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The intention is to move the news items to this file on a monthly basis.
I would like to wish all member of the club and all other visitors to the website a Happy New Year. I hope that you are all training diligently. I look forward to a successful 2006.
We're back on air again. It's been very quiet over the Christmas period. Kajsa Bergkvist, winnner of the Women's high jump in Helsinki, was voted third best female athlete by the highly respected US magazine Track & Field News. The two top spots were occupied by Yelena Isinbayeva and Tirunesh Dibaba. I'm sorry to have to report that Christian Olsson, Swedish triple jumper par excellence, will not been competing in the indoor meetings in the new year, due to a persistent foot injury. Grit Breuer (400 m) of Germany has announced her retirement from athletics after a successful career.
I will make a slight departure from the rule of not putting photographs on this page. This is due to the nature of these photographs, which I just had to share with you. The pictures are clickable for the bigger picture. Click on them. Go on, you know you want to.
I have removed the pictures on request. Pity, I thought they were rather good. You can still spot pink tutus and the dynamic duo.
What can I say, it's all true what they say about English (well, British) eccentricities. There were some lovely dresses on display at the Cracker race. Buxtonians displaying the latest fashion were: Rich Houghton, Jackie Morson, Nick Gould and Terry Fowler. Please click here for further photographic evidence of crimes against fashion. The photographs are courtesy of Bryan Dale.
There was a pretty good turn-out from Buxton on this nippy but otherwise lovely morning. Lloyd Taggart (Dark Peak, but once one of us) completed a spendid year with a very convincing win, in 48:46 - a winning margin of 1:18. Rich Houghton was first Buxton runners back in 14th place, with a time of 57:15. Rich is getting back to the form he showed a few years back, which bodes well for 2006 and beyond. Nick Gould followed in 1:03:55, which earned him 45th place. Terry Fowler is also on the comeback trail and his 92th place and 1:10:24 shows that next year could be really interesting. Two little Fairies, aka Emma Wharton and Sarah Nicholson spent most of the race chatting (a little bird tells me) and finished in 150th and 149th place (1:18:40) with not a strand of hair out of place. Sarah was 2nd LV40. Jackie Morson finished 187th in 1:24:56 and was followed by the Dynamic Duo consisting of Ian Hulse (Batman) and Jayne Denby as Robin. They finished 245th and 244th, respectively, but were given the same time - 1:38:14. Please click here to see the full results, which are courtesy of Mick Hall (Staffs Moorlands stalwart).
Phil Hutson made the trip to Bolsover on Sunday to take part in the 10k race. He finished in 178th place with 45:08. I think that's quite a bit quicker than last year.
I have managed to catch up on the photographs I have received from Mick Hall and Terry Fowler, with piccies from two of the North Staffordshire Cross Country League races: race 1 at Apedale Country Park (08/10/05) and race 3 at Stafford Common (19/11/05). Please click here to see the new photographs, but beware that the file could be slow to load. I will endeavour to prune it over the Christmas period.
I am pleased to inform you that three young Buxtonian athletes, Amy Wadsworth, Michael Swift and Kyle Fowler, were awarded Young Achiever awards at a ceremony at Matlock Town Hall on Friday. Amy Wadsworth competes for Derby AC, Michael Swift and Kyle Fowler are both members of Buxton AC. Please click here to see all the Young Achievers. The photograph is courtesy of Terry Fowler.
I must extend my apologies for my non-showing last night. I was set to paint the town red. There I was, sitting in the sofa, having a brew after the jog and next thing I knew the tea was cold and it was gone 10.30pm. I have it on good authority that it was a good night out.
There was always going to be one unhappy runner after the draw was made - two places and three interested parties made this inevitable. Caelan Chambers drew the names out of the bag, and Sheila Bradley oversaw the draw to ensure that it was carried out in a fair manner. So my commiserations to Paul Heathcote who lost out this time. I'm pretty sure his time will come next year. The lucky winners were Wendy Higginbottom and Nigel Critchlow. Congratulations and Good Luck with your preparations for the Flora London Marathon. We will follow their progress through the winter.
Natasha McGarey was our only representative at the second Open Meeting at English Institute of Sport in Sheffield, organised by the North of England AA on Saturday 10th December. Natasha was third in her heat in the 60 m where she recorded a time of 9.13 s. Natasha also took part in the Long Jump where she jumped 4.05 m. Well done Natasha. The meeting clashed with the last cross country race in the North Staffordshire League which is the reason why the turn-out from the club was low. Please click here for the full results.
A website catering specifically for Inspector Gadgets has just been launched. The idea behind the website is to enable an exchange of and upload or download of running/walking/cycling routes. This is tailored to all those GPS equipped runners out there. I know of at least two Garmin fans in the club, for whom this site could be extra interesting. You may be up in arms of the sexist slant of this entry - alleging that men are gadget orientated. My only defence is that most Inspector Gadgets are just that - men, or shall I say boyz? Please click here to visit the site. No harm or offence was intended.
Four of our runners went to Stockport on Sunday morning to take part in the last of our Road champinship races - Stockport '10'. The lads produced some seriously fast times. Nigel Critchlow was by far the quickest. Nigel covered the 10 miles in 61:45, which I think is a PB. That time was good enough for 30th place. Dave Nutton and Nick Gould must have been running together for quite a while, and in the end there was a mere 32 seconds between them; Their times and places were 68th/66:10 and 74th/66:42, respectively. Simon Hunter came 133th with 70:57. Road running is not Simon's cup of tea.
I'm ashamed to say that I appear in two photographs from the race at Leek on Saturday. I really have to try to appear to be running rather than walking; a) Stefan chasing a Stone Masters runner, and b) Stefan in splendid isolation. I'm almost certain I managed to catch the runners in picture a), but things were getting a bit hazy by this time in the race. The photographs are courtesy of Bryan Dale
The GB Juniors really shone in the European Cross Country Championships in Tilburg today. Emily Pidgeon ran an excellent race to finish 2nd. The Girls also clinched the Team Gold. There were exceptional performances from all the girls. Andy Vernon then emulated Emily Pidgeon's performance by storming through to second in the Junior Men's race. The GB Ladies, especially Hayley and Liz Yelling, showed at the front early on, drifted off the pace for a while but finished strongly. Hayley Yelling was sixth and Liz Yelling was eighth. The Ladies won the Team Silver medal, and were a mere two points behind the Russian team. I can't leave you without bringing you up to date with the performance of Johanna Nilsson (Sweden) who put in a fine sprint to secure a Bronze medal. The GB and Swedish Men's teams couldn't match the performance of the Ladies. Sergey Lebid (Ukraine) won in style, when he sprinted away from Alberto Garcia (Spain) over the last 800 m. That's Lebid's sixth win in these Championships, and fifth in a row!
The Buxton Posse, Sheila, Jim, Kath, Jackie, Hector, Colin and Stefan, met up for a gentle canter this morning. The weather was absolutely beautiful. The mist was hanging around Kinder in the most spectacular fashion. A good day was had by all.
Bryan Dale has put a few more photographs from the race yesterday on his website. There are three more Buxtonians in action: Sarah Nicholson, Sheila Bradley and Jim Bradley. You can also spot Zoe Bayley, Verity and Rachel Burt over the left shoulder of the runner in the photograph. All photographs are couresty of Bryan Dale.
Bryan Dale was taking photographs at the race this afternoon. The following athletes were caught in the act: Verity Burt, Paul Murray, Sarah Nicholson and Sheila Bradley. Bryan Dale's saying on his website that daylight was falling very rapidly during the Senior Men's race, falling to such a low level that the photographs were no good. That's probably for the best. All photographs courtesy of Bryan Dale.
We are doing a fancy dress run on Wednesday 21st December. We will meet as usual in the Railway. You may use the fancy dress that you will no doubt use in the Christmas Cracker race.
Short recovery sessions are the mainstay of most endurance runners' training. However, I have only just caught up from last weekend's Christmas Do. Emmas is organising a quiet(?) drink on Friday 16th December. We are meeting in the Railway for 21.00pm and will visit other local hostelries. Just turn up and be merry!
I would like to take the opportunity to say a Big Thank You to Ros, Steven and Louisa's mum, and Chris's mum for providing lifts to the race this afternoon.
A father couldn't have been prouder than me, when Emma Bayley and then Zoe, Emma's younger sister, were called up to receive their second and third place prizes. It then got even better when our U15 Girls' team picked up the Gold medals too. Sarah Nicholson followed up with an excellent third in the WV40 category and Jim Bradley secured the Bronze in the MV60. It was shame we didn't have a digital camera with us, but we will make arrangements for a few photos to be taken, for the advertiser and for the website.
We had a slightly smaller Buxton contingent than usual due to injuries and illnesses. However, the talent was still very much in evidence. The weather was also very kind, with a gentle breeze, and unseasonally mild (10 dec C) temperature. The race venue is located at Westwood High School. The course is really lovely! It winds its away up and down the escarpment. Two important features on the course are the pool of mud by the gate and Killer Hill, where many a runner came a cropper today. Louisa Ramsay ran a very sensible race in the U13 G category; she didn't get drawn into the fast early pace, but conserved her energy to sprint past a runner in the last 50 m. We had a record five runners in the U15 G race; Emma Bayley crowned her year by becoming the second Buxtonian to win a race in the league. Jenny Jackson finished third, only a few meters behind Emma. A very determined effort by Zoe saw her finish fifth while Rachel Burt also ran a stormer in sixth place, Emma Stapely making her debut in the league finished a very creditable 11th. Chris Rushworth (U13 B) achieved his highest position to date when he finished fifth. There was real drama in that race as the leader approaching Killer Hill completely crumbled, losing his lead of some 20 m. Carl Riley suffered with his breathing, but still ran a good race. Carl was 17th. I must now apologise to Verity Burt as I can't remember her position - about 10th I think. Paul Murray ran very well in the U17 M race and was awarded with a 10th place. Unfortunately Steven Ramsay had to pull up mid-race due to an injury flaring up. We had two representatives in the Senior Women's race; Sarah Nicholson charged up the hills - a natural in that environment. Sarah came 28th and was closely followed by Sheila Bradley who also achieved her highest position this year with 34th. Last out were the U20M and Senior Men who had the pleasure of running three laps. The mud was nicely churned up. Jim Bradley and Stefan Ledin had good runs. Both started at a sensible pace and then picked up the pace. The early pace and the climbs were telling on some of the runners, though the winner was completely untroubled. Stefan tried a sprint at the end but couldn't catch the runner ahead - 47th place was still Okay. Jim finished 110th in the race, beating a large number of much younger runners. Jim had gone for a swim in the mud puddle, so came home covered in mud but otherwise in fine fettle. The race was followed by the presentation - see above.
