating in the sun after completing the Robin Hood Half Marathon.  Pacing someone with a target time of 125 minutes she finished, on target, in 2 hours 3 minutes 16 seconds.  Zoe said it was a great course with fantastic support the whole way round the city, and we were very lucky with the weather!  

Serpentine 5K 

Sunny, warm, light breeze, the odd parakeet and a cafe near the finish.  “What’s not to like?” said JIM BROWN after finishing the second of the revived Last Friday of the Month 5Ks – the Serpentine 5K? 

Jim achieved a marginal improvement on last month in this lunch-time race in Hyde Park. 

His official time was 26:53 and 123rd.  Last month was 26:58.  Both on the two lap version of the Serpentine course. 

Jim commented it was very enjoyable, more should try it, but I seem to be the wrong sort of consistent at the moment. 

Parkrun Highlights 25th September 2021  

Members of Fairlands Valley Spartans took part across 10 different UK parkruns this week.  There were PBs for ANTON McCALLA on his second appearance at Market Harborough (26:30).  It was PB o’clock for ED HARE at Lee-on-the-Solent (23:03) in his fourth run at that venue. 

 In Stevenage ADRIAN DONNELLY clocked a new PB of 20:26.  Eighteen Spartans were running in Stevenage while several others were helping this week. 

 (The full list of Spartan parkrun times will be near the end). 

The 72nd Fly 5K – Saturday 25th September. 

Lots of “real” races going on including the London Marathon this Sunday (3rd) but the virtual Fly 5K races continue and two Spartans were in the action.  NICOLA ANDERSSON was 65th in 28:34 and PAUL HOLGATE 78th in 30:27.  He was third veteran man 60 plus and this was his 70th Fly 5K. 

Fly 5K was one of the stars of lockdown keeping runners moving and in touch during the restrictions.  The first of the free virtual races was in June 2020. 

Entries Open for the Stevenage Half Marathon 

With only eight weeks to go to the Stevenage Half Marathon it’s time to start getting ready and entered.  This year the race will be on Sunday 21st November (a couple of weeks later than usual). 

Entries for the Stevenage Half Marathon are open.  You can enter by following this link:  Stevenage Half Marathon 

Tables 

Full results for all Spartans when there are a lot at an event will be listed below.   

Spartans at Standalone: 

       
Place Gun Time Name Chip Time Category Number Comments 
       
100 00:44:28 DEAN CARPENTER 44:10 Vet Men 40-49 781  
110 00:45:24 JON FILBY 45:06 Vet Men 40-49 68  
120 00:45:56 YUKO GORDON 45:53 Vet Ladies 65+ 379 1st 65+ 
153 00:47:30 CLAIRE PULLEN 47:12 Vet Ladies 55-64 677 1st 55+ 
157 00:47:37 MARK GOODWIN 47:19 Vet Men 60-69 58  
171 00:48:06 TRACY PEZ 47:47 Vet Ladies 45-54 864  
219 00:50:21 ABBIE PEZ 50:02 Junior Ladies U20 872 1st U20 
227 00:50:40 ANDY JAY 50:21 Vet Men 50-59 767  
291 00:52:57 MARTIN DUDLEY 52:06 Vet Men 50-59 782  
326 00:54:26 KAREN ELLIS 53:31 Vet Ladies 45-54 512  
327 00:54:26 NICOLA ANDERSSON 53:31 Vet Ladies 45-54 403  
401 00:57:12 CAROL PAUL 56:29 Vet Ladies 55-64 432  
443 00:58:18 JIM BROWN 57:27 Vet Men 60-69 111  
473 00:59:36 BARRY KING 58:36 Vet Men 50-59 139  
483 00:59:56 ERICA GRAYSON 57:49 Vet Ladies 45-54 106  
501 01:00:43 MICHAEL O’KEEFE 60:02 Vet Men 50-59 67  
539 01:02:59 SELVAN NAICKER 62:17 Vet Men 50-59 717  
549 01:03:43 PAUL HOLGATE 63:01 Vet Men 60-69 735  
620 01:08:01 MARIAN MORLEY 66:45 Vet Ladies 55-64 333  
744 01:33:15 HAYLEY PEACH 90:58 Vet Ladies 35-44 127  
745 1:34:24 NICHOLA DURENT 92:07 VL 35-44 104  
746 1:34:24 SHARON CROWLEY 92:08 VL 55-64 661  

  

Other Spartans ran but did not count in the county veteran championships (e.g. too young or do not live in Hertfordshire). 

