Launceston Half Marathon 5th July by Debbie Hancock

The Beast is Tamed Once Again!
After days of feeling anxious, guidance from the running Daddy, unable to eat breakfast, finally Sunday 5 July has arrived, the day 48 STARC runners venture to Launceston to tame the beast – the Launceston Half Marathon.

The day began abruptly at 5:30 am when I woke from a dream that I’d got there and forgotten my runners.  Next the shock came for Katie when I was actually ready when the Bullocks came to pick me up.  Once I got to Launceston the nerves really set in, I could have cried I was that nervous.

10:30 am and off we go, the first mile and half was downhill and fast, then came the first incline, result the ‘fit’ military guys with their backpacks start walking, no good looking the business if you can’t perform I think to myself, the next few miles as I remember were undulating, around the 5 – 6 miles I’m passed with STARC’s very own Paula Radcliffe who shares with me they need to use the loo,  not long after Miss Polka Dot Pants finds an appropriate place to stop, there I was thinking she’d go behind the hedge but not our Paula, down with the shorts and a flash of the cheeks.  Not long after she’s passed me, through the water station with Dave Rowe on hand handing out water and offering energy gels – thanks Dave.  Not long after Polka Dots is fitting with a tractor driver for blocking the lanes, arms up in the air and not a happy runner.  Up and down dale for afew miles until we reach the 10 mile mark, from all the horror stories I know the only way was up, to start with it wasn’t as bad as I thought, but the further we climbed the harder it got, now it’s starting to get unamusing and some choice words starting coming out when Mr T springs out from behind a van and runs the last 1 ½ miles in with me, what a lovely surprise, I could of stopped and given him a big kiss but I had the beast to tame.  The last mile was tough, I could of easily either walked or cried but all I could hear was I haven’t come to watch you walk and it got me through!! I knew the last few miles were going to be hard but that last bit was so not funny.  But such an achievement to finish – woo hoo! 

Another good outing for STARC whereby both the Men and Ladies team collected prizes for 3rd place.  Malcolm Roberts and Doug Alsop received medals for their age categories. First home for the men was Paul Beswick and for the ladies Kayleigh Newstead. 

Terry Wyatt was chuffed to be in within the 3 hrs, he would have been in sooner had he not stopped to admire the houses on the last stretch.  Geoff Bazeley was pleased Sarah let him beat her but make the most of it Geoff, she won’t let it happen very often!

Well done to Rich Hawken who managed to do a PB on such a demanding course.  Not forgetting for some this was their first ever half marathon, crazy but dedicated runners, they could have chosen an easier course. 

Another great performance by everyone who ran and a well deserved medal and T shirt.  

Boconnoc 5mile 17th May 2009 by Bruce Maclaren

On a lovely summers day, ok it was wet windy and very muddy 38 members of STARC ran the Boconnoc 5 miler, which in the end turned out to be 4.75 as the route had to be changed at the last minute when the land rover putting the markers out got stuck the decision was made to slightly alter the route, although anyone that upset Foghorn could have been directed in to the mud bath.  Due to the conditions there was not going to be any PBs but a storming run from Nigel Doyle fresh from London saw him first home for the club in 9th position and 1st vet 40 -49, he was closely followed by the ever reliable Andy Trudgian who was heard to mutter F****** hell that was deep after seeing Bruce go up to his knees in the first puddle 1 mile in to the race.  A storming run from Linda Ansell saw her first lady home in 20th position and first Female vet 35 - 44, she was followed home for STARC  by Osham Harrison who was 4th lady home in 38th. Other category winners were Sue Allen and Lisa Wotton 2nd and 3rd in Female vet 45 - 59, Bruce Maclaren and Gregory Pearce 1st and 3rd in the Male Vet 50 - 59.

By the sound of it lots of fun was had on the way round as evident in the photagraphs with lots of the ladies dancing about, Jamie Andrew was heard moaning that he lost 4 places and several seconds when he decided to go for a mud bath and there was a welcome wash off in the trough afterward for those brave enough to go in it.  A big thank you must go to the lots of marshalls from the club who took part in the pouring rain, believe me it was easier to run it than it was to stand about in the cold and wet.