You may well ask what is the connection between crisps, shampoo and cross country. I couldn't tell you, but these topics all cropped up during the travel to and from Leek. I hope to rteturn to this fascinating discussion at a later date.
The North of England are holding its Indoor Championship events at English Institute of Sport in Sheffield. Please click here for all the details, i.e. dates and events, and entry form. Please note that the closing date for the U15/U17 Multi-event champs is on Saturday 10th December and the U20/S Multi-event champs is on Saturday 17th December. The deadline for entries to the U15/U17/U20 Champs is on 3rd January 2006 and the Senior Champs close on 10th January 2006.
The last race in the North Staffordshire Cross Country League is held at Westwood High School in Leek on Saturday. We are meeting by Buxton Community School, Temple Road entrance, at 11.45am. Please click here for a (multi)map showing the location of Westwood High School, which is located off Westwood Heath Road.
The European championships are being held in Tilburg, the Netherlands, on Sunday 11th December. The GB team did very well indeed last year in Heeringdorf. Hayley Yelling took individual honours in the Senior Women's race and all GB runners came back with at least one medal. Johanna Nilsson of Sweden is running very well at the moment, having just won the US Collegiate Cross Country Championships. She is definitely one of the runners to watch. The GB Junior Women's team is led by Emily Pidgeon, who has been in outstanding form all year. Emily is joined by Sian Edwards, who pushed her hard at the Cross Country Challenge at Sefton Park a couple of weeks back. The GB Junior Men's team is led by Adam Hickey and Andy Vernon. The Senior Men's team is led by Mo Farah, who has in excellent form at the moment. Missing from the Men's team is Nick McCormick, Morpeth Harriers, who is concentrating on getting ready for the Commonwealth Games in March. Please click here to visit the official website for the Championships.
The Famous Grouse fell race took place a couple of weekends ago. Simon Hunter, our sole representative, finished 43th with a time of 47:17. It was a resounding win for Lloyd Taggart of Dark Peak FR (but still an Buxton lad at heart?). Lloyd's winning time was 33:10. He finished 40 seconds up on John Brown of Salford Harriers, who in turn was 3:22 up on the third placed runner, Nick Craig.
I was reading a piece in the TV and Radio Section of last Saturday's edition of a respectable and usually factually correct newspaper, which shall remain nameless. Anyway, the story mentioned Ms Amy Acuff, a world-class American high jumper, who was taking part in some programme or other. Her public profile will obviously be raised significantly. The journalist went on to say that she needed it since no one will have heard of her. Au contraire! She has been competing at the very highest level for a few years. I take it the journalist/reviewer was somewhat outside his or her area of expertise. However, far be it for me to point finger, as I get my facts mixed up or plain wrong at times.
A large number of our juniors are competing in the High Peak Cross Country trials at Chapel High School tomorrow. This is a qualifier for the Derbyshire Schools competition, which will possibly lead to selection to compete in English Schools Cross Country Championships. Good Luck to all of you. I hope to be able to post a brief report here tomorrow.
Dame Kelly Holmes treated us to an incredible double Olympic Gold medal fest in Athens. Sadly, Kelly has now decided to retire, with immediate effect and will therefore not compete in Melbourne in a few months time. We will treasure her many fine performances over the years, but none will stand out as much as when she won the 800 meter race last year.
A number of our juniors took part in the races at the Wilf Richards cross country races in Heaton Park last February. We also sent a number of teams, one Women's and two Men's teams, to contest the relays. All our runners acquitted themselves with honour. A great time was had by all. We have just received the entry forms for next year's event, which is to be held on Saturday 18 February at Heaton Park. The first race starts at 1.30pm. A coach or team manager is likely to come and tap you up for your participation in the very near future.
Nigel Critchlow will be signing photographs on Wednesday night (07/12) after he became the second club members to appear in a (inter)national running magazine (Runner's World) this year. The photograph was taken at Worksop Half Marathon. It has to be said that he looks to be motoring in the photograph, which was borne out by his quick time.
I have shifted all news items from November 2005 to the News 2005 page.
These are the criteria for applying for one of the two guaranteed London Marathon entries:
Please let either Sheila Bradley or Stefan Ledin know if you would like to put your name forward, by Wednesday 14th December. The draw will take place after the club run on Wednesday 14th December. Please contact Stefan Ledin if you have any queries.
We had a cracking night out, last night. We were 41 runners, past and present, and friends who took over the top floor of Michelangelo's restaurant. The food arrived promptly and was as always very nice. The noise level was high, with laughter and gentle ribbing filling the air. Norman Taylor, our president, handed out trophies to the first man and first woman in Bill Moss Memorial Fell Race, which was held a few weeks back. The recipients were Nigel Critchlow, who very fittingly is married to Bill Moss' daughter Elaine, and Sarah Nicholson. A large contingent then retired to a bar across Market Place from Michelangelo's for the annual boogie-ing. The partying continued well into the night, until 2am when the bar closed. I had an excellent time and I trust that the others feel the same. I would like to extend a big Thank You to Emma Wharton for organising the event.
The club has purchased a fresh batch of reflective vests. These are subsidised by the club and will be on sale for £3.00 from Wednesday 23rd November. I'll bring vests down at every Wednesday night. Please don't hesitate to get in touch with me, Stefan, via phone, email, snail mail or catch me at a training session, if you require a vest. They're good quality; it's this season's Must-Have accessory. Meet the winter in a new shiny vest!
The Christmas Do is on Friday 2nd December. We're meeting in the King's Head pub on Market Place, Buxton at 19.00 for 19.30. The table in Michelangelo's is booked for 19.30. It will be a cracking event, with 41 guests attending. A report and photographic evidence will be posted on the website.
Please remember that the Annual General Meeting is being held tomorrow in the Function Room of the Railway Hotel, Buxton. The meeting starts at 19.30. All members are welcome to attend. We will discuss the issue of territorial affiliation tomorrow night.
The club has received two guaranteed entries to the Flora London Marathon, to be held on Sunday 23rd April 2006. We are asking for names of runners who have had their entries refused. Priority may be given to athletes who have never competed in London Marathon previously. Please talk to either Sheila Bradley or Stefan Ledin if you would like to throw you hat into the ring, well enter the draw. The deadline to enter the draw will be Sunday 11th December 2005. The club entry deadline is 13th January 2006.
The Advertiser ran a story on the recent English National Cross Country Relays last week. The story was accompanied by a photograph of three lovely lasses, Wendy, Sarah and Emma, who competed so well in the Senior Women's race. The course was so dry there were no calls for early baths! No one does obscure like I do.
Louise Johnson competed in the New York City Marathon a couple of weeks back. Louise completed the 26.2 mile course in 4:46. She raisied £3500 for the Breast Cancer Care charity. Well done, Louise.
We're going offroad tomorrow night. Please remember to bring your headtorch(es). There will a group going on the roads too. We will meet at usual time (just before 7pm) at the Railway.
We have received the entry forms for the Northern Cross Country Championships. These will be held at Witton Park, Blackburn on Saturday 28th January 2006. I have heard that this could be quite a hilly little course, just the way we like it. Seniors who are interested in taking part should speak to Emma Wharton or Stefan Ledin as soon as possible.
I think it might be too optimistic to expect a white Christmas. However, it's certainly started well as we've got an inch or so of snow in Buxton during the day. It will potentially lead to chaos on the roads, but it's very pretty.
Mark Quince was the only Buxton representative in the Clowne half marathon that was held this morning. Mark finished 153rd out 559 finishers with a time of 1:37:18.
We had three runners taking part in this race. I'm glad to be able to report that Paul Drabble is back racing after a very quiet year. Paul clocked a very respectable 40:19 for 47th place. Phil Hutson improved his time from last year by over three minutes, to 46:39 which earned him 149th place. Dave Swift was the third and final Buxton runner across the line in 270th place and a time of 55:58. Also running well was Jon Batt, ex-Buxtonian and now representing Dark Peak, who made a rare outing onto the roads, where he finished an excellent 15th (and 3rd MV40) with 37:45. Please click here to see Paul flying round the testing course - the photo is courtesy of Bryan Dale.
A small contingent of young Buxton athletes made their way to the indoor track at the English Institute of Sports in Sheffield. This was the first of two indoor meetings organised by North of England AA. The turn-out was pretty good, if a little down on last year's fixture. Natasha McGarey has moved up to the U17 age category. Natasha competed in the 60 m and the 200 m, where she recorded times of 8.96 and ??.??, respectively. Curiously, there was no mention of the 200 m race, but I can report that Natasha ran very well and probably finished third in the heat. Rachel Davenport (U15) and Holly Whitehead (U13) competed in the 60 m and the 600 m. Both girls found the longer race a bit on the long side, though both finished off with a good sprint for the line. Rachel recorded a time of 2:22:87 and Holly 2:24:42. The 60 m races for the U15 and U17 age groups almost didn't come off, as the starter and entourage moved all the way to where the start of the 2000 m race was due to take place. Fortunately, someone realised that there a very large group of young athletes hovering near the 60 m holding pen, and the starter had to move camp again. The two girls were in the same 60 m race and they both ran very well. Rachel's time was 9:83 while Holly recorded a time of 10:64. Those were the saints, so who's the sinner, I hear you ask. I will only say "Line Infringement". Caelan "Cheetah" Chambers (Sorry Caelan) ran a well judged 200 m race out in lane 6, but had wavered ever so slightly into lane 5 on the final bend and was therefore disqualified. It was perhaps a bit harsh since he didn't impede the runner in that lane, but a rule is a rule. A jolly good time was had by all. Josh Moody (U15) of Matlock AC ran a very good 600 m race, where he recorded a time of 1:31:64. Sam Ellis' 1:18:48 in the same event was also very impressive. Please click here for the full results page. Photographs were taken at the meeting and can be found at www.sportshots.uk.net. I can't endorse their attitude of running a website that only works with Internet Explorer, which is why I haven't included a link to their site.
You will find the first two local fell/orienteering races of 2006 on the upcoming races page. The races in question are Lamb's (Longer?) Leg and Kinder Trial. Both races are part of the Hayfield Fell Race Championships.
