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The Marathon Championship is contested over the calendar year and awarded for the best performances over the distance. Over the year, 108 marathons were completed by Club members, not counting those still to be reported by Paul Barton.

Club Marathon Champions

Men

Ladies

Champion	George Arbuckle	Malaga	2:58:20
V-40	Phil Wolstencroft	Kent Roadrunner	2:59:50
V-50	Martin Beare	Chester	3:02:11

Champion	Claire Fisher	Chester	3:26:04 CR
V-35	Tracy Nichols	Abingdon	3:37:09
V-45	Sue Jones	Chester	4:27:58

The Grand Prix Leagues also are concluded at the end of the year. The tables have now been updated and the final summary table has now been transferred to the GP Archive and, as promised, the new Grand Prix pages are now available on the website.

The reordering process involved taking into account results that did not contribute to last year's position such as our 3 events and any events new members may have participated in before joining the club. Hopefully this has produced a balanced and competitive set of leagues reflecting previous performances. Many will find themselves in a lower league than last year but the aim is to start the year with equal size leagues of 22 people. There are some potential anomalies with but please be patient and they should sort themselves out using the bumping rules as the year progresses.

Craig Palmer took the Eagles crown in one of the closest fought leagues that we have seen. Eventually beating Tim Harris and Martin Beare by virtue of the better performance in the head to head events. Not only did we have 3 people tied on 250 points but also a 3 way tie on 249 points.

Richard Jones edged out Paul Owen, once again a runner-up, to take the Ospreys trophy while Jason Theobold was top of the Falcons. Keith Morgan showed there is still life in the "old guys" by clearly claiming the Herons top spot and, the ever improving, Brendan O'Mahoney claimed the award for the Kingfishers. I am sure that all the extra participation encouraged by the 25x25 challenge led to an enthralling contest.

I have also been updating my annual Age Related calculations and the updated table can be found here.

As a Club, we won 7 County titles, 7 Team awards and several Individual events. Plus the International representative honours of out Tri & Du-Athletes. So all give yourself a hearty pat on the back and keep up the good work.

Always a struggle to get out of bed and get here! This was a little special as both of our sons decided/were persuaded to join in. So with 4 H¹s in the event it was a little special. Disappointed that someone decided to nab my number though (they have your first name printed on them and either part of the red or blue team), I became a green number!!

The boys (24 and 17) pegged it with sibling rivalry and I took up a pace more suitable for my years! Our 17 year old suffered the effects of too much breakfast too soon before running and walked with stomach cramps for a short while. The boys came 33 and 116th I think so not to bad. I came in 83rd and over 2 minutes quicker than last year so pleased but still a lot of work to do!! Mrs H on her first run for over 2 months managed to run the whole way with the help of Becs - it¹s amazing the power of a good natter!!

I really nice way to blow the cobwebs away before the next bout of turkey and booze! As a Œgreen¹ numbered runner I got a medal (only children get medals!) - I went back sometime later thought to claim my beer!!!

Race 4 took us North to rolling farmland that surrounds East Haddon in Northants. Thankfully there hadn't been too much rain of late and it was pleasingly mild. We have raced the East Haddon course quite a few times and know to knuckle down for the rise in last mile. What most didn't realise was that the course had changed considerably. I can only imagine that this was to avoid the need to hurdle a few sheep.

Off we went - around the playing fields, dog-legging over the road and down the usual country lane, and then we turned LEFT. A scratching of heads, what the .....? And right and left, and up and down, and round and round. The course had changed and it had got a lot tougher. Deep grass, no obvious path and a few extra hills. Thank goodness it was still only 4.8 miles.

Undeterred 32 Flyers got stuck in to produce some determined runs and good packing. The result: Women's Team 8th, Men's Team 1st, and Club 1st which means that at the final race on 12 January at Dunstable we are in a good position to retain the Club and Men's Team 3C's League Titles. However, this will only happen if we put out a big, strong team which should enable us to finish in style. Tim Harris (3rd at East Haddon) has been in scintillating form this season and has a good chance of winning the Men's Individual League Title.

Results and tables are available from 3C's Website: A big thank you to Phil Bierton for the encouragement and for scoring.

Looking forwards on Saturday, 28 December there is XC Training in the Woburn Estate - please meet your coaches George Arbuckle and Mark Billington in the public car park opposite the Parish Church to start at 9am. This session will help us to prepare for the Beds & Bucks County XC Champs on 4 January at Stockwood Park and the final 3C's League race on 12 January.

Club 1/2 Marathon Champions

Men

Ladies

Champion	Lewis Cadman	1:16:57
V-40	Mark Waine	1:20:53
V-50	Phil Wolstencroft	1:24:39

Champion	Claire Fisher	1:41:13
V-35	Theresa Jackson	1:42:47
V-45	Keri Withers	1:55:24

The race itself went perfect, the course was flat and although a little twisty in places, was fast overall and the weather was ideal. I had decided on a pace of 6:45 and see what happened. More by luck than judgement I found myself in a large group surrounding the 3 hour pacer, who by chance was running at exactly the pace I wanted of a bit under 3 hours and went through 10K bang on my schedule of just over 42 minutes.

However, by km 14 I sensed that the pace was dropping and a quick watch check told me they were pacing outside 3 hours. The benefits of running in a group can really help, however at some point you have to run your own race and at this point I decided to pick the pace up slightly, even though I was heading for open road and a solo last two thirds. This was the right decision, as I quickly settled into a pace I was happier with.

Through halfway in just over 1:29 and feeling good. The second half went as well as I could have hoped and I was able to maintain the pace all the way to 37K when I started to feel like I had to dig in. A watch check with 5km to go told me I had 23 minutes to complete the sub 3 and as I had been pacing at just over 21 minutes per 5K, I felt confident that I was almost home. I am not normally much of a watch user during a race, however this was the perfect boost to see the time I had in the bank and I was able to dig in and maintain the pace until the finish. The last 200m through the crowds was one of the most memorable (and emotional!) times I have had as a runner.

Although running in many ways can be a classic solo sport, with my fellow runners at the Flyers, it is far from that. The support, advice and banter is what got me to the start line in the best condition possible, following a summer plagued by an achilles injury. I could thank most of the club and none more so in the long term than Richard Jones and Paul Owen, but I feel I owe it a few of those individuals who helped me enormously during my 6 week eyeballs out, mad run training plan - Nicky Double, Annie Page, Mark Waine and Nick Jones - who got me as mentally and physically prepared as I could be in that short period. Phil Horan, your advice........ ;)

On a lovely day for running a group of our junior squad took on the challenging Chiltern League course around the hills of Campbell Park in Milton Keynes. All our runners performed well and worked hard for good results. As a team we are really starting to move up the places in this very competitive league.

Race 3 and the Three Counties League headed to Wing for a proper cross country course which attracts a fair number of spectators; I can't imagine why ;o)

Two short hummocky laps and through 'cow-poo-bog' with all the finesse of a 3-legged sheep..... and then 4 miles of meandering farmland before charging back to make sure that the bog really was that boggy. Last year claimed a few memorable bathers who were photographed for life as they wallowed - what delights would 2013 bring? The question was how to cross the bog - some cut the corner which was dressed with tempting grass whilst others charged through the middle, knee deep in grim. Which ever way one chose the outcome was predictable; encouraged by a gleeful crowd all were liberally coated head-to-toe in a splatter of brown; oh for a shower.

Up front the Flyers were resurgent with Tim Harris, Phil Holland and Craig Palmer confidently bossing the field to finish 1st, 2nd and 4th and lead a strong Men's Team Win (79). Our Women's team put in a stonking performance to improve their score (46) by 20 points and achieve a number of personal best finishes. 7th place belittles the achievement - few points separate 1st to 8th place in the Women's League. The good news is that our Women's Team is growing in confidence and depth; when we are at full strength a few heads will turn. The combined team effort delivered a Club Win with a score of 125 points.

A big thank you to the 45 Flyers who turned out to bathe in the glory of helping the us win our third race on the trot, and in particular to those who doubled up after big performances in the Wolverton 5M.

Nick Jones will lead the next XC training will be on Saturday, 7 December around Center Parcs. Please meet in the main Ampthill Park car park to leave at 11am. The session will help us to prepare for Race 4 which is on Sunday, 15 December at East Haddon (a few miles past Northampton).

Club 5M Champions

Men

Ladies

Champion	Craig Palmer	27:38
V-40	Nick Jones	28:58
V-50	Dave Coker	33:20

Champion	Katie Ruditis	36:19
V-35	Niki Rouse	36:57
V-45	Fiona Owen	40:55

A huge field of 302 men and 186 women giving a total of 488 runners turned out yesterday to race at Wootton. There were 36 Flyers, some more hung over than others following the festivities of the AFF 25th Anniversary Ball the previous night. The weather was stunning, bright and sunny with a slight breeze, the ground was soft underfoot, perfect for racing. The course was a new one due to the unavailability of Delapre Park and consisted of 5 pretty flat laps, alternating short and long and lasted 4.35 miles which is a tad shorter than we are used to and there were mixed feelings from Flyers regarding the course. Wootton Road Runners have asked for feedback and I have spoken to and heard from a number of you now, thank you for your contributions. If anyone else has any comments please speak to/private message on facebook/text me or Ste as we will be sending feedback to Wootton as a Club. Despite 3 runners that I know of arriving but not racing due to not being able to find the start, the Flyers put in another top performance.

Our men's team finished 1st, our women's team finished 6th and the Flyers were top club once again, albeit with Wellingborough much closer to us this time. There are three races left in the 3CXC league and we would dearly love to retain our titles. Please help out and come and race at as many as you can - keep hold of your race number as you will need that for the remaining three races.

Many thanks to Jeff, Cordelia Simmons' dad, who kindly agreed to score for us at short notice. Events like this don't happen without willing volunteers and help is always much appreciated as it means we runners can focus on what we enjoy; the running.

Annie Page will lead XC training in Ampthill Park on Saturday morning at 8am, followed by a well-deserved coffee in The Hub. This will help us to prepare for the next race which is at Wing on Sunday 24th November (look at Event 3 on www.threecountiesxc.co.uk). Wellingborough (2nd place) are growing in confidence and will be looking to challenge so please get the date in your diary if you haven't done so already and lets take a big, strong team. Wing is always a good one! Its not exactly a water crossing but ...

When planning my customary birthday trip to the motherland, I came across a fun sounding 10K in my home city of Glasgow for the Movember charity. After a summer plagued by injury and a few recent weeks of solid training, it seemed the right time to have a bit of a fitness test. In fancy dress. Well, a false tache......

There were over 500 in the 2-lap 10K and a load more in the 5K round Glasgow Green and in typical Scots fashion, the banter was flying in the teeming rain! By 2K there were a group of 6 of us at the front, when 2 decided to pull away and I made the decision to settle into my current pace and save any pick up until lap 2 - big mistake. By 2.5K, we arrived at a massive bottleneck as the wide road suddenly became a narrow path which had become a bit of a swamp. Unfortunately it was also at this point that we caught the back markers for the 5K which had started before us, whilst the lead 2 had managed to reach the path earlier to nip in front of the crowd. This next 400m was no more than a trot (checking my splits later, the first 2K were in 3:40 average and the 3rd Km was closer to 5 minutes)

At 3K the path widened again and it was back into a good pace, but the lead 2 were way into the distance by this point. By 7K there were just the 2 of us in the hunt for 3rd place and I must admit to being a wee tad annoyed at this stage, as the guy with me had been sitting on my shoulder for the last 4K, to such an extent that I could tell what he had for brekkie. Kebab I think. Well, it was Glasgow........I decided to make a break through the mud at 7.5K and he clearly didn't fancy the xc bit, so I opened up a big enough gap to take to the finish in 3rd.

The timings between the starts and the extra minute on my time aside, this was an otherwise enjoyable event and for me it ticked the required boxes of pacing, racing and fun-ness. Bit disappointed there was no Carlsberg Special Brew in the goodie bag though.......

A few months ago I had a chat with a few people who had done previous LDWA events and decided that it would be worth giving it a go. I was reassured by the fact that I could run/jog/walk the course so entered the long distance which turned out to be 26.4 miles. I had a chat with Dave Sedgley and he said he would go round the route with me so at least I knew I wouldn't get lost ! I have not been doing many long runs since London Marathon so I knew it would be a big ask but felt reassured that Dave had the experience to get me round the course. I was very relieved on Sunday morning to wake up and discover that it was not raining and in fact the sun was trying to shine, and even better news was the fact that we were going out into the wind but that meant I would have some help on the way back. I have to say the 26.4 miles passed very quickly, nearly pain free and certainly with copious amounts of food available at all of the 4 checkpoints and finish. You had to be careful not to consume more calories than you were burning off. I thoroughly enjoyed the route, the history lesson from Dave, the friendly marshals and other runners/walkers out there. Great to see other Flyers too. I will certainly be searching for other events around the surrounding counties. I never thought I would do anything as big as a Marathon this year and now I have ended up doing 2.

The Luton Half Marathon. The plan was to put the Chester marathon training to good use and PB. The weather promised to be truly atrocious when I woke at 5:30am but as the morning unfolded the sun came out. The course was fairly hilly (and very windy in places). I finished in 1:36:03 which is a new PB by some 2 minutes 30 seconds.

Nick Jones was the 1st v50 and 4th overall. Claire Fisher was first v40 female and 4th female overall. Both picked up a trophy and £50. A big well done from me. This extends to all the Flyers who ran on the day (you know who you are).
Phil Horan.

Three flyer-ultra-virgins turned up at Bishops Stortford on a bright and very breezy morning, initially baffled by some finer points of ultra dress code (such as running numbers pinned to shorts) and waged war with the distance

- with the 25x25 need for 3 more ultra finishers looming large! This was a very flat and fairly pretty out and back route along the River Stort navigation (Bishops S to Hoddesdon and back), so once on the canal path the only ups / downs were tiny humps by the locks. Small (150 entry limit was filled, 125 ran, 121 finished) but really well organised and friendly low key race, food & drink every 5 miles, billed as a great ultra-introduction, which it definitely was. The organisers (Challenge Running) also organise progressively longer 50-100k (or is it miles, my mind goes foggy with the distances..) events through the year in Herts & Essex - worth a look on their website if you're new to and/or tempted by this kind of thing.

Whether any of us 3 would be tempted back to ultra land was less clear at the finish!

Following another very successful Ampthill Trophy XC race last weekend, the 3CXC league got underway yesterday with 36 Flyers showing up to race in Wellingborough.

This race has a bit of a reputation for being tough. The weather conditions were a mixed blessing; it was pleasantly warm, sunny and dry, but the strong winds meant runners were battered and had to dig deep for long sections of the course. The route is one small and two large laps of a park that has a stream running through the middle, meaning a total of 4 water crossings. Before the start of the race, we were reassured(!) that the ditches weren't deeper this year but that the water levels were lower. Hmmm. Now if you're tall and long legged like .. er .. Tall James, you can probably clear these ditches in an easy, relaxed leap. All I'm prepared to say is that there were a number of crossing methods with varying degrees of style, dignity and speed. I believe there is some photographic evidence. The XC training at Box End last weekend was good preparation for the steep climbs, awkward cambers and tight turns that the course presented. But the best thing about any challenge is the "feel good" factor on finishing the race and one which I hope all runners also experienced.

Thanks to Lewis, Julie Pritchett's son and Martin, Lewis Cadman's dad for scoring for us on the day. They did a sterling job and this meant that every runner who turned up wanting to run could do so. Thanks also to Jeremy Bell who double checked all the paperwork with me at the end of the race.

In case you haven't heard, AFF were top team yesterday and by a good margin! Both teams posted brilliant scores: our mens team also came first, with a score of 80 points and the women's team scored 55 points although at the time of writing I haven't had confirmation of the position of the women's team as we scored the same number of points as another team. It will depend on the next line in the rule book as to whether we are awarded 6th or 7th place.

The next race is being organised by Wootton Road Runners and takes place on Sunday 10th November at 10.30am. Its a new route for this year, the website - www.threecountiesxc.co.uk - currently says " More information coming soon" so I'll keep looking and update you as and when. According to my diary there is XC training on Saturday 2nd November at 8am at Stockgrove Park, so hope to see you all there.

Original Mountain Marathon - from near Trecastle in the Brecon Beacons. - Sat/Sunday 26/27 October

The event Centre for this year's OMM was a huge stone barn at a farm a couple of miles south of Trecastle.

It was pouring with rain when we got there & parked in an adjacent field - realised I should have brought my wellies! The was no phone signal inside the barn so had to go outside to ring my partner - my French friend Ines from Dorset. She'd had to go via Bristol airport to pick up Jacques - the organiser of the French OMM who was over for the weekend. So while waiting caught up with Haydn - doing the event with some youngster he'd found via the internet - and David P and his Finnish partner - plus her husband & his Welsh partner - this really is an international event!

Than Ines arrived with Jacques & plus Ellie & Adrian of Fabian 4 - and we all caught up with news since we'd been together for the French OMM in August. Back in the YH in Brecon for the night we had fish & chip supper and packed our rucksac's for the weekend's fun!

Next morning the forcast was for more rain and strong winds - and so it proved. It was a 45 minute walk to the start from the Barn, where we picked up our maps and studied them for a time - working out a possible route. For this event the maps are well laminated & have all the control descripitons on them - and as we were doing a score course there was no need for any marking up.

Once out of the forest & on the open fell we set a course for couple of 15 point controls over a small hill before dropping down to a road crossing. Then up a fence line for our first real hill & baering south to another 15 points beside a pond. Up to the summit in the gloom (visibility now down to about 50 metres) we headed south on a bit of a track which went roughly in the direction we wanted - much quicker than trudging through the tussocks as we could see some others doing. We'd gone a bit off the direct line on our track - but only had to do about 300mts more SW to find the sheepfold with the control.

Dropping down to another road crossing we stopped to refuel and put on some extra clothes. We then followed a track for a K then up a steep fenceline to anothe track to our next control. Rather than taking to direct line to a 20 point control, over a big hill, we opted for a longer route on a forest track, out of the forest & still on the track to 300mts from the control. This last 300mts was through big tussocks & very slow - so we were glad we hadn't done the over the hill route on similar terrain. The control punch was on the other side of the stream - now close to a raging torrent with all the rain over the last week - and as Ines was wearing the dibber she had to cross it twice. Ines is not too keen on stream crossings - but she's a brave girl and did it quickly. Too quickly & I hadn't the heart to tell her our best route would be on the other side of the stream and make her cross again!

Following the stream we got onto another track to our last two 10 point controls & the finish. We had finished with nearly half an hour to spare and had aquired 105 points - which I was quite pleased with in the conditions. There were very few tents at the campsite when we arrived - but we found David P and Serpia & pitched beside them.

