LSARRC News 10th March 2015

Lancashire Senior Ladies Cross Country Team

  There was a plenty of action on the cross country circuit this weekend both nationally and locally.

The Inter Counties Cross Country Championships from Cofton Park, Birmingham also incorporated the British Trials for the World Cross Country Championships from China later in month and the final round of the British Athletics Cross Challenge Series.  As a result, top runners from across the UK were action.  Held in beautiful spring weather, conditions were perfect.  Joanna Goorney was selected to represent Lancashire in the Senior Women's race and finished 188th in a time of 30:59.   The race was won by Lily Partridge of Surrey in 25:07 with 275 finishers.

The attractive setting of Ryelands Park, Lancaster, was the brand new venue for the sixth and final round of the Mid Lancs League cross-country season where almost 500 competitors enjoyed fast running over the dry, firm ground.

It has been an exceptional season's racing for Lytham St. Anne's Road Runners who started the day with much at stake and good prospects for championship medals in both team and individual categories.  The club's outstanding performance came from Joe Greenwood in the senior men's race.  In what a delighted Greenwood considered his best-ever cross-country performance he finished 7th in 31m 10s and only 67 seconds behind winner Phil Waite of Barrow & Furness.  Tom Howarth was another strong performer for the Lytham men finishing 33rd in 33m 51s while MV60 Graham Webster was once again to the fore, finishing 2nd in his age category and 78th overall.  The senior men finished 2nd in Division 3 on the day and 3rd overall for the season.

Graham Webster

The women's team was not at its strongest for this final fixture but nonetheless have had an outstanding season with much to celebrate.  In Division 2 the senior women finished runners-up behind Barrow & Furness to ensure a speedy return to the top division only twelve months after being relegated while the V45 ladies went one better by winning gold as champions of their division.

Lytham's successes were not limited only to team events.  There were some outstanding individual performances led by Joanna Goorney, the WV45 women's champion, Ella Moulding the under-15 girls' gold medal winner and Zane Seddon winning the under 11 boys event gold medal.  There were further successes for two of Lytham's talented older members with WV65 Sylvia Gittins and MV60 Graham Webster both winning silver as runner-up in their age groups.

LSARRC results at Ryelands Park:
U11G: 23 Georgia Norman 8:17; 24 Rebecca Tate 8:17; 33 Emma Savidge 8:49; 36 Sydney Ramsden 8:52. U13G: 9 Holly Winstanley 8:56; 22 Isla Gordon 10:27.
U15G: 4 Chloe Norman 13:06.
Senior Women: 56 Fiona Geldard 26:55; 73 Julia Rolfe 28:25; 75 Dawn Bloor 28:25; 84 Alex Everest 29:48; 106 Karen Lanigan 34:10; 118 Dawn Lock 44:40.
Senior Men: 7 Joe Greenwood 31:10; 33 Tom Haworth 33:50; 62 Neil Tate 35:18; 75 Graham Webster 36:12; 109 Terry Hellings 38:18; 164 Greg Oulton 46:41. 

Joe Greenwood and Tom Howarth

3 members of the club ventured over to Manchester on Sunday for the Trafford 10k organised by Althincham Athletics Club.  Although the weather was rather miserable with heavy drizzle throughout the course of the run, the highly competitive field for this race attracted some of the leading athletes in the country with the top seven men finishing in under 30 minutes.  Simon Denye had an excellent run knocking almost a minute off his PB to finish in 146th place with 34:57, excellent preparation for the Wilmslow Half Marathon in 2 weeks time and Manchester Marathon on the 19th April.  Peter Cruse finished in 230th place in 37:47.  Louisa Ruman ran a very creditable 52:17 for 636th given she has only just got back into running after a lengthy break.


Sylvia Gittins ran the Wrexham Half Marathon which attracted nearly 900 runners.  She finished in 2:04:38, 533rd place and 1st vet 65.

Mark Willett stayed more local completing the Preston Parkrun in 18th place and 19:34, a PB for this course.

LSARRC junior Chloe Norman represented Lancashire at the U13/15 Inter Counties Regional Final at Sportcity, Manchester on Sunday.  She ran the 4 lap and was 4th in her heat. She also did the standing long jump, speed bounce, and ran in the 8 lap paarlauf really enjoying the day.