Whitemoor 10k 10th May 2009 by Paul Bullock and Lesley Maclaren

A lovely sunny morning, perfect for running and 97 runners descended onto the small Clay Village of Whitemoor in Mid Cornwall. The race raises funds for the village playing fields and has a nice ‘village feel’ about it, with registration and post race presentations in the school.
22 STARC runners again made us the highest club entry, which is becoming quite common these days and there were also several STARC runners and families watching and providing vocal support.

 A really nice course with fast and breezy first mile and a half with the majority of the first half of the course being flat and downhill it was a quick start to the race. It was clear however that we would have to climb back up at some point. The main 2 hills kicked in after 4 miles and as per usual some enjoyed these others didn't.  Once again there was plenty of support on route thanks to all who came out including Paul Bullock, Katie, Gayle, Carole, Colin and Lindsey. It still surprises me how much a friendly face helps especially where Katie was positioned half way up the killer hill!!! Much needed and appreciated! A nice downhill and flat finish to a lovely scenic race. 

There were some great individual performances from our runners, with Bruce Maclaren (is he human?) leading the men home in 9th position, closely followed by Andy Trudgian, 7 seconds behind. Mark Crowle was the 3rd finisher for the men. Good to see the Nutter and Darren Hambly back on the roads and well done to them.
For the ladies, Osham was looking good at halfway as 3rd lady, but she tired in the hilly second half, but still had a good run. Kayleigh Newstead, in only her 2nd race is our new female star, finishing strongly and finishing 4th lady, just missing out on a podium position. Not bad for a 19 year old!  She was backed up by Osham and Lisa Wotton and Tracey Davey, who only had a few seconds between them.  Lisa is a newer member who will soon return to her old form as she races regularly. This all bodes well for the future of the ladies team performances.
Lesley Maclaren bounced of her fine London Marathon with her first sub – 1 hour 10k and would have been even faster if she spent less time posing, dancing and apparently singing for the camera!  All race photos were courtesy of Gayle O’Reilly and her company Blimey O’Reilly Photographics. Don’t give up your day job, Gayle!
Lyne Davey had a solid run and Alison Coleman continued her vast improvement with a great 63.08 run. Michelle Lobb showed she has recovered from London finishing just behind Alison, despite a bit of a hangover!

26th April 2009 - London Marathon by Terry Wyatt

Race day began with the coach journey from the hotel down to the start, as we got nearer so the nerves started to kick in for those virgin marathoners amongst us. It was then time to wish everyone good luck as we separated and made our way to our own starts. Charity runners and good for their age runners to the Red Start, the rest to the Blue Start. We now had 2 hrs to kill before the race began, this was spent drinking and peeing to ensure you remained hydrated for the race, the weather had turned out hot so we were going to have to make sure we took on board as much fluid during the race. then making sure you are vased up properly to prevent rubbing.

From the Blue Start some of our girls were seen on the big screen over on the Red Start, as usual St.Austell get seen everywhere. As the start drew nearer it was time for Geoff (now known as Pasty Man) Bazeley to carb up on his favourite food, one large pasty. Then it was off to the start, each going to their numbered pen. Like some on the Red Start Terry, Geoff, Jackie and Lindsey headed for Pen 9, about ½ mile behind the start. Taking advantage of his wife Sarah being on Red Start Geoff wasted no time in chatting up Goldilocks ( complete with beard) standing next to him.

And then the gun went and we were off, well those half a mile away were. It took 15mins for the last St.Austell runners to cross the start, but even before then Terry nipped off for a pee before finally crossing the start.

For those doing the race for the first time the next 26.2 miles was going to be experience to remember. The whole route packed with cheering crowds helping the runners on their way, encouraging those who needed it. It felt like St,Austell had support on every corner, with familiar faces appearing around the course only to reappear again further down the course. It was just as much a marathon for them getting around as it was for the runners.

St.Austell had 25 runners start the race, many in their charity vests, the rest in club colours, all 25 crossed the finish line. Not that it was that easy, many started with niggling injures, but over came these to ensure they finished. Greatest effort had to be Geoff Bate who suffered a double groin strain at 9 miles, but still managed to finish.

