Stadium Runners based at the Galpharm Stadium Huddersfield

Joe Percy Race Report – 7th June 2010

A record turnout of 42 (yes that’s forty-two!) stadium runners represented the club at the annual Joe Percy race from Thurstonland cricket club! The race is organised by Longwood Harriers as a team event with all local West Yorkshire clubs invited to take part! The results are based upon the first ten finishers to cross the line for each club. It was great to see so many of the clubs runners, some taking part in their first race.

It was interesting to watch the race for a change, and I had my money on Michael Hyde to complete back to back victories after the first lap with a considerable lead over Simon Courtney and Kevin Hoult. However I obviously did not make an allowance for the storming second lap from Mr Courtney which saw him pass Michael and a number of other competitors on the finishing straight.

The first ten finishers were all considerably faster than in previous years showing the consistent improvement made by all runners. Our first ten finishers were good enough to claim third team prize a remarkable achievement considering our opposition and the relatively young age of our club.

The ladies race was won by Liz Taylor, with great finishers also by Myra Owen, Laurel Gilbert, Nicki Dawson and Ruth Gibbs. I sure that we would have won a ladies first prize had their been a category!

WAVA & GP tables are now available.

The next club race is the classic/tough Masham Half marathon on the 4th of July. The race has a few up’s and downs but is well worth the effort for what must be the best finishing tea following the race! And if you liked the Joe Percy race the following Wednesday (7th July) is the Helen Windsor 10k road race, which is very similar to the Joe Percy. I understand that entry is available on the night.

Roberttown 7 Race Report

The poor weather for sun bathing but great weather for running seemed to encourage a large field of stadium runners, providing 17% 0f the overall race field for the scenic Roberttown 7 road race. In addition a good number of supporters were also spotted at various locations around the route.

The top end of the finishers were dominated by the red and white vests of stadium runners. Michael Hyde set off like an express train and was in third place for the majority of the race only being passed towards the later stages and finished in 5th place overall. Simon Courtney finished a place behind in 6th position, claiming that the full benefit of his long distance running will be in evidence at the Joe Percy! Martin Huddleston snuck in as third stadium runner home with Andrew Ferguson and Steve Croft in close attendance.

Steve headed the WAVA results (this man is unbeatable), with Michael and Martin having identical WAVA times in second place. In the absence of a stewards enquiry the points have been shared. Phil Widdop was a very close 4th only 8 seconds adrift.

Steve Croft leads both the WAVA championship and the Grand Prix tables at present, however he has completed slightly more races to date. His lead in the Wava Championship appears unassailable at present, however the Grand Prix could prove a closer affair at the end of the season.

Myra Owen was the first Stadium lady home in a fast time of 56:33min, some 4 and a half minutes faster than in 2009. She was closely followed by Laurel Gilbert and Nicki Dawson, both recording times of under an hour. The WAVA results produced a revised top three with Jane Lord just beating Myra Owen with Jackie Brewerton in third. Jackie retains the lead in the WAVA championship but Jane has maximum points from the 5 races entered to date.

The stadium runners pretty much collected all the prizes on offer these included:
Michael Hyde 5th place overall.
Age group winners included Steve Croft, Phillip Widdop and Myra Owen.
Mens Team Prize and Ladies Team Prize.
 

NB, Apologies to Lynn Woodcock for omitting her result from the Bluebell results. Hopefully this has been corrected on the latest printout. Please let me know if you spot any omissions or mistakes.

1. ^{Simon Courtney       14mins 01secs}
2. ^{Steven Croft              14mins 05secs}
3. ^{Michael Hyde           14mins 16secs}

1. ^{Liz Taylor                   18mins 36secs}
2. ^{Nicola Kelly               18mins 40secs}
3. ^{Linda Brewis             19mins 12secs}

The Bluebell Trail 2nd May 2010

Sunday 2nd May saw 27 intrepid Stadium Runners line up for the start of the very picturesque, but very challenging Bluebell Trail. Stainland Lions do a fantastic job of organising a run which combines some truly beautiful Yorkshire scenery with some really horrible hills and a river crossing and somehow making it all seem like fun. This 10 mile race is most famous for its ascent of Trooper Lane in Halifax which even the fastest runners have to think about walking rather than running (the views at the top are nice though). All 27 runners made it back in one piece, although Jonny Cartwright did try and increase the difficulty of this race by not only performing a beautiful dive in to the river but then trying to swim to the other side, photographic evidence is available.

Kevin Hoult was the first Stadium Runner back in 14th place overall in a time of 1hr15mins16secs. He was swiftly followed by Simon Courtney in 15th place, 1hr15mins29secs and then Michael Hyde in 16th place 1hr15mins47secs. This not only secured the men’s team prize for the Stadium but also shows once again the strength in depth for the club and bodes well for the up-coming Joe Percy 10k. Steven Croft, David Miller and Daniel Shaw all came home in under 1hour 20minutes which is excellent running. This ensures that Steven Croft remains top of the Grand Prix but with Kevin Hoult scoring maximum points in both his races so far and Simon Courtney hot on his heels in his two races it should be a very interesting Grand Prix if they both complete the required 10 races. In the WAVA it’s early days but Steven Croft has scored maximum points from all his 5 races and is only looking faster by the race, it’s a long way to go though and Phil Widdop is not far behind at all.

For the ladies Liz Taylor kept up her excellent start to the year and was home in an excellent time of 1hr34mins33secs to score maximum points and keep moving towards the top of the Grand Prix and WAVA tables where Jackie Brewerton still reigns after another great run. Jane Linden and Laurel Gilbert look like challengers for the GP with both finishing under 1 hour 40 minutes. In the WAVA Jane Lord again scored maximum points which is four maximums from four races with Jackie Brewerton’s extra race keeping her top. Congratulations to everyone who finished it’s a long distance and a real challenge and full GP and WAVA tables are now available.