Taking the last opportunity to run a five mile race for the 2017 Fairlands Valley Spartans club championships TIM SABAN raced to a new personal best (PB) of 33 minutes 17 seconds; in his first event since a mishap at the St Neots Half Marathon JIM BROWN maintained fairly consistent eight minute miles (keeping a reindeer in sight) to finish in 39 minutes 38 seconds; MONICA SMITHSON ran an excellent 45:19 and PENNY SCHENKEL continued her recovery with a steady 46 minutes 29 seconds. On a bright but chilly day with a headwind to battle for a couple of miles there were 388 finishers.
Spartan Vets Have Nose Ahead In Cross Country Team Results
At the third cross country league race in Willian the Spartan men were sixth out of twenty and the club’s women ninth. Overall the women are tenth and the men sixth but the FVS male veterans (40 plus) narrowly lead the masters’ contest by just two race points (102 to 104) ahead of Trent Park. The next league race is in Watford on 14th January.
Saturday parkrun Highlights for Fairlands Valley Spartans
On Saturday at Stevenage it was a Spartan first across the line as GRANT RAMSAY ran his first parkrun in a while to finish in 17 mins 17 secs. THOMAS SAUKA rushed round in 21:12 in 25th place and DAVE SMITH was just outside the top 30 men in 22:05. Three Spartan women finished in the top 30. YUKO GORDON was second in 22:45. MADELEINE PRITCHARD was 7th in 23:23 and JO BOWDERY continues to run well, finishing 9th in 23:51.
For a day when you want to run fast you really need to line up near the front rank at Panshanger due to congestion through the gate and the early part of the course in the woods. RUTH REILLY didn’t do that on this occasion but still notched a new course PB of 22:45 for sixth place woman as she continues to run really well. TRACY STILES was the other Spartan to achieve a new course PB this weekend, finishing 13th woman at Westmill parkrun,
Finally BARRY OSBORNE secured a top 20 finish at Ellenbrook Fields, crossing the line in 21:23 for 15th place.
Christmas Day parkrun Highlights
The recent Spartan favourite of a Christmas Day parkrun at Panshanger was challenged this year as Stevenage held a festive run for the first time, and nineteen Spartans duly lined up in Fairlands Valley. ERICA GRAYSON has been improving well recently and celebrated the festive season with a new course PB (personal best) of 26 minutes 50 secondss. She was two places behind the first Spartan woman, TRACY PEZ, who finished 9th in 26:24. CLAIRE EMMERSON, KERSTIN WEINER and JENNY GARRETT were the other Spartans in the Top 30 women finishers.
TOM SAUKA finished 9th in 20:49 to be the best placed male Spartan. BARRY OSBORNE and DAVE SMITH also finished in the top 30.
Spartans were in festive action up and down the country with Top 30 finishes also achieved by STEVE and ISABEL GREEN in Newcastle, VERITY FISHER at Peterborough, KAREN PALMER at Clair and TIM SABAN at Canons Park. The course for Clair in Haywards Heath was 4 and a half laps and a hilly one. Supposedly more downhill than up! Pre race briefing for newbies said to expect a time at least a minute and a half longer. Karen was pleased to finish in 28:48.
Tables
Full parkrun results for 23rd December below:
| parkrun/date | Pos | Gen | parkrunner | Time | Notes |
| 23rd December | |||||
| Westmill | 41 | 13 | Tracy STILES | 00:33:06 | 13th woman, new course PB |
| Medina IOW | 303 | 197 | Paul WHYTE | 00:34:47 | |
| Stevenage | 1 | 1 | Grant RAMSAY | 00:17:17 | 1st finisher |
| Stevenage | 26 | 25 | Thomas SAUKA | 00:21:12 | |
| Stevenage | 35 | 34 | Dave SMITH | 00:22:05 | |
| Stevenage | 38 | 37 | Martin DUDLEY | 00:22:22 | |
| Stevenage | 39 | 38 | David RIDDELL | 00:22:37 | |
| Stevenage | 41 | 40 | Chris HOLLAND | 00:22:42 | |
| Stevenage | 43 | 2 | Yuko GORDON | 00:22:45 | |
| Stevenage | 55 | 7 | Madeleine PRITCHARD | 00:23:23 | |