The Famous Grouse fell race is run over a pleasant, testing course. The race is held on Sunday 27 November. The race starts at 11.00 from the Grouse Inn, Birch Vale. Please click here to check out the course (courtesy of Steve Temple, webmaster for Hayfield Fell Race site). Please note that the course is run in an anti-clockwise direction.
Mick Hall of Staffs Moorlands AC has kindly provided photographs from the cross country race at Stafford Common on Saturday. Please click here to see a quartet of happy Buxtonians in action.
The club has purchased a fresh batch of reflective vests. These are subsidised by the club and will be on sale for £3.00 from Wednesday 23rd November. I'll bring vests down at every Wednesday night. Please don't hesitate to get in touch with me, Stefan, via phone, email, snail mail or catch me at a training session, if you require a vest. They're good quality; it's this season's Must-Have accessory. Meet the winter in a new shiny vest!
We had a cracking day at the races on Saturday. The common was shrouded in mist when we arrived, but the sun came out and burnt it off in time for the first race. It was a bit cool, but very pleasant in the sun. The course was bumpy and very firm, with the ground still being frozen. I am happy to report that last year's swamp near the finish was a mere 50 cm wide patch on Saturday. Runners were wearing a number of layers during the warmup, but it was actually quite pleasant to run in just vest and shorts. Perhaps one or two of our runners wore a bit more clothing than that. It's just that we have to live up to our reputation of being the 'ard (but cold) men of the High Peak. Old enough to know better, I hear you mutter. Well, I can only agree.
Louisa Ramsay, Steven younger sister, ran in the U13G race. She is not too bothered about any of this racing lark, though she gets nervous before the races. She is still very much at the begining of her running career. We had four very good runners in the U15G race. Jenny Jackson was ahead of Emma Bayley for a long time, but Emma's determination saw her come past Jenny in the last 400 m to finish fifth, with Jenny a few strides back in sixth, while Zoe Bayley and Rachel Burt made up a lot of places in the latter stages of the race - the girls finished 12th and 16th. Verity Burt was our only representative in the U17G where she finished 11th (I think). Verity again looked a lot happier on the second loop. I'm pleased to say that we had a full Senior Women's team. Wendy Higginbottom continued her good run of form to come home in 20th place, closely followed by a rapidly improving Sarah Nicholson in 37th and they were ably supported by fighting performances by Sheila Bradley in 49th place and Kath Forder in 77th. Our U15 Girls are top of the leaderboard in their age group. I'm very pleaseed by the grit and determination shown by this quartet of athletes. The Senior Women are in fourth place overall, but the results in the Veteran Women's table has not been posted yet. Individually, Emma Bayley is in third place, with younger sister Zoe in 6th place and Rachel Burt in 10th in the U15 Girls. Sarah Nicholson is in third place in the WV40 category. Sheila Bradley is in fifth place and Kath Forder in eighth place in the WV45 age group.
Chris Rushworth had a good run, though he never looked entirely comfortable. Chris finished ninth in the U13 boys race. We didn't have a U15 boys team, with Kyle Fowler still out injured, but Carl Riley and Jamie Fitzgerald ran very well to finish 10th and 11th. Steven Ramsay and Paul Murray are in a very competitive age group, with the young Stoke lad (Alex Derricott, who I remember from the Stoke 5k races in the summer) winning quite comfortably. Steven was ninth and Paul 13th in a very fast race. The Buxton senior men's team was really a trio of veterans. Rich and I started too far back in the field and had a lot of catching up to do. We did move up quite nicely, though I say so myself. I was 59th and Rich 61st, while Jim was 141st. We were down by a number of places on the last race, but the field was much bigger than at Wye Road. To put all this into perspective, Nick Stone, our Wednesday night training buddy, was 36th in 34.04 and I was 59th in 35.05. Rich and I were catching a group of about 10-15 runners, but we were just too far behind to be able to sprint past them on the very flat run-in to the finish. Individually, Carl Riley and Jamie Fitzgerald are in excellent places the U15 Boys category where they are in seventh and eighth, respectively. Steven Ramsay and Paul Murray occupies the same placings in the U17M - another set of good results contributed to their high placings. In the older age groups, Stefan Ledin is in eighth place in the MV40 category and Jim Bradley is an excellent third in the MV60 age group. It is interesting to compare notes between the different runners; some of our runners loved the course and others found it hard and unrelenting.
The phenomenal Haile Gebreselasie posted a very fast time in the Nine Hills race in Nijmegen, The Netherlands. His time over the 15 km course was 41:57, which is a mere 28 sconds off the world best for the distance. His split times for the three 5 km segments were 14:18, 14:04, and 13:35!
This is the third race in the league. The venue is Stafford Common, which traditionally is a bit muddy. However, the recent cold weather could make the course rutted, but it should be mostly firm going underfoot. We will meet at the Community School at 11.15, for departure shortly afterwards. Remember to bring some warm clothing.
Many of you may remember an Open Forum regarding our affiliation to either Midland Counties AA (MCAA) or North of England AA (NoEAA). The meeting was scheduled to take place on Monday 21 November. However, the meeting has been cancelled due to lack of interest shown by the clubs in the County. The affiliation issue will be on the agenda at our upcoming AGM in a couple of weeks time.
Research has shown that it is important to stay warm in order to be able to fend off viruses. Our immune system doesn't function as well if the body is cold. It's particularly important to keep the nose warm. This is particularly pertinent during cold snaps, like the one we're currently experiencing.
Colin Wilshaw completed the 15-mile course in 3:02:53, which earned him 107th place. Pip Peakman was 147th with a time of 3:16:07 and Paul Heathcote came 180th in 3:40:30. There was a brief but interesting discussion on Macc Harriers website forum regarding the accuracy of the course distance and the accuracy of the commonly available GPSs. A GPS worn by one of the competitors had indicated that the route was in fact closer to '15.9' than the stated '15'. The question has not been bottomed out. I will no doubt come back to this question in the future. Please click here for full results.
Please note that the start time for the Cheddleton 10 k is 14.00!
Jim Bradley is organising another night run on Wednesday 30th November. Please remember to bring your head torch, if you have got one. We will have a few spare ones for you to borrow, if you don't.
The Nike Van will visit Buxton AC on Wednesday 23rd November. Please turn up at the Railway for 18.30, if you want to try out some new shoes.
Mark Cudahy took part in the Six Dales Race/Walk on Saturday 12 November, which was organised by the LDWA. He was in third place for a long while, but finished an excellent 8th in the end after his four-legged friend developed a sore front leg. I am not entirely sure whether Joanne Phizacklea also took part in the race. I will come back to this race when I have more details.
The Cheddleton 10 k is being held on Saturday 26 November. The race starts at 14.00.
Laura Nutton was 4th overall in her Age Group in the U10 Fun Run, and not as reported below. I stand corrected.
We had a number of representatives in the Lathkill Dale Race. It's a tough race with some eye-watering climbs. Laura Nutton finished 4th overall and 3rd girl in the U10 Fun Run and Laura is only Eight years old. Holly Whitehead ran an absolute stormer of a run to win her Age Group and finish 5th overall. Well done Girls! Geoff Whitehead finished 13th (5th Vet) with a time of 54:16, Dave Nutton finished 19th (7th Vet) with 57:20 and Dawn Whitehead finished 50th (3rd Vet) with 77:47. Well done to all who took part in the race. As an aside, the Men's course record fell, improved by about one minute and a bit. We were blessed with very fine weather for a second day running.
We had a most excellent trip to Mansfield. The Cross Country Relays were being held in Berry Hill Park, which is a very goor venue. The weather was sunny and crisp. The Relays were the biggest ever, with a large number of teams from all over England. We fielded a team in two of the junior categories, U13 Boys and U15 Boys. The U13 Boys team consisted of Ryan Sircar (8:06), Jack Gregory (8:31) and Chris Rushworth (8:06) - the team finished 41st with 24:43. The pace in all races was fast and furious and no more so than in the younger age groups. The U15 Boys team consisted of Carl Riley (7:16), Jamie Fitzgerald (7:21)and Kyle Fowler (7:11) - the team finished 34th with 21:48. Our single competitor in the U17 Boys was Paul Murray (9:39). Emma and Zoe Bayley both competed in the U15 Girls race, but neither of them were given a time - I shall investigate why that is. The Senior Woman team consisted of Wendy Higginbottom (12:01), Emma Wharton (12:45) and Sarah Nicholson (13:21) - the team finished 56th with a time of 38:06, despite both Wendy and Emma feeling very poorly. The Senior Men's team was made up of Stefan Ledin (18:43), Mark Quince (21:19), Mark Fitzgerald (21:50) and Dave Nutton (20:13) - we finished quite some way down, 112th place but we were happy with our lot. My former club, Charnwood AC, finished 1st and 3rd in the Senior Women's race! Morpeth Harriers took the Men's title with a masterful display of cross country running - Neil McCormick running the fastest leg of the day. An exceedingly good day was had by all. We all vowed to back next year! Please click here for the complete (unofficial) results. The two Amys, Wadsworth and Whelan, now competing for Derby AC also put in good efforts.
Please click here to view the map [59 kb].
This is the address to the venue of the National Cross Country Relays on Saturday 12/11:Berry Hill Track, Berry Hill Park, Berry Hill Lane, Mansfield, NG18 4JR. I'll put a map on the website tomorrow night - I need to do a spot of scanning. Remember, we will meet at Buxton Community School at 08:45 on Saturday. We must wear a Buxton vest so please remember to bring your club vest, if you have got one. I'll bring spares, most of which are sizes extra small or small.
Helen Pearce, who is the AAA of England Regional Development Coordinator for the East Midlands, has just issued a newsletter describing the activities in our region. Please click here to read the newsletter [153 kb].
Buxton Sports Forum has been dormant for a while, but has been revived. Please watch this space for futher information in the near future.
I am sorry to say that the Cycling World has been rocked by yet another positive drugs test. This time it is Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros), once upon a time Lance Armstrong's trusted second in command and a very fine bike rider in his own right, as evidenced by four Vuelta a Espana victories. However, Heras provided a drugs test that was positive for EPO. The B sample is yet to be tested, but Liberty Seguros have suspended their star rider.