After a long afternoon & night in the tent - well mostly in the tent as it rained on & off most of the time we se off down the road on a 10 min walk to the start of day two.

After 2 mins my left quad started to feel a bit painful! When we got to the start, just behind the Beacons Show Cave Center, we were told they had shortened the courses due to the bad weahter forcast - so we only had 4 hours. We set off up the first hill but I soon found that my leg didn't feel right. I was not confident enough with it to be out on the hill miles from anywhere, particularly in the wet windy conditions - which were worse than Saturday. Or was it the worsening weather that gave me a psycho-sematic pain! We walked back to the start just as they were packing up & got a lift back to the event centre with Paul who had planned the courses.

Back at the barn we had our meal, then decided to drive back to Brecon & blag a free shower at the YH. Ines had to be back at the barn for the prize presentation as she was doing the translating for Jacques. So, after some more to eat we saw all the prize winneras for the linear courses - which I usually miss as I'm still out on the hill!

Then it was the long score prize winners - and new for this year combined prizes for the long score in French & British OMM's. So Jacques thanked all the British competitors for doing his event & then the prizes were given - a £500 cheque & 500 Euros in cash for the wiinners! Ellie & Adrian got the second prize £300 + 300E

I was a bit sad we hadn't completed - but had still had a great weekend for what was my 97th Mountain Marathon - so number 100 coming up sometime next year!

This is easily the best XC race around. The course is a challenge – tougher than the 3CXC events – with little opportunity to get into a rhythm. The park provides a marvelous scenic route to run around. Organisation and marshalling second to none – so well done Niki and everyone. Having club mates on every corner was a big lift. Have a look at the Facebook page if you get a chance for a great set of photos from Paul Owen.

The marathon course has been described as flat (well flat for Yorkshire maybe!), there are some undulations and a few long, long drags (up!).

Starting at the University the route takes you in to the old part of York and a quick visit to the cobbles and York Minster (Cathedral). You then head out through the suburbs to a much more rural setting. For a City marathon about 2/3rd¹s was out through small villages and small rural roads (not dissimilar to our 10k). Closed to traffic throughout made for a quiet run. There was a long drag on a main road that was exposed and should it have been wet/windy would have been soul destroying. A couple of sections were you run out and back (like at London) made for interesting viewing of the runners on the other side but does remind you of how slow/fast you are in relation to other runners. You then run back into York and after the last hill at 25.5 miles(!) you finish back at the University.

A smallish marathon of 6500 runners made for a friendly feel/field. Very well marshaled (and encouraging), plenty of water/Lucazade round the course and before/after the event. The crowds were very noisy and encouraging with lots of folks high fiving and giving out sweets. No real issues in the organisation apart from a little lack of signage on campus (which is huge!) and the baggage que/organisation - but just nit picking.

We had signed up to run for Jane¹s Appeal, a charity set up by the late Jane Tomlinson and her husband Mike (along with the rest of the family). Jane was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer but before she died and in considerable pain and discomfort did some outstanding physical events. She ran marathons, did an Ironman (or 2), rode from Rome to Leeds and cycled across America just weeks before she died. She has been an inspiration to us.

Karen had breast cancer back in 2008 and has had surgery, chemo, radio therapy and a bucket full of drugs. She has just finished her 5 year stint on Tamoxifen and what better way to celebrate that milestone than to run for Jane in an event organised by her husband? We had met Mike before back in 2008 on one of his fundraising events (Lands End to John O¹Groats bike ride) when Karen rode a stage with him whilst having Chemo. We spoke to him after the marathon too - a really nice guy.

As we were running for a charity they had their own hall with NO toilet que, food, coffee, bar and a free (wonderful) massage. Hadn¹t had this sort of VIP treatment before and it¹s really nice!

Today was all about getting to the end, virtually no training (Karen hadn¹t run for about 8 weeks) meant this was going to hurt and it did. But involking rule 5 (man the f€€€ up) and with Karen¹s really fast walking pace (when her running legs went) we managed to get round including a run to the finish. Karen got a big mention over the PA system and really lovely to see our eldest son (and girlfriend) in the finishing straight.

Having only taken up running in the later stages of 2012 I decided I needed a challenge to ensure I didn’t ease off over the year. Signing up to the Great Birmingham Run as a charity participant was to help me achieve this. However, taking up the Club’s 25x25 Challenge has meant I have had a good range of other running challenges throughout the year, including a 20 miler and an Ultra!

On Sunday the Birmingham streets were bursting at the seams with runners and supporters from the early hours. With around 20,000 taking part this is one of the bigger events and certainly dwarfed my other runs in terms of participants. This was my first half marathon and I wasn’t certain how I would feel on what has been described as an “undulating course”. It had a few hills that sapped the energy, but luckily the rain held off until it was all over and the spectators provided lots of encouragement. I tried to keep a fairly even pace throughout and crossed the finish line feeling that I could have kept going so the possibility of getting it down to 2 hours might have been on the cards. Maybe next time!

It was an extremely well organised race with runners going off in a number of ‘waves’ to avoid the inevitable congestion, although there were times that passing slower runners was difficult. With chip timing I received my time by text before I’d even left the runners only area behind the finish.

The aim was to try to run sub 20 minutes, something I had never achieved. I travelled to Bedford with John Decesare who was also hoping to PB. We did a decent warm up. I then befriended a few guys at the start trying to find someone to pace me. Off we set. I decided to watch my Garmin to ensure I didn't go off too quick. This proved to be a good tactic as after 400m I was running sub at 6 pace. 6:15’s and I would hit my target time. I then tucked in behind a group of 3. Mile one 6:08, mile 2 6:08. On mile 3 one of the guys started to ease away so I decided to go with him. I managed to keep the gap to a few metres and clocked 6:15 for mile 3. The final push saw me hitting 5:27 pace. I finished in 19:38 (6th overall and 1st v40 home) a massive PB by 35 seconds. John finished 3rd overall (1st v45) in 18:42, also a new PB.

I had mixed feelings about doing this race as i knew from the outset it was going to be difficult to get anywhere near last years 2hr 55 as since being in a happy relationship i have been eating much to much to be on tip top form and at my age of 50 a sub 3hr Marathon is a big ask, i have put on at least half a stone in the last 9 mounths (debs) added to this i have had a very busy Triathlon season racing accross the globe from sprint to Ironman races including 3 standalone marathons. That all been said how could i not join my mates on a AFF jolly to Chester, the team spirit was a joy to witness and i was proud to be a part of the fun and frollocks.

I ran my own race from the start and decided to go on feel, i found myself running at a reasonable pace and quite steady, always a trier i ran ust in from of the 3hr pace maker to try for a sub 3 but always new this was a little unrealistic but simply could not give up having a go. I managed to hold the 3hr pace maker off until mile 23 and he edged away in front, my mind not my body could not accept giving up so at mile 24 tried to catch the 3hr pacer, sadley it was not without great effort and fight i could not quite catch up.

Obviously i was disappointed but on refection was the target a little to ambtious on the day. At my age of 50 a sub 3hr marathon is a very big ask and you can not wing it. This result has only gone to fuel my hunger to bet back to my previous sub 3hr marathons in 2012.

Needles to say i was happy to see all the flyers cross the line and witness some great personal performaces, all AFF runners did themselfs proud and where a credit to the club. All in all i have had a great season with more than my fair share of age cat 1st,s in both running and Triathlon and had many races home and abroad including reprenting GB, i will take away many happy memories of the 2013 season.

I had targeted the Cardiff Half Marathon for a real attack on a lifetime PB about 9 months ago but unfortunately due a debilitating calf injury which sidelined me for 6 weeks combined with intermittent quality endurance training and a recent bout of manflu which resulted in another 2 weeks of little running my expectations were not very high. I knew that the speed was there after a good season of track running but was worried that I might struggle in the latter stages. And so it proved. I did the race 5 years ago when it was combined with the marathon but now it is only the half and 14,336 runners finished this race. When I was in the starting pen I saw Martin Rees, who is over 60. It was 13 years ago when I read an article about him that he had started running again at over 40 and is the UK percentage record holders at over 95 percent. ( he finished in 1:11) it was the article that inspired me to get back into running.

The adrenaline kicked in as the gun went, but I knew I had to start conservatively as my lack of speed endurance would catch up with me. The first 5 miles, even with a long climb at 3 went quickly and I went through at 29:40. Despite some internal doubts I managed to latch on to a group and went through 10 miles in just over an hour although I had slowed over the last mile. A few sharp inclines and lack of endurance started to eat into what time I had had banked and the mile time dipped to 6:15.

I really struggled over the last 3 miles but didn't let the pace drop too dramatically. The crowd support helped, it was like a mini London Marathon, bands, cheering etc. I knew Nicky would be just half a mile from the finish and this kept me going. I thought I had dipped under 1:20 but the garmin was out and as I turned into the finishing straight the clock had already turned 1:20 so even with a heavy legged sprint I managed to finish in 1:20:22, which was my 2nd fastest half ever.

I would have taken the time beforehand but as always there is always the feeling that with better preparation and luck I could have done better. But I definitely would recommend this race, it was well organised for a big city event and I will be back next year, 1:17?????

Nick Jones 1.20.22 167 out of 14,336 and 7th in my age group (new club V50 record?)

The last race of the season for me before I finally give the body some recovery time. The predicted excellent weather conditions meant that the race was expected to encourage a lot of competitors to take part. Amazingly, an estimated 400 athletes signed up. The event consists of a 400m pool swim in Bedford Robinson Pool, followed by a 24km loop on the bike then finishing off with a 5km run around the park.

This was the first time at Bedford I’ve actually been a spectator outside watching the early competitors, before going myself. Taking the advise from my good friend Mr Beare, I did not bother to time it, just go out 100% and whatever you get, is what you get on the day.

My swim felt good, no getting tangled up in an problems, it was a pretty good clean start.

Unfortunately my Speedo on the bike decided to fail approximately one mile into the course. This was a great help, so I had no idea of my bike speed, which is a much-needed tool on the bike. I had to basically just go as hard as I could and try to hold on. At the time I wasn’t particularly impressed with my effort on the bike, did not think I was that strong for some reason. However, after a close encounter with a car that was letting a pedestrian cross the road (I was trying to take my feet out the shoes at the time) eventually off the bike (very tight dismount area) Legged it into T2 grabbed my running shoes and went.

I felt great on the first lap but then felt terrible for the last two! (no change there) but pushed on and held on knowing it would be over very quickly. Eventually crossing the finishing line exhausted and for the first time, realising that I had actually pushed as hard as I could, I knew then that there was nothing else left in the tank……….the fact that I could not even manage a sprint finish home said it all. Whatever the result I would take it

The slight arrogance in me decided not to bother checking my results, normally I look and all I think is, should have done better here and should have done that, instead I just thought, great event and at last I can rest. However, it wasn’t until I noticed a string of PB’s from other competitors and a message from my Dad that made me look at the results. All I can say is I nearly fell off my chair. I normally try and fight for at least middle of my age group and top 100 overall if possible, and knowing that this was one of the largest amount of competitors, this was to be even more difficult

Anyhow, eventually I had a look and was completely overwhelmed, 35th overall and 2nd in age group! I’ve never, ever seen that in my life, and so very, very pleased to see it., not to mention smashing my PB for the course!………..The hard work and the stupid o’clock get ups have at last……..finally paid off. So, I’ve now been left on a complete high letting myself recover and have a much deserved rest………….

Near the end of the winter season here in Taupo and looking forward to not running on the streets in the evenings. We had our last race of the year on Saturday when we ran the Taupo Botanic Gardens relay race, only a mile (1.65km) each but what a hill of 80m (260feet) straight up within 100m of the start. For once I was picked as the slow runner in a good team and our last runner did the honours in getting back the lead that I established on lap two.

My second MM in two weeks - only hope the training of 80 miles around the Bunyan Trail in two weekends has paid off! For Keri it was her first MM - though she has a lot more experience than me in high mountain walking.

Another glorious weekend - even more sun than the previous week, but with a breeze that kept the temperature comfortable.

The event centre was the tiny village of Stair - well known to those who do the Bob Graham Round as the village where you come off the hills for the last 3 miles of road to the finish in Keswick.

After a 15 min walk to the start we collected our maps, marked the points at our controls and decided on a possible route. Unlike last week this was a score event with lots of possibilities for route choices, depnding on what you thought you could do in 6 hours. We opted for a mainly low level route as giving us the most points in the time at our speed. We saw Haydn go up to our 1st control, the disappear over the hill - while we went from it back into the valley and up it to pick up 5 more controls on our way south to the summit of Honister Pass - 80 points collected. We then went east down the road for a run around Buttermere where we collected another 50 points at 3 controls. We had done more running than I have for many years on one of these events & our legs told us that though we may have had time to get 10 points by going over another hill - we opted to go direct to the final compulsory control & the finish - with 40 minutes in hand.

The campsite was on the side of Crummock Water - with grand views across it to mountains beyond - and there were only about 8 tents there when we arrived!

We had 140 points and were in 174th place overall - so quite happy with our day.

When others arrived we discovered that Haydn had done quite well - doing the short course solo - and Caroline had done exceptionally well on the long course, also solo.

But we will draw a veil over the over zealous exploits of Brian & Richard on the long course!

Having packed our rucksacks we set off on the long walk up Squat Beck & Sail Beck valleys to a high col between Eel Crag & Knott Rigg. We had 65 point by the time we got down Rigg Beck to the road near the finish - and enough time to do a very slow climb up a very steep path, with the occaisional scramble up the rock face, to get 2 more controls below Causey Pike then drop down to the finish. We had collected another 105 points on day 2 - and had enjoyed another grand day out on the hillls.

A great meal in the sunshine at the event headquarters ended my 97th Mountain Marathon - not that I'm counting!

Short Score course - 6 hours & 5 hours:- Day 1, 140 points (23K in 5-21-23) Day 2, 105 points (15.7K in 4-40-48) Total: 245 points for 170th place (of 213) - 20th Mixed Vet team.

For my tenth mountain marathon, I decided to tackle the elite or long score class for the first time ever, and to try it solo to make it really hardcore. Just to set the scene for the sort of nutters that do these events, the biggest poster at race registration is for SAS recruitment. In the long score class, you have 7 hours on day one and 6 hours on day two to run, scramble and navigate ( carrying tent, food and kit) to as many checkpoints as possible, this year across the fells around Buttermere. We couldn't have asked for better weather - clear and sunny with great views across the whole Lake District, and navigating is much easier when you can see the hill you are running to.

If you don't make the cut-off at the overnight camp, penalty points quickly erode your hard-won score (a fate suffered by Richard Stanley and Brian Layton in long score, and by my husband and his partner in the short score class). I made it with 54 seconds to spare for 245 points - which is either perfectly judged, or cutting it far too fine for comfort. I collected fewer points (155) on day two - just a bit tired after some huge climbs and scrambles up the likes of High Crags (it definitely lived up to its name) High Stiles and Red Pike. Overall, I was delighted to a/ fail to get lost, b/ to finish inside the time limit, and c/ to not be last.

Long Score course - 400 points 68th out of 93 teams overall, 5th vet female, 6th female

With a planned trip to Manchester over the weekend I decided to enter the Ladybower trail races. There were three races taking place a 50 miler, 35 miler and the 20. I did the latter primarily because it was one of the 25x25 challenge events, and although I won’t do all 25 I wanted to sample as many as possible in my first full year of running. The race started early at 8.30am and luckily I was only staying 30 minutes away so I had plenty of time to register and warm up. The route was along the paths and tracks around Ladybower and Derwent Reservoirs in the Peak District and in addition to the fine views the weather was warm. Those doing the longer runs complained it was too warm!

With a staggered start to avoid congestion we started last and set off to do the first two loops of Ladybower Reservoir. This was a pleasant run through the trees with the difficult navigation of always keeping the reservoirs on your left. On the way around everyone was really friendly and many conversations were struck as we all agreed it was good not to be doing the longer races. By the end of the second loop we were approximately half way through and only had one loop of the larger Derwent Reservoir to go. As I reached the 13.1 mile mark, according to my Garmin, I decided to ease off as I had my first half marathon in a months’ time and I didn’t want to set off my ITB like I did in July doing the Fairlands 50K ultra. As a result I took the last seven miles at a more leisurely pace & enjoyed the scenery. The return leg on the west side of the reservoir turned out to be deceptively longer as the reservoir projects a ‘finger’ inland and when I turned the last corner and suddenly saw a dam I thought it was nearly over. However it soon transpired that it was one I hadn’t spotted on the way out so there was still a couple of miles to go before the final hurdle of a steep uphill to the finish line. So a race of two unequal halves and a not too unreasonably time and importantly no ITB flare-up or other niggles.

My annual trip to the Mourne Mountains was blessed with exceptional weather this year - and I was again struck by how beautiful & varied these hills are.

The event was based at the new Tollymore National Outdoor Centre and for the first time all teams were bused to the start - a car park on the west side of this compact group of granite hills, just below Rocky Mountain. We were one of only 25 teams doing the D course - with many more doing the longer courses.

After marking up the new Harvey's map with our course we had soon punched our first two controls and were off the end of the track & across Castle Bog and on to the upper slopes of Eagle Mountain to find 2 more controls. The controls are small white & orange 'kites' (squares of cloth) with an electronic 'box' attached.

Down to Windy Gap & another control in a small quarry then following a wall over Pigeaon Rock Mountain and down to the road which cuts between the western hills and the bigger mountains around Silent Valley. Then up the slope of Slieve muck for our first crossing of the Mourne Wall - a huge costruction wich encloses the catchment area of the two reservoirs wich provide Belfast with it's water. It was then a long descent mostly on tracks, over a small col & down beside the wall to the last control on the the lower dam. The camp site was on a lawn in front of the Silent Valley Visitor Centre. It had taken us 6 hours 55 mins for 18.6 K - and we were currently 15th of the 25 teams.

Denis Rankin, an International Mountain Runner from Belfast, had been the organiser of the Mourne MM for the past 30 years, had finally got agreement to use this site (though we had started from here several times it had never been used as the overnight camp) back in May. Later that day he had run his local Fell Race - then died near the summit!

Day two was a long treck on tired legs with not so many tracks. It started with a tough slog up to near the 747 metre summit of Slieve Binnian, then down into the next valley for a long walk up beside the Annalong River up to the famous smugglers track known as the Brandy Pad. Here was where we made our first mistake - going too far along the Pad before climbing up to the 'Wall' - then having to climb the 6 foot high & 2 foot wide wall where there was no ladder! We probably wasted 20 minutes here but found the 7th control of the day - then it was all downhill & through the forest back to the Outdoor Centre. Slower going meant it had taken us 7 hours 3 mins (for about 18K) and we just had time to download, pick up our T-shirts, grab our bags & rush for the mini-bus transport back to the airport!

