Many Todmorden Harriers made a short trip to Haworth but for a long race on Sunday. The Yorkshireman off-road marathon and half marathon were both held on Sunday on exceptionally muddy terrain. The full event covers the traditional 26 mile distance but with the added challenge of over 3000 feet of ascent including an uphill finish to the top of the cobbled main street. The half distance is a longer half and included over 1750 feet of ascent.
Provisional results indicated that Nick Barber and Ben Crowther were first Todmorden runners to finish the full marathon in an excellent time of 4 hours 18 minutes closely followed by Derek Donohue.
Afterwards runners were able to relax and enjoy the traditional Morris Dancing entertainment in Haworth but resisted the temptation to join in.
Six Harriers travelled to the Lake District for the 20th anniversary of the Great Langdale Half Marathon which attracted 450 runners including Ron Hill MBE and runners from as far away as South Africa. Billed as Britain’s most scenic road race, the circular route travelled the hilly roads of the Langdale Valley and featured several steep climbs. The weather was kind and after a sunny start, much of the race was run in ideal dry cloudy conditions. This event was also paired with a full marathon, consisting of two laps of the course, but the Todmorden entrants limited themselves to the single lap which counted towards the club’s road championship. The race was comfortably won by Paul Muller of Horwich RMI Harriers in 1:17:50 nearly 5 minutes ahead of the next competitor.
First Todmorden runner was Richard Butterwick followed by Mel Blackhurst, running the course for the 4th consecutive year and beating her previous best time by 4 minutes. Ian Stansfield celebrated his 65th birthday, wearing race number 65.
Full Todmorden Results: 64 Richard Butterwick 1:38:43; 110 Melanie Blackhurst 1:44:11; 182 Kevin Coughlan 1:52:08; 278 Stephen Burnip 2:03:21; 380 Myra Wells 2:16:36; 425 Ian Stansfield 2:34:09
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