Researchers are quoted as saying that World Records in certain events and sports have or will peak in the near future. No new World Records will be set unless athletes are using performance enhancing drugs. You can find an excerpt of this story on the BBC News website. As an aside, it was proposed that all world records were to be scrapped and new performances only be counted as world records, with a view to weed out old records that were set by athletes who might or might not have been using performance enhancing drugs. Sadly, there are no guarantees that recent world records would be set by "clean" athletes. Can one draw parallels between the hotly debated topic of amateurism (it's inconceivable to think how the system used to work) with the performance enhancing drugs - will we come to regard it as the done thing using EPO, anabolic steroids or whatever?
The Fletcher Cup race was held on Sunday in what can only be described as atrocious weather conditions, though the rain abated the Macc Old Road was effectively a torrent. The turn-out was not as good as last year, but 12 hardy souls made it to the start line. Fastest runner on the day was Mat Ivings who recorded a 68:17 for the 9+ miles. The winner of the coveted Fletcher Cup was Jackie Morson who was a mere 3 seconds off her predicted time. Sheila Bradley claimed the May Morrison Memorial Trophy as the fastest Veteran Woman. A big Thank You to all those who turned out, and an even Bigger THANK YOU to Jim Bradley who kindly organised the event. Please click here for the full results.
There two cracking races in New York, when the New York Marathon was held. In the Women's race, Susan Chepkemei of Kenya finished runner up for the third time. She was suffering from stomach problems with three or so miles to go. The winner was Jelena Prokopcuka from Latvia. Derartu Tulu, one of my favourites, finshed a creditable third after having had to let go of the other two with about two miles to go. The winnig time was not super fast, 2:24:41. The Men's race turned into a real sprint for the line, with Paul Tergat (Kenya) just getting the better of Hendrick Ramaala (South Africa). The time difference was given as 1 second, but it was less than a stride's ditance between the two. Third runner acroos the line was Meb Keflezighi, the great US hope. The times were not particularly fast, with the winning time being 2:09:30, but the excitement and the close finish more than made up for the slowish time. Jon Brown finished 11th with 2:13:29. The best British Woman was Alice Braham in 24th place with a time of 2:46:47. Liz Yelling was in the leading pack beyond the half-way point.
I have moved most of the news from October 2005 onto the news 2005 page.
The weather was at its cruellest this morning - wet, windy and cold. The race was postponed by 15 minutes. The race starts with a long downhill, which ensures a very fast start. There was the usual mayhem when 1000+ runners try to form an orderly single file after the river crossing. The Dove was very swollen from all the rain we have had in the last few days. I have had reports of at least one runner getting submerged. There were quite a few runners from Buxton there. The preliminary placings were as follows: Nigel Critchlow (33-34 min) - 41st or 42nd, Geoff Whitehead (34 min) - 48th, Dave Nutton - ? (Dave probably finished sans one shoe - an offering to Näcken? {Swedish mythological figure that lives in the river}) Dave Swift's Brother in Law - 480-ish, Dawn Whitehead - an excellent 522nd (overtaking 10 runners on the climb up to the finish) and Dave Swift - 572nd.
Steve Watson put in an excellent performance in the Through the Villages race at Wheelton (Chorley), near his old stomping ground. Steve finished 5th overall and 1st V40. His time was 48:08, which was only 26 s behind the third placer.
Please note that the Langley '7' race is held on Saturday 5th November. It's a club road championship race. The race starts at 14.00 in Langley in Cheshire.
The night run can only be described as being a hit. There were twenty runners in all in the offroad group. They all came back covered in mud and with smiles extending from ear to ear! Our three juniors found and splashed through every puddle and left most of the seniors behind. We will be organising another offroad run before too long. There were also a group of ten runners who did a more traditional road run. Thirty runners on a club night is a very good turn-out, despite the wall to wall coverage of the UEFA Champions League on the box.
Andy Wilton has been selected to compete for England in the Home Countries and Ireland International Cross Country races in Dublin on Saturday 12th November. Dave Neill and Dave Hollins, two of Andy's team mates from Staff Moorlands AC, have also been selected. I'm also pleased to report that Kate Ramsey, Charnwood AC, a sometime training buddy of mine has also been selected, after a string of excellent performances. Kate has also been selected to compete in the Chiba Ekiden Relays in Japan later this month.
Emma Wharton, the organiser of the Xmas Do, informs me that the Christmas do is now fully booked. Please pay her the deposit of £10, if you haven't already done so. Please also let Emma know what are your menu choices. The deadline for paying the deposit and make your choices is Monday 14th November.
My friend Mick Hall of Staffs Moorlands passed on some entry forms for the very popular Christmas Cracker race, which is being held on Sunday 18th December. I'll bring the entry forms down on club nights.
The official site for the North Staffs XC League does not have the full results from the races. Please click here for information about the venues, start times and current standings.
Pip Peakman and Kim Masson, Pip's partner in crime, took part in the C-class event in Karrimor International Mountain Marathon, or KIMM as we in the know call the event, which was held near Ullswater in the Lake District last weekend. The distance on the first day was 18 miles and 1500 meters of climbing. The weather was truly foul; so bad was the wind and the rain that the organisers had to let the athletes compete over the bad-weather course on the Sunday which still amounted to 10 miles and 900 meters of climbing. Pip and Kim finished in fifth place in the Ladies category. They were 75th out of 184 finishers (287 teams started the event).
We don't have the complete results from the second race, which was held on Saturday just gone. What we do have is the updated overall standings. As an aside, the Senior Men's team finished third in the race.
| 3 | Kyle Fowler | U15B | 4 | Emma Bayley | U15G | ||||||||||
| 4 | Sarah Nicholson | LV40 | 5 | Sheila Bradley | LV45 | 9 | Kath Forder | LV45 | < | ||||||
| 7= | Stefan Ledin | MV40 | 3 | Jim Bradley | MV60 |
| 3 | U15 Boys | 70 p | 1= | U15 Girls | 61 p | 4 | Senior Ladies | 392 p | 4 | Ladies Vets | 392 p |
An excellent effort all round. I look forward to the next league races; 19 November at Stafford Common and 10 December at Westwood High School in Leek.
First of all, I must apologise profusely to Steven Ramsay and Paul Murray whose efforts on Saturday were missed out in my brief write up. Steven finished in eighth place, which is a personal best placing for Steven in the League, and Paul was 14th (I think). I would also like to extend a Big Thank You to Zoe Bayley who looked after the disks and filled in the team results in the most efficient manner.
We have had the date and venue confirmed for the upcoming Forum where we will discuss the pros and cons of being affiliated (for competition purposes only) to the Midland Counties and to North of England, respectively. Date: Monday 21 Novermber 2005, Time: 19.30, Venue: Matlock Town Hall. We are allowed to send as many athletes (within reason) as are interested. We have been asked to let the organiser know how many to expect from the club by 14th November, so I shall ask you at the next couple of Wednesday sessions.
Nigel Critchlow, fresh from yesterday's cross country race, went to Clumber Park to take part in the 2005 edition of Worksop Half Marathon. Nigel finished 108th with a time of 1:25:20. Nick Gould also made the journey east. Nick's time was 1:31:49, which earned him 249th place.
We are, on popular demand, staging a night run on Wednesday 2nd November. Jim Bradley has devised an easy run to start with, going out into the wilds of the Peak District hills just south of Buxton. We meet as usual at the Railway for 18.50-ish with a view to leave shortly after 19.00. Expect to be out for about 90 minutes or so. Remember to bring a headtorch if you've got one; those of us with more than one torch will bring our spare ones. Also make sure that the batteries are fresh or recharged. Remember: In the dark, all cats are grey! (Old Swedish Proverb)
A large Buxton contingent travelled to Newcastle-under-Lyme for the second race in the North Staffordshire Cross Country League. The weather was breezy, mild and dry. The course runs around playing fields with a couple excursions into wooded areas. There are two uphill sections, one long and not so steep and a shorter and sharper climb on each of the large laps. The going underfoot was firm, with a few muddy patches. The paths through the woods were treacherous in places, where roots of trees were exposed. The choice of footwear was a source of lively debate - fell shoes or spikes? The youngsters and Ladies chose spikes while of the old timers (Grumpy Old Men? Sorry Nigel!) were running in offroad or fell shoes.
I have to apologise should I not get the finishing positions 100 % correct. My only excuse is that my brain was a bit mushy after the race. Khem Sattaur (29th), Luke Addison (26th) and Louisa Ramsay (24th) ran in the combined U11B and U13G race. The next race saw four lasses, Emma Bayley (5th), Zoe Bayley (11th), Susanne Wallace (13th) and Rachel Burt (16th) put on a fine display; the girls started conservatively, but moved through the field very nicely on the second lap. Adam Sattaur (14th?) was the only the club's only representative in the U13B race. The club had a full compliment in the U15B race where Kyle Fowler finished 7th, with Jamie Fitzgerald (16th) and Carl Riley (18th) closing the team. Verity Burt suffered with blisters from a ice-skating expedition earlier in the week. However, she gamely completed the course to finish 13th; in fact, she looked much more comfortable on the second lap. The Senior Ladies fielded a very strong team. Wendy Higginbottom finished an excellent 19th on a rare outing. Wendy was ably supported by Sarah Nicholson (46th), Sheila Bradley (52nd) and Kath Forder (86th). Some of the ladies finished somewhat down on their positions in the last race, but the Ladies field was almost twice as big as in the previous race! I am happy to announce that we had a men's team, well 6 runners in fact. Steve Watson ran a fine race and finished 8th. Nigel Critchlow (39th) and Stefan Ledin (49th) were running almost together for a large part of the race, but youth and fitness trumphed in the end when Nigel pulled away on the last lap. Geoff Whitehead was chasing his team mates, slipped back a little but finished strongly in 67th place. Tony Davies (107th) and Jim Bradley (109th) ran well, though Tony had to stop during the race to stretch his back. Jim was beating many runners who are several decades younger than himself. I think the men's field was somewhat bigger than at Apedale Country Park. A good day was had by all. I would like to thank the ladies and the youngsters for the vocal support throughout the senior men's race. Well done, everyone! Next up on the country - the English National Cross Country Relays on Saturday 12th November at Berry Hill Park, Mansfield.
Next year's County cross country championships are being held at Markeaton Park, Derby on Saturday 14th January 2006. We will do a club entry, so Emma and I will talk to you in the next week or so. In the meantime, click here for start times (and an entry form). Please note that the closing date for entries is 20th December.
The North of England AA are organising two indoor track open meetings at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield on Saturday 26th November and 10th December, respectively. Please click here for events, times and an entry form. Please note that the closing date for entries is 23rd November.