D course:- Overall time 13-58-45 for 16th place (of 25) - 2nd place in Vet Handicap with adjusted 10-15-05.

The final open water race of the year for me, unfortunately MK National champs had been cancelled which I had trained hard for, so was pretty disappointed. However, this Aquathlon was found on the Internet and decided to enter. 800m swim / 5.5km off road run.

By now the weather had changed which made conditions fairly difficult if a little colder than normal, not to mention the darkness and because of this only 27 of us ventured out, although unfortunately one competitor dropped out due to the coldness of the lake

My swim had improved…slightly, I managed to get stuck into the washing machine affect and coped very well. Unfortunately they pulled away from me and I struggled to keep up with their pace. I managed to exit 16th out of 26 which Im very happy with.

During transition (T1) I found many of the finished swimmers still messing around, having a chat, getting changed, doing the washing up, putting make up on, all the usual stuff., so I made my move. With a very fast T1, I was straight on the run. Feeling a little ”Jetlag sickness” it took around 1km before my breathing and legs kicked in, however once moving I was motoring., chasing others in front one by one. The run course I can only describe as “adventurous”!! I eventually finished in 8th position over all with the 2nd fastest run of the event , so I'm really pleased

Up to my mum's for the only road 20 miler I could find pre-Chester. This is a long standing race but the date was changed this year to make it useful prep for a couple of the Autumn marathons.

Its quite small - 250 max - and incredibly well organised. First and last 4 mile chunks are along the same route and the rest is an undulating loop around the Cheshire countryside. Excellent mile marking, 5 water stops and really encouraging marshals made this a great experience. Rain was threatened but held off and weather was actually pretty much perfect running conditions if like me you don't like it warm. It was won with a 1.46.44 which beat the course record by some margin and last year's time by about 11 mins.

I had a really good race in terms of hitting hoped for pace and feeling good at the finish. Hoping to do around 4 30 at Chester and managed 10.06 pace for 3 22 today so am pleased with that !

My finish time was 2 hrs 12 mins 44 s. Not as quick as I wanted but pleased nonetheless as was having only surgery on my ankle in March. It was also nice to cross the finish line next to someone wearing and AFF running jersey who I had never met before.

Last week marked the culmination of a year focused on preparing to compete on the Olympic legacy course. My preparations were derailed at the start of the summer due to a significant new career move. I have tried to keep my foot in but certainly lost my winter focus.

Nevertheless I made the start line for the Aquathlon Final on Wednesday. My performance was far less than sensational and following a modest swim I struggled to find my running legs until the second lap. I finished a disappointing mid field in my AG.

I then turned my attention to the Open Sprint event on the Saturday. This was a bitter sweet experience. Unlike the Wednesday I felt far more energetic. I managed a strong swim and came out of the water in fourth place in my wave. Into a ridiculous long T1 and I managed to move into second. I then chased hard on the flat bike course and found myself winning my wave. Feeling very motivated I moved in and out of T2 and push hard on the run. I felt really comfortable and enjoyed passing competitors in earlier waves. My run was a minute quicker than my Wednesday performance on exactly the same course. I was devastated to learn that I had been DQ'd due to confusion over the final bike exit funnel. This cost me an Age Group second place.

Still despite my disappointment I really enjoyed the event and was pleasantly pleased with my fitness - particularly my run. Great atmosphere and awesome setting in Hyde Park.

My publish splits were as follows: Swim - 13.31. T1 -3.05. Bike lap1 -7.30. lap2- 11.31. lap3-(missing split) , lap4 - 7.35. T2- 2.48. Run-18.56

This event was organised by Nicetri Events and having done a half Ironman distance with them earlier in the year, I was keen to get involved with this well organised events company. I was also happy to return to this race as I finished 3rd overall and won my age category in this race last year. I am also finding it hard to put my toys away as the short season draws to a close, and I feel I have so much more to give.

On the morning of the race, we were met with bright sunny skies, however the overnight temperatures had dropped to around 7 degrees, which made the thought of jumping in the River Ouse quite unappealing. Once the gun went off, I got stuck in with the job in hand, and after the usual mayhem of the start, I made good progress, and exited the water in 7th position.

The going on the bike was made hard by a nagging head wind that seemed to be with us for the majority of the time. I was keen to get onto the run as my lower back was starting to hurt. I enjoyed my 4 laps of the 10k in front of a supportive crowd and shouts of encouragement from Debs. The encouragement must have worked as i covered the 10k in 38 minutes.

I crossed the line in 9th position overall, and smashed my age group, coming in 10 minutes ahead of my nearest rival. I was rewarded with a nice trophy, and a £55 voucher for free entry to any of their races next year.

My last minute decision to do this race proved to be an enjoyable and fruitful one. My triathlon season has been packed full of races, both home and abroad, and mixing all distances from sprints to Ironman, but the season is never long enough, and as signs of Autumn appear, I think its time to put my toys away until next year.

Club 10M Champions

Men

Ladies

Champion	Steven Upton	1:04:01
V-40	George Arbuckle	1:05:01
V-50	Warwick Browning	1:09:57

Champion	Michelle Morris	1:09:49
V-35	Tracy Nichols	1:13:05
V-45	Carole Lydon	1:45:54

Decided this year was to be something special as I entered my 50th year, and yes, I know what you’re saying, Tony 50, but he only looks 25. So I had the idea of an ironman distance tri. I have done a few duathlons, but no swimming.

I entered the Henley challenge in Nov 2012, race date being Sept 8th 2013. Plenty of time, but first had the London Marathon to do. With Achilles problems over Christmas I didn’t start running until mid January but with lots of enthusiasm. My journey started with lots of luck. Mileage went up quite quickly. Managed to get in 5 20mile runs with the worst being in about 6inches of snow, but did enjoy it with the company of Paul Farmer, John Mitcalf and Mark. April came round quickly and managed London in 3hrs 22 mins which I was well pleased with as really looking at the long game. Two weeks after London I thought I’d go for a short blast, the Watford 10k May bank holiday. Had done 56 hard miles on bike Sunday so didn’t really expect much for Monday but to my amazement felt really good. Thought maybe 40 mins but saw 38 with a few metres to finish. Actual finish time 38.28 pb by over 1min 30. Was this going to be a good year?

So far things looked on the up. Now things were looking good swimming being the worst event. Bike ok and running even better. Decided to give my first ever triathlon a go at Grendon lake. Leigh Pilgrim gave me a warning” had I ever swam in a lake before”? No was the answer. He said people panic the first time, well, I thought I am the panicky type. So came my first tri. Got my wet suit on, silly hat and goggles but luckily I looked just as bigger twat as everyone else. So into the water. Had a splash about, the siren went off and so did I. Total panic stations. Started to hyper- ventilate thinking I’m going to drown. The person in front of me gave up so I turned over thinking s—t I’ve got 2.4 miles of this in the Thames and this only 750metres. So I got myself together and cracked on. It took 20mins but was out of the water and into familiar territory the bike and the run finishing in 1hour 26 and what a eye opener this was. So with help from Martin Beare and Phill Holland was to able to get over the open water swim problem. The mark was now to do another tri as soon as, entered Bedford. Standard distance. This time slight panic at start of swim but once I got going settled down. Managed to get into the pack finishing the swim in 30mins which was a huge improvement on my last outing. A good bike and steady run in which was a very hot day but a good day finishing in 2.27 and 3rd in age group. For some reason was in age group 45-49 but finished 2nd in age group 50-54 which Martin won 6 mins clear of me. Next on the list 130mile bike ride, the Dragon Ride in Wales. After London, started knocking lots of miles on the bike still trying to keep the mileage up on the running side and now trying to make time to get to the swimming pool. Arrived in Wales Saturday for early Sunday morning start. Got under way in second wave felt good and comfortable on bike, got a few of the first steep hills out the way and feeding my face with the secret food jelly babies (especially the black ones they have a bit extra lol - come on keep up) got to 60 miles things going good, just come down one of the steep hills 55mph and a change of shorts lol, and now head on for 70 miles and in some good company. Then it all goes wrong we’ve missed the turning for the long route. The next signs says 10k to go, so now totally deflated a slow cycle to the finish with every one saying how did we miss the turning? At the finish there were a few others saying they had missed the turn. But still was no point in whinging, it wasn’t going make any difference. It was a long journey home. Finely home started to look for another long sportive. The following week found the long one (trying to think of a dirty joke but you can make up your own), a 125mile 7450ft of climbing. Drove down early morning had a good ride 7hours 2mins. Now with a marathon in my legs & a hundred mile + bike ride done and dusted, 2 times a week open water swims at Box End and Heron Lakes and one in the pool, D day had arrived.

To say I’m a bit nervous is an understatement. It’s 4 o’clock in the morning, quick shower to wake up then drive from Reading to Henley. We get there for 6am. Still dark and cold and there is a thick fog across the Thames. You can’t even see the other side. Light appears but still thick fog. Race time delay by 15mins which also meant another trip to the loo. By now I must be other stone lighter . We are called to our start so I get in at the front so I have more time to splash about to get rid of my panic issues. The fog still very thick but the gun goes and off we go. With my long splash about at start get in to rhythm quickly and settle down, can just about make out markers in the distance. The turnabout came really quickly. I’m thinking dragon ride, but everyone else was turning so if it was wrong, we were all going to be wrong. The return journey wasn’t so quick but managed 1hour 20mins, inc running to transition area collecting bag getting change for bike. T1 1.38 now onto the bike still early morning and cold still wet from swim, I couldn’t feel my hands for about the first 20 or so miles. The sun started to show which was a welcome heater & I started to feel really good on the bike, so started to turn the pedals. I was going past a lot of people now & the feeling was I’m I going too hard and was I going to run out of energy at the end. With two laps still to go and one big climb at the end of each lap I carried on. The last lap was a God -send and finished in 5hours 59mins, just under the 6 hours. T2 7mins. Transition 2 was a long affair. Just took my time to settle down change into run gear, have a drink and away we go. Legs like jelly. The first lap. I was feeling bit rough now. For the first time that whole day I had doubts that I was going to finish, but now the second secret weapon appears the Family. My three Girls and their Boyfriends all cheering loudly. The second lap gone, third lap down one to go. Now I know nothing is going to stop me. Thinking about all the advice I’ve had in my build up to this with all the voices say do this do that, lap 4 was over and done I’m running, the red carpet finish in sight my Girls shouting come on Dad. Marathon finished 3.53 total time 11hours 26 min 27sec. 68th overall and 4th in age group.

In all the things I’ve done I have never trained so hard. So many hours and to achieve this has to be one of the high lights in my life so far( of course marrying the Wife comes first). I know I have gone on a bit but one last thing – Judy, my Wife. She has been there all the way on my adventure throughout the highs and lows, (lots of lows). She has slept in the van while I’ve done long bike rides, comes to all my events feeds me and pampers me when I was feeling down she was shouting while I was swimming, shouting while I was on the bike and was the biggest voice when I finished. Thanks to her, and love you lots Judy, (yes I am getting soft in my old age of 25).

Downhill Mile: Had hopes of at least getting through the Harriers Downhill Mile in under 7min this year, nothing has worked of late so had a very conservative target. On the day there was a howling gale and all reckoned it would have been quicker to go uphill – wind added easily 30 sec to everyone’s time. In the end I only just managed NOT to be last with 7min 27 sec, roll on next year!

Kinloch 1/4 Marathon: Having had a challenging year and not competing in any of the regular half marathons in and around Taupô the Kinloch off-road challenge was accepted in the form of the quarter marathon this Saturday. I last did this one three years ago taking one hour and 45 seconds so a big effort was made and the gods did smile as the line was crossed in 59:51sec to finish in an overall place of 31st. The Taupo Harriers really cleaned out this event with 6 in the first 10 though the race was won by someone half the age of our second placed 49 year old runner who took 40:25. I have now even made one of the teams for the Red Stag off-road relay this coming Saturday – a 5km hilly sprint!

Taupo Off Road Race, 15 September: As the years go by races seem to get harder and when you get hyped up ready to hammer the course what do they do? They change the course and run in the opposite direction. This is what happened at the Red Stag Relay in Rotorua this Saturday and it threw everyone – the Red Stag is a 5km off-road loop in redwood forest. Yours truly was easily the oldest runner but by no means the slowest, not even in his own team, but they were between 50 and 60 years younger and hate being beaten by the dinosaur. Anyway it was one of my slower Red Stags and the lap took a whole 27min 17 seconds but great fun and the sun did shine.

Having left late for late for yesterdays mile race, I was left in no doubt by Fi that we were going to be early enough for the Dunstable 20 mile challenge to almost help set up the course. I did manage to persuade her to let me dip in for a McD's coffee but I didn't have time for anything to eat. At the race car park, I almost left thinking we had the wrong one as there were hardly any cars. The race itself was split into a half, twenty and full on a very undulating, in places hilly cross country course with a good turn out for each event. At the appointed time we made our way to the start. I would later find out that one of the lads overheard one runner say to another, that's Pablo the author. If I had heard that, I would have nipped back with a flyer for the ''Joy to Run'' to give to the other one.

I put myself on the start line and asked which way to go, which probably wasn't a great start on a self navigating race. The whistle went and I actually took the lead, for at least twelve seconds. Steadily a lead group formed and we covered the first mile in 6.52, when we hit the first steep climb up to the top of Dunstable Downs. My second mile was over eight minutes as a result. A bit more weaving upwards meant the early pace was replaced with a slower one for a time albeit eventually we reached the top and I was able to pick it back up again. By mile four we had spread out my average pace evened out to around 7.25 which was good going on the terrain.

Just after six miles, the routes split and we all went our merry ways. As I suspected, a quick glance around meant no one was in sight behind me and I could see only one runner in front who had passed me on the steep section of a hill. I decided to reel him in and picked the pace up to below 7 minutes but unfortunately so did he. I tried to keep an imaginary rope between us, which got shorter on the flat and downhills and longer on the ups. I went through halfway in 8th place and 1:16 which I was very pleased with given the hills, shortly after which the wheels came off. Another steep climb led to my nemesis slipping out of sight. At the top, I looked back across the valley and couldn't see a soul, so I was on my own. I immediately took a wrong turn and having done so just lost my place on the instructions and had to stop and retrace my steps, after a pointless wander around a field not on the route. Over the next five miles I didn't see another runner and went wrong two further times which cost me both in terms of place, energy and drive as my planned finish time disappeared over the horizon. I eventually found myself at the back of four runners who were very surprised to see me as they thought I was around a mile ahead (having seen me on one open part of the course). I decided to stick with them to avoid any further detours.

After a few slower miles, two decided to pick the pace up for the last couple of miles and I found myself once again running at seven minute mile pace which at the business end felt quite good to be able to do. Towards the finish, I was slightly outstripped in a semi sprint for the last 400 metres by one. I did point out after that I had run a mile and a half more than him, politely of course.

While waiting for the rest of my club to come in, I handed out a few flyers for the aforementioned book in clubhouse of a local football club which was race HQ. I gave them to many of the runners and came across one larger gentleman with a pint in his hand and who was looking rather dry and clean. Are you a runner I asked? After much hilarity from his mates, he said he wasn't fit enough to run the touchline. I gave him a flyer anyway.

The first running of the Centre Parcs course as a Handicap race proved an enormous success. Thanks to Phil Bierton's wizardry on his laptop and his Excel spreadsheet any Flyer turning up to run was quickly given an expected Handicap time around the 5K course. Conditions were fine but we hadn't calculated into the times that it was probably the hottest run we would experience around the course.

Nevertheless, Geri Foreman had the honour of starting first with Steve Morales our last runner some 12 minutes behind Geri. In total 23 Flyers were running and we awaited, in theory, a finish that should bring them all home finishing close together!

Geri held her lead until through the 4K mark when first Robbie Craig and then young Ryan Graham came past. Ryan's handicap time had been based on a recent Park run of 25.28 but Ryan stepped up to the mark finishing the tough Center Parcs course 1st in an actual time of 25.41. A great race for 2nd place saw Robbie Craig just hold off Paul Falmer. Paul's actual time of 19.27 was the fastest of the night.

First lady home on the Handicap was Geri Foreman and fastest lady honours went to Katie Ruditis with 26.49.

With 19 of the 23 competitors all finishing in a 3 minute time frame I felt the event was a success and rumours are that we will hold a similar Handicap race around the winter 5K course in Flitwick.

A final thanks to Phil B, Annie Page and Ann de Winter for their help on the night.

Up to my Mum’s for the Bank Holiday and another go at Fleetwood which is my PB course from last year. Unfortunately no repeat performance this year and in fact about 8 mins slower ! It was a hot day but otherwise great conditions. It’s a flat course and there wasn’t even a head wind along the sea front this year. I think I was still feeling the effects of Burnham the previous week and stupidly didn’t eat enough before or during the race. Never mind it was another good marathon training run and a nice day out at the seaside !

It was persisting it down as I set off with David Cook, Theresa Jackson and Claire Fisher. The aim was to PB (previous best 20:31).

We bumped into Michelle Morris at the start and it was Michelle who pulled me around for the first 2 miles. I decided to do the gentlemanly bit and take up the running for the final mile. I crossed the line in 20:13, a new PB, YIPPY. Michelle also managed a PB (for the Park Run, which she has since beaten AGAIN and was first female home).

I did this event as my first half marathon in 2009 and have been planning to go back ever since. It’s a lovely event with a great HQ at a private school. The race starts on the rugby grounds and runs two laps of the paths and quiet roads of Burnham Beeches before finishing back on the pitch. Its quite undulating but nothing too steep. I intended to run this at 10 minute mile pace as part of Chester training but felt good on the day and managed 9.40 to knock 8 minutes off my 2009 time. One of the best bits of the race for me is that the school allows runners to use their outdoor pool and that was very welcome on a hot day. Parking is not at the school but on a sports ground about 15 minutes away. Some runners were grumbling a bit about this but its good parking and I actually found the walk useful as a warm up and cool down. The race is in its 30th year and sadly had the lowest entry in its history and no other Flyers that I am aware of. Enquiry on the AFF Facebook page seems to indicate that this wasn’t helped by the race organisers not putting the race on Runners World. Next year’s date is already set at 17 August 2014 in case anyone’s interested !

For those of you who dont know an Ironman is the longest distance Triathlon distance and considered the hardest 1 day sporting challenge a human can do. The distance involves a 2.4 mile swim in open water, 112 mile bike followed by a Marathon run, this all done back to back without stopping. For me these days the distance is not an issue, the time to complete the Ironman is my goal and focus.