Spartan Parkrun Results: 

Stevenage parkrun 

A total of 307 runners took part. 

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Club   Run Time   
     
6 6 Steve WELLS Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:19:43 
10 10 Adrian DONNELLY Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:20:26 
51 47 Barry OSBORNE Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:23:07 
67 58 Sam SIMMONS Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:24:13 
116 96 Danik BATES Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:26:33 
118 98 Nick KLEANTHOUS Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:26:41 
121 17 Julie SIMMONS Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:26:52 
155 29 Nicola ANDERSSON Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:28:32 
170 131 Matt CLARKE Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:29:01 
185 40 Natalie WHITE Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:29:33 
197 45 Debbie BLANTERN Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:30:14 
202 148 Paul JENNINGS Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:30:38 
233 61 Carole SHELDRICK Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:32:14 
236 63 Dzenana TOPIC Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:32:22 
239 66 Caroline CROFT Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:32:37 
257 75 Beth FOLEY Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:33:47 
270 80 Fiona CLARKE Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:34:37 
274 83 Theresa KEAST Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:35:23 

Houghton Hall parkrun 

A total of 158 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Club   Run Time   
73 49 Michael O’KEEFE Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:28:43 

Brockenhurst parkrun 

A total of 141 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Club   Run Time   
141 77 Darryl STEVENS Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 01:02:16 

  

Market Harborough parkrun 

A total of 276 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Club   Run Time   
108 80 Anton MCCALLA Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:26:30 

Wimpole Estate parkrun 

A total of 276 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Club   Run Time   
99 17 Trudie MOLLOY Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:28:13 
258 147 Barry KING Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:42:47 

Lee-on-the-Solent parkrun 

A total of 383 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Club   Run Time   
61 51 Edward HARE Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:23:03 

Letchworth parkrun 

A total of 101 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Club   Run Time   
87 22 Caren THAIN Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:37:21 

  

Littleport parkrun 

A total of 115 runners took part. 

  

Position   Gender Position   parkrunner   Club   Run Time   
19 17 James MCSWEENEY Fairlands Valley Spartans RC 00:23:38 
Categories
Club News Race Results

SPARTAN IMPROVERS

Team Medals * Handicap 5K

28 Spartans took part in Thursday evening’s Handicap 5K around Stevenage.

Winner on the night was DAVID PRICE in a time of 24 minutes 34 seconds 3:26 better than handicap with FIONA CLARKE firstfemale in 26:14, 2:46 better than handicap.  NICOLA HATHERLY was second female in 34:44 and CAROLYN LINSELL third female in 26:24, while CHLOE CHAPMAN was fourth female in 26:58.  MATT CLARKE was 2nd male in 23:02 with DANNY HUKIN 3rd male in 18:34 and STUART ARCHER 4th male in 19:27.

The winners are, in effect, the best improvers.  In a handicap event the slowest go off first with the faster ones following according to recent performances.  In theory if everyone runs to form they will all finish together.  In practice the first ones over the finish line will be those that have improved the most, or those that have slowed down the least.

DANNY HUKIN was fastest on the night with his 18:34 and STUART ARCHER second quickest with his 19:27, while BRIAN WHITE was third quickest in 21:15 and PETE SMITH fourth fastest in 21:40.  MARIE COLUCCI was quickest female in 22:56, with TRACEY JACKSON & TRACY PEZ second and third fastest in 23:32 and FIONA CLARKE fourth quickest with her 26:14.

There were Season Best times for Chloe Chapman, Matt Clarke, Danny Hukin, Andy Jay, Marie Colucci, Jane McFarlane, Tracey Jackson, Tracy Pez, Peter Smith, Nigel Strongitharm and Sharon Crowley, and Year Best times for Fiona Clarke, Nicola Hatherly, Stuart Archer, Dean Carpenter, Mark Beasley, Sally Pickles, Nick Kleanthous, Kelly Evans and Dzenana Topic.