Juniors, meet at the Community School at 11.30 on Saturday. Seniors making their own way, remember the start times: Ladies - 14.00 and Men - 14.35.
The course is suitable for spikes, bring 9 mm or 12 mm spikes (even 15 mm may be required). We will have a look at the course and can then decide on which length spikes to use; this will depend on how much rain falls between now and Saturday afternoon. Do not forget club vest, rain gear and warm clothing, plus spare socks and shoes. Let us not forget water, sandwiches, fruit and whatever else your tummy can handle after a race.
We have been informed that there is no parking in Wye Road. The police will be extra vigilant and transgressors will be fined. Parking is available at Seabridge Community Centre on Roe Lane, a short walk from Wye Road. The best route is probably to go the same way as when we were going to Apedale Country Park, that is, Buxton to Congleton on the A53, then pick up the A34 to Newcastle. Stay on the A34, go round Newcastle town centre in an anti-clock wise direction (four roundabouts!), take the first right (Clayton Lane), at the roundabout take the second exit (straight on), then take the third road to the left (Roe Lane) and then look out for Seabridge Community Centre. There are toilets near the start at Wye Road, but no refreshments.
Start up Google Map and type in the following "wye road, newcastle-under-lyme, united kingdom", superimpose the satellite image over the map and there it is in all its glory. Alternatively, just click here. Enjoy!
Do not forget that we get an extra hour in bed on Sunday (30/10/05) when the clocks go back to GMT.
Jayne Denby and her sister have competed in the Swaledale Marathon in the fair county of North Yorkshire. The race distance is 37.3 km (or '23.2'), so a little short of marathon, and there is 1093 meters (3585 ft) of climbing. Jayne speaks very warmly and enthusiastically about the event. The race is mainly offroad, with short stretches of tarmac. The route is very scenic and one does not have to seasoned orienteer to find the way. Oh, I forgot to mention the cakes that are on offer at the various check points. You can enter the race in two ways; i) firstly by requesting an entry form by writing to the organiser, address on the website (see below for the link), and ii) enter online. The entry forms are sent out on 3rd January, and you need to fill in the entry form and send it back by return of post to ensure to get in. You can enter online on 4th January, but not before! Please click here for more information from the organiser's website.
We have received a questionnaire from Pauline Roscoe and Associates who are acting on behalf of a number of organisations, Forestry Commission, Peak District National Park Authority and United Utilities. They are interested in hearing what users of Upper Goyt Valley (that's are regular stomping ground) think of it, what might be missing (loos closed during the winter?) and how things can be improved. I shall draft a letter on behalf of the Club, but I would encourage all of us who use the area for running, racing, walking, cycling, photographing, etc., to fill in the questionnaire. Please click here to download the questionnaire.
I have updated the upcoming races page with the indoor meetings. I have also repaired a link on the links page.
Readers of Athletics Weekly (AW) and frequent visitors to this website will be aware that the sport of Athletics in England is undergoing a major metamorphosis. One of the upshots of this transformation is that we, the clubs in Derbyshire, will have to choose whether we want to be affiliated to the Midlands Counties AA or the North of England AA. This is of importance from a competition point of view only. Other administrative issues will be dealt with through the nine regional hubs. For your reference, Derbyshire will be part of the East Midlands Regional Hub which includes Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire and Nottinghamshire. There will be an open Forum on Monday 21 November at 19.30, venue to be confirmed. A representative from each of the two Territories will be invited to put forward their case, and the idea is to have a discussion of the pros and cons of the two alternatives afterwards. A vote will then be held a few weeks after the Forum has taken place. A club will have a number of votes which is proportional the size of its membership. All club members are invited to attend the Forum.
British Milers Club are organising an Endurance Coaching workshop at Corby on Sunday 13th November. The main speaker is the legendary John Anderson. The cost for the day is £10 and the closing date for entry is 5th November.
The North of England AA are organising two indoor meetings at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield on two Saturdays, 26 November and 10 December. The closing date for entries is 23 November. you can enter online from the NoEEA website. Please click here for more information about the events and an entry form.
Pat Cropper is the new Regional Education and Training Administrator for East Midlands, as Spencer Barden has moved to a new position within UK Athletics.
The Inaugural Bill Moss Memorial Fell Race was held this morning in Goyt Valley. The turn-out, nine runners, was down on last year, but the runners who took part all did very well. Steven Ramsay and Kyle Fowler, two of our very promising juniors, had a run out and acquitted themselves very well indeed. Top honours today went to Nigel Critchlow, who got away on the climb up to the railway line. Steven Ramsay and Kyle Fowler were in hot pursuit. Steven took a tumble on one of the exceedingly slippy wooden trellises and looked to be forced out of the race. However, he picked himself up and charged pass me on the way down from the turning point. Nigel also came a cropper, on the way down, but got up and carried on without too much loss of time. Kyle Fowler was still in second place, with rapidly Steven making in-roads. Steven put in a good sprint up the climb to the finish and overtook a gallant, but tiring Kyle. The winner of the Men's trophy was Nigel Critchlow and the winner of the Ladies trophy was Sarah Nicholson. Please click here for the full results.
Please note that there is a committee meeting on Wednesday 25th October. The meeting starts at 20.00 (or very shortly after) in the Railway. All members are welcome to attend. This is likely to be our last committee meeting prior to the AGM on Thursday 1st December.
A chap will visit the club on Wednesday 23 November. He'll bring a number of different Nike shoes, in pretty much all sizes. You're invited to try out a pair with no strings attached. As I understand our Nike Man will make an assessment of your running style and from that analysis suggest a suitable pair of shoes. Our visitor will not sell you any shoes on the night, so there is no pressure at all. If you would like to take him up on the offer to try out a pair of shoes, then please come along to the Railway at 18.30 to sort out the shoes. I'll remind you again nearer the time.
The athletics world is yet again rocked by an alleged positive test for an anabolic steroid by a high profile runners. This time it is Sun Yingjie, the Chinese female distance runner with the very low arm carriage, who won a Silver medal in the 10,000 m at the recent World Championships in Helsinki and have now tested positive. The article didn't say whether the B-sample had also given a positive result, until then it's just an allegation. Sun Yingjie won Peking Marathon a few weeks back but didn't test positive for anabolic steroids after that race, so some legal wrangling may well be in the offing. Bode Miller, one of the best downhill skiers in the World, proposed that the use of performance enhancing drugs in sports should be made legal. There were not enough information in the press statement to see exactly what Mr Miller said. I have to say that I can't agree with his proposal, if that is indeed what he said.
There have been some support in some circles for making the use of performance enhancing drugs legal and that these would be prescribed and administered by medical doctors, thus, with close supervision the danger of over-dosing, etc. would be greatly reduced. It also raises the question: "What constitutes performance enhancing drugs?" EPO, anabolic steroids, insulin (when taken by athletes not suffering from diabetes), etc., definitely fall into that category, but what about vitamins and creatine phosphate?
The sorry saga of BALCO, the providers of THG and other drugs, is reaching its end, with the court hearing now concluded. One of the main characters, Victor Conte, was given a four month prison sentence, four months of home confinement and two years court supervision. You may well remember that a number of high-profile athletes, such as Dwain Chambers and Kelli White, were suspended following a tip-off that eventually led to the arrest of Victor Conte and others associated with BALCO and professional sports. Is it a victory for the sport of Athletics? Well, yes and no. This has reduced the number of sources of drugs by one. However, one cannot but feel that there are others who are only too willing to provide steroids, EPO and other performance enhancing substances. Wherein lies the problem - is there too much money in sports nowadays? There is certainly a great deal of money that goes to a relatively small number of athletes. We must at the same time not delude ourselves into thinking that Athletics was clean (in the drugs sense) while the athletes were amateurs. There was also the constant controversy over monies being paid to athletes; it was called expenses. Unfortunately many athletes and coaches agree with the late Bill Shankly, who coined the phrase "Winning is not a matter of life and death - it is more important than that! (Or words to that effect) I better stop now. That's enough about drugs for an evening.
The results of the Moors and Tors race have just become available. Mark Cudahy finished in 13th place with a time of 3:22 and Pip Peakman finished in 77th place with 5:24. It must have been a good day for running as the 20-mile and the 8-mile course records both fell on the day; the former was improved by 10 minutes!
We managed four full teams at the first North Staffs race. The U15 Girls teams are second, the U15 Boys are fourth, but not far from a bronze medal, the U17 Boys are third and the Ladies are fourth overall and in second place in the Veterans!
The FRA Fell Relay Championships were held at Alva in Scotland at the weekend. The Men's race was won by Dark Peak Fell Runners, with Lloyd Taggart and Tim Austin running the glory leg. The local Ladies teams from Pennine and Dark Peak finished 8th and 9th, respectively. Andy Wilton and the Staffordshire Moorlands team finished 6th in the Vet's competition, which is below my expectations (not that I have a right to impose my expectations on them). They will be back next year, all the more determined to make amends for what was a below-par performance by their own very high standards.
Youngster Carl Riley set a new personal best for the mile in the Dream On Mile last Wednesday. He improved his time by a staggering 26 seconds, on what can only be described a s truly miserable night weatherwise. There is more to come from Carl, of that I am sure.
Mark Cudahy took part in the Moors and Tors race just over a week ago. His time over the 20-mile was course was 3:20-ish and we think that he finished around 10th overall. I'm certain Pip Peakman was going to have a go too, but as yet no news about how she got on.
Kyle Fowler has been asked to play the role as Leek running legend Ray Fowler in his teenage years. This is a documentary about Ray's life. The director was looking for a young lad, with ginger hair who could run a bit. Well, Kyle scores highly on all three counts, and he shares the same surname. We don't know when the film is to be screened, but we will keep you updated.
Kyle Fowler broke the 10-minute barrier tonight in a hard-fought U15 Boys 3000 m race in City of Stoke AC's open meeting at Northwood stadium. He was slugging it out with one of the organising club's runners and was victorious. Kyle's time was 9:57.4, which is a massive improvement by over 14 seconds. This equates to a Grade 2 performance. Well done, Kyle!
I have moved the news from September 2005 to news_2005. I have also tidied up the upcoming races and club championship pages.
