LSARRC News 31st January 2017

LSARRC starting line up at St Annes 10 miler

Last Thursday night was Lytham’s monthly handicap race and defying the very chill evening two of Lytham's newer members, Peter Reid and Jacqui Murray, ran PBs to take the top two places. Altogether, in a keenly fought race eleven of the twenty-four competitors recorded their best time of the winter.

With two races remaining there is a thrilling finale in prospect with six members in close contention to win the annual Handicap Plate. Whilst the top three, Greg Oulton, Jeremy McCandless and Claire England each have nine scores, the fourth and fifth-placed runners, Colin Laidlaw and Neil Tate, have only eight and Sue Hawitt in sixth place just seven scores and it looks likely the year's winner will be decided only in the final March race.

Full Results:
1, Peter Reid 26.43 PB; 2, Jacqui Murray 30.03 PB; 3, Neil Tate 20.47; 4, Sue Hawitt 27.35 PB; 5, Tom Howarth 20.29; 6, Debbie Cooper 26.30; 7, Laura Byrne 31.00 PB; 8, Steve Tate 30.03 PB; 9, Kirsten Burnett 28.41 PB; 10, Alan Elstone 23.42; 11, Claire England 27.33; 12, Colin Laidlaw 25.24; 13, Pam Binns 37.26; 14, Alex Tate 21.31; 15, Sarah Bagshaw 36.30; 16, Graham Webster 23.43; 17, Michelle Sheridan 36.52; 18, Chris McCarthy 21.23; 19, Sarah Bradshaw 37.15; 20, Rob Parker 30.22; 21, Greg Oulton, 33.30; N/C Louise De-Gier Flood 27.34; N/C Dawn Bloor 29.07; N/C Jonathan Tuck 21.52.

Dawn Lock

This Saturday was the Northern Athletics Cross-Country championship race, held in Knowsley Safari Park.
Senior runners had to do multiple laps of the full 4km course, and while there are no real hills, the long slow climbs and descents and the heavy clinging mud made it suitable championship test for all.

Four members of Lytham St. Annes RRC took part in this race. Dawn Lock completed her 8K race 359th in 1:13. Thomas Howarth was the first Lytham male to complete his 12K race in 58:11, Terry Hellings finished in 1:03:07 place and Graham Webster 1:05:03. Well done to all that completed.

On Saturday Ian Tate also completed the Warrington 5 Mile race in 35:49 and finished in 15th place.  This was a four series ‘multi- terrain’ course, which ran through Sankey Valley Park and Colliers moss.

Also on Saturdays was Lytham Hall’s 57th parkrun and saw 10 Lytham runners competing. The first Lytham runner back was Ross McKelvie in 18:27, Neil Bayntun- Roberts was second in 19:43,  Joanna Goorney was seconds behind him in 19:48 and George Denye, a junior, finished in 20:02! Felicity Wolohan was next back in 21:02, Gerry Browne in 23:16, Neil Tate in 23:23, Morgan Pritchard in 23:45, Graham Webster in 23:46 and Sarah Bradshaw completed her race in 30:23.

George Denye

George Denye then went on to race in Blackpool’s trial parkrun and completed his race in 20:24, a brilliant racing Saturday George, well done!

On Sunday was the St. Annes 10 miler race.  This was a well attended race by LSARRC, with 20 runners,  and was thoroughly enjoyed by all. One Lytham runner said “When I started running 13 months ago my goal was to run 10k. After achieving that in November I needed a new challenge so entered the St Anne's 10 Miler. It was a daunting distance for me and I was quite nervous leading up to it but in the end it was a wonderful experience. The weather was good, cold with only a light breeze, the marshalls were helpful and cheery, and the other runners were friendly, supportive and encouraging.”

Thomas Howarth, Neil Tate and Joe Greenwood. 1st male team award

The first Lytham runner back was Jo Greenwood in 59:33, Thomas Howarth completed his second race of the weekend in 1:03:14, Neil Tate seconds behind him in 1:03:24 and Alex Tate in 1:04:35. Ross McKelvie also completed his second race of the weekend in 1:07:49, Graham Webster, 2nd Male Vet 60, in 1:10:37 and Kathy Gaunt, 2nd female Vet 50, in 1:19:09.  Claire England was next in 1:23:01, Als Everest was next in 1:23:16, Susan Hawitt in 1:24:25 and Peter Reid in 1:29:15. Olivia Johnson-Allen was next back in 1:33:40, Sylvia Gittins in 1:35:31 and Kirsten Burnett in 1:35:48. Laura Byrne completed her race in 1:36:53, Pamela Hardman in 1:37:04, Patrica Bullen in  1:42:43 and Sarah Bagshaw in 1:50:22.

