WESTBURY HARRIERS WEEKLY NEWSLETTER 22/10/24
RACE REPORTS
GWENT XC LEAGUE PEMBREY –
By Tamsin
Well done to our senior ladies’ squad at the first Gwent League fixture of the season at Pembrey. Admittedly, I was little disappointed at the initial take up. The Gwent team relies on a good turnout of ladies. A few pleading emails got us a few more runners, which was really crucial for our age group teams. We only had enough though to field 2 complete teams, which is unusual for the ladies squad. I received lots of messages from people saying they could make other fixtures so hopefully that is the case. However, this did not detract from a fabulous day and some star performances.
It was a lovely sunny day, with a good journey, no queues to get in this year at the barrier. Pembrey is a great course, and well worth the journey over. Good underfoot, with sandy undulations and a stretch through the forest. Scenic and interesting.
It was a huge field for Pembrey, 358 finishers, 87 more than last year and with 90 teams participating, it is great to see female XC racing so strongly supported. Catherine led the A team home, 2 places up on last year in 15th. Katie had a good run, the first V50 home in the whole field. Emma and Helen both managed the exact same finish positions as last year! Which is brilliant as with an increased field both ran considerably faster than they did last year. Helen then went on to run the Burnham-on-Sea half marathon the following day in 1.46.38! Lovely to have Marcie back after injury running well and Nicola also. The V55s did well, finishing first V55 team. Antonia finished 6th V55 overall, backed up by Helen, Monica and Anneke. Great to have new recruit Monica join us for the first time. With her children being involved with Westbury for some time, I’m not sure what took her so long to give it a go! Monica did brilliantly for her first Gwent. Katie.R finished in her highest placed position as a senior, well done. Thank-you to Debbie for running to boost our team numbers, having recently recovered from a bout of covid.
Congratulations to Catherine, Katie.H, Tamsin, Emma and Antonia in being top 10% of their age groups, don’t forget to pick up your complimentary T-Shirt at the next Gwent.
A team (Catherine Treble 15th, Katie Hughes 21st, Tamsin Chick 41st, Emma Woodworth 80th, Hannah Batchelor 81st).
B team (Marcie Bower 95th, Antonia Gooder 124th, Katie Ramsden 126th, Helen Sawyer 158th, Monica Warnock 166th)
C team (Debbie Hunt 179th, Anneke Bull 234th, Nicola Derrick 320th).
A big thanks to everyone who came and ran. Our age group teams have started out well, but we do need good turnouts and some V65s going forward to push on with these. Next fixture is Saturday 9th November at Cardiff, please get it in the calendar (don’t throw away your number you need it for the whole season). This is a good course for any newbies or people who don’t like hills/mud and is not far to get to.
Senior team: 7th on the day, B Team 27th. 90 teams on the day (13 more than last year).
Division 1 – 6th
Reserve Division – B team 5th in reserve division (we won this division last year)
Age groups
V35 – 2nd
V45 – 2nd
V55 – 1st
V65 – no team ☹ (we have consecutively won this age group since it’s introduction in 2017. Hopefully we can make a come back!)
BURNHAM HALF MARATHON – Sunday 13th October
Well done to Fergal Cummins who managed a huge PB with 1hr22, 1st V50 and 20th/296th.
LAKELAND TRAILS HELVELLYN – Saturday 19th October
Well done to Izzy Povey who ran the Helvellyn Sport Trail 5km, and had amazing weather and views on the day.
YORK 10 MILE / MARATHON – Sunday 20th October
As a spectator myself, it was not pleasant as I was dressed head to toe in waterproofs. Fair play to the runners who battled against the wind and rain. Congrts to Ben Wood who came in under 1hr5 in 90th overall/3254 in the 10mile race. In the marathon distance we had Dan Summers who crossed the line in 2hr43 in 34th position, Paul Gardiner finished in 2hr44 in 38th position and Stephen Clayson finished in 2hr53 in 113th position out of 5329 overall. Great work all!
ABINGDON MARATHON – Sunday 20th October
Congratulations to Iain Large who ran on Sunday as well and got himself a 30min PB, finishing in 2hr52, 70th/1003.
KEYNSHAM DANDY – By Nicola Derrick
It was challenging conditions at the Keynsham Dandy.
The course was very scenic, but Muddy with a capital M! So staying upright was the focus.
It was a great experience to participate in a canicross race alongside “man’s best friend”. Some very happy dogs along the course.
Marshals were brilliant and supportive. Checking that you were okay along the course.
If you fancy an Autumnal race of 12.5 miles through wonderful countryside, starting in Keynsham, it includes the revived Compton Dandy route, complete with at least 2 streams. You may be a little damp by the end! But this is the race for you.