The race was in Stevenage on the Fairlands, Verity, Martins, Grace and back to Fairlands Way course with the start near Webb Rise and the finish under Douglas Drive.

The club thanked Paul Holgate, Cathy Craig, Mark Freeman, Angie Keeling and Adrian Busolini for their much appreciated support, assistance and photos which made the event a success.

Spartans at the Stevenage 10K

After months of cancellations and postponements it was great to enjoy the company of others at a “real” race in Stevenage.  Twenty Spartans ran the Stevenage 10K on Sunday.

The Spartan men’s team of four consisted of BRIAN WHITE in 42 minutes 21 seconds; LUKE GURNEY 50:12; JAMES McSWEENEY 51:19 and, to his surprise, JIM BROWN in 55:21.

Brian was third runner aged 60 plus and 23rd out of the 393 finishers.  Luke said it was hilly but worth it for the cake and was 100th.  James was 118th and Jim 171st.

NICOLA ANDERSSON was the fastest female from Fairlands.  She was 168th in 55 minutes 11 seconds.  CAROLYN LINSELL was second woman aged 65 plus and 177th with her 56 minutes 8 seconds.  SARAH ILLINGWORTH was third Spartan woman and 188th overall with 56:59.  Sarah said “It was certainly not a PB (personal best) but given the lack of races over the last 17 months and sporadic training not too bad.  Great race, well organised, friendly and only five minutes from my front door.  Post race cake is always a bonus!”  PENNY SCHENKEL was fourth female from Spartans in 1:02:15.  Penny, SUE HAMER and ERICA GRAYSON were 262nd, 263rd and 264th.

CHRISTINE ZVEREV recorded a chip time of 1 hour 8 minutes 40 seconds for the Stevenage 10K.  She said, “The course was a bit hilly in places but I still kept the time under 1 hour 10minutes and I did manage a 5K PB of 29 minutes 5 seconds on the way round.  That’s a win in my book.”

The County Championships for veteran runners (those aged 35 and over will be in the Standalone 10K this Sunday.

(All the Spartan results from the Stevenage 10K can be found near the end of this release.

Adrian’s Century Run

ADRIAN BUSOLINI ran the Cotswold Way Century, finishing in 25 hours, in ninth place. The Cotswold Way Century is a 102 miler along the Cotswold Way walking path, which runs north to south through the hills and villages of the Cotswolds, finishing outside the Abbey in Bath.  It’s incessantly hilly, and navigation requires constant vigilance; however, weather conditions were favourable, there was great camaraderie out on the course, and the vegan chili at Painswick aid station was awesome.

Swansea 10K

Spartan ROBERT EVANS had a good run in the Swansea 10K with 52 minutes 54 seconds. 

Parkrun Highlights 18th September 2021

In this week’s roundup of Spartans on the Parkrun circuit, there was a first finisher (event winner) at Exmouth in Devon where Jonathan Parr powered home in a time of 16-46 whilst Steve Wells took on the Great Notley course near Braintree, Essex and tackled the ‘big hill’ twice to finish in third with a time of 20-11 

Stevenage Parkrun Results: SAM SIMMONS 21-50 (31st) – Parkrun PB, EVA RAMSEY 23-02 (49th), PAUL SHELLEY 23-14 (56th), ASHLEY KING 23-16 (57th), CLIVE CANNON 23-40 (65th), DARREN EMMERSON 24-44 (83rd), GAIL MACKIE 25-23 (98th), JULIE SIMMONS 26-10 (117th), DAVID PATTMAN 26-52 (137th), STEVE DOBNER 26-52 (138th), JIM BROWN 27-41 (157th), MATT CLARKE 29-00 (183rd), CHLOE CHAPMAN 29-05 (187th), NICOLA ANDERSSON 29-07 (192nd), DEBBIE BLANTERN 29-31 (202nd), STEPHEN SMITHSON 31-51 (254th), FIONA CLARKE 33-28 (281st) and BETH FOLEY 33-34 (286th).  In its ninth week back Stevenage parkrun was up to 358 runners.