First home for the club was Dan Alsop in a fantastic 2hr 49mins, finishing 418 overall in only his 2nd ever marathon, he was followed by Paul Bestwick and Bruce Maclaren, both in under the 3hr mark. Bruce also finished 43rd in his age group. Hoping to finish inside 3hrs Nigel Doyle was a little disappointed with his time of 3hrs 15mins, he was followed by Paul Startup in 3hrs 40 mins. Next home was our first lady, Liz Lusty finishing in 3hrs 48 mins, next in was Jamie Andrew coming in just under the 4hr mark in 3hrs 59mins.

The next five finished in a 20 minute spell, Simon Pollard 4hrs 20mins, then second lady home was Shirley Cairney in 4hrs 23mins running for the Precious Lives charity, then came Rachel Bestwick in 4hrs 30mins who made it home despite a badly injured foot, shortly followed by Rachel Builder in 4hrs 34mins who was running for Cornwall Hospice Care. Then Sarah Bazeley running for Epilepsy Research UK came in soon after in 4hrs 38mins.

All running for Cornwall Hospice Care, the next three home were Holly Fenn in $hrs 41mins, Jackie Chillingworth 5hrs 4mins and Geoff Bazeley 5hrs 4 mins. They were closely followed by Lesley Maclaren in 5hrs 8mins. After spending much of the previous weeks ill, Katie Bullock running for Cornwall Hospice Care was next home in 5hrs 17 mins accompanied by her Dad Paul. Lindsey West was next home 5hrs 24mins completing one of her ambitions, followed closely by Stephen Humphries in 5hrs 25 mins. Carol Dunster was the last one home under 6hrs in a time of 5hrs 33mins.

The last four home were all raising funds for Cornwall Hospice Care, first in was Terry Wyatt in 6hrs 14mins, followed closely by Michele Lobb and Olivia Hinds both in 6hrs 15mins and Geoff Bate complete with injury (next seen on crutches at the club) in 6hrs 28mins. Having all finished it was great to see so many still gathered around the ‘S’ tree waiting for the later finishers to arrive, all congratulating each other in their accomplishment.

The next task was to get back to our hotel, this was no mean feat, with weary aching legs having to conquer the steep staircases of the underground stations. This done it was time for a quick shower or bath, watch some highlights and then off to the Ciao Bella restaurant for a deserved celebration meal. Running the marathon was an experience never to be forgotten, with every mile of the course packed with support you cannot help but get emotional about the whole event, if you ever want to run just one marathon, then I suggest you make it London!

An Resek Helly 29th March 2009 by Katie Bullock

The day started slightly on the cold side today for the 4th Grand Prix race of 2009 ‘An Resek Helly’. It soon warmed up as the race got underway. A slight change to the course this year due to a tree falling down on the course, so the 2nd mile was slightly different, however I personally thought the course was better.
With 53 St Austell runners running it was a great turnout for the club and a great support team as always.
Dan led the STARC team home coming 6th overall and 3rd in his age group. A great performance Dan. Some other good performances from the men. From what I hear there was a friendly tussle between Paul Bullock, Mark Trebilcock and Steve Budge, good to see you all working together. Well Done to Paul who came out on top after a recent spell of bad luck with injury, keep up the good work and you will fly around London, if you are not running with Katie.
Well done to the new daddy of the club, Simon Jones. A quick escape from Treliske to fly around the 10 mile course and back again. Shows some great commitment!
Good to see the Nutter back racing, although I did notice he was on coke in the pub and not Rattler, not sure why but I am sure Fergy will fill you in, he rode home with him last time. A great run by Terry Cairney and Geoff Bazeley, both breaking 1 hour 30 minutes comfortably.
Well done to Bruce who came 3 rd in his age group and Malcolm for winning his age group and the Men’s team coming 4th.
Onto the ladies, what a day for the ladies. Some cracking runs from some of our new ladies, securing the Ladies team 2nd place.  A brilliant effort. The first run in purple and gold for Jeri and Kayleigh who both featured in the ladies team, and what cracking runs they both had and what great potential they both have especially Kayleigh only 19 years old. Keep it up girls.
Congratulations to Sue Mellis who won her age group and Marilyn who came 3rd in her age group. you put us younger girls to shame. Well done to you both.
Although the course was slightly different Debbie Hancock clocked an 8 minute PB, well done to Debbie. Also Michelle Frank had a great run, running her first 10 miler for the club, it must be Fergy’s good influence Michelle!
Another special thanks to the support team today. It’s great to see so many making a special journey down to Helston to support the runners. Also great to have so many runners and supporters at the finish cheering everyone in whether they are fast or slow.
I still hear comments from other clubs commenting on the great support we have. Thanks again.
The day was rounded off by 33 STARC runners (counted by John Sidebotham, look out Stato!!) going back to the Norway Inn for a drink or two to reflect on the day’s events.
Well Done to all STARC today whether you ran or supported! Everyone’s effort and enthusiasm is top class!!