| Stevenage | 64 | 9 | Jo BOWDERY | 00:23:51 | |
| Stevenage | 71 | 60 | Daniel SUTTON | 00:24:20 | |
| Stevenage | 77 | 65 | Lee PICKERSGILL | 00:24:58 | |
| Stevenage | 86 | 72 | Neil ROBINSON | 00:26:01 | |
| Stevenage | 149 | 113 | James SOUTH | 00:30:19 | |
| Stevenage | 185 | 128 | Michael ANDREWS | 00:33:33 | |
| Stevenage | 224 | 81 | Verity FISHER | 00:42:53 | |
| Panshanger | 48 | 6 | Ruth REILLY | 00:22:45 | New couse PB |
| Panshanger | 130 | 102 | Ken JUDE | 00:27:43 | |
| Panshanger | 132 | 104 | Andy JAY | 00:27:47 | |
| Lullingstone | 40 | 30 | Michael O’KEEFE | 00:32:26 | |
| Wyre Forest | 205 | 140 | Peter CARPENTER | 00:34:10 | |
| Ellenbrook Fields | 15 | 15 | Barry OSBORNE | 00:21:23 |
Full Spartan parkrun results for 25th December below:
| parkrun/date | Pos | Gen | parkrunner | Time | Notes |
| 25th December | |||||
| Newcastle | 16 | 15 | Steve GREEN | 00:20:00 | |
| Newcastle | 112 | 21 | Isabel GREEN | 00:24:27 | |
| Newcastle | 213 | 159 | Roger HARDMAN | 00:28:21 | |
| Lymington Woodside | 156 | 99 | Darryl STEVENS | 00:41:41 | |
| Peterborough | 94 | 87 | Daniel SUTTON | 00:23:46 | |
| Peterborough | 139 | 16 | Verity FISHER | 00:25:26 | |
| Stevenage | 9 | 9 | Thomas SAUKA | 00:20:49 | |
| Stevenage | 21 | 19 | Barry OSBORNE | 00:22:15 | |
| Stevenage | 30 | 28 | Dave SMITH | 00:23:13 | |
| Stevenage | 50 | 43 | Neil ROBINSON | 00:25:41 | |
| Stevenage | 55 | 47 | Nick GILL | 00:26:20 | |
| Stevenage | 57 | 9 | Tracy PEZ | 00:26:24 | |
| Stevenage | 65 | 11 | Erica GRAYSON | 00:26:50 | New course PB |
| Stevenage | 87 | 70 | Mark BEASLEY | 00:28:01 | |
| Stevenage | 107 | 27 | Claire EMMERSON | 00:30:04 | |
| Stevenage | 109 | 82 | Darren EMMERSON | 00:30:09 | |
| Stevenage | 111 | 29 | Kerstin WEINER | 00:30:11 | |
| Stevenage | 115 | 30 | Jenny GARRETT | 00:30:30 | |
| Stevenage | 124 | 91 | David SCOTT | 00:31:37 | |
| Stevenage | 125 | 34 | Karen BROOM | 00:31:38 | |
| Stevenage | 126 | 35 | Carole SHELDRICK | 00:31:46 | |
| Stevenage | 127 | 36 | Caroline CROFT | 00:31:46 | |
| Stevenage | 138 | 41 | Tracy STILES | 00:33:05 | |
| Stevenage | 166 | 57 | Caren THAIN | 00:40:44 | |
| Stevenage | 169 | 59 | Emma MARTIN | 00:41:49 | |
| Clair | 77 | 20 | Karen PALMER | 00:28:48 | |
| Canons Park | 13 | 10 | Tim SABAN | 00:20:59 | |
| Panshanger | 86 | 75 | Chris HOLLAND | 00:24:44 | |
| Panshanger | 108 | 94 | Andy JAY | 00:25:51 | |
| Panshanger | 132 | 112 | Ken JUDE | 00:26:43 |
Coming Events
Many Spartans will be enjoying a busy programme of races, social and training events over the next few weeks including:
- Serpentine 5K on Friday 29th December.
- Buntingford Year End 10 on Sunday 31st December.
- Ely New Year’s Eve 10K on Sunday 31st December.
- New Year 10K in Hyde Park on Monday 1st January 2018.
- County Cross Country Championships at Cassiobury Park on Sunday 7th January.
- Cross Country League at Watford on Sunday 14th January.
- Fred Hughes 10 miles including senior county championships at St. Albans on Sunday 21st January.
- Southern Cross Country Championships on Saturday 27th January.
- Watford Half Marathon inc. veteran county championships on Sunday 4th February.
- Bramley 20/10 (20 miles or 10 miles) on Sunday 11th February.
- St Valentine’s 30K at Stamford on Sunday 11th February.
- Cross Country League at Royston on Sunday 18th February.
- Fairlands Valley Spartans Champions Night on Friday 23rd February.
- Baldock Beast on Sunday 25th February.
- Welwyn Half Marathon on Sunday 4th March.
- Finchley 20 miles (including Herts County) on Sunday 18th March.
- Oakley 20 miles on Sunday 18th March.
- Orion 15 at Chingford (Epping Forest) on Saturday 24th March.
- London Marathon on Sunday 22nd April.
- Stirling Marathon on Sunday 29th April.
- Welwyn 10K including senior county championships on Sunday 24th June.