My times have been getting very close to making it to the Ironman World Champs held in Kona Hawaii, the holy grail of triathlon. There are very few people in the world who make it to Kona as the qualifying times seem almost superhuman, and the slots are almost as rare as winning the lottery. My goal this year was to try and qualify for Kona and Sweden was my chosen course.

The race kicked off with the swim in the Kalmar Strait at 7am, however, the organisers had not anticipated the congestion that ensued due the number of competitors being double what it was last year. This ruined my swim split, so I was 15 minutes down on the swim to start with. I soon discovered on the bike that although the course seemed relatively flat, it was very windy(obviously why there were plenty of wind farms dotted around the area!).

Approximately halfway into the bike, my lower back went into spasm after being tucked into an aero position for 56 miles, and it had taken its toll (unfortunately the Team Beare osteopath-that's Debs-would not be allowed to intervene, as no outside assistance is allowed). This was now becoming a mental battle as well as a physical one. It was soon onto the business of running the marathon. I was looking forward to this as my running is quite strong, and one of my strengths is running well off the bike. Frustratingly, with my lower back in spasm, this made for a very tough and painful opening 10k.

Eventually the pain subsided and I started to enjoy the final 15 miles of the 140 mile race. I crossed the line in 10 hours 42 minutes which was still a very respectable time overall, and inside the top 10% of my age group. Unfortunately I was only minutes outside qualifying for the World Championships, as the times were very close in my age group. Most frustratingly, my previous Ironman time, would have easily got me to Hawaii.

I am still as keen and focused as ever to conquer my challenge and end my career in Hawaii. I am now looking for my Ironman course for next year, together with representing Great Britain at ITU and ETU championships. I was proud to wear my Flyers Tri suit in Kalmar Sweden, and may get aired on TV.

As ever, a big thanks to Debs for putting up with me and the early and long hours in training and on race day. Her support cannot be underestimated as is now an official partner to Team Beare.

I find tapering for my big races really hard and with only days to go before my "A" race (Ironman Sweden) was looking for a longish running race, i stumbled across The Great Yarmouth Half Marathon, I then looked at the forecast and thought i could combine this with a day of fun at the seaside eating fish and chips and the obligatory 99 ice cream (large).

So east bound i went with my Debs at silly O clock to make the 10.00am start. The race route was not as i would have thought, it resembled the Flitwick 10k and was nearer Gorleston than Yarmouth.

I decided to push hard from the off and ended up running with the leading lady (a young Triathlete) this battle lasted for the first half, she then said she could not maintain the 6.20 min miling, i carried on alone for the next 3 miles before catching another few runners. I pushed all the way home and guessed may be a PB was on the cards. I happy to cross the finish at 1.25.30 not quite a PB but 1st in my age group and 12th overall. This has given me a bit of mental confidence going into my big race Saturday.

My brother who lives in Yarmouth also cheered me home as well as my ever supportive Debs. A great day by the seaside and some silverware to take home, happy days.

A nice purely road 10k around Weston Turville and Wendover. Not actually very scenic given the area its in but pleasant enough. Uphill between 5k and 7k or so and last 800m are on grass round the HQ rugby pitch which I didn't expect and found a bit leg-sapping but generally a really well organised race. Roads aren't closed but the marshals are great at getting you over junctions and the homemade cake at the HQ was great.

Over in the Isle of Man for a family anniversary party so entered the the half marathon. Abroad!!!! so have claimed it as country number 8 for races done- England,Scotland, Wales (part of the Chester Marathon), USA , OZ, NZ and Holland Now there's another competition for the Flyers. Running races abroad. Tough race, lots of wind plus a killer hill at 4 miles which took a lot out of me but a fast end as you run back down to the coast at Ramsey. Great bag plus a clever medal in the shape of the island. Well organised plus a free buffet at the end. But the poor marathoners had to do that hill twice.

This was a new trail race put on by Liss Runners. Its multi-terrain over over private tarmac lanes, hard gravel tracks and some paths. The route runs up to the top of the Downs with fantastic views and is quite hilly but there is a great bit of downhill for the last section. Given the dry conditions in the previous weeks road shoes were fine but you would probably want to consider trail shoes if it had been wet. About 200 entrants and a really good event. It took me about 1hr 45 down the M25 and A11 from Flitwick and was definitely worth the trip. Hope they repeat it next year as I would be keen to have another go.

Club 5K Champions

Men

Ladies

Champion	John Mitcalf	18:01
V-40	Martin Beare	18:40
V-50	Mike Petty	19:59

Champion	Michelle Morris	20:20
V-35	Theresa Jackson	22:00
V-45	Angela Williamson	24:13

My "A" race for the year. Just about managed sub 2hr:30, but mainly because of the head wind on the bike was brutal, really had to work hard and find that much needed power from somewhere.

My swim was massively impressive, knocking off a min from last year as I finished in sub 30mins. The run was the usually hang on at the end but finished a respectable 42 mins.

It was great seeing Nicola and Theresa on the run course fighting it out and inspired me to push harder just as my legs were falling to pieces and energy levels becoming low. Thankfully the heat did not really come out until late morning so we were lucky to miss that out.

So oddly this year, what I gained on the swim I lost on the bike. Having looked at last years time, I was only 15 secs away, so pretty happy....that is considering I've cut down on TRI racing. My overall time was 2:29....job done for the year. My result states 70th overall so that cant be bad (approx. 260 entered / started)

In total 11,839 people completed this event. It was a fantastic day out. Well done to Nicola, she was really pleased coming away with a PB for that distance!

CSAA 10K Champs, Battersea Park - Wednesday 24 July
On Wednesday, 24 July I had the pleasure of racing in the Civil Service 10K Champs which lap a flat circuit in Battersea Park. Last year I went pretty well and snaffled a Flyers MV40 record so was hoping for a good outing intent on ignoring the humid heat. I got the perfect start and settled into race pace rhythm to knock out the four laps. All was going well until I sidestepped a competitor towards the end of Lap 3 which disturbed my rhythm somewhat. However, a determined attempt to concentrate saw me reign team mate Rob White in at 8K and we pushed for home, working together. A photo finish 35:40 was the result with me placed 7th. I had geared up to be in the 34:xx but the hot day took it's toll. However, this is a minor blip - the CSAA 10K Champs is a team event and the good news is that after waiting 8 years my team won not once but TWICE. Gold for 1st Senior and for 1st Vet Men's Team. A sweet moment. Ste Hartley
Although I haven’t been to Flyers training for quite a while due to time pressures from family and work, am still managing to get some running in. 10k result for me yesterday at Civil Service Sports Club Capital Challenge in Battersea: 48mins 8 secs – not PB but not a bad result for me in this heat. Hopefully will be able to get along to training soon! Ben Stoneman

Thankfully the day started overcast and a lot cooler than recent days as it was going to be a long day. The race was to be run by following very detailed written instructions without any on the ground directions whatsoever. I started the race at a promising pace with Tracy and Martin, passing through Stevenage and on to the more interesting villages that lay beyond. We made good progress and in the final stretch to checkpoint one we followed our instincts and local advice while others behind us mistaking listened to the authoritative voices of some unobservant fellow runners. As we turned into the checkpoint for a quick rest and refueling it was looking promising. As we left heading on to Tewin, the rest of the Flyers sauntered in. It was in this stage that we were distracted by another runner and had to make a small adjustment to rejoin the route a few hundred metres to our left. The run was going really well and by the time we reached the second checkpoint at Tewin we were nearly 8.5 miles in and feeling good.

The next section incorporated a lot of running along woodland tracks and by now my calfs were beginning to scream. Despite my best intentions the training had not paned out as planned. Loss of the whole of May due to a minor fracture in my foot and then being away for three of the last four weeks meant I had not done enough distance work. I had however, been doing lots of hill work in Snowdonia, the Lake District and Adalucia, but the advice for the day was "walk the hills"! As this section progressed I started to drop back and as I entered the third checkpoint Tracy and Martin were just getting ready to leave. I had just caught up with Dave by this stage and we would spend the rest of the day passing each other. Heading on towards Hertford and the northward journey back to Stevenage, my knee started to become a problem. Nearly 13 miles of undulating Hertfordshire countryside was gone and I had already passed my maximum run distance.

The next section was along the river but then headed through an old quarry and this was the section I was dreading. Reading the instructions beforehand and trying to visualise it on the map had proved difficult, I hoped it would all make sense when I got there. Sadly, it didn't and I went off route and by the time I had doubled back Dave was going past with a friendly wave to show the way. The instructions were really good and this was the only time I had difficulty.

By the time I reached Watton-at-Stone, the fifth checkpoint the possibility of running the remaining half of the course was definitely out of the question. The remainder of the Flyers joined me at this point and then headed off, while I hobbled on at my more sedentary pace. The rest of the Ultra soon became a walk as the day became increasing hot, and Dave overtook me again and we briefly met up at Checkpoint 6. Finally 8 hours after I started I walked across the finish line, no matter how much I wanted to there was no way I could bend my knee enough to run or hobble even a few metres. It was great to see so many Flyers still there, thank you for the support. The post-race verdict from the Physio was it was Illiotibial Band Syndrome (Runners Knee) and thankfully I had not done any serious damage. Overall, this was a great introduction to Ultras and longer races and I am glad I did it. One more for the 25x25 challenge.

Well organised, good course, the number of runners was just about right for the course.... but none of that rubbish actually mattered, it was just about running the track in the Olympic stadium - which was amazing!!

After meeting a guy from work on the train we agreed to run together. Being of similar ability we decided to run together and then race the lap of the stadium at the end. We approached the back entrance to the stadium and saw the track through the gap. So we smirked at each other and agreed to GO!! We both began to sprint the last 300m on our tired legs....

Immediately at this point we were ushered left into a tunnel underneath the stadium where we had to run around 3 quarters of the stadium before entering the track for the 300m finish on the track. So our glory-sprint finish in the Olympic stadium became a 300m sprint in a dark tunnel and then lolloping, wheezing lap of the Olympic stadium!

And (B) - Despite the fact that I was nearly dying when I finally entered the stadium, an enormous smile spread across my face as I ran through the most awesome scene I have ever run through. I was gripped by almost every second of the Olympics on TV last Summer and for a few seconds yesterday I was in it. Happy Days!

As several club members were doing this as their Ultra run I decided I should too - having always done the 26 miler previously. For most it was their first time on this course, and despite navigation by route description no one got lost - or not for long anyway!

Although a bit warm for such a long run at least the going underfoot was dry. As we turned up a narrow track from the road, just after the second check point, a lady behind me said: "This makes a change, it was a river last year!"

And towards the end of a forest s few miles further on we wend down a narrow gully which last year was a deep sea of mud, and had us pushing through the trees on the bank above! This year it was just a dry ditch! But the warm weather towards the end meant I slowed down a lot - so it was very good to see lots of club members around the route.

Well done to everyone who finished - even to those who opted for shorter routes. I think I did it in 8 hours 32 mins - though results not yet on FVS website.

We were in the Alps for a couple of weeks holiday and in the middle I did the local Mountain Race which is part of the Bastille Day celebrations. The route goes from the village to the ski station above over mountain roads and 6k of trail and you gain 800m. Its a really local event with just over 50 entrants and there is lots of good support on the route. I was a bit unnerved by the Paramedics on a quad bike who follow the race throughout including over the trail part but fortunately they weren't needed ! The trail part of the race ends at the village we were staying at which is at 1300m and I had the chance to run it the week leading up to the race which I think helped a lot. I am now considering one of the longer mountain races in the area ..........

I didn't think I would be kicked down the results that far. Similar times gave me 5th place in round 2 and 25th place in round 3!

There was a few GB vests knocking about and some others wearing Horst Powerman tri-suits which they would have gained representing GB at the Europeans in Holland.

Phil H cleaned up as usual, Jason was 4th and Matt Jones got his sh*t together for an excellent 11th place, 2 places behind Kieron. John Mitcalf 19th, me following up the rear.

First stab at a 12k for us both, so why not go in at the deep end and go for the Hurt! Set in 'Hurtwood' (hence the name) in the Surrey Hills, on its own Greensand Ridge. This is the big brother of our own Bedfordshire Greensand, so was very much like running through a really big version of Rowney Warren at Chicksands for an hour and a bit.

Beautiful 100% trail course with a fair few hills, rewarding us with some really amazing views - from the second highest bit of land in the South East. Some hills though were extremely steep - far too steep to run up, and even down at times, so only the first 2 runners came in under an hour. Sheltered from the sun by the great light forest cover that made up almost all of the route, which was much appreciated on a glorious weather day. Great fun, if hard, and it did hurt, but only a little!

I have been training for this event since April, following a 12 week plan having only started Triathlon this April and getting my first road bike in March. The objective at the beginning was to use the cross training of triathlon to build my base fitness and strength after a long lay-off so that I was ready to start my Chester Marathon training in July. I have however really enjoyed my triathlon events and hope to do more of them.

As with any key race, the taper week leading up to the event is full of trepidation regarding getting ill or injured so close to the event and as bad luck would have it on Thursday my knee decided to dislodge itself during my other endurance event - commuting into London. I strapped and rested the knee and decided to do the race anyway and luckily my knee held out during the race.

The swim race briefing seemed to take forever, it was only 8am but I felt like I was melting stood on the bank of the lake in my wetsuit and couldn't wait to enter the water. Unlike many open water swim starts, this one was very civilised and I enjoyed the swim (2 laps of Box End) and didn't really want to get out as the temperature was so nice. I came out of the water 6th Female and took a bit longer in T1 than usual as on the advice of my coach (Theresa Jackson!) I put on a pair of (her) socks to avoid blisters generated in the heat.

I had practiced the bike course the week before so knew what lay ahead - a gentle climb to Cranfield and then pretty much downhill and flat from then on back to the park. I had an interesting experience when a rodent ran across the road in front of me and I ran over its back end - 1 point for road kill accumulated!

The run was then 2 laps of the 5k course around Box End park and by this time the heat was unforgiving so with trepidation over what my knee would do on the uneven surface and the heat I decided on a strategy of a steady run and taking on water at each stop.

I am delighted to have crossed the finish line of my first standard distance triathlon in 2:55:55, some 4 mins below my 3hr target time and as 14th Female.

This race was not on my radar or schedule and i decided to have a bash the evening before, I had been on a hard long ride (oh matron) the day before as part of my Ironman training, however how could i refuse racing in the gorgeous weather, the race would also act as a top up training session. My legs felt heavy and tired but i was eager to have blast, i like to use races to springboard me to my "A" races as you always push yourself harder in races than in training.

Another reason that attracted my to this race was the fact it was just down the road, the venue based at Boxend, Bedford. I may add this race also formed part of the Royal Navy,s Olympic distance championships. 4 other AFF were present Niki Rouse, Tony Cole, John Mitcalf, Theresa Jackson, Theresa deciding to do the Sprint distance.

The hot conditions suited me as the heat does not seem to bother me as it does others, i suppose that will be years of sunbathing. I had a good solid race and enjoyed all the disciplines dispite my legs feeling the previous days work on the bike with my bike coach pete.

A good day at the office saw me rewarded with a comfortable age group win and a good overall position, the spits reflected the nature of the course especially the off road 10k run.

I am very lucky to have regular treatment and support from my girlfriend Debs who practices as an Osteopath which makes a difference, i might add she is very good also at carrying my kit to and from the silver bullet (me van) oh and handing me a tea cake as a post race treat. All in all a great morning and more silverware to take back home.

Well done to Theresa who won her age group in the shorter sprint race and to Niki who completed her first Olympic distance race, John and Tony had solid races too.

There is little rest for me as i try and defend my national middle distance title this weekend at Big Cows Emberton Park, Olney.

After the stormy weather we had for my last MM in France (which meant event was cancelled after end of day one) it was good to have sun & blue skies for the next outing. Particularly as I was introducing another new partner to the 'joys' of the Mountain Marathon.

We were in the less known SW area of the Lakes, beyond the Duddon Valley - with views of the coast from the rolling hills. Although not the highest part of the Lakes day one started with a very steep (240mts) climb up to the summit of White Hall Knott - which had us feeling we were going to fall backwards off the hill with the wieght of our rucksacks! Several summits later over the rolling hills and we were pitching our tent with a view of a beautiful beach.

After a lovely evening chatting with friends while cooking our meal, we had a fitful night's sleep and were ready for the next days toil. Well ready, but with tired legs much slower. And the sting in the tail was Black Combe - at 600mts the highest hill in the area and our 7th control was on the top! Still it was all downhill from there to the finish 5K later. My friends Ines & Gail had done the second day an hour faster than us & finished 110th.

Caroline had done extremely well as she has only been back running since last autumn - and I think enjoyed the experience.

Disaster nearly struck at last Thursday's Center Parcs time trial, for when Ann and myself got round to the finish by Millbrook roundabout we discovered that our normal route had been blocked off and a detour now took runners the opposite way round to the finish. The consequences were an additional 125 metres of running but times have been adjusted to allow for the additional metres!!

Conditions underfoot were ideal although it was a little humid for running. Tim again romped home in just over the 17 minutes, albeit 19 seconds slower than his course record. Val Phillpot was our first lady runner home and Val holds the record for having run the most time trials - 6 of the possible 7.

After four disappointing run races this year, this was my "jail free" card. My ideal race, completely flat, evening run nice and cool, not to mention yet another cheap entry!

I had a great start. Fortunately I had a timer on my watch working perfectly for once that kept my km markers timed great. I often have troubles with either two problems, 1 being trapped into someone's pace who is going too slow, or, 2 trapped with someone going too fast, and this is where I often go wrong. Once away and free from the crowed, it was about keeping it going. My adrenaline was trying to push me harder but I knew I would go "pop" if I went any faster so held on.

The last 3 km had some head wind but this only cooled me down which was nice, concentration was also needed as there were many parts of just "road running" along long paths, sometimes got a little repetitive..... Final 1km and hit the last bit slightly quicker. Past the finish line and its all done...............phew for now!

Having decided not to tackle the Taupo off road half marathons I did the Tauhara Quarter instead. This was a very gnarly one with man-width trails in places – not possible to pass due to width and steepness – meant that some of the high powered walkers were quicker than slower runners who could not climb hills. The 10k course had paddocks, a field of swedes, some forest road sections, bits of virgin track through pines forest, huge ascents and descents with a 2km 200m ascent from Km7 then some steep downhill on rutted grassy slopes – a great course. In all there was just on 400m of ascent so this MM70-74 dinosauric runner was very happy with his 1 hour 13 minute run. Isabel was more sensible, she stayed at home.

Bit disappointed with this as I was hoping to use it to improve on December's PB of 51.46 having had a couple of results around 52 mins in June. I actually went 9 seconds slower than I managed at the Barton 10k which I would say is a much harder course ! Very humid and I don't think that helped but really it just wasn't my day. Oh well - time to start increasing the mileage for Chester !