I could not believe the turn-out for the Dream On Mile. The weather was awful, wet and miserable. I turned up at the Railway to meet with the group, which turned out to be about a dozen runners strong. We then jogged over to the start and lo and behold, there were about twice as many runners again, waiting for us. We had 30 runners in the race, which is an absolutely fantastic turn-out. There were runners of all ages. The sheet with positions turned into pulp as it got wet. A Big Thank You to Jim and Sheila Bradley who organised the event and to Wendy Higginbottom who did the finishing funnel. A Big Thank You to all you runners (and parents) who came along and made the race such a success. In fact, the good news is that Sheila and Jim has dechiffered my runes - please click here for the full results. We will also bring hardcopies along next Wednesday and to the Junior training sessions. I apologise beforehand for incorrectly spelled names - my handwriting is not easy to read at the best of times.
Kyle Fowler, fresh from a win in the North Staffs Cross Country League on Saturday, followed up with a good win in the U15 Boys 1500 m at City of Stoke AC's Open Meeting last night. Kyle's time was 4:47.8 on another truly wet and miserable night.
Mark Quince had a go at the Marathon distance in Cardiff on Saturday. Mark finished in 620th place and his time was 3:54:33 (chip time 3:53:47). Well done, Mark.
Three Buxtonians travelled to Congleton to take part in Congleton Half Marathon. Nigel Critchlow was best-placed with a 22nd place, in a swift time of 1:22:54. That must be pretty close to his personal best for the distance. Dave Nutton also ran a fast time, 1:31:51, which earned him a 92nd place. Steve Kenworthy notched up another half marathon. His time in Congleton was 1:35:55 for 126th place.
Colin Wilshaw made the trip up to the Langdales for the Langdale Horseshoe race, the last round of the English Fell Championships. Colin completed the 14 mile course in 3:35:54 and finished 315th. Liz and Jon Batt, ex-Buxtonians, also took part in the event finishing 122nd (2:49:18) and 109th (2:47:37), respectively. Winner of the men's race was Rob Hope of Pudsey and Bramley and winner of the ladies race was Christine Howard of Matlock AC, thus continuing her run of excellent form.
The first North Staffs Cross Country League at Apedale Country Park turned out to be quite a damp affair. The rain started even before we left Buxton – a bad omen if I ever saw one. It then rain non-stop, for nearly four hours, until a few minutes before the last race, the junior, senior and veteran men's 6 miler.
The Apedale course is new, so none of us had any idea what was in store for us. The course consisted of long stretches of stony paths, which were firm. There was also a stretch through a wooded area where the path was narrow, but the going underfoot was still pretty good. There a couple of uphill sections, which turned out to be quite hard work, with the last one being steep and short. It was a testing course without being too severe. The main drawbacks were that the paths were narrow thus making overtaking difficult and a hairy right-hander just before the finish.
The performances were very good overall, with many of the Buxton runners showing at or near the front. Kyle Fowler won the U15B race with an excellent run. The girls, Jenny Jackson, Emma Bayley, Zoe Bayley and Rachel Burt, in the U15G race packed very well, as did the boys in the U15. Jenny Jackson finished ninth in her first outing for the club. Chris Rushworth ran very well to finish 6th, which is his best ever performance. Adam and Khem Sattaur and Verity Burt also ran well in the U13B, U11B and the U17G races, respectively. Jamie Fitzgerald and Paul Murray made their debut for the club and showed great promise. Caelan Chambers made his cross country debut; he did really well, especially considering that he's really a sprinter.
The Ladies fielded a team of four runners to close a team. The team consisted of Rosalind Barrett, Sheila Bradley, Kath Forder and Sarah Nicholson. The men only managed three runners, Jim Bradley, Geoff Whitehead and Stefan Ledin, so are out of contention for a promotion.
Please visit the results page for the results. I apologise if I don't get all the results correct, my memory is not so good. There are also a few photographs, but I'll put those on the website tomorrow.
The first of four races in the North Staffordshire Cross Country League is held on Saturday 8th October at Apedale Country Park, Newcastle-under-Lyme. Please click here for the timetable and travel instructions.
There were some cracking performances by Buxtonians in the Macclesfield Half Marathon. Steve Watson won the MV40 prize, and finished 7th overall, and Sheila and Jim Bradley were third WV45 and MV60, respectively. Phil Hutson had an excellent run and was very pleased with his time. Clicking on the name of the runners below will reveal a picture, courtesy of Bryan Dale. The times and places for our runners were:
| 7 | Steve Watson | 1:14:48 | 29 | Nigel Critchlow | 1:23:48 | 89 | Graeme Bramwell | 1:30:45 |
| 128 | Dave Nutton | 1:33:55 | 157 | Steve Kenworthy | 1:35:52 | 188 | Jim Bradley | 1:38:10 |
| 229 | Sheila Bradley | 1:40:25 | 305 | Phillip Hutson | 1:45:23 | 430 | Louise Johnson | 1:52:55 |
I haven't had any reports on how our runners got on at the Macclesfield Half Marathon today. However, there is photographic evidence that shows that at least three Buxtonians took part, namely Sheila Bradley, Steve Watson, Nigel Critchlow and Graeme Bramwell. The photographs are courtesy of Bryan Dale. Results to follow soon.
There is a lovely race, well two races actually, called Moors and Tors. The race is being held on Sunday 9th October. Both races start and finish in Hope, at Hope Valley College. The shorter race is over 8 miles and takes in Peveril Castle, Mam Tor, Hollins Cross, Lose Hill and back down to Hope. The longer route, 20 miles, follows the same route to Hollins Cross, after which the longer route head down to Edale, through the village and up Grindsbrook and then follows the Southern edge of the Kinder Plateau. You get to the Southeastern corner of Kinder, after which you head back towards Edale, going past the Youth Hostel and then climb up to Hollins Cross. You then carry on to Lose Hill and back down in to Hope. Lovely run, but quite tiring!
Geoff Whitehead has brought two fun races to my attention. Firstly, there is the Dovedale Dash on Sunday 6th November, with 11.00 start - entry on the day only. Please note that this race clashes with Fletcher Cup (Club Handicap Race), which is held on the same day. The following Sunday, e.g. 13 November, sees the running of Leg it Round Lathkill 12k, 11.00 start, with an accompanying fun run over 3 km. The race HQ is the Lathkill Hotel, Over Haddon, Bakewell. Entry on the day. Please click here to follow a relevant thread on the Runner's World forum.
A big "Thank You" to the Seniors, Joanne Phizacklea, Nigel Critchlow, Mark Quince and Paul Heathcote, who all helped out with the Junior session tonight, when we were really stretched. An even bigger Thank You must be extended to Terry who came along though still not recovered from his operation.
The World Mountain Running Championships were held in Wellington, New Zealand at the weekend. The runners from the home countries performed very well. Tracey Brindley (Sco) won a silver medal and Mary Wilkinson, in fourth, was the top-placed English athlete. Local lass Christine Howard (Eng, Matlock AC) continues her run of excellent performances by finishing 29th. The Scottish lasses won the team bronze, ten points up on England, while Wales and Northern Ireland finished 14th and 15th team, respectively. The English U20 women's team also finished 4th in the Junior race, with Rachael Thompson was their highest finishers in 7th.
16th placer Billy Burns was the first English runner, closely followed by Joseph Symmonds of Scotland in 17th place. Local lad Lloyd Taggart finished an excellent 18th, a mere five and three seconds behind Burns and Symmonds. The English team finished 4th (again), with the Scots, the Welsh and the Northern Irish in 12th, 13th and 17th places, respectively. The top finishers for the home countries in the U20 men's race were Nicki Cornock (Wal)- 18th, Kyle Cowie (Sco) - 23rd and Jonathan Mellor (Eng) - 24th. The team placings were as follows: Scotland - 7th, England - 9th, and Wales - 11th.
A Membership form can now be downloaded from the website. Please click here for an Membership Application Form, for Seniors only. A link to to the form can also be found on the About Us page.
I can promise you a hectic run-up to Christmas, so get into the Xmas spirit and take part in these events. Please do not forget the English National Cross Country Relays (12/11) and the four North Staffordshire Cross Country League (08/10, 29/10, 19/11, 10/12).
| 12/10/05 | Dream On Mile | 1 mile (measured) | Broad Walk, Buxton | 19.15 |
| 23/10/05 | Bill Moss Memorial Race | Approx. 5 miles | The Pond, Bunsal Incline | 10.00 |
| 06/11/05 | Fletcher Cup | Approx. 9.25 miles | St John's Road | 10.50 |
This is the last chance to have a blow-out on the track. City of Stoke AC are laying on two Open Meetings at Northwood Stadium in Stoke. The dates are Tuesday 11/10 and Thursday 13/10. The competitions start at 19.00 on both nights. The closing date for entries is 7/10. The entry fee is £1.50 per event. An athlete can enter a maximum of three events. Please see Stefan for an entry form, if you are interested. Please note, no late entries will be accepted.
I have added the dates of the UK Cross Challenge Series on the Upcoming Races page. Reebook may have exercised their option of not continuing to sponsor this popular series, but UK Athletics have decided to underwrite the series. So the races are ON.
The race formerly known as the Otters' 40 was held the other weekend. Wor Mark Fitzgerald braved the distance and finished a very creditable 34th, with a time of 8:31:24. Bashir Hussain of Stockport Harriers won the race by 8 seconds, overhauling Jeremy Bragg, Trail Running Association, between the last check point and the finish; they clocked 5:52:08 and 5:52:16, respectively! Allen Smalls of Colchester Harriers finished 3rd in 6:07:25. Anne Wade, Trail Running Association, was first lady across the line with a time of 7:49:30.
Nigel Critchlow made the short journey to Meerbrook to take part in Meerbrook 15km race. Nigel had a very good run and was less than 7 minutes down on Ray Plant of Stoke AC. Nigel's time was 1:01:08 which earned him a splendid 16th place. Well done, Nigel! Please click here for the full results, courtesy of Mick Hall of Staffordshire Moorlands AC.
The Kenyan male marathon runners continued their dominance of the Berlin Marathon. Paul Tergat's world record (best?) was never really threatened, though the eventual winner Philip Manyim was within 30 seconds of Tergat's time at halfway. However, Paul Tergat had run the second half of the race much faster than the first half. Philip Manyim won the race with a time of 2:07:41, second was Peter Chebet of Kenya (2:08:58) and Jackson Koech finished third (2:09:07), just, as his legs gave way in a big way over the last few hundred meters. Kenyan runners occupied the first six places, with an Ethiopian being the first non-Kenyan runner across the line. This was Philip Manyim's first marathon win in three attempts, though he led the Rome Marathon earlier in the year only to finish second on that occasion; he improved by 10 minutes in Rome and took a further 30-odd seconds off his PB today. As an aside, Philip Manyim began his career as a steeplechaser, but such is the depth of talent in that event in Kenya that he never got a look-in in the selections for major championships. His Italian coach Renato Canova suggested that he might be better suited to run on the roads, and I think we can say that the coach's assessment was correct.