Duchy Marathon & Duchy 20 Mile - 8th March 2009.By Paul Bestwick

On Sunday 8th March, the Penventon Hotel in Redruth staged the 33rd Duchy Marathon & the 6th Duchy 20 mile road race. St Austell running club put out 22 runners in these two endurance events. The conditions looked good in the first few miles but all turned ugly when competitors reached “Hells mouth”. It lived up to its name, as competitors battled through hail stone, rain and high winds along its four or so miles stretch.

 Andy Trudgian led the way for St Austell Running Club in the marathon finishing in a time of 3:10:37 in 11th place. Next in for the team was Carl Miles in a PB time of 3:13:32 closely followed by Bruce Maclaren in 3:14:26. In his first marathon, Simon Jones finished in a magnificent time of 3:30:20 and counting towards winning the Male 1st team prize for a second year running. Yes, we held on to our first place shield!  Doug Alsop won the 3rd Vet 60 prize, finishing the marathon in a time of 3:41:18. Also running, in his first marathon was Richard Hawken 3:44:01, Mark Crowle finished in 3:52:18, Also making marathon debuts were Tim Adams 3:54:13, Pete Greet 3:59:04. Running his first marathon for St Austell running club was Ian Williams 4:03:02. Another marathon debut, Guy Hook 4:09:45.While Susan Mellis an established marathon runner, the only female marathon representative for the club, ran in a PB time of 4:31:52 and came 2nd Vet 55-59. Dave Endean also in his first marathon, ran in 4:34:57.

In the Duchy 20, Paul Bestwick was first home for the club in a time of 2hr13m53s in 6th place, first Cornish club runner overall. Followed by Nigel Doyle in 2hr22m41s whilst first lady home for St Austell running club was Rachel Bestwick in a fast time of 2hr43m48s, 5th lady overall. Rachel like many running the duchy 20 was competing in preparation for the 2009 London marathon this April. Simon Pollard finished the twenty in 3:07:55. While only a second apart, Rachel Builder, 3:15:27 & Shirley Cairney 3:15:28 both finished in great times. Sarah Bazeley finished strong in 3:23:52. Katie Bullock finished in 3:46:00. Sarah’s husband Geoff, who is new to running finished in a magnificent time of 4:04:16.  Overall a great day for St Austell Running club considering the conditions and the great effort and representation by their runners!

BIDEFORD HALF MARATHON  1 MARCH 2009 by Bruce Maclaren

Those that have done this one will know it as a swift half with a couple of small inclines and a flat second half but 8 members of St Austell were not going to be as quick as they normally would be on this course today due to an error at the Start making everyone do an extra ¼ mile or so.

It was a perfect day for racing and Paul Bestwick led the way home for the club, even at the end as always he looks like he could try harder. He was followed home by Bruce just over 2 mins behind (who also finished 2nd in his age group), and 3rd for the club was Mark Trebilcock followed by Rachel Bestwick, closely followed by Liz Lusty and Martin Pipet (first half marathon). Next in was Sue Mellis, she always makes it look so easy followed by Debbie Hancock, (we know you would have been quicker than last year Deb if we hadn’t extra mileage), and then Georgia Prowse (also first half marathon). 

We were also accompanied by  Rich Townsend who had a superb run but still kept trying to get over the wall and into  one of the gigs,  but Deb said not till next week. The support was their as always, thanks to Bruce and Hazel, Hazel apologises for anyone she missed in the photos but blames her camera, it’s not as good as Terry’s.

