The Easy Runner Blog

AN evening of tremendous running in the final race of the Easy Runner Bridge Inn winter 5k road series last night with the top three men and women all clocking personal bests.
In-form Steve Francis is really having a great season and the 21-year-old broke the magical 15 minutes barrier for the first time shaving 12 seconds off his previous best set over the same course last month.
Clubmates Charlie Maclean and Chris Dodd also posted PBs of 15:07 and 15:26, carving 18 and 13 seconds respectively off their previous fastest times.
Top woman was clubmate Imogen Ainsworth in 17:01, clipping two seconds off her 2010 PB to suggest she is at last returning to her best after a series of niggling injuries. Runner-up Emma D’Alton of Westbury Harriers smashed her best with 17:28 while Jenny Jagger in third slashed 31 seconds off her PB.

Men: 1 Steve Francis (B&W) 14:56; 2 Charlie MacLean (B&W) 15:07 (PB); 3 Chris Dodd (B&W) 15:26 (PB); 4 Dan Studley (WH) 15:36; 5 Steve McGuigan (B&W) 15:47; 6 Robert Farley (Bitt RR) 16:01 (PB).
Women: 1 Imogen Ainsworth (B&W) 17:01 (PB); 2 Emma D’Alton (WH) 17:28 (PB); 3 Jenny Jagger (B&W) 17:54 (PB).

THE last of the Winter Series of Bridge Inn 5K races will be held tonight and a good turn-out is expected as Bristol & West AC team manager Mike Down has earmarked the race as a final selection trial for the National 12-Stage Road Relay Championships.
Tonight’s race replaces the cancelled November race. As usual registration is from 6.30pm with the race starting at 7.30pm.

LEE Masters, of Bristol club Hogweed Trotters, finished 73rd in the Votwo Jurassic Coast Challenge which boasted marathons on three successive days from Studland Bay to Lyme Regis.
Masters completed the challenge in a total time of 17hrs 08mins 18secs comprising individual times of 5:09.49, 5:44.15 and 6:14.14. Impressively there were 145 finishers.
Even more impressive is that the previous week Masters ran the Druids Challenge ultra, a three-day 82 miles jaunt from Oxford to Swindon.

IN-FORM super vet Peter Willoughby of Hogweed Trotters won the over 60s prize at the Forest of Dean trails half marathon in a time of 1:28.16. The success follows victories in the over 60s age group in the Sodbury Slog and Hogweed Hilly half events.
The event attracted a huge 2,300 entries.

OLDLAND-based runner Dave Coales, who is chairman of Team Bath AC, won the latest Swindon 5 km park run on Saturday morning in a time of 16mins 30secs, just five seconds outside his personal best. Coales finished 43 seconds clear of Bristol & West AC runner Heath Bampton.
Men: 1 Dave Coales (TBAC) 16:30; 2 Heath Bampton (B&W) 17:13; 3 Brian Anderson-Gardner (Swindon) 17:53. Women: 1 Maria Ellis (Wotton Bassett) 21:51. 171 finishers.

HOBIE Martin finished seventh in the inter boys’ race at the British Schools’ International in Northern Ireland.
“It was a fantastic experience and I am delighted with my run,” said Martin, who competes for Bristol & West AC.

* Clubmate Nathan Young was the winner of the Hemington 10k road race, near Radstock, in a time of 34mins 24secs well clear of Team Bath’s Dan Jones (35:35). There were 144 finishers.

IN a bid to identify and recruit new talent Bristol & West AC will be holding three young athlete talent identification events at the new Whitehall Athletics Arena.
The first will be on Wednesday (March 30th) followed by further session on Wednesday April 6th and Wednesday April 20th from 6.00-8pm.
For further information contact Club Development Adviser Keith Brackstone on 07999 511366 or email him at: keithatrvp@blueyonder.co.uk.

ELEANOR Wimshurst ended her cross country season with sixth place in the under 20 women’s race at the Home Countries’ International in Antrim.
England won the team event but as fourth scorer Wimshurst just missed out on making the winning squad.
Bristol-based runner Gregg Halliwell was in the Midlands squad and came 20th in the under 20 men’s race.
Bristol & West AC’s Rebekak Randall was also in the Midlands squad and can feel satisfied with her fifth in the senior women’s race.

Home Countries International CCC, Antrim – under 20 women: Hannah Walker (Eng) 18:58. WEST: 6 Eleanor Wimshurst (Eng) 20:07. Teams: 1 England 7 (1,2,4) ; 2 Scotland 17; 3 N Ireland 36.

Under 20 men: 1 Matthew Gillespie (Scotland) 22:36. WEST: 11 Tom Curr (Mids) 23:41; 20 Gregg Halliwell (Mids) 24:47.
Teams: 1 England 11; 5 Midlands 46.

Senior women: 1 Juliet Doyle (Eng) 25:4; 2 Emily Wicks (Eng) 25:55; 3 Faye Fullerton (Eng) 25:58; 4 Laura Parker (Eng) 26:24; 5 Rebekah Randall (Mids) 26:25;
Teams: 1 England 6; 2 Midlands 30.

BRISTOL & West AC’s Michael Johnson finished fifth in the Wilmslow half marathon, which incorporated the England Athletics Championships.
Johnson’s time of 66minutes was only 14 seconds outside his personal bets of 65:46 which he set in Barcelona in January.
Former Westbury Harrier Catherine Dulla, now with Newcastle (Staffs) AC, was sixth in the women’s race clocking a PB of 1:23.03.

Wilmslow half marathon, incorporating England Athletics Championships – men: 1 Jean Ndayisenga (Birch) 64:24.
WEST: 5 Michael Johnson 66:00.

THERE was a Westbury Harriers’ double in yesterday’s Forest of Dean trials half marathon.
Running his third half marathon in as many weeks – Bath (70:43) and Reading (a PB of 70:27) – were the other two - the 32-year-old claimed victory in 73mins 20secs finishing 15 seconds ahead of Clevedon AC’s Nicholas Saillard with reigning champion Julian Hatcher of Westbury third.
“It was a fun race and I didn’t go mad,” said Ellis. “It was my last long race before the London Marathon.”
To complete a good day for ‘Team Ellis’ girlfriend and coach Robyn Golding cruised to victory in the women’s race ina a time of 85mins 41secs.