Mizuki Noguchi from Japan followed up her win in the Olympic Marathon in 2004 with an emphatic win in the Ladies race. Ms Noguchi left the other runners in her wake after only a few minutes of running. She had expressed a desire not only to win the race but also set a new Japanese and (preferably also) Asian record. The time difference between the two records was only two seconds so there was a good chance she would get both records. Her metronomic running saw her go through halfway in just over 69 minutes. Noguchi was accompanied by a number of male runners, one of whom was her designated pacemaker. Mizuki Noguchi was a very tired but happy winner as she crossed the line in 2:19:12, a new Japanese and Asian record. Her winning margin was over 8 minutes to Luminita Zaituc of Germany, who slowed down considerably due to some problems that looked like sever cramps of the hamstrings. Zaituc's time was 2:27:34. Third Lady across the line was Asale Tafa of Ethiopia, who finished a further 53 seconds back.
Christmas is rapidly approaching. It feels strange to say this when we had such a lovely day in Buxton, but the fact is it's three months to Christmas day tomorrow! The club shall once again have a bit of a do. The date to remember is Friday 2nd December and the venue is Michaelangelo's up on Buxton Market Place. Make sure to keep that date free. Emma Wharton has kindly agreed to organise the event. More information to follow soon.
The club's Annual General Meeting will be held on Thursday 1 December 2005 at the Railway Hotel, Buxton. The AGM starts at 19:30. A formal invite and an agenda will be circulated nearer the time. This is an ideal opportunity for you to express your views on how the club is run. All paid-up members are very welcome, nay encouraged, to attend.
This is just to remind you that the next road race in our Club Championships is held on Sunday 25 September. The race starts at 11:00.
Steve Claye ran 1:22:19, which is just 20 seconds shy of his PB. It is nevertheless a new course best for him.
Mark Cudahy, our sole representative, in the recent Mountain Trial had a torrid time. It was hard day on the hill, and it was quite an adventure (involving maps and navigation) by all accounts. Mark finished the 25.6 km race, with 2290 m of climbing, in 9:21:50. He may have finished near the back, but nearly one-third of the field retired, which reflects the severity of the course and the weather.
I have had a brief report from Chelmorton Chase. Young Steven Ramsay improved by over nine minutes on last year's time, clocking a swift 35:29, and finished third overall. Andy Wilton won the race quite easily despite having had a run-out at the Lantern Pike race the previous day. Rosalind Barrett, Steven's mum, also took part in the race and finished 6th out 12 in the Ladies race. Graeme Bramwell finished 9th, but I don't have any information about his time. Pip Peakman also competed, but I don't know how she got on. Well done to Steven, Rosalind, Andy, Pip and Graeme!
Emma Wharton and Sarah Nicholson made the trip to Newcastle to take part in the 25th GNR. The ladies finished together in a time of 1:49:31. The Men's race was won in a new World Best by Zersenay Tadesse from Eritrea in 59:05, while Deratu Tulu became the first Ethiopian Lady to win the race in 67:03. Tulu was on for a very quick time but faded slightly in the closing stages. Tadesse went through 10 miles in 44:34, which is only 10 seconds slower than the new World Best set by the Great Haile Gebreselassie a couple of weeks back. That's seriously fast running and Tadesse did slow down a little towards the end. Good runs from Mara Yamauchi (5th place with 69:50), who shaved 2 minutes of her PB, and John Mayock (6th/63:28), who took 1 mintue of his PB, and John Brown (8th/63:43). John Brown had to concede the first Brit honour to John Mayock.
Kyle Fowler finished a very creditable 12th in a highly competitive U15 boys races at the Uttoxeter Cross Country races. Warrington AC were well to the fore, taking all three places on the podium.
My spy informs me that the day started out nice and warm but the temperature dropped significantly in time for the Lantern Pike fell races, held in conjuntion with the Hayfield Sheepdog trials. Holly Whitehead put in an excellent performance to finish third in the 5-11 race; her time was 9 minute-ish. The senior race was won by Lloyd Taggart (Dark Peak FR) with a time of 30:??. The second runner accross the line and also first MV40 was evergreen Andy Wilton (Staffs Moorlands AC), who was around two minutes behind Lloyd. Marker, aka Geoff Whitehead (Buxton AC), finished 48th with 40:45. Simon Hunter (Buxton AC) was also spotted at the race, but he was desperately looking for some friends who had promised to look after his daughter shortly before the off. We are not sure whether Simon succeeded in his search. It was a very good turn-out in the senior race with about 220 finishers. Please click here to see some piccies from the race.
Tomorrow sees the 25th running of the Great North Run, which takes the runners from Newcastle to South Shields. The club has at least two representatives - Emma Wharton and Sarah Nicholson, and possibly also Nigel Critchlow. Paul Tergat has unfortunately had to pull out with a recently sustained hamstring injury. It is not unlikely that the African runners will dominate the proceedings in both the Men's and the Women's races.
Ivan Heshko from the Ukraine won the Men's mile run from Rui Silva and Michael East. The Ladies mile was won by Tatyana Tomashova, Russia, from Helen Clitheroe. Eliud Kipchoge, a Kenyan Wunderkind, won the 3000 m race from Boniface Kiprop, Uganda, and Craig Mottram from Australia. The Ladies 3000 m race was won by Dorcus Inzikuru, the Ugandan lass who won the 3000 m Steeplechase in Helsinki in August, from New Zealand's Kim Smith.
I missed all the action as usual. Last week our Wednesday group came a cross an unfortunate ewe who had managed to get one of her horns tangled up with barbed wire. The distressed damsel were obviously in need of a helping hand. The runners stepped into the breach and managed get the barbed wire to release the ewe after some gentle prodding and persuasion. This action involved positioning runners near the backend of the poor animal. My source said that the animal looked very worried. We don't know if it was due to the ewe being caught by the wire or the roughing up by the runners. However, all is well that ends well. The ewe was set free and was soon grazing happily.
A new star has been born. A mere slip of a lad, 18 years old, from Kenya is setting the roads alight. Samuel Wanjiru set a new World Best performance over the 1/2 marathon distance in Rotterdam. His time was 59:16 which is a one second improvement on the time set by Paul Tergat! Young Wanjiru ran 26:41 in the 10,000 m race where Kenenisa Bekele set the new World Record (26:17). The Ethiopians and the Kenyans have a lot of young talent coming through.
Kyle Fowler's time was 4:44.2 and Antony Lacey's further shot put was measured at 8.77 m. Derbyshire finished second to Warwickshire by two points. The sport of Athletics in our County is looking quite healthy at least in the younger age groups, while the Seniors are not quite as strong. It was nice to see that young Luke Gunn of Derby AC has been selected to run the steeplechase at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne.
I have moved news from the month of August to the news_from_2005 page. I have also tidied up the upcoming races page.
The Derbyshire youngsters finished an excellent second in the Young Athletes' Inter-Counties at Boston. The weather was not kind to the youngsters with rain and breezy conditions, but that didn't dampen the spirits one iota. Kyle Fowler set a new PB in the U15 1500 m with 4:44, which is an improvement by 4 seconds. Antony Lacey took part in the U15 Shot Put, but I don't have any news on his performance. Well done to our lads and all Derbyshire athletes.
Graeme Bramwell was our sole representative in the World Masters Mountain Running Championships which were held in Keswick yesterday. Graeme finished well up in the field - 105th with a time of 1:07:16. Also running was an old training buddy of mine - Rob Salt from Charnwood AC. Rob finished 142nd. The Ladies W45 category was won by Cecilia Greasley - a very well known face from the Running Bear shop. Julie Gardner, Dark Peak but ex-Buxtonian, finished 19th in the same race.
The turn-out was better than of late with 10 athletes taking part in our club championship race. Stephen Ramsay, one of our promising juniors finished 4th. Well done to all those who took part. The results:
| 1 | Stephen Claye | 30:33 | 2 | Nigel Critchlow | 30:41 | 3 | Simon Hunter | 30:49 | 4 | Stephen Ramsay | 31:49 |
| 5 | Dave Nutton | 32:47 | 6 | Mark Quince | 35:24 | 7 | Sarah Nicholson | 36:27 | 8 | Colin Wilshaw | 36:35 |
| 9 | Marina Hartley | 38:07 |
Two intrepid Buxton runners trekked to the Eastern part of Derbyshire. The spire '10' starts and finishes in Chesterfield. Nigel Critchlow finished in a very creditable 20th place with 1:04:33 and Dave Nutton finished 76th with 1:13:02.
Warm up as usual, with 10 - 15 minutes of jogging. For starters: two laps of the track, jogging the bends and "sprinting" the straights. Main course: 3 sets of 4x200 m, with 90 s static recovery, and 3 min rest between sets. finally for dessert: 6x50 m with 10 m acceleration, with slow walk-back recovery. Finish off with a gentle jogging and stretching. Reduce the session if you raced or are feeling tired or have a firstname beginning with Z. Perhaps, just do a gentle jog to recharge the batteries.
Pip Peakman has sent me an email with some results from a local and a not-so local race. Pip competed in the Totley Tormentor on Sunday, in very warm weather. "It's tough but nice course", said Pip. Pip finished 8th lady with a time of 3:51. Pip can also recommend the Stickleback Horseshoe race in Devon, a 9-10 mile jaunt with 2300 feet of climbing. A race well worth trying if you're out and about in Devon.
The Club '5' race is being held on Wednesday 7th September. This is one of the Club Road Championship races. The race starts at 19.20 from the Opera House in Buxton. You can either meet us by the Opera House, at 19.10-ish, or at the Railway Hotel, for 19.00, and jog to the start as part of the warmup. The route follows that of the Carnival '5' race. We run up St John's Road, past Burbage traffic lights, turn left at Ladmanlow, follow the road to Parks Inn, where we turn left and run down Harpur Hill Road. We turn left at the bottom, run up Cottage Hill, down London Road to Fiveways traffic lights where we turn left, down West Road, turn right onto Bath Road, and then on to Broad Walk to finish by the bollards at the Old Hall end of the Walk.