The Spartans on parkrun away days were: 

Brockenhurst (Dorset): DARRYL STEVENS 53-47 (156th out of 156 runners).

Canons Park (North London): TIM SABAN 24-46 (37th out of 192 runners).

Exmouth (Devon): JONATHAN PARR 16-46 (1st out of 313 runners). 

Great Notley (Essex): STEVE WELLS 20-11 (3rd out of 221 runners). 

Lee-on-the Solent (Hampshire): ED HARE 27-39 (175th out of 418 runners). 

Letchworth (Hertfordshire): NICK GILL 21-49 (14th out of 128 runners), GEORGIE HOOPER 25-11 (33rd), CAREN THAIN 38-31 (113th). 

Luton Wardown (Bedfordshire): MICHAEL O’KEEFE 28-18 (94th out of 280 runners). 

Medina (Isle of Wight), NICK KLEANTHOUS 28-29 (83rd out of 199 runners). 

University of Stirling (Stirlingshire, Scotland): STUART STABLES 22-31 (18th out of 131 runners).

The 71st Fly 5K – Saturday 18th September.

Four regular Spartans competed in the 71st run anywhere Fly 5K on Saturday.  JIM BROWN was 70th in 27 minutes 41 seconds; NICK KLEANTHOUS 79th in 28:23; NICOLA ANDERSSON 86th in 29:05 and PAUL HOLGATE 97th in 30:55.

Fly 5K was one of the stars of lockdown keeping runners moving and in touch during the restrictions.  The first of the free virtual races was in June 2020.

Entries Open for the Stevenage Half Marathon

With only two months to go to the Stevenage Half Marathon it’s time to start getting ready and entered.  This year the race will be on Sunday 21st November (a couple of weeks later than usual).

Entries for the Stevenage Half Marathon are open and you can enter by clicking this link: Stevenage Half Marathon.  This club and community event has a history going back 37 years and is organised by Fairlands Valley Spartans.  With a break due to Covid 19 in 2020 it’s back for 2021. 

Each Year the Spartans nominate a charity to support and the chosen charity for 2021 is Feed Up Warm Up.

Tables

Handicap 5K in Stevenage on Thursday 16th September

PosFIRST NAMELAST NAMEOWN TIMERFH’CAPTIMECOMP H’CAPPBImpr
1DAVIDPRICE24:3412 17:0041:323:26PB 
2FIONACLARKE26:1415416:0042:172:46YB1:52
3NICOLAHATHERLY34:4426137:3042:202:46YB 
4CAROLYNLINSELL26:2417616:1542:332:21  
5CHLOECHAPMAN26:5819815:4542:432:17SB0:33
6MATTCLARKE23:027 19:4542:452:13SB0:13
7DANNYHUKIN18:341 24:1542:512:11SB 
8STUARTARCHER19:272 23:3042:592:03YB0:22
9ANDYJAY23:4610 19:3043:191:44SB1:40
10DEANCARPENTER21:535 21:3043:231:37YB 
11MARKBEASLEY25:3913 18:0043:411:21YB0:04
12MARIECOLUCCI22:566120:4543:421:19SB 
13SALLYPICKLES36:1227147:3043:431:18YB 
14JANEMcFARLANE27:4221916:0043:451:18SB 
15TRACEYJACKSON23:328220:1543:471:13SB 
16TRACYPEZ23:329320:1543:481:13SB1:09
17PETERSMITH21:404 22:1543:561:05SB0:54
18NICKKLEANTHOUS25:5814 18:0043:581:02YB0:04
19BRIANWHITE21:153 22:4544:001:00  
20VISHALSHAH27:2620 16:3044:191:04  
21NICOLAANDERSSON26:2116518:0044:220:39  
22NIGELSTRONGITHARM24:0711 20:1544:220:38SB0:33
23STEPHANIEBIGGAR36:4528 7:4544:300:30  
24JUDYKING33:29251211:3045:050:01  
25KELLYEVANS26:5418718:3045:24(0:24)YB 
26DZENANATOPIC31:52231014:4546:37(1:37)YB 
27SHARONCROWLEY32:20241114:4546:53(2:05)SB2:21
28TIMROBINSON28:2922 18:4547:13(2:14)  