RESULTS (As at 1700 hrs)

Apologises for any wrong time or anything missed but done in a hurry as I now have to walk the dog.

Bruce Maclaren

To welcome in 2009 a small contingent of St. Austell Running Club made the trip out to Jamaica Inn on a rather cold and misty morning for the annual running of the race to Brown Willy and back across the Moors. The mixed emsemble of Bruce Maclaren, Mark Crowle, James Asser, Rob Martin, Helen Rule, Lesley Maclaren, Gayle O'Reilly, Andrew Ferguson, Terry Wyatt, Ken Brown and Phillip Ciano set off at 11:00 am with the rest of runners being cheered on by Hazel Maclaren, Helen Martin, Ken Brown's wife and baby across the A30 and onto the moor. Before the end of the first mile we came across a familiar face as Colin Hoult and fourlegged friend was enroute to cheer us on and wish everyone a happy new year. Once on the moor it became evident that any chance of enjoying the scenery had disappeared into the thick mist. To those at the back it wasn't long before most of the other runners also disappeared into the mist, only to reappear again at about 3 miles on their way back having already made it to the summit and were now on the return journey. At this stage Mark Crowle was the first St.Austell runner to appear closely followed by Bruce Maclaren who reminded Terry Wyatt that he was supposed to be running and not on a photographic outing. By the time Lesley Maclaren & Terry Wyatt had reached the base of Brown Willy they had seen all other St.Austell runners going the other way except for Gayle O'Reilly and Helen Rule who were obviously still on the desent around the other side of the hill. Once reaching the summit, Lesley & Terry decided this needed recording for prosperity so asked the Marshall to photograph the event. Meanwhile miles down the route Mark Crowle was on course to be the first St.Austell runner home, until disaster struck. One of his shoes decided that enough was enough and buried itself deep in the mud, this gave Bruce Maclaren the oppotunity to catch and pass him as he dug deep into the mud to reclaim his shoe.

This led to Bruce being first home for the club in one hour and so many seconds, a PB by him even with the extra half mile added to the course this year. Mark Crowle followed shortly behind followed by the rest of our runners, 53 minutes after Bruce had finished Lesley and Terry finally crossed the line having been cheered up the hill be Hazel, Helen, Gayle, James and anybody else who had not either frozen to death or gone home.

The new route was definitely an improvement and safer for the descent down Brown Willy, but many a muddy patch, and other obstacles made it and interesting and enjoyable event for those mad enough to get up New Years day and venture out onto the cold and misty moor.

The day of the 10k started pretty miserable with plenty of rain and a bit of wind. This for some would be perfect weather conditions for running, maybe not so great for our support team. The rain however did start to ease off as the start of the race drew near and by the actual start it had completely stopped!

47 St Austell runners lined up on the start line, some hoping for a PB, some to get into the team, a few to get under the hour and some just to make the finish line.
Dan led St Austell home coming in 14th place. He was followed by Carl Miles, Andy Trudgian, Paul Bestwick, Bruce Maclaren and Rob Wallbank and managed to come 2nd men’s team. Congratulations to Rob Wallbank who is always trying very hard to get in the team and on the day managed to have a great run to secure his 6th place in the St Austell team. Well done to Terry who was giving me a run for my money today and managed to beat his target of 1hour 05mins by 2 minutes! Well done Terry!

The ladies also had a good day, coming 5th in the ladies team prizes. Led in by Rachel Bestwick, closely followed by Kim Rowett, Shirley Cairney and Holly Fenn. Well done to the girls especially to Holly on your first team prize!!
Well done to Sue Mellis who was 3rd in her FV 55 -59 age group, the only age group winner for STARC on the day.
There were some great runs by many of the other ladies today. Lynne Davey was hoping to get under the hour and finished in a cracking time of 56mins 22 secs. Also trying to break the hour was Trish Jones and Helen Rule (our STARC celebrity, if you have yet to get your London Marathon magazine make sure you have a look out for a familiar face), who both did so and got themselves PB’s, Well done ladies.