Emma Wharton requires a few helpers for the Longnor Races on Thursday 8th September. Please call Emma on 01298 - 70503 if you can help out.
I have updated the upcoming races page with lots of races you want to run. We are nearing the start of the Cross Country session, so be sure to check out what's coming up in the near future.
It should be a very good competition in Boston on 10 September. Teams from the following counties are taking part: Derbyshire, Humberside, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, South Yorkshire and Warwickshire. I'm confident the Derbyshire youngsters will do very well.
Joanne has asked if anyone of the three runners who took part in Sheldon Fell Race has a set of results. I know that Steve Claye ran the race, but don't know who the others were. We, Joanne and I, would be very grateful if you could forward the results to either of us if you have a set of results fom the race. The results are needed for the Club Championship.
Longnor Races are staged on Thursday 8th September. The foot races starts at 19.00.
I am very pleased to report that two of our young athletes, Kyle Fowler in the U15 1500 m and Antony Lacey in the U15B shot put, have been selected to compete for Derbyshire in the Young Athletes' Inter Counties fixture at Boston, Lincs, on Saturday 10 September. Well done and good luck, lads!
Our usual meeting place, the Railway Hotel, has undergone refurbishment and is now open for business again. The upshot of this is that we will meet back at the Railway from next Wednesday, that is 07/09, at the usual time of 18:50 for 19:00 start.
This is an advance notice that the NoE Road Relays are held on Saturday 1st October in Blackpool. I don't have more details at the moment, but will put these on the website when I have it. Beware of team managers asking if you're busy on that day!
I came across this little gem when I visited Midland Vets AC's website. A lady by the name of Yvonne Withers coined the following phrase "Wisdom comes with age, but age sometimes comes alone!". Too true.
The Crawl is a new fell race in the calendar. Winner of the inaugural race was a certain Lloyd Taggart, who completed the course in 45:20. Our only competitor, Paul Clay, finished 40th with 1:04:14.
I have updated the club championship page, with a link to the Leek Half Marathon results, and tidied up the upcoming races page.
The turn-out from the club in Sunday's Leek Half Marathon was down slightly on previous years, which is probably due to the holidays. I know the race is always held on the Sunday in the August bank holiday weekend, but people's plans are of course different from year to year. Anyway, Steve Kenworthy finished 92nd with a time of 1:41:46, while Dave Nutton came in just behind Steve in 101th place with 1:43:12. In fact, Steve managed to finish twice, as he appeared to have also finished 125th with 1:46:10. I really don't know how he does it! I didn't run it myself, but I guess it would have been quite breezy if the weather in Buxton was anything to go by.
The 800 m men were chasing a sub-1:44 clocking in Brussels on Friday night. Alas, it was not to be. However, Wilfred Bungei set a new world lead with 1:43.70 in Rieti, Italy. James McIlroy ran an excellent race to record 1:44.65. Bernard Lagat (USA) has not looked as sharp as usual, until last night that is when Lagat became the first runner to go under 3:30 for 1500 m in 2005; his time was 3:29.30, which is also a new USA National Record. Not to be outdone, the Women's 1500 m also provided a 2005 World Lead, when Maryam Jamal Yussef (Bahrain) ran a speedy 3:56.79 and a further five ladies broke 4 minutes. Rieti is of course also where Seb Coe ran a sub-3:30 in 1988.
The annual fixture that pits the Swedes and the Finns against each other was held in Gothenburg at the weekend. The Swedes didn't win often during my childhood, partly due to the strength of the Finnish athletes in the throwing and the middle and long distance events. These fixtures are always keenly contested. The weather was atrocious, not dissimilar to the weather encountered during the recent World Championships, which was reflected in below-par performances in some events. The Finnish men won the competition by 15 points (212-197), while the Swedish women trounced the Finnish women (230-179) to record the largest ever Swedish winning margin. Notable performances were the Swedish triple in the 100 m and 200 m courtesy of the Kallur twins, Susanna and Jenny, and Carolina Klüft. The troika along with Emma Reinas then went on to set a new Swedish record in the 4x100 m with 43.61 s. An entire nation were on on the edge of their seats when Carolina Klüft didn't finish the 100 m Hurdles; she was stretchered off the track with a hamstring injury. I'm pleased to say that the injury doesn't appear to be very serious and she should be back to her usual bouncy self before too long. The future of Swedish looks healthier than I can remember. The Swedish Girls team won by 15 points (107-92) while the Swedish Boys team recorded a very narrow victory - a mere point separating the two teams (103-102). The Swedish team did for many years consist of only one realistic medal contender, Patrick Sjöberg, and the transformation is a joy to behold though I'm now an observer from afar. There is an increasing heated debate about the future of British Athletics. Are there lessons to be learnt from other nations, like Sweden and Finland? This is a topic we shall return to very, very shortly on this page.
Bengt Bengtsson, a childhood friend of mine, came second in the 10 km race walk; Bengt and I played in the backline at Masthuggets BK (aah, heady days) - Bengt doing the marking and I played libero (as it was called then) and directing the defensive line. Needless to say, Bengt was the one with the talent.
The turn out at the final fixture of this popular league was perhaps not as good as at the previous ones. The standard of competition remained high. The sky looked grey and heavy when we arrived at Moorways, but it turned into a lovely late August day. Amy Mellor achieved Grade 4 in the U13 100 m and later ran very well in the 200 m. Carl set a PB in the 1500 m, in a race won by Kyle Fowler after a fine sprint finish. Carl also achieved a PB in the 100 m. Zoe and Emma Bayley were also in action, with Zoe getting the better of Emma in the 75m Hurdles. Antony Lacey was back in action after his injury. He's a bit disappointed with his efforts, but will bounce back. I don't have the times for Antony and Kyle in the 400 m. The full results are now avilable on the DCAA website.
| Amy Mellor | 100 m | 15.0 s | 200 m | 31.5 | |||||
| Zoe Bayley | 75 m Hurdles | 15.1 s | 200 m | 32.8 | Long Jump | 3.71 m | |||
| Emma Bayley | 75 m Hurdles | 16.0 s | 200 m | 32.1 | 1500 m | 5:32.4 | |||
| Kyle Fowler | 400 m | 67.9 s | 1500 m | 4:54.1 | |||||
| Carl Riley | 100 m | 13.4 s | 1500 m | 5:17.2 | |||||
| Antony Lacey | 100 m | 13.7 | 400 m | 63.4 s | Shot put | 8.10 m |
Kenenisa Bekele stormed to an astonishing new World Record over 10,000 m tonight. They went through half-way in just under 13:10 and Bekele's finishing time was 26:17.53. Wow!!! Bekele's effort somewhat overshadows a number of other outstanding performances. I'm thinking of Lebedeva in the Triple Jump, Defar in the Women's 5000 m, Isinbayeva in the Pole Vault, Gatlin in the 100 m, Kipchoge in the 5000m, Makarov in the Javelin, Shaheen in the Steeplechase, etc. I should also mention one of Bekele's pacemakers - Tariku Bekele, a younger brother of the great man. Tariku's times are even better than his brother's at the same age. The British performances were encouraging, with Tim Benjamin setting a new PB in the 400 m and Michael East going close to his PB in the 1500 m.
Carl Riley, the club's sole representative, ran a very good race to finish 7th in the Junior race with a time of 7:03. I don't have the overall results, but I can safely say that Carl has done every well in this series of 2 km races.
Andy Wilton, Staffs Moorlands AC, won the race, by some 45 s, from Steve Watson, representing Buxton AC, with a chap from Dark Peak Fell Runners (no, not Lloyd) in third place. More details and results to follow soon.
I am pleased to say that the Husband and Wife team of Geoff and Dawn Whitehead did themselves and the club proud down in deepest Devon. The pair of them took part in the Sidmouth 10km, which was both offroad and a bit further than advertised. In her first proper race, Dawn finished in 155th place with a time of 1:09:34, and Geoff clinched 19th spot with 45:15. Seeing that I have indulged in a spot of name dropping, I shall not disappoint you. A friend of friend of mine, Chris Bailey of Highgate Harriers fame finished in 11th place with a time of 43:15. Chris is a good chum of Steve Moneghetti, one of Australia's finest marathon runners. Chris went out to Australia in the late 1980s and got a lot of air time on the local TV stations - Chris took part in a race (something like the race across Australia, I think). Chris was a good friend of Tony Wong, one of my training buddies from way back when. Tony and his wife are now living "La Dolce Vita" in Australia. I thought I would just let you know ...
The fourth and final fixture in the Derbyshire Track & Field mini league is being held on Saturday 27 August at Moorways Stadium in Derby. The first events start at 10.30. We will meet at 08.45 by the Sportshall at Buxton Community School.
I have had feedback regarding the website and its content from one or two of you, my dear surfers. The automatic resizing of the pages was not universally liked. You are my (and the website's) raison d'être, so I cannot refuse your request for disabling the automatic resizing. Please try out the revised website and see what you think. Please let me know if you like it. We listen! We care!
Phil, I haven't forgotten about the application form. It's on the list of things to do.
I have updated and tidied up the upcoming races page.
Mark Cudahy took part in this gruelling mountain running race that is Sierre-Zinal, which is over 31 km and includes 1500+ m of climbing. Mark found it hard going, but nevertheless finished 38th veteran (184th overall) and recorded a very respectable 3:48:24.5. Mark was ably supported by Joanne Phizacklea. The Sierre-Zinal is of course held in Switzerland. Incidentally, the veteran man finishing second was Martin Roscoe from Leeds. I remember watching Martin Roscoe winning the BUSF 3000 m steeplechase in Derby in 1989. There's piece of Athletics history for you (and a bit of name dropping too). I also noticed that Phil Makepeace (Leicester Coritanians) was the winner in 1986 - more names dropped! Have I not got any shame? Apparently not.
Nigel Critchlow was the club's sole representative in the Birchwood 10 km race on Sunday. Nigel finished 62nd with a time of 37:12. I am not entirely sure, but I reckon that's very close to a personal best.
There was a great deal of talent on show at Don Valley stadium. The highlight for me was Kajsa Bergqvist's high jumping; she set a new World Best of 2.03 m, but I would say that, wouldn't I? We must not forget that Micheal East ran a splendid mile race, as did Craig Mottram in the 2 mile race; the former set
