28 aug 08

Whittle Pike was the destination on a wet Wednesday evening for the 20 Harriers who joined a record field of 170 runners at Cowpe for the 4½ mile fell race. The course, which has previously hosted the English Championships, is reputed to have no flat sections and features several climbs and steep descents which were made even more treacherous by the muddy conditions underfoot.

The heavy downpour that greeted the start did nothing to dampen the pace, or the spirits, as the race started with a rapid dash up a ½ mile road section before climbing sharply into the fells. John Brown of Salford led an elite group up to the high point at Whittle Pike which was lost in cloud, with Todmorden’s Andrew Wrench and Chris Smale in close attendance. On the descent though, it was Pudsey’s Gary Devine who held his nerve on the severe ground and finished nearly a minute ahead of Brown in a time of 41:57.

Andrew Wrench crossed the line in 3rd place with Chris Smale 7th. Sean Carey continued his progress in senior races and won the U16 category, finishing 11th overall. In the team standings Todmorden narrowly missed out to Rossendale.

First Todmorden lady to finish was Kath Brierley whose lightening descent was rewarded with 2nd in the LV45 category and 7th lady overall. She was followed in by Mel Blackhurst, who won the LV40 prize, and Helen Hodgkinson which resulted in a 3rd place for the ladies team.

Prior to the main event, several junior races were held which whilst run over shorter distances were just as testing. Todmorden’s Jack Crummet again showed good promise and ran an excellent race to win the U10 race.

Full Tod results - 3 Andrew Wrench (43:19); 7 Chris Smale (44:33); 11 Sean Carey (46:19); 18 Alistair Rhodes-Dawson (47:06); 31 Dave Collins (50:27); 50 James Riley (53:26); 55 Simon Galloway (54:09); 69 Duncan Ritchie (55:28); 70 Kath Brierley (55:42); 78 Phil Hodgson (56:33); 79 Richard Butterwick (56:35); 90 Andrew Bibby (57:30); 106 Mel Blackhurst (1:00:15); 123 Helen Hodgkinson (1:02:50); 136 Sue Roberts (1:06:29); 147 Moyra Parfitt (1:09:46); 151 Dave O'Neill (1:11:38); 155 Mandy Goth (1:13:40); 166 Derek Clutterbuck (1:26:01); 169 Ian Stansfield (1:39:11)


Improved weather was welcomed on Sunday for the seven mile Norland Moor Trail Race, as many Harriers completed a double for the week. The varied terrain course started with a lap of the Old Rishworthians rugby pitch before it climbed stiffly up through woodland and along a bridleway. A short road section then led onto a loop around Norland Moor. This was followed by a stony descent down to and across the River Calder and ended with a fast flat finish that returned the runners to the rugby field. Andi Jones of Salford won the race in a new record time of 40:28, five minutes ahead of his nearest rivals.

Nick Barber led the Todmorden contingent home in 13th place in a time of 51:03, having gained several places in the latter stages. Kath Brierley was again first Todmorden lady with another dazzling descent that landed her the LV45 prize.

Full Tod results - 13 Nick Barber (51:03); 28 Richard Butterwick (53:26); 39 Duncan Ritchie (55:10); 43 Kevin Booth (56:09); 46 Phil Hodgson (56:48); 49 Kath Brierley (57:00); 53 Claire Duffield (58:36); 55 Jeremy Godden (59:44); 71 Kevin Coughlan (1:03:20); 85 Helen Hodgkinson (1:06:25); 86 Peter Ehrhardt (1:06:56); 92 Mel Siddall (1:07:37); 96 Steve Burnip (1:09:23); 107 Myra Wells (1:15:36); 108 Mandy Goth (1:16:13); 109 Dave O'Neill (1:17:36); 115 Derek Clutterbuck (1:20:54); 121 Ian Stansfield (1:33:52);