Stevenage 10K – Sunday 19th September (394 finishers)

PostCatNameCatGun TimeChip TimeAGradeComments
23.3Brian WHITEMV600:42:220:42:2181.9%3MV60  3rd Team
100.29Luke GURNEYMS0:50:450:50:1252.6%3rd Team
109.25Nigel STRONGITHARMMV5051:2050:0362.7% 
118.33James MCSWEENEYMS0:52:000:51:1951.8%3rd Team
168.19Nicola ANDERSSONFV450:55:340:55:1162.4% 
171.11Jim BROWNMV600:55:450:55:2161.6%3rd Team
177.2Carolyn LINSELLFV650:56:310:56:0873.7%2FV65
188.21Sarah ILLINGWORTHFV450:57:120:56:5959.9% 
219.51John HARDINGMS0:59:380:58:2444.8% 
255.19Paul HOLGATEMV601:02:301:01:5654.4% 
262.36Penny SCHENKELFV451:02:591:02:1555.0% 
263.37Sue HAMERFV451:03:011:01:5054.3% 
264.38Erica GRAYSONFV451:03:011:01:4955.7% 
296.19Monica SMITHSONFV551:06:141:05:3055.7% 
313.23Angie KEELINGFV351:07:541:06:4046.2% 
320.26Toni NICHOLSFV351:08:351:07:2045.2% 
326.27Christine ZVEREVFV351:09:121:08:4044.4% 
337.54Tracy HAYGARTHFV451:11:151:10:3149.2% 
342.56Carole SHELDRICKFV451:12:031:10:4945.9% 
344.24Karen PALMERFV551:12:031:10:5050.5% 
Categories
Club News Race Results

100 FOR JOHN AT THE STAMPEDE

Spartan JOHN NELMS has run one hundred marathons. That’s 100 full marathons of 26.2 miles (42.2 kilometres) or even longer Ultra Marathons. He ran his 100th at the St Albans Stampede on Saturday. John was escorted across the finish line by his wife Sharon and son Jacob then welcomed to the 100 Club reception by a large number of Spartans.

St Albans Stampede

Altogether twenty Spartans completed at least four four mile laps at the St Albans Stampede.

The Stampede was a 12 hour event around a four mile loop. Runners completed as many laps as they could within the time limit.

TRICIA HOPPER was the leading Spartan with an incredible 11 laps (44 miles).

ADRIAN BUSOLINI ran nine laps or 36 miles in 6 hours 16 minutes 34 seconds while KAREN LIDDLE and BARRY KING did eight (32 miles). Not surprisingly four Spartans did seven as that got them past the significant 26.2 miles. They were YUKO GORDON, JOHN NELMS, HAZEL SMITH and SHARON CROWLEY.

Six laps (24 miles) were completed by CLAIRE EMMERSON, NEAL MUGGLETON and JACQUELINE DOWNES. SUE HAMER, ERICA GRAYSON and DARREN EMMERSON did five (20 miles) while JENNY GARRETT and GERRY ROSEN did four (16 miles).

(Times for all the Fairlands Valley Spartans can be found in a table near the end of this release).

Fairlands Fantastic 4 at the Stampede

There was also a relay team, the Fairlands Fantastic Four at the St Albans Stampede. In the four person team relay event TRACY PEZ (4 laps), ANDY JAY (4), CHRIS HOLLAND (4) and TIM ROBINSON (5) came in 12th out of 28 teams. A total of 17 laps with a time of 11 hours 50 minutes 5 seconds.

The course was four mile lap over undulating off road terrain. Chris started the team off with his first lap under 36 minutes followed by Tim with another 36 minutes lap. Then Andy Jay, who is training for the Manchester Marathon ran four consecutive laps in just under three hours through the hottest part of the day. The team took a short break to greet John Nelms as he finished his 100th marathon, before resuming with more laps. Tim finished his last running lap at 7:50 and it was agreed that two more sub 40min laps would not be achievable to finish before 9pm. The decision was taken to walk one final lap all together as a team by torchlight. Tracy, Chris and Tim completed the lap to finish just inside the cut off – in time for pizza and beer refreshments. A superb local event, recommended.

