Leading up to my second race of the year, I had been distinctly nervous. With an injured ankle, and a hilly route I was worried about making the cut off if I ended up having to walk. On the day the weather was clear, with showers expected later (more incentive to get round faster) and a cold wind. I had all the appropriate running paraphernalia; my shiny new BVR vest, trusty shoes, even a running a partner, so off we went.
The description was accurate, it was hilly….undulating in fact. All in all it was a challenging but lovely out and back route on closed roads (with some allowances for farm/local resident traffic), the marshals were friendly, providing water and jelly babies on route, and it was well attended with about 200 finishers. It was advertised in the race brief that you could leave your own drinks and gels at checkpoints, although this isn’t something I took them up on. All my worries disappeared once I got going and I relaxed enough to enjoy myself. I actually ended up doing my fastest half marathon since getting back into running (I’d like to take all the credit, however it would appear those BVR Thursday track sessions are working).
After a final ‘sprint’ over the finish line we were handed goody bags with beer, chocolate and our medals. There was also cake for the taking, and some scones. Grim Up North Running seems to have a loyal following. I recognised several faces from January’s Pateley Pie n pint and many runners were clearly regulars, sporting matching hats and tee-shirts. All in all we had a lovely day, and really enjoyed the event. JC
A cold, wet and windy morning in Partington. This is a serious race, with several national and European elite entrants, including Olympic finalist Laura Weightman in the ladies seniors.
Conditions were pretty awful but Philippa was chuffed with a PB, ably paced by Paul. Leo whizzed round before going home to run another 10 miles (!). Emma loved every minute (not!) and Karen brought in the tail. On a nice spring morning this route around the Dunham Massey lanes can be lovely. This wasn’t one of those days! KC
Three intrepid BVRs (Ruth, Phil W and Karen) arrived on an unseasonably warm Sunday morning ready to tackle the Radcliffe 10 mile trail.
Slightly perturbed by the race numbers showing a half marathon it was confirmed that we’d turned up to the right race – phew. The course was a mixture of reasonably flat bridleway and sharpish undulating paths. These, combined with the unexpected heat left two of us struggling slightly.
Phil breezed round, cementing his place at the top of the autumn/winter champs, with Karen and Ruth crawling in ‘some’ minutes after. The run was well organised and friendly, with the added bonus of a cake sale at the finish. Karen C
Belle Vue Racers are sad to hear that David Jackson passed away in January 2019. David held the position of a Committee Member going on to be our Club Chairman for many years. David was a loyal, helpful and hard working committee member that I had the pleasure of knowing. David helped me such a lot after our club founder, my husband Eddie Cheetham, died in 2003.
David stayed on at the club and helped me at a time which wasn’t easy for a woman coach trying to establish that women coaches did have a say in track etiquette .
He, along with others, helped rebuild the backbone of the club. David competed in a lot of our club championship events including cross country. I remember so well David and his family coming along on our Coach Trip to Blackpool for the 10k Road Race. David brought along his wife Jean and daughter Karen.
As a club we were asked to transport the European flag on a leg of its journey for which our destination was Preston. A bus was hired and we ran in teams to Preston to deliver the flag. David, his daughter Karen, his son Gary, his daughter-in-law Louise and many club members took part in this event. We were chosen as we were and still are a community club.
Our thoughts and sympathy are with David’s family.
New year’s eve saw 10 Belle Vue Racers travel to Poynton for the annual and excellent Bowstones Fell Race organised by Bramhall Runners. For this Belle Vue-er, it’s my favourite race of the year. It has a bit of everything – trail, forest, views, enough downhill for the up, a fast downhill finish and a bottle of beer at the end. Hooray! Ruth managed to take some photos of the view.
On Sunday 23rd December in the pouring rain, 14 intrepid Belle Vue Racers braved the elements for the traditional Christmas Run around Reddish Vale and other off-road destinations. It was a bit wet, VERY muddy and only a couple of falls. All in all I think we did really well.
Happy Christmas everyone and see you in the new year!!
Stockport provides the local racing calendar with a number of highlights each year. The Stockport 10, the Hatters Half, the Offerton 10k and our very own Hit the Trail and Mad Hatters to name but a few. The Marple Runners Trail 10k is a relative newcomer on the scene so I wasn’t sure what to expect as I proudly donned my shiny new and improved BVR vest for its first outing of the year. Experts say that these premium quality updated classics with their black panelling and soft, stretchy, lightweight Qwick-Dri™ wicking fabric will shave seconds off our finishing times. Having read the label attached to the vest, I left the house convinced of its special powers.
Anyway, back to the race. It had been described as a multi terrain, mainly off road 10k Trail race. In need of a tune up before the Wilmslow Half Marathon, this would be just what I needed. The race did not disappoint. With climbs and steep descents; twists and turns; there was plenty to challenge the 250 or so runners. In return we were offered a scenic route along the country lanes of Chadkirk and the towpaths of the Peak Forest Canal. Friendly and vocally supportive marshals dotted the route. In fact, the organisation of the race as a whole seemed faultless.
A high point of the race for me was crossing the Marple Aqueduct. Unusually for me, I found I was able to pick up the pace at this late stage of the race. Although, I’m pretty sure that this had more to do with my fear of heights than my sensible pacing strategy. The River Goyt and surrounding woodland 100 feet below provided a stunning backdrop to the closing stages. Nonetheless, I didn’t stop to take it all in and pushed on nervously.
At the end we were rewarded with a medal, a bag full of snacks, a buff and even a copy of the Beano (a nod to the Marple Runners’ Dennis the Menace style colours). I hope to be back at this one again next year. All in all, a great race to have on the doorstep.
Well done all who ran over this long week into weekend of running. Particular slaps on the dogged backs of James, Julia, Yana, Annie, and Emma as Full Tameside Tourists. Congratulations to Emma for a strong performance across all four days of her first Tour, which followed another run at Round the Resers. Five races in five days. Respect. And she leads the Championship. Mentions also to Yana, who turned in four PBs, and Frank, who scored PBs in each of the three races he ran.
And a last item of news was that Annie yet again won her age category at the Tour. This not only makes her a professional in being able to stuff some prize money into the key pocket of her shorts, but also a legend in Tameside, from Denton to Stalybridge. Well done Annie.
The next race is the rescheduled Wilmslow Half Marathon (in Wilmslow) next Sunday.