Claire England

Special mention to new Lytham Runners Louise De-gier Flood who completed her race in an amazing 1:20:18, Jacqui Murray who finished in 1:35:01 and Michelle Sheridan who completed her race in 1: 54:11. Not only did Lytham receive those amazing results, Neil Tate, Thomas Howarth and Joe Greenwood also received an award for the 1st male team! Well done Team Lytham!!

LSARRC News 24th January 2017

Paul Veevers - Lytham Hall parkrun

The Inskip half marathon is a slightly undulating, fast course along the back lanes of the Fylde and Wyre countryside.  The cold conditions, just above freezing, led to faster times as competitors tried to keep warm. Despite the conditions there was plenty of support from marshals and spectators.

Six Lytham St Annes Road Runners took part and first to finish for the club was Joe Greenwood with a personal best of 01:18:17. Joe came 23rd out of the 418 competitors, closely followed by Andy Draper in 24th, just 15 seconds behind. Tom Howarth also put in a good performance to come 39th.

Despite using the race for marathon training, Mel Koth knocked 40 seconds off her previous half marathon two weeks ago to come 122nd. Another notable achiever was Sylvia Gittens who came 371st. By completing the race in 2:05:14 she broke her own vet 70 club record for this distance. The sixth Lytham runner was FV40 Kirsten Burnett who was 282nd.

Nineteen LSARRC runners took part in the increasingly popular Lytham Parkrun in the grounds of Lytham Hall on Saturday. First back in fourth achieving a time of 18:12 on the five kilometre course was Paul Veevers, closely followed by Andy Draper, warming up for his half marathon the following day.

Morgan Pritchard was the first Lytham Junior home with another good time, 22:31. Lucy Bohannon in the JW11-14 category finished in 26:10 to achieve a personal best, the only Lytham runner to do so in the event.

The Parkrun series is more fun than serious competition. It will be in this spirit that the junior Parkrun will be introduced next month. Five kilometres is a bit much for younger legs so the junior race will be just 2K, and will be on Park View at 9am on Sundays. Watch this space for further details.

LSARRC News 17th January 2017

Sylvia Gittins - Burnley Cross Country

Last weekend was the Central Lancashire half marathon and 5 Lytham runners competed in this race.  On the race day conditions were perfect, mild with a slight breeze.  The runners mentioned how well the race was marshaled and a big thank you to our own Brian Porter for his commentating around the course and at the finish line. Chris McCarthy was the 3rd runner back in an impressive time 1:15:15, Neil Tate was the next Lytham runner back in 1:25:33 and Alex Tate in 1:29. Mel Koth was 6th lady and 1st vet 40 to finish the race in  1:34:19 and Barbara Holmes was 2nd Vet 55 running the race in 1:47:52.

On Saturday it was Lytham Halls 55th parkrun, with 9 Lytham runners taking part.  Neil Bayntun- Roberts was first back in 20:16, Peter Reid was the second Lytham runner to complete the 5k race in 23:53 and Kirsten Burnett in 25:04.  Laura Byrne was next back in 27:36, Sarah Bradshaw in 31:27 and Jeremy McCandless in 31:59. Paula McCandless was next back with a well earned PB in 32:15, Michelle Sheridan in 32:49 and Sarah Bagsaw in 33:21.
Eric Wrigley ran in Avernham park, completing the Preston junior parkrun in 9:09, Sophie Tate also competed in this race and finished in 12:38.