Even if now not my favourite it is a very well-organised race on closed roads and decent footpaths with loads of local support and a good Sports Centre HQ.

On the comeback trail after a lengthy calf injury, went for a slow plod at the MK park run. In the 8 weeks or so since I last did this event it has got very popular with numbers approaching the 400 mark most Saturday mornings. My goal was to get round without pain in the calf. Went gingerly round in 28.35, although a minute of this was waiting to get through the new funnel start. Now want to slowly get back to PB territory which was 25.35 last October.

A 4am race start may not be everybody’s cup of tea, but that is just fine with me. With 73km, 5600m of ascent and England’s 10 highest mountains to cover you want to make use of all the daylight available. Normally with this kind of race I start off steady and then try to make my way up the field. This time I thought I might see how long I could stay in sight of the leaders. So I was a little surprised to be first to the top of peak 1 (Helvellyn). A fast descent, a long slog up through a deep bog and 17km into the race I was still heading the field as we reached peak 2 (Bowfell). However, a nasty trip on the rocks soon took the wind out of my sails and as we ticked off the mountains towards Scafell others took up the pace. Fatigue set in on Great Gable and my walk up/run down/jog flat migrated towards a walk/jog/shuffle. I have done longer runs and bigger climbs, but the terrain underfoot made this a particularly brutal event with bogs, scree and wet rock to contend with. Blood, bruises and trashed shoes were the order of the day. One of the more bizarre moments came as I approached the summit of the last mountain (Skiddaw). Another runner descended out of the cloud and I pointed out that he was going the wrong way as the next checkpoint was in the opposite direction. But no - he had been there and rather than run the last 3km and 250m of descent into Keswick he had decided that 8km, 650m of ascent and 900m of descent was in fact the shorter route. Clearly his glycogen levels were playing havoc with his mind.

Lessons learnt? 1. To sustain the pace you have to put in the miles in the mountains – something I had failed to do this year. 2. If you want to abuse your body and hallucinate, give up alcohol & LSD, and take up ultra running.

Unfortunately, another poor run from me, and another failed attempt at 17:59. I entered this as it was based in Hyde Park which is generally flat and therefore fairly fast. Not to mention the £2 entry fee (wow!). However, as time went on I received notification that the course was changed due to other events taking place. The course now was two small loops of the park.

No place to dump your bag meant that I did not warm up enough. Its not really a good idea to leave your bag unattended......... Near the start of the race (12:30) I was able to dump my bag with the others by a tree and sramble in some last minute warm up drills. Again not the best prep.

The route was fairly tight and with the amount of runners taking part, it got very tight and squashed up in some cases, we then were sharing the course with trucks delivering equipment for the other event that was taking part...........organised chaos. Even before the first 1km, it was game over for me and just had to see how I would get on. I felt pretty horrible the whole way round, not good. Whether it was the humidity, lack of warm up or the course itself, somehow ended up with an almost PW!

For those of you that can make London hyde park with ease, the Serpentine club run a "Last Friday of the month 5km" and its £2 entry, all you get is a time...........not bad! Although the time was disappointing, it was nice to run somewhere different, change of scenery!

I had an entertaining day, initiating Fiona into the joys of navigating by route description on LDWA events. Having never run more than a half marathon before she did amazingly - completing her first marathon and Ultra on the same event!

We both finished in a time of 7hours 26mins. Paul finished an hour or 3 in front of us!!!

Cheeky little number this. 69 miles with the option to tackle it over one or two days. With my team mate Mark (Royal Sutton Coldfield AC) we opted for the latter. The race supposedly runs the length of Hadrian's Wall however, we probably saw about 400 metres worth!

We took it very easy to start with (because we had thick heads from over indulging in Carlisle), finishing day 1 (32 miles) in 5th place out of some 1000 runners spread out over 600 teams/solo runners.

Having been the recipients of the first pints poured at the overnight stop (and the last) we resumed day 2 an hour after the main group of runners to give us people to chase. It worked a treat and we maintained our place to finish with a flourish taking the fastest time for the last leg by some 2 minutes. We won the team prize, maintained 5th place overall, and I was first vet!!

The racing season seemed well over but now the cross country and off-road races have got going so a quick update from Taupo.

Craters of the Moon relay – forested, twisting, bike track with jumps and bumps for good measure to complement the odd ankle snagging root – run in teams of four last week. Distance was 2.6km and Austin got himself included in the third team to finish, Isabel’s team was a bit further down the pecking order but this was Isabel’s first run for months since suffering pretty major knee degradation (she will need a new knee-joint).

Austin’s lap 15min 20seconds MM70-74 record. - Isabel’s lap 22min 27seconds - This is all put into perspective with little Kitty (G10) doing 13:17sec whilst her brother Jamie (B12) did 11:05 seconds.

Greensand Relays - Saturday 22 June

Once again a number of AFF teams were entered in the annual Greensand Relays - a relay race along the Greensand Ridge path from Leighton Buzzard to Northill, a distance of 33+ miles. This year 43 teams competed, a record entry and I'm pleased to report that our 'fast boys' were fastest team home in a combined time of 3.27.03, to set a course record despite an increase in length of leg 3, narrowly beating Leighton Buzzard AC fast boys by 2+ minutes. For me, my team 'AFF Bits & Pieces' were again doing battle with Jeremy Bells 'Flyers Formation Fiasco' team. To date the score was 1-all, so you could say this year's run was the decider!

The race is based on a handicap system of runners ages and Jez's team had a better handicap than ours and had started some 11 minutes ahead of our first runner, Terry Stanley. Terry pulled back 7 minutes on Andy's time and with my last minute replacement into the transfer market 'Richie Jones' standing in for me on leg 2 again cutting the deficit on his leg by a further 1 1/2 minutes, game was on!!

Again, a late signing to my team in the form of Phil Wolstencroft, proved too strong for Phil Clarke, finishing the punishing 9.1 mile leg from Woburn to Millbrook in a brilliant time of 1.01.00. Our Phil had passed Phil C and had now opened up a gap of 3+ minutes going into Leg 4. At this point I should mention Phil Holland's outstanding run of the day as part of the 'fast boys' team covering those 9+ miles in an amazing 51.23 - by far the quickest of all the runners and an incredible 14 minutes inside handicap time.

Solid runs by Mark Billington and Ron Armstrong kept my team in front going into the final leg, but an excellent run by Dave Cook on leg 5 had cut the deficit to just 67 seconds. On paper their final runner Jeremy Bell was quicker than Dave Coker but would the 67 second advantage be enough? Jeremy had gone flying off and caught and passed Dave by 2 miles. By Dave's own omission he thought the race was over, but with less than a mile to go Jeremy was slowing - had he gone off too fast? Miraculously, Dave reeled Jeremy in, passed him and then managed to hold him off to finish a mere 12 seconds ahead - a great final leg by both runners.

So its 2-1 to the 'Bits & Pieces' team and no doubt myself and Jez's team will be back next year to do battle again. I put down my team's victory down to my managerial skills with some intuitive last minute signings in the transfer market!!!!

For the record our two teams finished 10th and 11th respectively on Handicap, with the 'Bits & Pieces' team 7th fastest in 4.05.46 and the 'Flyers Formation Fiasco' team 11th in 4.16.58.

Dave Stanley [Relegated to Team Manager only this year thanks to another annoying injury!]

Club 10K Champions

Men

Ladies

Champion	Mark Waine	36:55
V-40	George Arbuckle	38:21
V-50	Warwick Browning	41:27

Champion	Michelle Morris	43:54
V-35	Tracy Nichols	46:46
V-45	Fiona Owen	52:54

An amazing few days in an ideal setting. It was incredible seeing so many familiar faces nearly 3000 miles away from home. Honours came thick and fast for Flyers performing on the international stage. Jason Moore (25-29)picking up a gold, Phil Holland (35-39) silver and Martin Beare (50-54) seconds from bronze. Other stand out performances included Theresa Jackson who finished 10th in the 40-44 AG. My performance was modest in comparison finishing 16th (45-49)but I can't grumble - at that level it's as much as I can hope for given the commitment I can afford. Martin and I had a great little tussle as they combined some of the age groups. I was first out of the water and held on to my lead on the bike. But once on the run it was only a matter of time that Mr Beare would chase me down. Just before the end of the first lap he passed me. I tried hard to respond but the 35 degree heat had taken its toll and it was all I could do to keep him in my sight. He eventually finished some 20 seconds ahead of me. All in all a great trip and a very fruitful outing for the Flyers contingent.

A really good well organised run. The start was a bit squashed as the start it was very narrow but it soon opened up and the field soon spread out. Great touch with a free iced lolly at the finish needed it

This race was my seasons opener for me, a little late starting this year as the weather for open water swimming has not been good. As my "A" race this year is Ironman Sweden i am keen to do anything long and this triathlon fitted the bill. I may add i also won the entry fee by winning a race last season and that was my prize £95 worth.

After a week of blazing sunshine true to form race day was cold, windy and skies looking like they were about to open, typical i thought. I was accompanied by my little helper and cheerleader my Debs which was an added bonus.

7.30am and it was kick off with a mass start. We did 2 laps making 1,900 meters which saw me exit the swim in 7th place. We then made our way on our TT bikes for a 56 mile blast which was tough going in blustery winds which i might add made things very difficult for me as i has deep section carbon Zipp racing wheels which acted like sails almost blowing me off the road at times, However i managed to keep it all together and retain my position of 7th overall, i surprised myself on the bike as i have been lacking time thus far this season.

Happy to reach transition in one piece i was keen to get on the half marathon, I soon made good progress and made it to 4th overall until i bonked (a technical term for running out of energy) i had failed to take any fuel or drink throughout the entire race and the last few miles of the run was very scrappy, this should have been where i could have made up places however i fell back to 9th overall, on the bright side i smashed my age group with 1st. I was pleased all in all and it was a good measure of where i am fitness wise and acted as a good training session.

I must say a big thanks to Debs who fed me with tea cakes, cheesey chips and ice cream to bring me back to life until we waited for my Trophy.

Its off to Turkey on Wednesday for the ITU European Championships (sprint distance) hopefully some sun on the beach over my 6 day stay with the GB team.

Along with quite a lot of other Flyers I did this race as an "entry on the day". I really enjoyed it. There is a steep hill at the start for about 1k and then a lovely scenic route mainly over really decent footpaths with a bit of tarmac road and then equivalent steep downhill at about 9k. Bit of a crush on the hill to start because the 5k and 10k runners all set off at the same time but other than that a well organised race with really cheerful marshals and tea and cake at the school fete afterwards. We had really good dry conditions but I think the downhill section would be a bit lethal if it had been raining so would definitely do this again but still look to enter on the day.

I ran my home town half for the second year in succession. As the designated driver I set off with Terry McHugh, Mark Billington, Claire Fisher and John Decesare. Billed as the Hitchin Hard Half it delivered. To be fair there were some good downhill sections but the uphills certainly sapped the legs. I hadn't run much so wasn't expecting to trouble my PB. I set off slowly. I was running next to a guy with a talking arm for the first 4 miles.....at each mile his arm informed him of his progress.......Mile 2, 7:44, you are ahead of your target pace by 7 seconds per mile. I knew this would eventually do my nut in so I made a conscious effort to slow (7:44 was way faster than my intended pace). I finished with a respectable time of 1:46:17 (I finished in 1:45:26 in 2012). There were some good performances by the other flyers on show, most notably Claire Fisher who was the fastest Female vet which saw her collect £60 in prize money.

Another excellent evening of running over a dry and fast course around the new Center Parcs development. With Tim Harris running the course record was sure to go and the only question was by how much. In the end Tim was the first to run sub-18 taking a massive 45 seconds off Alex Ash previous best time. Val Phillpot led the ladies home in a new PB for her on the course, one of 5 on the night. Next run will be Thursday 4th July.

Weather brilliant and provided some very fast times. The swim was fast and comfortable (although managed to hit the washing machine affect at the beginning, but ploughed on!)

But here's the best part, the cycling...............12 miles on undulating roads. Having done the time trials at Cardington, these Thursday sessions have really turned things around for me. taking part and then going for a run straight after, is such a good training session, and it made a big difference today. When the weather is that good, you have the ability to really thrash it out!

The run section, as you can imagine was very painful and tough, but its what you train for. All in all, being involved with the Beds Road cycle club has completely changed my biking performance for the better. Last years standard I achieved the sub 2:30 marker and now I'm on my way to 1:10 in the sprint distance...................it certainly gives you that boost to push harder!

Very hot run . Starting in the park at Marlow and running along the scenic river Thames through the countryside and finishing back at the park in Marlow . Very good run would recommend it

Up to my Mum's in Rochdale and over to Fleetwood on the Sunday morning for the first running of this combined 5 & 10k race organised by Fylde Coast Runners who put on a lot of events in the area. Not chip timed but less than 100 runners so it made no difference.

Very nice flat scenic route along the seafront for about 3.5 miles and then back along the road with a good sloping finish. Unfortunately a headwind made it quite a battle on the way out so not a very fast day - it was won with a 36.44 - but still only 30 secs off PB for 1st 10k since December so quite pleased with that. Lovely weather made for a good day out.

Having not been picked for the 1500m (she was doing long jump which she was not happy about) Lauren stepped up to the start line when someone got injured. When the gun went Lauren hurtled off from the far right and tucked herself in behind two 6 foot 14/15 year olds. For almost three laps Lauren stuck on their tales with the rest of the field not even in the race. On the last 400m I am screaming at Lauren that it was a slower pace than the week before and to give it her all. The two 6 footers started to pull away from Lauren to give a gap of about 20m, Lauren pulled back a little on the bend but from 110m out she started to put on a sprint and caught them up with about 20m to go. I expected it to be a fight to the line but Lauren kept on going and the two other girls just didn't move. It looked like a 100m sprinter passing a marathon runner. Lauren finished in 5:05.9 a full 2 plus seconds ahead of the next girl. It was brilliant to watch, timed to perfection. I can only dream of running a race like that, so proud of her.

This weekend saw the first of a series of qualification races to secure participation at the Tri World Championships in London later this Summer. I was involved at the event hosted by the National Water Sports Centre in Nottingham. The race doubled as the British Championships and needless to say attracted some of the UK’s strongest Triathlon Age Groupers.

I managed to get round the course in just over 1.04 with a decent swim (12.30mins) a solid bike section (31mins) and a 19 min 5k. For what was allegedly an accurately marked course I was quite please to go pretty much as fast as I have ever gone over that distance.

However clearly not fast enough –I was about a minute outside automatic qualification and lost all the ground on the bike. My combined run and swim, as a Vet, is competitive however the top guys are riding at 27+ mph hour and that’s tough to live with.

I now move on to the European Champs in Turkey next week and then my final attempt at qualification in Wales at the end of the Month.

PS well done to Matt Jones on completing his first Triathlon and for surviving the carnage of a busy and cramped mass start!

Iconic buildings, streets lined with cheering crowds and beautiful surroundings – the Kent Roadrunner Marathon has none of these. Instead it has 17 laps of a traffic-free tarmac cycling track promising a high proportion of PBs. I had read this as meaning a flat course – it isn’t. However, with a target of sub-3 hours, I snuck in with 10 seconds to spare – so a good outcome. With drinks & food available every lap and post-race showers & massage on tap this is a well organised race. However there is only so much lap counting you can do in life and you won’t find me back there again.

After a week in North Norfolk of general relaxation I decided to have a look at the Sheringham Parkrun. It starts in Sheringam Park (National Trust), car parking was free for Park-runners until 10.30 and the introductory speeches by the race director included details of the use of 2 way radio's to shoo any stray cows out of the way on the course prior to the runners getting there ( I kid you not...). After some quite gentle but frequent undulations in the first kilometre you leave the park and head out into fields, running on rutted vehicle tracks and having to be quite careful not to go over on an ankle. The final 1.5 k is up a steady slope, until a short "killer" hill near the end that I did not see many people run all the way up. Much tougher than my usual MK parkrun, came in 52nd out of a small field of 85. This park run has not been going long, but was friendly and well organised. Would recommend if you are in this part of the world.

Up north visiting my gorgeous Annabel. Found a 10K race around Whitely Bay organised by my daughter's club North Shields Poly AC. Every club in the North East had runners and me from the south. Wore my 25x25 t-shirt but no comments from anybody but flew round in 41:37 my 2nd fastest ever, winning the old boys race and my first negative split. All down to the warm up playing with my grand daughter all day long. Very happy. Wae aye man.

Nicky has been rehabilitating since her knee replacement in December last year and I've been concentrating on adjusting my running style to try to elevate the pain through my back which comes with bad running technique (and one leg being shorter than the other) After three weeks of running intervals, half a dozen dips in the lakes we both felt able to go out and take part in a Super Sprint Triathlon. I must add that Nicky has only trained on the turbo and hadn't rode her road bike out since last years London Tri. in September. I think it's fair to say that neither of us knew how we were going to do.

It was an early start as our wave was off at 7:45am. I was a bit worried about the lake swim but have been working on my weakest discipline all winter, this gave me the confidence to get amongst the washing machine which is the start. It's fair to say that all the Superfast guys had targeted the Sprint Race but we both wanted to race a distance that we knew we could complete without causing any injury. So the 400m swim, 10k bike and 2.5 k was a perfect distance for us.

We both had a couple of issue out of first transition that later we could laugh about, Nicky had somehow managed to put her number belt on with the number facing towards her body which meant a marshal made her stop and correct it and I somehow managed to knock off my chain as I jumped onto the bike gggrr. I was a bit worried about Nicky on the bike as the course was nearly all right turns!

The run for me felt pretty good, even after the day beforehand I attempted to break the 4 min mile at Iffley Road which I failed but just over 6min mile pace is a good start. That run was a nice smooth 4 laps of the track compared to the twisting paths of St Neots Sprint.

I was pleased to cross the line in the sunshine placing 3rd Male and Nicky finished 7th female. Now back to building up our running distance so hopefully we can start taking part in the Clubs training sessions.

6 miles ticked off the 25 list down in Hook today - Mandy Fraser and I had a very enjoyable run - took it easy although not sprinting at the end really took some doing. Mandy had a great run and we would both recommend this one to everyone with the choice of 10 or 6 miles and a great mixture of the serious contenders and those taking part in their first race definitely something for everyone and only an hour away - I think we will both be back next year!