CONGRATULATIONS TO OLIVIA
The newest member of Westbury Harriers, Bernard “Bernie” Lawrence Grigg, arrived at 23:23 on 15th October weighing 8lbs 11oz.
Myself (Olivia) and Bernie are both healthy and doing really well so far. As the xc captain and newly appointed baby co-captain, we cannot wait to support the cross country this season. If all continues to go smoothly we will be at the Cardiff Gwent league cheering everyone on!
We also send our best wishes to Laura and Alex Smith who welcomed the arrival of their second daughter Pippa. We can’t wait to meet the newest members of Westbury Harriers.
CLUB NOTICES
BIG THANKS – PENNY BROHN UK FUNDRAISER
Many thanks to everyone who baked cakes and donated at our annual charity hash run and cake sale fundraiser in August 2024 this year for Penny Brohn UK.
XMAS PROM MEAL – Thursday 19th December:
UPDATE fom Sarah Andrews
Brunello Lounge on Beach Road have accepted our booking at 8:50pm. It’s not a ‘traditional Xmas meal’ it’s tapas so I’ll understand if people want to pull out. Please let me know as soon as possible either way. It’s £22:50 for two courses, £27:50 for three.
Please let Sarah know if you’re happy with this. If not she will refund your deposit. For those who have not booked and paid the deposit there still may be spaces available, especially if people drop out. Please get in touch with Sarah if you are interested in joining the meal.
HALLOWEEN RUN 2024
This year’s Halloween Run will be on Tuesday 29th October, at 6:30, and will depart from the clubhouse in Blaise. Head/ chest torches are mandatory, and trail shoes are recommended. All group runners (1 to 6) are welcome, and we will split off as necessary. Spooky refreshments will be provided afterwards, so come along and book below. https://groups.runtogether.co.uk/WestburyHarriersRunningClub/BookClass/83e437b0-b2ac-40d1-8d20-faa70723920b. As a reminder, there will be no Nightingale Nightmare this year, so this may be your only chance to get that scary run in!
GWENT XC LEAGUE – BLAISE:
Volunteers needed from Alastair
With the start of the Gwent League season at Pembrey Country Park, it is time for me to start organising the volunteers for the Blaise Castle event, on Saturday 30th November.
I know that a lot of you will be running, but we would greatly appreciate your help in volunteering to ensure the continual success of the event. We need > 20 marshals out on the course at any one point, with some people floating / able to respond if needed.
With regards to this, approximate volunteering times are noted below, and if you can volunteer please let me know which slots you could do.
These slots are likely to change when the full timetable is released later by the Gwent League Organising Committee.
Volunteering Slots:
1. Early Setup: 09:00 -> ~11:00
2. Early Marshall: ~11:00 -> ~13:45
3. Late Marshall: ~13:45 -> ~16:00
4. Late Cleardown: ~16:00 onwards
5. Club House: Time to be agreed on at a later date, but expected to be the following day / week.
As usual, all timings will be thought out such that you won’t miss your race and have time to warmup and cooldown.
Please email Alastair if you would like to be added to the list via Facebook.
THIS WEEK’S TRAINING
MONDAY – TEMPO:
Group tempo runs from Coombe Dingle at 6.30pm, with Wellbeing run at 7.15pm
TUESDAY – TRACK:
Track session at Yate 7pm – Seniors book on via RunTogether.
WEDNESDAY – HILL SESSION:
Adults, all abilities. Meet every Wednesday at 12pm at the traffic lights by Saville Road on the Downs. Book on via RunTogether. Coffee in the Downs Café at 1pm for anyone that wants to come along.
THURSDAY 24th – INTERVALS:
Coombe Dingle at 7pm.
This session will be HILLS. Location to be confirmed closer to the time depending on numbers.
UPCOMING RACES
A reminder that we have an events calendar on our website where you can keep track of dates for training, events and races. (Thanks, Vicky, for keeping this updated). https://westburyharriers.co.uk/events/events-calendar/
Club Championship info and rules on this link: https://westburyharriers.co.uk/events/club-championship/
Saturday 9th November: Cardiff Cross Challenge, including second Gwent League fixture
Thursday 7th November: Severn Bridge 5 Night Race #1 – Club Championship #14
Sunday 24th November: Brent Knoll Race – Club Championship #15
Saturday 30th November: Blaise Castle, Gwent League XC
Saturday 14th December: The 12ks’ of Xmas – – Club Championship #16
Sunday 15th December – Weston Christmas cracker 10k
Thursday 19th December: Weston Prom Race #4 – Club Championship #17
Saturday 8th or Sunday 9th February: Margam Park (TBC), Gwent League XC
Saturday 1st March: Venue TBC, Gwent League XC
Enjoy the rest of the week.
This week’s editor is – Yvette Casallas