It was great to see some new faces today. Well done to Debra Watts and Theresa Hemming and Lee Budge on their debuts for the club.
Special thanks must go to our fantastic support team. With out you guys our club would not be the same. Many other runners from other clubs have made comments about what a friendly club we are and how nice it is to see the flag flying and you lot cheering us all on, on the way around!!
Looking forward to seeing the race photos from Julian who was on route and trigger happy Hazel who we are looking for an improvement on her previous Probus 10k efforts behind the lense!!!!
Another great outing for the club, lets keep up the good work and look forward to the Mob Match were I am hoping to see at least 100 purple vests running around!

Although the day dawned bright and sunny, with a morning mist hinting at a hot day ahead, 527 runners were not deterred by the potential heat, nor the fairly difficult course (I overheard numerous debates as to which was toughest – Launceston or Truro - and opinion appeared to lean towards Truro).

Happily (as far as I know) there were no casualties of the weather which, in the event, was fairly kind with a few clouds to keep things cool.

I was marshalling at 4+ miles and, at that point the first 5 runners were well ahead of the rest of the field – this remained the case on the finish line, although they had all changed positions from when I’d last seen them. I imagine an interesting race took place between 4 and 13 miles.

Unfortunately, with many of our elite male runners either injured or on holiday, none of the top 10 places were ours. Andy Trudgian was first home in 17th but, although there was a strong supporting cast, the team could only manage 4th, a fraction behind Hayle. However, in the GP placings (after removing non-Cornish club runners) we pushed them into 4th by a considerable margin……………….of one point! So, it seems that the men will end up 3rd in the league at the end of the season, a truly remarkable achievement for a new club.

What a great result for the ladies, with some gutsy performances, they managed the podium at the race (4th in Grand Prix). Once again Rachel Bestwick led the way with a very creditable 10th position, followed in Shirley Cairney, Rachel Builder and Abby Cockings. I am confident that the future is looking bright. I’m sure that hard work will reap rewards in 2009.

Again, the club claimed a few individual trophies - Sue Mellis (3rd FV 55-59), Marilyn Mitchell (1st FV 60+), Malcolm Roberts (1st MV 55-59) and Reg Eden (3rd MV 55-59). Great to see Reg on the podium again, despite a sleepless night courtesy of a disco and fireworks at St Austell Cricket Club!

All in all, another good day for the club. Well done to all of you and, once again, didn’t our supporters turn out in force?

On a beautiful sunny Sunday morning a group of eleven members of St.Austell Running Club and our ever growing group of supporters ventured over to Probus for the annual Probus 10k race. The race was organised by Abby Cockings husband and St.Austell played their part supplying the Marshalling vests, lead car and time keeper. With a field of just over 120 runners, the race was run at a fairly brisk pace along the hilly course ( they said it was undulating, I say hilly) with the usual lovely Cornish countryside to admire. As it was a non Grand Prix event the pressure was off any of us pushing hard for the points, that didn’t stop James Asser and Bruce urging me on (my god they never let me rest, James didn’t even offer me a lift on his bike). It was good to see John Rutland running his first race since An Resek, and Helen managing to get away from the farm to run, not that she could of sneaked off for the race, as nearly every group of spectators on route seemed to know her. The only criticism I have is, I wish we could have a race that doesn’t finish with steep hill. Roll on the Mob Match.
The first home for St.Austell was Bruce in 11th pace in a time of 41:33mins, with Abby Cocking being their first lady home in 64th place in a time of 52:18mins.  Donald Maclaren and Lynne Davey both won their Age Catagories, and John Rutland finished 2nd in his Category.

11        0:41:33            Donald Maclaren
49        0:50:11            John Rutland
64        0:52:18            Abby Cockings
65        0:52:32            Catheryn Camborleux
69        0:53:02            Andrew Budge
78        0:53:30            Rachel Blake
97        1:00:03            Lynne Davey
102      1:03:39            Debbie Hancock
103      1:03:40            Helen Rule
104      1:03:45            Darren Hambly
112      1:08:42            Terry Wyatt