This was my first ulta marathon, I had done the prep training. Looked at the profile, even dusted off my Silva, checked my maps, went organic with my nutrition ( no gels for me this time!!) And got lost 3 miles in. The Challenge is running or walking from Whitchurch (Cheshire) to Frodsham. A check point at every five and a half miles. This is where you get your ticket / card punched, there is a time limit to each checkpoint. The scenery was stunning and the marshalling was very good. I got lost several times, fell in a bog, chased by frisky bullocks, did 35 miles instead of 33. I was out there nearly 10hours. It was a great challenge, however it has take a while to get over the after race niggles, knee, blisters, right hip. I would do it again and anybody interested can find details on Helmsby Harriers website.

Feeling perfectly ok after last Sunday's marathon (clearly could have been a lot braver on pace - hindsight is a wonderful thing !) I decided to do the Thornborough May Bank Holiday 10 mile to run somewhere different. It was my first 10 mile so had to be a PB ! Nearly didn't get there at all as despite knowing MK Marathon was on the same day and even texting someone that morning to wish them luck it didn't occur to me to tell the sat nav to avoid MK and so hit several closed roads !

Its a really nice little race. Entry on the day and comprises a 10 mile which does 2 laps of the "main event" 5 miler which sets off 20 mins after it. Its all country lanes and quite uphill in places but does have equivalent downhill stretches. Clear mile markers, water stations and sponges every mile and lots of local support. Tea and cake in the Church hall afterwards. A real village fete atmosphere. Only 39 people entered the 10 mile - it was won with a time of just over 60 mins - not at all sure why the race isn't more popular - perhaps due to being on the actual Bank Holiday - but would recommend it.

A hot day, nice countryside, with a testing hilly last section. Very pleasant finishing line in the shadows of the 1300 year old cathedral.

I had booked MK Marathon months ago as well as the London Marathon, as it forms part of my training for my Ironman Triathlons, evidently not knowing i would have a bad London, so i was happy to have another go all be it with little recovery, However i do recover very quickly and have completed 2 Ironman races in a week so this is not a problem for me.

I could not believe the weather forecast for race day, the hottest day of the year thus far, so thoughts of trying for a PB was out of the question for me. Therefore I re wrote my script and decided to run the race on feel rather than trying to hit splits. I also decided to stop at all water stations to take decent amounts of water due to the temperatures.

I was very appreciative of the support i had from numerous mates and Flyers Jody, Phil C, George & Dave Stanley. I was happy to be in good shape at the finish despite the time being way short of what i wanted, but given the conditions i should be pleased.

My overall result was pleasing however 35th Overall and 1st in group. Well done to all the AFF who ran this very warm Marathon, top job all. I must say a special thanks to Debs Pedley my partner for her expertise as a registered Osteopath for getting me match fit after London.

I think this is starting to get a reputation as an extreme weather event - after the biblical flooding and constant deluge of last year, we get treated to a long slow cook this year. A very slow hot plod.....

With ideal running conditions the first of the Centrer Parcs Time Trials for 2013 was underway. With none of the really fast Flyers running both course records remain but of the 12 Flyers who did run the course in 2012, 11 ran course PB's with Dave Coker, James Prestwich and Sedgers all taking 2+ minutes off their best times. The next Time Trial will be Thursday 6th June.

My second marathon and I improved on last October's time by about 8 mins. Training not entirely to plan due to injury 6 weeks before putting paid to last few long runs but all in all I had a really comfortable race. Its left me looking forward to Chester in October when I will hopeful have got some longer prep runs in and be able to be a bit braver earlier on.

If you are looking for a much more low key alternative to London I would recommend this race. Its very flat on completely closed roads and the local turn out was phenomenal including a children's choir and steel bands. They reckon there were about 25000 spectators. Names were printed on bibs so you get a lot of personal support. The local hotels do some great deals including early breakfast etc.

Craig Palmer and I (with partners in tow), headed off to Horst in The Netherlands, to participate in the European Duathlon Champs, both earning a GB vest in the process. Craig had a stormer, missing out on 3rd by seconds. To say he had the hump would be an under statement.

I lost circa 2/3 mins with hamstring cramp after the bike leg. It dogged me 3 times in transition alone, probably 20 times on the course. I got off the bike in 7th so I only had to have an average run to maintain my position. Pleased with first run and bike, need to train harder /sort cramp out!

On a completely different level, Phil Holland also participated, but opted instead for the long open race (15km/60km/8km). This is the same course that the elites/pros had raced on earlier in the day. The results with the elite and open races combined show that on timing alone he would have been 15th overall, 3rd GB athlete back. Add to this the fact that in the open race he had no-one to chase so I am sure he would have been higher up the order in the elite race.

I have always joked with the lads, it is definitely harder to get a county vest! Thanks to Phil Holland for setting me up on my TT bike, massive gains from it.

Three flyers (Dave S, Martin S & myself) joined up with folk from Tring (Brian Layton), Royston (David Peregrine), Scotland (Ron Smith) and Finland (Jouko & Sirpa Koivula) in Laggan and Creag Meagaidh for this unique even, a 2-day navigational and physical challenge carrying kit for 2 days of potentially independent operation in the wilderness, lightened up with a Ceilidh (Highland band & dancing) and 4 large kegs of fabulous local beer options in a marquee out in the wilderness at the overnight camp.

Scotland has had a great winter for those who enjoy winter sports, and sill has much more snow than is usual for the tail end of April, which in large part has pretty solid and continuous snow above 700-800m.

Day 1 was the higher, snowier and more scenic of the two, going straight up to 1050m, and then maintaining altitude at over 700m for most of the day. Fantastic views back to the immense rock face of Creag Meagaidh mountain (the second best winter climbing area in Scotland, after Ben Nevis), still clad in its winter coat of hard snow and ice. Much of the day was spent traversing firm snow ridges and crossing, climbing and descending snow gullies, where at one or two points a pair of crampons and an ice-axe would have come in handy. Fell running shoes coped well for the most part.

Overnight camp was fantastic, and the sight of 40-odd runners at a time line dancing in tracksters and running shoes, with plastic bags on feet to separate fresh dry socks from sodden footwear was a sight to behold, especially with the warming influence of the local Black Isle Brewery percolating where it needed to percolate.

Day 2 had some initial rain, then mist making navigation by accurate compass bearing essential, then snow storm, then bright warm sunshine for the finish - a typical Scottish four-seanons-in-four-hours kind of thing. Overall lower and slightly soggier than day 1, but softer underfoot.

Overall a fantastic event, given an exciting edge with the hard high level snow. What a contrast to the MK Marathon the following week..... I think I may be back for more next year. Thanks again to Dave S for bringing this group all together!

Like everyone else, winter training has been extremely challenging, being on the bike in sub 0 temperatures, with ice, wind and rain and getting up at stupid o'clock in the morning over the weekends. Reduced running due to ice and snow. Winter events being cancelled due to the conditions, all the usual pre-season training races, cancelled.......the only thing possible was swimming. So come today, my aim was to push hard and see what would happen. Fortunately although slightly cold, conditions were perfect. Very little wind and of course, the sun was out.

For the first time in around 3 years of doing this event, I had a trouble free swim, no disturbances, no being dragged down, no flooded goggles, just smooth hassle free swim........and I could feel myself pushing the whole way, possible to date, my best 400m swim Due to the coldness, I chose to put a cycle top and, and although it did slow my transition up, i felt more comfortable on the bike and pushed hard. It is a challenging course, with a few tasty hills chucked in. Coming back into T2, this was faster and better. i had troubles getting my shoes on though as i could not feel my feet! On the run course I was confident about going well. Unfortunately the first 10mins I was in a daze and the body just wanted to stop, after lap two I was just on automatic, i was exhausted. The final lap I pushed myself to the finish, I looked at my watch and was amazed at the time!

The only real disappointment I have is the lack of splits for the race, there were a few technical problems and at the moment, we only have a "total time". There were many other flyers out there today, everyone did brilliantly and by the sounds of it, all enjoyed themselves

This was Terry's first and if I'm a betting man his last marathon! His aim had always been to complete the distance but ideally he was looking for that magical 'sub 3'. The training had gone well although in hindsight perhaps another 1 or 2 possibly longer runs would have been beneficial rather than that game of football at the weekend and who knows may have been one of the contributing factors on the day that led to Terry falling short of that magical time.

This was my first time as a spectator at the London having run it 6 or 7 times and I was unsure how easy it would be to get around the course. We bumped into Paul Barton at the start who was for once was not running a marathon but there to support his partner in her first. We left Terry at the start and made our way through Blackheath and Greenwich Parks, past the Maritime Museum towards the 6 mile point. This turned out to be a good decision as we had a great view as we awaited Terry's arrival. Terry was on the Blue start in Pen 1 and his aim was to run 6.50 miles to bring him home in sub3. He went past us at 6 miles spot on in just over 41 minutes. The runners were already coming thick and fast but I did spot Martin Beare some 3+ minutes ahead of Terry.

Our next stop was the 14+ mile point at Limehouse and a quick journey on the DLR line brought us out at Westferry station. A good viewing point this one as it enabled us to nip under the underpass and quickly join the runners again as they headed back at the 20 mile point. Again Terry went through the 14+mile point spot on time - his 5K splits were consistent and all looked good. He had gone through half way in 1.29.30. However, the temperature was quickly rising and I did wonder if Terry had adequately fueled.

Over to the 20 mile point and I again spotted Martin, but he shouted that he was beginning to tire. As Terry came through I could see he too was beginning to tire. His relaxed running style had gone and although he was only 30 seconds down on his predicted split at 20 miles (2.17.10), I sensed he was in for a long, tough run for home.

Many of us have been there in the marathon over that final 10K - it can be an unforgiving 6+ miles. By 22 Terry had gone and it was now all about survival. With his 4.14K splits now down to almost 6 minutes these were desperate times. He finished in just over 3hrs 15mins - still a brilliant time but an agonising final 10K of 58.21 and he was shattered and de-hydrated. The planned few pints at the nearest pub were now changed to 'get me home as quickly as possible' and we began that long desperate hobble back to the nearest station !!

I'm not sure sure how Terry will assess his run but for all the Ampthill & Flitwick Flyers who completed this year's London marathon I say a brilliant 'well done'. To my son I add that I was really, really proud of him out there and despite not quite running as fast as his old man did back in those early years when I could still run a decent marathon !! - he did complete that magical 26.2 mile distance.

Terry had run for MAGPAS whose doctors had help save the arm of a friend in a terrifying chain saw accident - see sponsor page: www.virginmoneygiving.com/TerryStanley

My tip to future London spectators - just avoid the usual popular land marks as a short walk further down the course as we did will often bring you to un-conjested spots where you can easily view the runners uninhibited.

As i ran 2 sub 3hr Marathons last year, i was fortunate enough to gain an entry to the London Marathon. I would not normally do London as previous experience tells me that its not an easy course due to the sheer numbers, however its a marathon like no other and the support is mind blowing. I also take the opportunity to race long running races as it forms part of my training to my main goal this year which is Ironman.

A few weeks ago i had a nasty chest infection which hit me quite hard and needed a heavy dose of Antibiotics even this had difficulty shifting it. foolishly i did not back off training against doctors advise as i didn't want to loose critical training, needless to say this hampered my recovery. My chest was still bad at the Sandy 10 but managed to squeeze out a PB and 1.01.34 so things looked ok.

My PB for a Marathon is 2hrs 55mins which i ran quite comfortably in October therefore my plan was to run London in 2hrs 50mins which i think is realistic. I had written splits on my arm of 5 mile intervals. From the off i didn't have that bounce and felt under par and had no power. Although at the front end of the fast good for age pen, i was still slowed by slower runners and my splits were not fast enough so when i got the chance i ran faster than i wanted to in order to get back on track, I soon got back to where i should be and even a minute ahead and at 10 miles i went through at 1hr 3mins. I then went through the half way mark in 1hr 24 which were similar splits i ran in my Chester 2.55.

I felt totally drained all the way up to this point and i knew that i was going to be in trouble if i tried to maintain my splits, at this point i thought of pulling out and climbing over the barriers as i was only interested in a PB but i said to myself how could you walk back the streets with all those supporters, i also thought of Boston and the pain and suffering they endured.

My new plan was just to finish so a slow trot was started by my pride and nature wanted to try and push, I punished and pushed my body to near collapse for the remainder of the race, George passed me at mile 25 and was looking steady. I crossed the line in a daze feeling like i wanted to die, my body then started to shut down and i later collapsed, with George Arbuckles' great help i was rushed into a medical tent, after some medical care i then released myself only to collapse again and was violently sick and was taken back to the medical tent again, i was then seen by a doctor. The doctor had said that my chest infection and the after effects was the reason i was not my normal self. I must say a massive thank you to George who refused to leave me until i was ok, also Steve Morales for his support and much valued help.

London is an awesome race and experience but its my opinion its not PB material. I am so pleased that the race went off with no problems and the spirit of everyone involved was heart warming, in many ways it was a perfect day, for me however 3.05.04 was far from my goal but surprised my run walk run got me even that.

Well done to all the AFF runners and the brilliant support and cheers that were so much needed and appreciated, Thank you so much. I will try and get things right at MK in a week or so.

Just want to say a big thank you for all the support I have had in the club. And to everyone involved in training, coaching, and well wishers to enable me to get round 26.2 miles. To enable me to knock some time off my 2007 Marathon which was 6.39.33.

I was more than happy, to get round without stopping for toilets, which wasted time the last time. And I was more than happy to get round without anything much hurting, I had hobbled round from about 17miles the last time. I stopped for a few seconds when the back of my legs started tightening up shins, I think. Stretched a bit and carried on a bit slower, and all ok. Just twigged a bit at times.

The support of the crowds was something else, there obviously were a lot of Pats! I had felt quite emotional on the day, as had only about 4 hours sleep and none the day before. The adrenalin was starting to kick in way before. Worried i had not done the amount of training I wanted. and needed to do. I was nearly crying about 23 i just could not believe i was still running without any real pain. I was so thankfull, not to have to experience that this time. I even managed a short sprint finish this time.

Felt unwell on the underground going home, but that's another story. Today I am resting up with a pretty sore ankle, and watching the highlights, feeling emotional again! Thanks again to everyone. for all the support. Congratulations to all who did the Marathon, you all did amazing.

It wasn't fast and it wasn't pretty but I did it. First half was pretty much on target for the 5 hour (or less) time I was after. However, that first half was the hottest and, combined with the nervous stomach I had suffered pre-race, the heat took its toll. I struggled on feeling sick, queued for a loo for a while as hoped that would help and at around 16 miles had to start walking. At around that point I also saw a two or three runners unconscious at the side of the road and worried that it could be me next. At 17 miles I was power walking with another Macmillan runner who said to me 'only 10 miles left' that was the trigger to keep going and off I went. From then on I employed a run/walk strategy and found that even walking fast I was overtaking other walkers and keeping pace with some runners. At mile 25 the Macmillan cheering point went wild and really kept me going. I finished running, again with another Macmillan runner, completing the marathon in just over five and a half hours. Amazing crowds, amazing runners. Thank you to all my amazing sponsors. So far, including gift aid, I have raised £1,395 for Macmillan Cancer Support.

It was a glorious morning as I headed off towards Aldbury to take part in the 5 mile cross country run. There were plenty of runners milling around with a large contingent it seemed from Tring. Being a late comer to running and only just getting over a chest infection I had low expectations for my time beyond finishing. The race started with a promising downhill sprint followed soon after by a lung-busting steep climb up the escarpment to the Ashridge Estate. Past the Bridgewater Monument and on through the forest. As I spend part of my time assessing Duke of Edinburgh expeditions in more remote areas I couldn't help but notice the sheer number of groups staggering through the estate poorly prepared and with boots and various other items of equipment in their hands.

Once out of the trees the route heads out across the downland with plenty of skylarks for company and bemused ramblers! Two small hills (in comparison to the first) and then it was down hill for the remaining three miles. Finally the end was in sight and a last call on the reserves and across the line for a much needed rest. The results were made available on site on a rolling basis, and the organisers provided refreshments in the form of sandwiches and hot and cold drinks. A great event but be prepared for the uphill slog within the first 15 minutes.

While some of you were traveling to London to run or watch the VLM, I was finishing the final legs of the 62 mile somewhat hilly walk in Dorset.

We had started at 9am from Broadwaey - just north of Weymouth - and the early part of the route went out to the coast at Langton Hive Point - with great views of Chesil Beach in the morning sunshine. We the followed the South West Coast Path & South Dorset Ridgeway for several miles before turning NW and over Shipton Hill with some magnificent views. From the 2nd checkpoint at Lodders we went north, then picked up the Jubilee Trail eastwards to Toller Porcorum and CP3 - at 30 miles. My plan was to get to CP4 at Frampton before dark - and I was there by 8pm, with 1/2 hour of daylight left. This was despite having had a bad spell from about 28 to 33 miles! Frampton was the main feed stop - so I was there nearly an hour, trying to eat some of the cottage pie & apple crumble, while changing socks & getting more clothes on for a chilly night.

The next section was up to then along a ridge for 6K going north, with a bright moon lighting the way, before turning east down to Cerne Abbas - of the famous giant. I was feeling a bit tired now so had a 1/2 hour kip, before setting off on the easiest section of the route - south for 10K down the Cerne Valley to Charminster. On arriving at Charminster village hall I lay down on some chairs for a second sleep - but forgot to tell the marshal to wake me in half an hour. when he did it was with the message that the 'Sweepers' had arrived & if I was not retiring I should leave soon! I had probably slept between 1.5 & 2 hours!

However, I now felt a bit refreshed & jogged along the route through the outskirts of Dorchester with a bit more 'oomph' - catching & passing several walkers. As we got south of Dorchester the sun came up and it was another sunny blue-skied morning. The entire route had been somewhat stony underfoot (or in some places very muddy) so my feet where now feeling a bit sore. So a final change of socks at the last checkpoint in Broadmayne, yet another cup of tea, & the last 10K - mainly along a ridge westwards, with magnificent views of Portland Bill in Weymouth bay.

I eventually finished in 24 hours 15 mins - which was 3 to 4 hours longer than I'd hoped - but then I had spent much of that time asleep & not moving!

This was my first Time Trial of the year so very pleased to go 30 seconds quicker than I’ve ever gone before on this course. Though it was a bright and relatively still day the wind direction was never in our favor which made hard going in both directions. Nevertheless I’m happy I was able to hold on to an average of just under 26 mph.

What a great day! No rain was a bonus, although the wind kept things interesting both out on the course for the runners and those of us at the finish line!