Bedford Twenty and Half

In the Bedford Running Festival ALISON and PAUL SHELLEY ran their first official twenty mile race. Paul finished in 2 hours 49 minutes 43 seconds and Alison in 3:15:07. They said it was a tough, hot race. DANNY SCANLON was 28th in 2:23:21 and DAVID PATTMAN ran a new personal best (PB) of three hours and thirty seconds (3:00:30).

STEVEN DOBNER came in with 3:03:18; MATT CLARKE with 3:15:43 and FIONA CLARKE with 3:23:12.

In the Bedford “Spring” half marathon KAREN ELLIS said she started too fast but she was third in her age category with 2:07:54.

Spartan Ladies Finish On Top – East of England Track and Field

The Fairlands Valley Spartans women’s team consisting of SUZY HAWKINS, CHRISTINE LATHWELL, STEPHANIE BIGGAR, CALLIE CHAPMAN, ASHLEY JOHNSON, NIKKI WILBY, MONICA BROWN, MARION MORLEY, ALISON WOOD, ANDREA WESTCOTT, TESSA STEPHENSON, CATHY CRAIG, JOYLYN SAUNDERS-MULLINS, KAREN DODSWORTH, SHERYL HANN, IRIS HORNSEY, SHARON CROWLEY and YUKO GORDON have WON their division in the East of England track and field league for veterans (35 plus, EMAC).

Spartan Ladies sealed victory in the EMAC Central Division on Wednesday by winning the last league fixture at Milton Keynes. It was a close run thing, but gutsy performances and the return of two stalwarts saw the team win on the evening by 4 points and take the division by a 77 point margin.

Christine Lathwell and Alison Wood both returned from injury to run the mile, with Christine finishing second woman 35 plus (W35) and Alison winning the W50. Cathy Craig won the W60 mile race after warming up with a victory in the W60 300 metres hurdles! Sharon Crowley also used the hurdles as a warm up, finishing second in the W50 before throwing the hammer and finishing third W60.

Joylyn Saunders-Mullins and Tessa Stephenson continue to dominate the sprint events, both winning the 200m and Joylyn once again dropping an age group to compete in the W50 category. Joylyn also scored points in the javelin, finishing 2nd in W60 with a throw that would have won the W50 category! 

Regular training sessions at the track are paying off for Stephanie Biggar, who threw personal bests (PBs) in both hammer (second place) and javelin (third place). Marion Morley also threw a new PB in the hammer (second place) and also finished second in the javelin.

Other individual points were won on the night by Nikki Wilby, who stayed true to form by winning the W35 high jump, and Callie Chapman, who finished second in the W35 200m. 

The ladies relay teams – Nikki, Callie, Cathy, Christine and Tessa, Sharon, Marian, Alison rounded off the evening in style, winning both races and setting us up nicely for the final on 25th September.

A slightly depleted men’s team battled bravely, finishing fourth on the night and fourth overall in the Central Division. Wins on the night came from DAVE STEPHENSON (M50 200m) and TIM SAUNDERS-MULLINS (M60 hammer). Other points were scored by ANTON McCALLA (third placed in M35 200m, javelin, and triple jump), GRANT RAMSAY (4th placed M35 mile), BARRY OSBORNE (3rd placed M60 mile), PAUL HOLGATE (5th placed M60 200m and 4th placed M60 mile), STEVE GOUGH (4th placed M50 javelin).  The relay team finished 4th.

Parkrun Highlight 4th September 2021

Thirty three Spartans headed out to run at seven different Parkrun venues.

Congratulations to SUZY HAWKINS who got a new PB at Stevenage with a time of 19:38. Suzy also claimed the titles of the Fastest Lady at Stevenage and the Fastest Spartan of the week.

DARRYL STEVENS was in Rosliston (Swadlincote) to try out Parkrun at a new venue to him.

