Three Honiton Running Club members took part in last weekend’s Bristol Half Marathon. It is a relatively flat course which has the potential of producing personal best times. Both Ian Stewart and Graham Reeves managed to finish in under 90 minutes which is a great achievement for anyone. Ian finished first in 87 minutes 23 seconds with Graham not too far behind finishing in 89:43. Roger Saunders is finding it hard to fit in runs at the moment with work commitments but Bristol was well timed between trips. His time of 1:43:11 was fairly slow for him due to the lack of training but he enjoyed the run.

Honiton RC’s very own race is coming up soon on Sunday, 14th October in the form of ‘The Cotleigh Canter’. Headquarters is at Cotleigh Village Hall and there are several distances on offer. There is a 5k and a 10k which is two laps of the 5k and the first runners will set off at 10.30am. There is also a 3k fun run which is mainly for children aged 9 and over although younger children can run with an adult. This is an opportunity for everyone, irrespective of running ability. For further information and to download an entry form for the races, visit www.honitonrc.com. You can also enter on the day and all profits from the event will be donated to local causes.

On Sunday, 16th September, three Honiton runners went to Newcastle Upon Tyne to take part in the Bupa Great North Run. This is the world’s biggest half marathon and starts in Newcastle and finishes in South Shields. About 54,000 runners took part. Alan Rowe MBE, Olivia Higginson and Nick Bradley-Carter were joined by marine Barry Gray and they chose not to race the event but went instead to carry The Baton and spread the word. This they did very well stopping to talk to many fellow runners and spectators along the way. Mo Farah was scheduled to compete in the event but said he felt tired following the birth of his twins and he had not had time to train for the distance. Instead, he joined fellow London 2012 Olympic gold medalists Kat Copeland, Greg Rutherford, Nicola Adams and Ellie Simmons to start the race. Mo’s decision not to race meant that Wilson Kipsang was first across the line in 59 minutes 6 seconds. The Honiton group were just a little slower finishing in about 2 ½ hours but were very happy with their run and still felt pretty fresh at the end.  

The New Forest Marathon is usually picturesque but last Sunday it was rain, rain and more rain for the whole event. There was also a strong wind which didn’t help conditions. Nevertheless, Steve Boyes managed the great time of 3 hours 33 minutes. This was a special race for Steve as it was his 100th marathon. A very worthy owner of the nickname Marathon Man!

On the same wet Sunday, Graham Reeves and Olivia Higginson weren’t put off by the rain and turned out for the Woodbury 10km. They had both completed it before so knew what to expect from the undulating course which has two long inclines and an uphill finish. Graham came 8th in a pb of 40.29 and Olivia finished in her fastest time for this race in 52.06. The race raises money for Christian Aid and all runners were rewarded with bacon baps, tea and cake. Despite the weather there was a good turn out.

On Sunday, 9th September Honiton Running Club members Graham Reeves, Sam Shute, and Lesley Crocker took part in the Force 10k at Powderham Castle. The route starts at the castle and takes runners around the estate and through the woodlands. It was very warm and sunny. Graham was first back in 13th place in a time of 40 minutes 56 seconds. Next back was Lesley in 50-27 and 89th place. Sam followed in 61-40 and 222nd. There were 302 finishers.

The Charmouth Challenge usually takes place in July but due to extreme weather conditions which would have made the run dangerous; it was postponed until last Sunday. The run goes through some spectacular coastal scenery with amazing views and the 8 mile route includes an ascent of Golden Cap. This is the highest point on the south coast of England forming part of Dorset’s Jurassic Coast. Despite the perfect weather conditions numbers were depleted because of the move but there was still plenty of support along the route.  Bruce Strawbridge was first back for Honiton finishing in 18th place and delighted with his time of 1:05:46. Howard Bidmead fresh back from a holiday in Turkey also had a great race to finish in 28th position in 1:11:58. Judy Davey was the only female Honiton representative and she was pleased with her 40th place finishing in 1:15:59. The winner was Kyle Hackett who managed the obscenely speedy time of 54:40.

On the Sunday of the bank holiday weekend four Honiton Running Club members took part in the Battle of Sedgemoor 10k road race based in Langport. Sunday was a pleasant day sandwiched between two typical wet bank holiday days which meant conditions were  pretty good. It's mostly flat and a fast course and Graham Reeves managed to know about 2 ½ minutes of last year’s time which upped his finish position by 72 places meaning he finished 46th in 41 minutes 5 seconds. Nick Bradley-Carter also took part in the event last year and he managed to better his finish position although he was a bit slower. I was Sam Shute’s first attempt at the race and she was delighted to finish in under an hour. She was 251st in 57:03. Val Hales completed Honiton’s line up finishing 316th in 1:10:55. The race was won by David Cooke in a course record time of 29:28. He must have been delighted with that.  

It was pouring with rain the day after, on Bank Holiday Monday, but some of the more hardy Honiton runners travelled to Bampton to take part in the Quarryman’s Trail 10k multi-terrain race. This is a low key event which is part of Bampton Open Day and the weather had obviously put a few potential runners off as there were only 47 starters. The race has a very tough start with runners being taken up hill on road and pavement and just before it continued up hill off road it became very slippery. It’s a good job runners were ascending and not descending as there would have been several slip ups. Although the course levels, it was very muddy and slippery throughout with many puddles to either avoid or splash through. At least runners can look forward to the down hill finish taking them back to the start at the Quarryman’s pub. The weather did brighten up for most of the race and at least it wasn’t cold.

Steve Davey was first back for Honiton coming 7th overall in 48:56. Bruce Strawbridge was next back in 17th position in 50:41. John Burgess had overtaken Judy Davey in the early stages but she kept him in her sights throughout taking advantage of a slippery descent to storm past him. She held the lead for a short time before John saw his chance again and managed an uphill take over. He held this lead to finish 25th and one place in front of Judy in 55:32. Steve, Bruce and John all represent different age categories and amazingly they were all awarded bottles of wine for coming first in their respective groups. Judy finished in 55:55 and was quite happy as she was 3rd lady winning a special medal for her efforts. Unfortunately, Olivia Higginson was the only Honiton member to come home empty handed but as this was her inaugural Quarryman’s Trail she was quite happy and will definitely do it again. She finished 37th in 63:33 after taking a very slight deviation from route.

On the same day, Howard Bidmead took part in the Lustleigh 10k which takes place during the Lustleigh Village show in Dartmoor National Park. It is a multi terrain extremely hilly race made worse this year by the damp and muddy conditions. Fortunately the rain stopped just prior to the start of the race which was started by Ann Widdecombe who also presented the prizes. The course is undulating with one major climb during the wooded part of the course which begins at 6K and finishes just prior to 8K before a down hill run back into Lustleigh village and back to the showground. 123 runners completed the course with the winning time being 38.44 by Adam Holland. Howard was pleased to come 31st in 49.24 and delighted to take the first prize in his age category.