I want to start by officially saying thank you to everyone for all the work that was put in to making this event, not only happen, but happening to such high standards - you may have noticed that we had 2 scrutineers around yesterday and they both praised all those out on the course and running the event behind the scenes. So, thank you :-) I also want to give special thanks to a small group of people, who take on the main roles and without whom, this event just would not happen (in no particular order): George Arbuckle, Ann De Winter, Phil Bierton, Val von Arx, Chris Jenart, Mark Billington, Ady Wadsworth, Rick and Karen Hollingsworth, Ricky Jennings

My work here is not yet finished, over the next couple of weeks I will be pulling together a review report and would ask that if you have any comments, feedback, something you think we should do differently next year and also things you think should stay just as they are then please do email me and let me know on annie@essentii.co.uk I am going to be Race Director for 2014 and will be looking over the year at what new opportunities there maybe to help us sustain this great event - I have a few ideas already and more to add to the pot are always welcome!

Here are a couple of comments from Runners World - reasons to feel proud today...

I entered the Brighton Marathon early last year when registration opened. It was my own non-charity place, however, further down the line I decided to try and raise some money for Caudwell Children, which has helped support my son Harry who has autism. Training was going really well (in my opinion!!) but I decided I needed some more structure and know-how, so I joined the Flyers early this year. Due to a combination of a lengthy chest infection, a calf injury and of course the weather making life difficult, the longest run I managed before race day was 17 (slow) miles. Only ran once in the fortnight prior to the marathon due to worries about my calf, however did a few long bike rides instead. Priority was to get round, secretly I was hoping to go under 5 hours. First 13 went well (for my level) at 2 hrs 26, come mile 17 I knew 5 hours was not going to happen. the sun came out and it was now about survival!!. Now I've done one, i think 5 hrs 10 would be about my best. Unfortunately a 23 year old lad from London collapsed and passed away on the day, so any very slight disappointment I may have felt was soon put into perspective. Once the stiffness eases I hope to be at more Tuesday sessions, managed about 5 so far for a variety of reasons.

Following a great season of Triathlon in 2012 i was keen to follow the same steps of training, preparation and running races in order to provide me with the perfect platform for my huge challenges in this seasons Triathlons including National, European and World Championships. I had left the registration of the Sandy 10 a tad to late and found the entries had closed, However thanks to the brilliant AFF Facebook thingy (technical term) my cry for help soon found me with a number for the race, thanks also to Claire Fisher.

Following a bad chest infection i started the race well under pare but was just happy to use the race as training and a little sharpner for the London Marathon. I started the race quite conservatory and decided to feed myself in gently and see what happend, after about a mile i found my self soon catching some good runners which made me think i had half a chance of doing ok dispite my chest rattle.

I soon past AFF John Metcalf and then at mile 4ish AFF George Arbucle and Steve uppton then shortly after i was in sight of our Nick Jones, I was slowly catching Nick before the gap of 40 yards stabilised. This mirrored the same situation as last years race, nothing changed for the remainder of the race and i finished just behind Nick.

I was highly delighted finish 30th overall, to get a PB 1.01.34 and 3rd V50 given my chest infection. Iam sure there is plenty more to come. The race has given me a confident boost for my London and MK Marathon. There were some great efforts and times from lots of Flyers and a few PB were achieved. It was such a pleasure to run in a spring like morning with the sun showing itself and light winds. To keep my mileage up i then ran 10 miles around centre Parks.

There is a 3K race for juniors while the ten miler is in progress. We did rather well, with Lauren Nichols picking up her first winners award for first under fifteen girl. Top finishes as well for our two lads as Josh Rogers and Callum McCready were 3rd and 5th in the U13 boys category.

Everyone will be pleased to hear that the early Paris spring has been just as cold and dreary as the UK. Dave S, who was also in France, let me know that it had been snowing 60 miles or so west of Paris the day before the Marathon, but the day itself was sunny and cool, but not cold, pretty much perfect conditions, so no complaining. I have become a little addicted to this event (now my 3rd time), so easy to get to on Eurostar, really well organised, and the fruit en route every 5km (especially the oranges) is so refreshing. I ignored the poweraide, but it was there too! I struggled a little more than last year. Missing out on the Grizzly (being booked full within a couple of hours of registration opening) and the Oakley and Gade Valley 20s cancellation left me bereft and less endurance-hardeded, I think - well that's my excuse anyway. If only I'd known of the AFF Oakley 20 meet! But such amazing support, massive spectator enthusiasm, and fantastic city and parkland views every step of the way, and easy entry, I still think this city marathon is hard to beat.

My first Triathlon of 2013 - absolutely freezing! As a well established West London event this generally attracts some strong Age Groupers. Thames Turbo themselves have produce and continue to produce some nationally very competitive triathletes.

The distances on this course are a bit odd. The pool is an old outdoor heated facility with lengths somewhere between 25 - 50 metres. I think the swim comes in at just under 500m. The bike is a flat 22k out and back with a tricky 2 mile section over multiple speed bumps that seems to sap energy form your legs. The run is fantastic on the flat pathways through Bushy Park and comes in at circa 5.2k.

My total time was 1.05 2nd Vet 45-49 and 31st overall/300. I felt strong and was quite pleased with this early season performance against a quality field.

Quite a few flyers were looking forward to the twenty miler on their schedule this weekend and disappointed when the Oakley 20 was cancelled. After some chats on Facebook and emails a group of (fool)hardy runners decided to run the course at race time anyway.

Richard Jones II provided a bus service and took me (JezzerBell), Michelle and David Cook up to Oakley where Paul Owen joined us. We had wondered if anyone else would have the same idea as us but it seems that we were the only ones there at 10 for the race start. So with plenty of layers on to keep us warm(ish) we set off. It is strange heading out on a race course without the race being underway. I think the lack of race focus explains why I kept feeling the need to stop for a pee. Paul claims it was 47 stops, that isn't true of course.. The last one was just to tie up my laces !

The course was very icy on the top of the first loop, slippy at training pace and impossible to race on, the Harriers made the right call to cancel. We hit snow flurries and strong freezing wind which made it tough.

Michelle and David pushed on for the last three miles and are both looking strong and in good form for their marathons. Michelle was particularly pleased to be First Lady home.

Beautiful snowy scenery but very hilly and tough conditions under foot - hence the impressively ridiculously slow time!

Nice to see a few other hardy marathon running flyers there too, well done to all!

This was the 4th time I've done this event - always on the same challenging route over the highest hill in Leicestershire - and the most challenging conditions by far. The heavy snow on the hills meant much more walking than usual - though it also covered what could have been a mud bath all round - not just the last couple of miles.

Well done to all who finished - the first time we've had more than 4 from the club doing it.

After a few good weeks the wheels seem to be falling off. On the Reverse Run, last run in the Starlight Cinema 5K Series when times are usually quicker, I felt like I ran well then the watch showed a minute slower than the last run with 27min 10sec being required to get over that line. In the Club Track Champs on Saturday I achieved a DNF in the 800m, my first race, mainly because I was sent off with the other men. After that I was put in the same races as the 10 and 12 year old girls and I did pretty well though many of the kids beat me, not by too much though. Having to race the kids is harder than one might think but is great fun as they hate being beaten by a dinosaur!

This was the very first event organised by Zero3events (www.zero3events.com) – a new venture started by our very own Rick Hollingsworth and Rebecca Fleckney.

The course was a circular route round the picturesque river embankment in Bedford. The morning was very wet and chilly but the rain miraculously cleared up for the duration of the race. Becs started the race and immediately two young lads sprinted off to the front with Rick on lead bike having to work hard to keep ahead of them. As they disappeared into the distance the rest of us were left to battle for 3rd spot. I took the lead in the peloton early on following the well-marked and well –marshalled route (with many familiar faces!). I started to tire as we approached the town bridge but managed to hang on just ahead of RJ2 before the finish outside Bedford rowing club.

A free pint of Guinness was awarded to all finishers and best fancy dress was awarded to a chap who had travelled all the way from Birmingham. A very well organised event and am looking forward to the next zero3events race.

Having only tackled my first 5k at the beginning of February (Bedford Park Run), I decided to move up to 10K and the Dunstable Downs 10K Trail Run sounded like a suitable starting point. As it turned out the snow was billowing around in the near sub-zero temperatures of Sunday morning and added to the interest of this off road race. Zig-zaging across the top of the Downs was pretty good and by the time we headed down hill to run along the base of the chalk escarpment my pace was pretty good. However this second part of the trail was decidedly different in character and bearing in mind Dave Sedgley's instructions on running downhill I struggled to take the corner before becoming acquainted with a hawthorn bush! After this it was slip-sliding through the mud and eventually the steep stepped ascent back up to the top. There was still plenty more mud to come as we headed through green lanes and spinneys before an opportunity to cool your feet in an impossible to avoid ‘puddle.’ The final stretch and then uphill to the finish line, and it was all over. My final time was as I had expected bearing in mind this was further, muddier and hillier than anything I’ve done before. However, it was so much more fun than running on roads and a great way to spend a wet cold Sunday morning.

This race was great - there was hills (and steps) and water and mud. It was hard but a lot of fun. I ran with Mike for most of the race, taking it in turns to find a path through a swamp or pace the way up a hill. All the tough bits were in the second half of the race, which was even more challenging after finding rhythm in a decent pace for the first 5k. The course undulated through lots of slippery mud between about 5 and 8k and then we were faced with a big old hill of slippery mud. We knew it was coming but it was a real test at this late stage. The rest of the course provided slippery sloping paths through the woods and lots of water and tree roots. My legs had been drained by that hill so the run-in to the finish was quite a slog - which showed as Mike left me in his wake over the last mile. And a short steep slope up to the finish straight was a harsh twist!

Having been off with injury for quite a while, it felt great to be running again, and I was pretty chuffed with my performance. Was a bit dissappointed with the time until I heard that the winner only finished in 43 minutes and me and Mike were in the top 20!! (And the course was closer to 11k than 10k.) Well done to all the Flyers who finished this one - it was cold and wet and steep!!

Two years ago I'd been short cut to miss out the mile with the bogs, as I was too near the back; and last year I wasn't feeling too well on the day so only did the Cub route plus a couple of miles. So this year I was pleased this year I was able to do the whole route.

The first half had only the beach start and some half steep hills, with lots of flatish though sometimes muddy fields. So I was at the half-way point in 2-20 - thinking that a sub 5 hour time was quite possible! But all the big hills, including the climb up the cliff from the beach known as the 'Stairway to Heaven', were in the second half, plus the infamous bogs (which this year were wetter & less sticky than usual) and the long run on the stoney beach - which I mostly walked.

It was with a great deal of nerves and ‘fear of the unknown’ that I arrived at the starting line on a cold and damp morning as a Grizzly virgin. I had listened to all the war stories the previous night from Becs, Annie Page and Alison Parker and taken some words of advice from Martin Beare, the master, but still was unsure how it was all going to go. I hoped for a time of around 3hrs 40mins as this was my last marathon time (from 9 years ago!!) and was told that would be a good gauge for Grizzly completion time. However, not having spent that much time on my feet and the impending hills, mud, bogs etc realistically if I finished at all would be good!.

Myself and Jeremy Bell scampered off together at the start across the pebbled beach and off up into the hills at a reasonable pace, the first 7 miles going well, even with a ‘wee’ stop for Jeremy at 3 miles we still managed to stay together!. We continued to stay within sight of each other up to around mile 11 when the bigger hills began to kick in and I started to flag leaving Jeremy to open up a gap. The concept of having to walk during a race felt a bit strange but I knew it was the only way I was going to get up some of the steep inclines and conserve energy. The heavens then decided to open up and bring sleet and rain and I was pleased I took the decision to wear a warmer top and gloves! At mile 15 I had the pleasure of ‘Running’ (in a very loose sense) through a bog with thick gloopy mud up to my knees; however I am pleased to report both shoes stayed on! Mile 17 brought us back onto the beach where the sea breeze was extremely cold and I suddenly developed bad cramp in both quads. I hobbled over to the water crossing and the marshals were obviously concerned and said that I could pull out as this could be the last chance before the end. Through gritted teeth I ‘politely’ declined their offer and after splashing my legs with the cold sea water I managed to soldier on along the beach with the cramp easing off. The next mile took a steep assent up the ‘stairway to Heaven’ and I had no choice but to walk as my legs and body felt physically broken and now was starting to suffer from the cold and wet. Thankfully the last ¾ mile was downhill on road back to Seaton and I managed to pick up the pace a little, finishing at 3hrs 53mins (according to my Garmin) and I was pleased to have completed it under 4hrs! I met up with a shivering and shaking Jeremy Bell, who had completed some 10mins earlier, in the sea front pub and he got me a very welcome Guinness! We both said NEVER AGAIN but after a couple of beers and a change into warm clothing both our moods lightened and we reflected on what we had achieved, will we be back next year?..........................

The course was very muddy and hilly and with the extreme weather experienced made it a very difficult event. Hats off to the marshals who had to endure hours out on the course in all weathers but continued to encourage and hand out endless jelly babies! Well done to Martin Beare completing the course in sub 3 hours, amazing!!. Also to Becs, achieving her best Grizzly time so far, and to Annie, Debs and Lorraine. Also special well done to Alison Parker who done very well in the ‘cubs’ race!

I am always keen to do this race as it provides great training for my Ironman races and my Marathon races, I have never made it a secret that i hate hills and i am very weak on them compared to my road racing, however i know that like a bad tasting medicine its good for you.

This race also provides an opportunity to team bond with other AFF on a weekend away in Devon. Thanks to our Becks organising, most flyers were booked into a very nice Hotel for 2 nights.

This race is iconic and well known throughout the running world as one of the toughest running races in the UK, its simply a race full of hills, mud, bogs, streams, oh did i say hills, oh and more hills.

I was very keen for this race to test me to the max not only physically but mentally as my Ironman races require massive amounts of mental strength.

I started my race quite conservatory as i knew what lay ahead, i soon got into my zone and maintained a good steady speed.

After the half way mark i was feeling very strong and decided to attack the remainder of the race. I soon caught the 2nd lady and encouraged her to push for the lead and we ran together for the last few miles and we soon overtook the leading lady, my job done i pushed harder so i was not chicked, i finished 50 yards ahead of her however the results had her in front as she was bar coded before me as she stopped to thank me for helping her get the win.

I was so pleased with my result and current fitness so early in my seasons training preparations.

Well done to my better half Debs who managed 1st AFF lady home on her first outing at the Grizzly and all the other Flyers, Our Club chair had a very impressive run too also as a first timer shortly followed by Mark Billington. I think iam right in saying there were 11 AFF who took part but not sure of the full results at this stage.

I myself for sure will be waiting to register for the Grizzly,s offerings in 2014 and my 6th consecutive Grizzly, why not join us on this toughy if you dare.

Grizzly Cub - Unfortunately a knee injury meant just the cub run for me (any old excuse). The cub is just over 9 miles compared with the full Grizzly at just over 20, so I swiftly earned the title ‘Lightweight’. It still featured the shingle beaches and the infamous “stairway to heaven”, nothing ever seemed flat and I’m sure there were more ups than downs. It’s such a great event though – well organised and really well marshalled.

Many thanks to Becs for organising the hotels, the logistics, etc, and to all the other Flyers for making it a great weekend. Hats off to you all for doing the 20 miles in such impressive times. Maybe next year...

Not Terry's quickest time but a good work out as part of his London Marathon training. Unusual to find a half marathon on a Saturday, this event was held at Long Marston Airfield, just outside of Statford-Upon-Avon. The race was 4 laps around the airfield and incorporated a 5K (1 lap) and 10K (2 laps) races. The course route followed a 'star' layout which meant for the spectators (ie me) to see the runners 4 times on each lap as they returned to the centre of the 'star' each time. The course was flat but suffered with the wind on a very open course.

Terry had started conservatively running the first 5K in 19.46 and was down in 15 place but each subsequent lap he began to move through the field and with 2 miles to go had taken 2nd place. He completed the final 5K in 18.54.

Great course for spectators but not the most interesting one for runners and by incorporating two other races made it difficult to work out at times who was in which race. Nevertheless, a well organised event.

Having woken up feeling worldly weary - nothing to do with the 18 miles of off-road running "pleasure" with Phil Horan the day before - rather having to endure 3 hours of earache from the Tarmac loving boy - I decided to attempt the MK10K. On a cold, windy and sleety morning, perfect :) MK races seem to attract the bad weather!

Reward? 37:18 for a PB of over 1 and a half minutes. The first half is fast and flat, but the second half undulating and pretty technical with loads of tight twists and turns and a tough hill at 9k at Campbell Park, as well as the worst of the elements.

Its been quite a 3 weeks, with 3 big PB's each weekend. Bit of a rest from running now to recharge. Big well done to Phil Holland who won the race, the day after his winning the National Duathlon Championships. Awesome!

Well, not a bad day at the office all told. Just over 1:22 (PB by over 3 minutes), 1st V40, Masters award and $50 prize at the Phoenix half marathon :) 16th overall out of about 2000.

Having been hit and miss this year with running to say the least, I decided just to forget my usual even / negative split and go eyeballs out from the start. Went off with 2 other guys who were a wee bit quicker (and younger!) than me, pacing at just over 6 minute mile pace. I thought it best to try and stay with these guys. Through halfway in 40:09 (10K in 37:50) and flying, but I knew the tough part was still to come. Miles 7 to 10 are on a completely straight road as far as the eye can see, into a breeze and my pace dropped and I really had to dig in, so delighted with 1:22 and a V40 to add to the V35 from last year.

The weather was great and the course is fast and flat, which is good, but being honest im in my element with a few hills thrown in and those really long straight roads really test you when I was on my own at that part....but delighted with 2 big PB's in 2 weeks. Time to find a 10K now!

(Guys - sadly a moment of travel time calculation madness made me think I could get to Berkhamstead half an hour quicker than was actually possible... meant that I started over 9 minutes after the last runner before me had crossed the line, and only caught up with sweeper van and last runner after well over a mile - woops.... The start chip mat, unsurprisingly, it seems didn't register my start time, so my gun and chip times are stated as identical - I really promise I wasn't confident enough to be at the very front of the start pack! Negotiating the initial route through the winding streets of Berkhamstead through crowds of people but no interested route marshals was interesting too - all self-inflicted, of course.

If there was any chance of recording my watch time rather than official chip / gun times it would help wounded personal pride, but if not I quite understand. An important lesson has been learned.....!)

This is an event where you have to plot grid references - then answer clues at each when you find them.

It was supposed to be 26 miles - but I made it 28 when I measured the route I'd taken - and I couldn't have cut it much shorter. It started just west of Ivinghoe and took a circular route through Edlesborough, Dunstable Downs, Whipsnade, Little Gaddesdon, Aldbury & Wiggington, round the west of Tring and back via the Grand Union canal. It was a cold start, but became warmer when the sun came out for a while. I completed it in 7 hous 5 mins. Annie also did the event - but don't know her time.

First multi-sport event for me this year. It was a last minute decision to have a go at this event and to be honest I didn't appreciate it was a World and European Qualifier. As a qualification race it inevitably attracted a high caliber competitor. To give you an idea my 1.14h finish would have got me 3rd place overall last year as a non-qualifying event.