There were no official Parkrun milestones this week but JOHN HARRIS has reached an unofficial milestone of 60 Parkruns at Letchworth.

PETE SMITH was sixth at the East Brighton parkrun in 23:34 and STEVE WELLS won the Ferry Meadows parkrun in 19:49.

Well done and congratulations to all.

Fly 5k

JIM BROWN ran his 50th Fly 5K on Saturday. This was the 69th Fly 5K. There were 147 runners from 38 clubs. He was second in his category and 53rd overall in 26 minutes exactly

PENNY SCHENKEL was 79th in 28:54 and PAUL HOLGATE 103rd in 31:04.

Entries Open for the Stevenage Half Marathon

Only just over two months to go to the Stevenage Half Marathon it’s time to start getting ready and entered. This year the race will be on Sunday 21st November

Entries are open and so please follow the link to enter: Stevenage Half Marathon

Tables

Spartans at the Stampede

PosRace NoNameLapsDist DoneTimeFastest LapSlowest LapAverage LapStart
1827Tricia HOPPER114411:14:1400:44:4601:39:5801:01:1708:59:59
2936Adrian BUSOLINI93606:16:3400:27:2501:15:5200:41:5008:59:59
4028Karen LIDDLE83211:14:1400:49:2702:38:2601:24:1608:59:59
4126Barry KING83211:14:1600:49:2802:38:2701:24:1708:59:59
4350Yuko GORDON72804:35:5300:37:5700:41:4800:39:2408:59:59
5458John NELMS72806:16:5800:38:4401:13:5400:53:5108:59:59
5552Hazel SMITH72806:17:0000:39:5101:11:5000:53:5108:59:59
5916Sharon CROWLEY72806:57:0700:49:2801:09:0700:59:3508:59:59
6537Claire EMMERSON62406:17:0000:40:0601:29:1201:02:5008:59:59
6629Neal MUGGLETON62406:17:0100:40:0801:28:5801:02:5008:59:59
6954Jacqueline DOWNES62407:03:4600:39:4903:05:0901:10:3708:59:59
7649Sue HAMER52004:27:0200:47:4001:07:1200:53:2408:59:59
7748Erica GRAYSON52004:27:0300:47:4001:07:1100:53:2408:59:59
7938Darren EMMERSON52004:39:2000:39:5301:16:1500:55:5208:59:59
8256Jenny GARRETT41604:47:4700:40:0602:10:2301:11:5608:59:59
8341Gerry ROSEN41605:12:5200:46:4702:10:3001:18:1308:59:59

There was also a four person relay team consisting of CHRIS HOLLAND (4); ANDY JAY (4); TRACY PEZ (4) and TIM ROBINSON (5) who completed a total of 17 laps in 11:50:05.

Spartans at Parkruns, 4th September


PositionGender PositionParkrunnerTime
Rosliston





16495Darryl STEVENS00:41:40New Venue






Stevenage





91Suzy HAWKINS00:19:38PB

5346Andrew MCGUINNESS00:23:24

6152Barry OSBORNE00:23:45

6756James MCSWEENEY00:24:05

7059Clive CANNON00:24:20

9374Toby ECCLESHALL00:25:40

9677Thomas SAUKA00:25:55

9879Jim BROWN00:26:00

10787Nick KLEANTHOUS00:26:34

11618Caroline BARTER00:27:07

14125Penny SCHENKEL00:28:33

15131Gail MACKIE00:29:28

15533Debbie BLANTERN00:29:42

16339Fiona CLARKE00:30:12

164117Matt CLARKE00:30:13

21767Georgie HOOPER00:33:06

218142Nick GILL00:33:07

25572Beth FOLEY00:33:28

24484Carole SHELDRICK00:34:31

24585Caroline CROFT00:34:32

24686Karen PALMER00:34:33

26999Shelbe MOONBEAM00:37:00






Houghton Hall





8367Michael O’KEEFE00:27:55






Wimpole Estate





25965Sally PHILLIPS00:34:59






Letchworth





8458John Harris00:30:4260th

12044Caren THAIN00:36:53