Michelle Hook also raced on Saturday, taking part in the Lancaster 3-1-5 health club 10k winter series run. Set along the canal, the 10k route runs 1.5 miles along the canal and back, twice over. Absolutely pancake flat course, gorgeous weather - cold but sunny and hardly any wind but a tiny field of runners which made setting pace hard. Michelle finished the race in 43:58, was 1st female and is possibly the new course record holder for this race! 
Also this Saturday was the Burnley cross country. Although this is one of the flattest courses in the cross-country series, the rain over the last week made the course very muddy making it tough for all the runners involved.  Lytham scored very well in this race with the men finishing sixth overall and first in their division. The ladies also did well finishing who also finished 6th overall and 2nd in their division.  For the under 11’s girls race, Sophie Bohannon finished second in 7:37, Jessica Ramsden in 9:23, Hebe Tierney in 9:31 and Katie Bremner in 9:48.
 
In the under 11’s boys race George Denye finished his race in 7:57, Morgan Pritchard in 8:25 and Eric Wrigley in 9:25.

In the under 13 girls race, Sydney Ramsden was Lytham’s first runner back in 11:59 and Rebecca Tate in 13:46. In the under 15 girls race Laura Bremner was first Lytham runner back in 13:52, Lucy Bohannon was next back in 14:35 and Holly Anderson in 15:57.

In the ladies race first back was Joanna Goorney in 22:37, next was Melanie Koth in 24:29, completing the ‘A’ team Barbara Holmes finished her race in 26:06.  Next Lytham runner back was Alexandra Everest in 28:18, Julia Rolfe finished in 29:11, Louisa Denye in 29:50,  Sylvia Gittins in 33:39 and Dawn Lock in 44:26.

In the mens race first back was Chris McCarthy in 35:27, Joe Greenwood was next back in 37:04, Thomas Howarth in 39:03, Andrew Draper in 39:16 and Neil Tate in 40:03.  Paul Veevers was next back in 41:45 and Terry Hellings in 45:02.

LSARRC News 10th January 2017

Lancashire veteran women silver medal winners

Lancashire AA Cross Country Championships 2017

Lytham St. Annes RRC had an excellent start to 2017 when they won team silver and seven individual medals across all age categories from U11 to V70 at the Lancashire Cross-Country Championships on Saturday.

Twenty-five members of Lytham, up from fifteen from last year, made the trip to Witton Park and were rewarded with one of their best medal hauls yet.

Windless mild 8o temperatures and less mud than in previous years made for good running conditions but didn't counteract the toughness of the multiple hill climbs, rough grass and foot-turning patches. Heavy mist hung over the northwest for the entire day jeopardizing the Isle of Man team's flight into fog-bound Liverpool but with the help of delayed starts, Manx Harriers, always staunch supporters of the Lancashire Championships, were able to take the Women's title from Blackpool with a convincing 15 points to 44.

Dawn Lock and Sylvia Gittins

Most successful of the day were the Veteran Women, all five of whom took home medals. Joanna Goorney, 27:59, 20th overall and sixth vet; Melanie Koth, 31:42, 36th overall and 14th vet and Kirsten Burnett, 39:07, 56th overall and 31st vet, won the Women Vets' team silver medal: a real boost for the Club. Koth also won V40 individual gold and Goorney the V45 silver. In addition the club's two V70 Sylvia Gittins in 45:25 and Dawn Lock in 53:25 took silver and bronze respectively in their age group.

Senior Men

Lytham fielded one of it's strongest men's teams in the final race of the day, the physically demanding 9.8k four-lap Senior Men's, but with the high standard they did well to finish 9th. In a neck-and-neck battle Salford Harriers on 97 points took the title from Blackburn Harriers on 99. Comprising the men's team were Joe Greenwood, 41st in 37:15; Thomas Howarth, 68th 40:03; Neil Tate, 71st 40:29; Paul Veevers, 89th 42:59; Ross McKelvie, 100th 44:18 and Terry Hellings, 106th 45:44. Mark Selby finished 121st in 47:23. Hellings ran very well to win bronze in the V60.

There were successes too for the Juniors who gained two medals. George Denye won silver in the U11B with 6:36 for 1.8K field loop. Both Morgan Pritchard, 18th in 7:15, and Eric Wrigley, 44th in 7:54 ran well.

U11 Girls

On the same course 15 minutes later the U11G managed a very good team 4th place, just outside the Lancashire medals. Making up the team were Sophie Bohannon, whose 3rd in 6:58 earned her the second junior medal; Hebe Tierney, 33rd in 8:17; Amara Thorpe, 35th 8:21 and Clemmie Tierney, 37th 8:23. Jessica Ramsden was 42nd in 8:31.