Treggy 7 - Launceston - 31st August 2008

On a sunny Sunday morning 35 members of St. Austell Running Club ventured to Launceston for the Treggy 7, round 11 of the Grand Prix. The race organisers promised some scenic countryside as part of a challenging but fast course which summed up the race perfectly. The runners set off enjoying a mainly downhill and flat first four miles and were probably all looking at thier watches on course for a fast time. However as the saying goes, 'What goes up must come down', the opposite was the case for this race, what went down most certainly started to go up as the runners passed the 4 mile mark. A beast of a hill saw some runners reduced to walking up the only real climb of the race and dashed the hopes of many hoping for a PB or to beat Stato. On reaching the top the race then levelled out for miles 5 and 6 seeing a fast decent for the final mile. As always the runners were helped by the vocal encouragement of the posse of supporters that follow the club from event to event.

First home for the club was Dan Alsop in a time of 41:24 finishing in a very commendable 7th place. He was joined by Carl Miles, Andy Trudgian, Malcom Roberts, Paul Bestwick who was making a welcome return from injury and Bruce MacLaren as the men’s team picked up second place behind Cornwall AC.

 Malcom Robert’s good day continued as he won the Male Vets 55-59 category in 44:59 and was joined by Bruce MacLaren, Paul Bullock, Doug Alsop and Reg Eden as the men’s over 50 team picked up first place.

 The first woman home for the club was Rachel Bestwick in 53:25 but the glory once again went to habitual winner Marilyn Mitchell who won the over 60 ladies category in 1:03:33.

Three St Austell runners made the start line at the first Trelissik 10 k. The organiser expected 50 to turn up but ended up with a 140 finishers. The race mainly off road was scenic along the coast path and farm tracks on a lovely sunny evening, definitely the most scenic setting I have seen for a race.  Described as undulating there was one brutal climb (which we were warned about in the briefing) about the 7k mark and a real sting in the tail in the last half k which Darren seemed to storm up passing people on the way (respect to you Darren as I struggled up there)
 
Very scenic race and the number of entries caught the organisers unaware but definitely one for the calendar and I certainly will be back.
 
Maybe the organisers should warn The Punch Bowl and Ladle to have plenty food ready afterwards.
 
Finishing times (chip)
 
D Maclaren  44.02
R Eden        49.13
D Hambly     1.09.44
 
Fergie also ran keeping  Reg at Bay up the last climb and finished in 49.00

St.Austell Tame the Beast!

Although the weather was terrible over the weekend it provided reasonable running conditions for the Launceston half Marathon.  This race is promoted as “The Beast” due to the hilly terrain, but the cool damp conditions were much preferred to the heat waves that have been experienced on this course previously.   St.Austell Running Club had 21 male runners and 7 females competing in a field of 327 and came away with a fair share of the prizes.

First home was Dan Alsop, finishing 8th overall and 5th in his age group.   John Sidebotham followed in18th place being chased by Malcolm Roberts, who finished in 20th place and won the over 55 category.   The ever improving Andy Trudgian was 27th and Bruce MacLaren came in 32nd and picked up 3rd prize in the over 45 category.   These first five men had done a great job of bringing the team in, but the 6th place was hotly contested by the rest of the pack.  Rob Wallbank had held 6th team place from mile two but the last climb took its toll and he lost out first to Steve Ellis and then Paul Bullock.   Paul Bullock eventually made the place his with a strong finish and it was a welcome return to team running for Paul.

With this effort the St.Austell men’s team were placed 3rd overall behind the winners Cornwall AC and second place Bideford AC.

First home for the St.Austell Women was Rachel Bestwick in 124th position and 5th in her age category, knocking 6 minutes off her time for last year.   A strong run from Helen Martin saw her finish in 1:57 just holding off Tracey Davey in 1:59.  Sue Mellis was the fourth member of the Ladies’ team and also picked up the prize for 3rd Lady over 55.   Trish Jones & Helen Rule finished close behind Sue and Katie Bullock came storming home to lay to rest her demons from the heatwave two years ago.

Chairman Doug Alsop said “This was a great showing from our new club in such a testing run.  These results mean that after 7 races in the ‘Sandy Hill Physical Therapy’ Grand prix our men’s team are second behind Cornwall AC and our women’s team are 4th.   It is extremely satisfying to see our runners out there showing such commitment -  it bodes very well for the future.”