As it was I was 49th male and 5th in my AG. I’m kicking myself now as would have qualified automatically had I registered. I lost close to minute in T1 struggling with gloves and my helmet strap which probably cost me some places. My run splits ( the first in 18,21 and the second in 18,34) where the most encouraging part of the day and it appears the cross country season has paid dividends.

I was quite pleased with my overall performance as Duathlon is not really my thing ( …..too much running and not enough swimming) and on a hilly bike course again not particularly suited to my 90kg frame. Thanks to Ady for keeping me honest on the bike we had a great little tussle and well done Craig on an awesome rooky performance (1st in AG). Both achieved automatic GB qualification (TBC).

I should also mention Phil Holland smashed the Standard Distance event and took first place in a staggering time of 1.55h.

Described as a training run as part of runners build up towards the London Marathon, this was an ideal opportunity for Terry to run his longest training run to date! I was the 'water bottle and gel man' on route for Terry!!

The object was to run 6.50 miles aimed at a sub-3 marathon and his finish time of 1.56.12 was spot on despite some up and down mile splits along the way. It is an undulating but pleasant course through Ashridge following in parts the Berkhamstead Half route in reverse. There was also a good number of Flyers using this as part of their LM training. Terry had a solid run and picked up the pace over the final 4 miles covering them in 25.41. Despite that, he found the distance tough and commented in the car on the way home that he doesn't intend to do another marathon - I pointed out that he still has this one to do!!

This has become an annual trip to visit and stay with ex member Jad Bienek and her husband Geoff.

This years previously undiclosed route was centered on the village of Marton and covered some 25 miles of Welsh border hill country. Hills included Long Mountain, Bromlow Callow, Stapeley Hill, Corndon and Llan Fawr, and was supposed to be 4,400ft of ascent - but someone's GPS recorded it at 5,500ft !

It was a cold morning with the ground mostly frozen - so no mud till later in the day, when we had some sunny periods and great views. Corndon Hill at about 19 miles was the steepest, and it took me about 30 mins to climb half a K. After this my legs didn't want to run much & I walked most of the way back!

Brian Layton did it in 6-21, and Jad & Geoff walked the 17 mile route in about 6-45.

Not a bad end to a pretty awful week. 1st at Hackney park run in 17:24, PB by 40 seconds :)

I was due a 20 miler this weekend but thought a 5k blast would suit my frustrated kickass mood better! Inspired by the speedy David Cook, I headed down to Hackney, which is a fast and flat out and back course.

Having got lost on my previous attempt :-) I was keen not to be first out and thankfully I had a guy 20m ahead until the turn, otherwise it would have happened again with no signs! I caught him at 4k and turned on the afterburners for a fast last km. Now for Phoenix half again next Saturday.

Oh and Garmins? The burglars are welcome to keep mine! Someone told me they weren't accurate anyway.....

The plan was to enter another Aussie Parkrun and the chosen venue was a drive away at Kingscliff with a (wait for it) 07:00 am start time. I arrived with plenty of time to spare and went for a gentle warm up run while the organisers were setting up. Just enough time for some banter with the locals before the off on a reasonably flat 2.5km "out and back" course on a concrete promenade beside the sea. The sky was blue, the waves were crashing and the sun was already intense but there was a gusting wind that hinted at the weather that appears to be in store for us next week.

I found myself towards the front of the starting group and somehow managed to keep the leading 4 runners within sight. I would normally expect to be passed a number of times on these type of races and kept myself well to the left hand side of the path. Strangely, no one came by for the entire race.

The first mile was despatched in 6:27 and I can remember thinking that I'll pay for this! Spurred on by the memory of Martin Beare once saying to me "this HAS to hurt", I dug in for a 6:35 second mile but by this point noticing the gusting wind more and more. It was beginning to hurt but I knew that I would really hate to miss the opportunity that had presented itself for a PB. I was determined to not let the third mile go into the 7:00's and was repaid with a 6:52. The dash to the line was across some welcome soft grass and I gassed it to a 5:48 pace (this is unheard of territory for yours truly) and finished with 20:21 on my watch.

The official result confirmed my new 5k PB as 20:23 a full 26 seconds off of last year's Doug Anderson (after which I promised myself that I'd never have to run a 5k again!)

I was the 5th finisher but the 4th male to cross the line. I convincingly won my Age Group (VM 55-59) and recorded the best male "Age Grade" of the day with 76.7% The winner's time was 17:22 but the 25 year old hadn't been pushed towards his 17:08 PB.

All in all, a good mornings work so it was back to the apartment for breakfast and a chance to bore my long-suffering wife with my tales of daring-do.

We will be staying here in Broadbeach Waters for a week before driving further south to Coffs Harbour (the news reports are not good with some really serious flooding taking place there!) I don't think that there'll be time for another Parkrun but I do have a place in the Port Macquarie Running Festival Half Marathon to look forward to on the 10th March.

I was keen to return back to this race as i enjoyed the first of the 3 round series, I missed the second round as it clashed with the 3 counties XC and evidently my loyalties lay firmly with AFF. This event was run by "Just racing UK" an events company that is well known to me through Triathlon. I must say how happy i was with the total organisation from race enrty to finish line and all at pocket money prices and offering a choice of 5k, 10k, 15k naturally my choice was always going to be the 15k.

I entered this race with completely shot legs following 3 previous days of heavy training as iam in a critical phase of my base building training ahead of a busy and important year in Triathlon across Europe and Worldwide. I try and race often to keep my speed work up which complements the long slower stuff, it gets a bit of Zipp into the mix.

I was not expecting much other than a training session on tired legs so was pleased to finish 7th Overall among the youngsters. An added bony arse (bonus) was a beautiful spring like morning with clear, sunny, blue skies. It would have been the perfect day however sadly AFF Tracey had a tumble and was rushed to hospital, I am happy to learn it was a nasty twist and not a fracture. In total 7 AFF took part on the challenging course and all but Tracey had great races and finished with big smiles. Get well soon Tracey !

I'd almost forgotten just how good the whole Parkrun organisation was having not run one of their Saturday morning 5k's since June 2012

Given that we're on holiday in Australia and currently in Sydney, it seemed rude not to get out of my hotel bed at 06:00 am and run the 2 miles to my daughters home. We then drove together to Sydney Park in the St.Peter's area to give it a go. Nikki hadn't run competitively since February 2011 when we did the Milton Keynes Parkrun together (I noticed that MK was cancelled due to a waterlogged course!)

There was a really good organised warm up before the race which was attended by 234 runners, many wearing club vests. The atmosphere was electric when three young children counted us down from 5 and off we set. My 5K PB was set at last years Doug Anderson and I knew that I'd have to average less than 6:43 min/mile pace to beat that. I'd heard that there was a "hill" halfway around the course and now know why the locals refer to it as "Heart Break Hill" as it certainly slowed everyone's pace for that section. My 6:39 first mile was thus negated by the 7:03 it took me to get through the second one but nevertheless, I was determined to make a go of it.

I was passed just after this point by an easy running guy so I decided to see if I could hang on to him for the second half of the race. We slowly picked other runners off who were also feeling the heat (it must have been 25C and it was only 8:10 am by then) and made good progress. I could see the finish line some 250 metres from the final turn and thought that I'd pull up next to this guy, fully expecting him to change down 2 gears and disappear towards the funnel. Nothing happened, but spurred on by his equally laboured breathing, I dug in and left him behind..

I finished 23rd out of 234 entrants, was 4th in the age graded listing and FIRST in my age category (okay, there were only 4 VM55-59). Next race will hopefully be at the Kingscliff Parkrun (just south of Brisbane) next week and your roving reporter should be in touch after then.

With an initial team entry of 18 senior men and 5 senior women and what looked like on paper a very strong men's team from the Flyers I was full of expectation for the Club to do well at these Championships. Infact, it would be a first for many years that we would have managed a team entry. As the day approached a few drop outs but things still looked good until the final 48 hours when 9 emails were received informing me they were unable to run. To say I was disappointed and annoyed was an understatement and add to that 2 Club members didn't even bother to inform me they wouldn't be there. The Club had paid the entries for these Championships and whilst I will accept that those who couldn't run had all genuine reasons it was bitterly disappointing for those 7 from 23 who did and unfortunately this now meant we were unable to field teams.

On the positive side, 7 Flyers were able to enjoy a great day of running over a traditional cross country course that was challenging and tough throughout over heavy, sticky mud. Of course those up front made it look so easy but for both the women's and men's races they were taking place on a course that had already experienced 8 previous races that day!

In the women's race over 8K Tracy Nichols had a really strong run finishing 156th (42.06). Annie Page was our other runner and she was just pleased to get round in an impressive 53.36 and 244th place. Up front a tremendous race for the first 3 places eventually won by Lily Partridge (28.57) with Steph Twell 2nd and Emily Pidgeon 3rd, all from Aldershot, Farnham & District.

Earlier, Tracy's daughter Lauren as our sole Junior runner finished a brilliant 75th in the Under 13 girls race. Lauren is expected to be selected to run for Bedfordshire in the English Schools Championships next month.

The Men's race was over 15K - 3 laps on a course that was now well turned over. As i said the men were bitterly disappointed that we couldn't field a Flyers team but that didn't distract from some fine individual performances. Craig Palmer is in some fine form at present and I was impressed with his strong running as he passed me after each lap. After the first short but tough climb at the start I counted Craig in around 25th place. This was a quality field despite some runners opting to miss these Championships with the Nationals the following week, but Craig's 38th place was outstanding. Phil seemed to be enjoying his run in 69th place and Tim Harris and John Mitcalf both battled their way round for a well deserved 130th and 242nd places respectively. Finally, my admiration goes out to Brendan O'Mahoney, relatively new to the Club and to running. It must have been daunting for Brendan to see himself at the back of the field as early as that first climb. Nevertheless, Brendan stuck at it and finished this really tough course with a smile on his face and then proceeded to milk it as he crossed the finish line with 'mobot impressions to the camera man!! - Well done Brendan (I hope you weren't late for your Valentine's meal!).

For the record Frank Tickner won the race in 48.10 with Beds & County's Neilson Hall 2nd in 49.14. Beds & County had a great day in the Men's race taking the team prize with 6 runners in the first 18 including a Huw Lobb who started his running career with the Flyers back in the 90's.

What a great way to spend a Saturday. It was my third year at Parbold Hill, it was wet, it was slippy but most of all it was BLOODY MUDDY. I lost a shoe (right by the photographer). I had lots of fun. At the finishing line everybody was laughing, smiling and patting each other on the back.

Later I ran the Nightrunner off Formby beach. I had to admit my legs where a little stiff by this time. But there was a lot of excitement in the crowd. It is the first time I’ve done a night race. I had practiced early mornings with my head torch. The real thing is very exciting, running through the forest, through the dunes and across the beach. All the time with this unnerving sense that you are being chased (no paranoia at all!) I have been bitten by the night runner bug.

Well its been a down and down week, with a big up and up weekend and I don't mean for today's race result. A very close family member had to go into hospital at short notice for serious surgery and seems to have come out the other side very well, although early days. As a result, Mrs. Pablo shot off early doors to the land of the black and white stripes and I've been a single dad for half the week. I have run 4 times but all short, so with the unexpected taper and increasingly good news on the health front, I ventured forth to Bedford park run 5k and managed to bag 1st place with a new PB of 18.43 averaging 5.56 per mile (averaging in the 5's a first for me as well) beating the old one by 27 seconds and going into the 18's for the first time. I even washed some clothes today as well, albeit via instructions on the dog and bone from 240 miles away.

Having had a groin injury in November then a violent viral attack in mid-January things did not look too good for the Taupo Harriers Starlight Cinema 5K series. Yours truly trotted round Race 1 (23rd Jan 2013) finishing in 28:17 whilst more of an effort was made in Race 2 on Waitangi Day (6th Feb 2013) when 26:20 was achieved. I never knew such a huge effort was needed to take 2 minutes off a race of that length. Two weeks’ time will see efforts at getting nearer 5min per km and so take out my nemesis who has now beaten me twice this century – young 67 year old blighter!

In short: Another fantastic Flitwick 10k	In full: Thank you Flitwick for superb encouraging marshals yet again, it really does help, and great organisation as usual. Nice to run in the sun too!
In short: First race for me, won't be my last!	In full: As the tag line says, this was my first ever actual race. A great event, well run and organised by the great stewards. Very beginner friendly, people readily available and very happy to help. The run itself is quite hilly so won't necessarily be a PB every time. But the route is very scenic through the countryside and very few cars are around. Will definitely be back next year!

3C's XC League - Race 5: Delapre Park, Northampton - Sunday 3 February
	The course - Its a two lap thing with a variety of terrain; across parkland, flattish and squelchy, under the trees, felt like all up hill, squelchy again but wider with more opportunities for passing than I remember in previous years and with some more technical twisty turny bits at the top, by the golf course where it was flat with the option of running a short section on the tarmac or the grass at the side before running back across an undulating section of the park. Although its two laps, you can't see how far ahead of you the fast boys are so its better than Wellingborough at the start of the season.

The results - They announced the top three teams from the day's race and our men's team came in first position once more to win the Men's Trophy. Congratulations, another cracking team performance, taking 5 places in the top ten means other clubs really don't stand a chance. I'm waiting to see how the women got on in the final race, but season's best finishes from Amy (10th) and Michelle (17th) along with Claire's first XC of the season (38th) ensured that us women had our best score of the season too. Overall for the season, it was no surprise that our men came out top having finished first in every race. Individual awards went to Phil Holland, 1st Senior Man, Ste Hartley, 2nd MV40 and Nick Jones who was 1st MV50. And finally, probably the most coveted award also went to AFF, we won the team prize for the season! I can't stress enough, its not just the first few over the finish line who achieve this, its everyone who finishes, knocking back the finishing position of all the other runners behind you, that make the difference. This achievement is a reflection of the consistently high turn out to XC races all season as well as the top effort everyone has put in - there was a record turnout of 51 Flyers at the Wing mudfest (Race 2) and a record 81 Flyers have raced for the team this season.

	The thank yous - At the presentation at the end, the announcer mentioned that we'd cheated this year, we'd trained and someone once said "the more I practice, the luckier I get". Thank you to the coaches who gave up their time to plan and deliver the XC specific training sessions, the evidence is that it was time well spent and a reflection of the top teamwork that goes on in our club. I wonder if we've been rumbled now and other clubs will follow in our footsteps and try XC training of their own .. well they can try ... Thank you to everyone who has contributed to this season's success including Phil B for putting all the info on the club website and all those recorders who stood at the finish and collected our numbers to ensure our scores were recorded accurately. The curry - What better way to pat ourselves on the back than try out the new local curry house on Sunday evening. Many thanks to Ste who organised this and to all of you who came along, it was a great evening and the buffet food was spot on.A final word from the captains - Our work for this season is done. Thank you for your support all season, your enthusiasm has made our job easy and it really has been a pleasure. Jo and Ste - XC Captains.

Port Macquarie Half Marathon, Australia - Sunday 10 March My two Australian Parkruns had gone really well and next on my marathon training plan agenda (Milton Keynes in May) was to run a half marathon on Sunday 10th March. I'd researched this via Google before I left Blighty and saw that Port Macquarie, about 4-5 hours north of Sydney, had a running festival on that very weekend. I made contact with the Race Director and got a typical "no worries mate" reply and I was in. The course was a technical 3 lapper along the sea front and over 3 bridges on each lap. Some of the paths seemed quite narrow but they didn't prove a problem with runners managing to pass without running headlong into each other. One advantage of the mini roundabouts at each end of the course was being able to see who was following and how tired the ones ahead looked. The guy who led from the gun and went one to win in just over 1:10 was a particularly impressive athlete and seeing him at least 6 times was quite a change (the likes of Paul Farmer and Phil Holland always disappear into the far distance). It turned out that he was also on a marathon training plan so he ran the 10k race immediately afterwards but only came second in that one ;-) I really felt that I could PB if I kept focus on my splits and my previous best of 1:39:18 was from Brighton in February of last year. A quick sum showed that I needed to maintain a minute/mile pace of no more than 7:30 but one of my training runs during the week hadn't exactly filled me with confidence. I was due to do a mile warm up followed by 3 miles at my marathon pace of 8:00/mile in conditions that were very similar to race day i.e. 27 degrees and 90+% humidity at 07:00am. I thought that I would turn it into a race warm up and run those 3 miles at 7:30 pace instead and although I managed it, I certainly didn't feel like running another 10.1 miles at that pace as well. It's amazing what race day can bring out in you and after being introduced to the crowd as an "international competitor" they might have just put a target on my back. In truth, it was all done "tongue in cheek" and I have never run with such friendly and encouraging runners and supporters. I allowed myself my 6:30 paced first half mile (well, it's the adrenaline) and quickly settled into a sub 7:20 pace. I couldn't believe how comfortable this felt and just counted the miles down.
The turnaround points allowed me to notice if there were any other same age group (VM 50-59) ahead of me and all I could see were far younger runners (or as it appeared). I had a chat with one guy decked out in his Ironman Tri-suit at about the half way point and was really impressed by how he just drifted past other runners. I thought that I might try and stay with him but his pace was a little too hot for me so I let him go. I gave him a more than cursory glance at the final turnaround and decided that he might be 50+ and in which case he was running position 1 with yours truly in a silver medal place. The final turnaround left less than 2 miles to the finish line and after one of these, I thought that I could see him ahead looking a little lethargic in his stride. I decided that this was the inspiration that I needed and started to reel him in. The sun was on our backs and I felt sure that he was going to take off as soon as he saw my shadow but nothing happened. I then decided that as we were only 250 metres out, he would take off as I was passing him but again nothing happened. I'd decided on some "race craft" just to make sure of this and passed him while I was literally holding my breath. My idea was that he'd think that I had loads left as I wasn't even panting in the final run in. Anyway, I eventually filled my lungs and ran those last 180 metres (that's how long they said the finish carpet was!) like my life depended on it. My wife was videoing me at the time and for the first time ever, I actually think that I look to be running fast (bear in mind that this is a relative term Paul, Phil, Paul, George, Martin et al).
I actually finished some 20 seconds ahead but later discovered that another 50-59 year old male (but with the face of a 30 year old grafted on) was 10 minutes further up the road from me so silver it was. My Australian training camp (or as my wife refers to it, annual holiday to see our daughter) was over but I'd ticked all the right boxes in my final race: even splits check, target pace or less check, negative spilt check, extended sprint for the line check, finish inside the top 34 check, win a silver medal for the first time ever check and PB double check! G'day - it was indeed. David Cook 1:35:06