George Denye - U11 silver medalist

Older juniors were represented by Sydney Ramsden, 37th in 14:52 and Rebecca Tate, 53rd in 17:21 in the U13G 3k race which included a climb over the Saucer while Laura Bremner, 19:39, Lucy Bohannon, 20:06 and Holly Anderson, 20:59 finished close together in the U15G 3.8K race which also included the Saucer.

Terry Hellings - V60 silver medalist

The following day four Lytham members tackled the hilly Garstang 10k in unseasonably warm conditions, including two men who had also competed in the cross-country the day before.

The course route took the competitors around the back of Garstang High School before a lovely downhill stretch (the calm before the storm) leading onto the hilly loop around the lanes of the village, over rivers and motorway bridges before running back uphill to the school, just what tired legs needed for the sprint finish!

First home for the club on the back of the tough cross country race the day before was Tom Howarth, 20th place, in 38:07 followed by 34th place Paul Veevers in 39:13. First lady home for the club, and 8th female overall out of 190, was Michelle Hook equalling her 10k record to the second in 43:48. Completing the club representatives was Lorna Cragg, who finished in 1:17:43.

LSARRC News 3rd January 2017

Andy Draper at Southport parkrun

Following the Christmas festivities and the previous weeks 10k races, this last week was relatively quiet with the exception of a variety of parkruns featuring Lytham Runners, no doubt putting the fuel of Christmas dinners and chocolates to good use. The club saw representatives at 6 parkruns across the country.

Locally, 15 club members took part in the Lytham Hall parkrun on 31st December for the last parkrun of the year. The run saw a record attendance of 280 runners, and first home for the club, and in 15th position overall was Neil Bayntun-Roberts in 19:55. Felicity Wolohan was Lytham’s first female home, and 19th overall, in a time of 21:03, followed by Barbara Holmes for 28th place in 21:45 and Kathy Gaunt, who achieved a new personal best for 9th female and 50th overall in 23:10, a great way to finish the year, well done Kathy! Next back was Claire England in 24:26, Morgan Pritchard in 24:41, Graham Webster in 24:44 closely followed by Roy Stevens in 24:49. Hannah McCandless was the next Lytham runner home in 27:35, Des Heron in 28:54, Ruth Bye in 29:44, Karen Lanigan in 30:33, Sarah Bagshaw in 31:34, Bob Clough in 37:06 and Kirsten Burnett in 45:45.

Michelle Hook at Preston parkrun

Just down the road, Michelle Hook took place in Preston parkrun, her first in a number of months due to a planned absence and recovery. A nice gentle parkrun to ease back into featuring the notorious Avenham Hill 3 times, Michelle still managed to take 3rd female place and 40th overall in 21:58.

One of the clubs juniors Eric Wrigley also chose hills for the morning, completing Cuerdan Valley parkrun finishing as 60th male and 70th overall in 26:53.

In our second fastest time of the week, Andy Draper took on Southport parkrun, finishing in 3rd place in a time of 18:25, and our fastest time of the week was achieved by Paul Veevers at Crosby parkrun in a time of 17:28. Great running guys!

Further afield, Terry Hellings completed the Basildon parkun in 16th position overall in a time of 21:33.

For those with less of a hangover and sore dancing feet in the morning, Lytham hall held a New Years Day parkrun which saw 113 runners in total take on the grounds of the Hall, with 11 of those being Lytham runners. First home for the club for 3rd place overall was Neil Tate in 18:43, followed by Mark Selby for 8th place in 20:21 and Andy Draper in 20:24 for 9th. 10th was Graham Webster in 20:32, 12th Neil Bayntun-Roberts in 20:55, and achieving a new personal best was Colin Laidlaw in 23:22 for 32nd place – a great start to the new year, well done Colin. First female home for the club was Felicity Wolohan on the back of her first female position the day previously, in 23:56, followed by Eric Wrigley in 25:31, Olivia Johnson-Allen in 26:48, Rebecca Willetts in 27:59 and Sarah Bagshaw in 31:30.

A great way to see out 2016 and see in 2017 by all our runners, a great effort from all!