Tour of Pendle | Florence Marathon | FRA Presentation

Saturday dawned and it was a cold crisp day as 12 hardy Todmorden Harriers made their way to Barley for the 30^th Tour of Pendle, the last race in the 2013 Fell and Grand Prix Championships. There was much anticipation among the 430 starters eager to get going on this toughest of South Pennine races.

Conditions were good with large parts of Pendle frozen, providing perfect conditions for fast running on a route more renowned for bogs and tussocks. The race starts with a big climb to the Trig Point near Big End followed by a fast run along the top to the Nick of Pendle. After a short run down to Churn Clough Reservoir the climbing started again up and over Spence Moor. Then came one of the highlights of the day the daredevil descent of ‘Geronimo’ , one of the steepest and most technical descent on the Fell Running calendar. 

After a gentle run back up through the middle of Pendle Hill, the race starts in earnest with 3 big climbs stacked together in the second half of the race. The last of these climbs goes back up ‘Big End’ to the Trig point and is very steep. By the time they reached it many people were suffering with cramp. One of these was Paul Hobbs who was flying in his first outing at the Tour. Despite the cramp Paul managed to keep moving to finish first Harrier in 2hrs 41. Ben Crowther stormed round the course, almost catching Paul at the end to finish next in 2hrs 42.

Next came a trio of harriers who had all been looking to break through the 3 hours barrier for the race. Marcel Ellison was the first to get up Big End and to the Trig Point, but couldn’t match the pace of Dan Taylor and Andy Mcfie on the long descent to the finish. First Dan, then Andy caught and overtook Marcel who also had the beginnings of cramp setting in. Andy didn’t quite have the legs to catch Dan who sprinted home by 2 seconds. All 3 managed to finish in 2 hrs 48 well up on their target. R

ob Gray in his first tour was accompanied round by Dwayne Dixon (who was using the run as training following recent injury layoff) The 2 started steady and managed to  finish in 3hrs 11, Joe Daniels completed the men’s entries just over 3 hrs 30.

The ladies team also used the conditions to record good times. Elise Milnes was well ahead of her 4 hour best for the route in 3hrs.51, with Mandy Goth (who is at her best for years after training for the Joss Naylor Challenge earlier in the year), last harrier home just over 4 hours.  

The other 2 Todmorden starters Craig Stansfield and Kath Brierley (both very experienced Fell competitors) dropped out of the race after not feeling at their best, proving what a difficult race the Tour of Pendle can be to complete.

Further afield and with slightly warmer weather, Andrew Bibby travelled to Italy for the Florence Marathon on Sunday. Andrew showed the good form he has had all year with an outstanding time of 3hours 28 minutes.

Following the Tour of Pendle race on Saturday, Clayton Le Moors Harriers hosted the Fell Runners Associations annual dinner and prize giving at Langho. Richard Blakeley of Todmorden collected his trophy for 1^st Place in the V70 category at the English Championships.

This had been made possible by Richard winning the last 2 races in the series to overtake his rivals for the title. 

Meanwhile in the British Championships the ladies team of Jane Leonard, Kath Brierley, Sarah Vickers, Gemma Ford, Claire Harris and Lauren Jeska took Silver Medals, capping off a good year for the ladies.

Jane Leonard finished off the prizes for the Todmorden party, with Bronze medals in both the English Champs V55’s and the British Champs V50’s. 

DT

Preston 10 | Harriers v Cyclists

Sunday saw the last race in the Todmorden Harriers Road Championships, as 6 harriers travelled to Preston for the Preston 10. With their respective titles already in the bag, Paul Brannigan and Sarah Glyde chose to stay away. Nick Barber looking to get the last race needed for qualification for the Club Championship, was eager for the top 10 finish required to take the title. He set off at a rapid pace and was going well at 5 miles in about 4^th/5^th place just under 28 minutes.  Shortly afterwards he was struck by stomach pains and had to pull out due to sickness ending his chances. Paul Alexander was elevated to the first Todmorden Harrier on the road with relish and continued his season of PB’s knocking 6 minutes off his previous 10 mile best, to finish in 1.06.50. Andy Glyde (Sarah’s husband) finished next, closely followed by Phil Cook and Kevin Coughlan. These 3 have all now qualified for the Harriers Grand Prix prior to the final race at Pendle this weekend.

Todmorden Results: Paul Alexander 1.06.50; Andy Glyde 1.12.35; Phil Cook 1.13.07; Kevin Coughlan 1.14.28 ; Peter Erhardt  1.26.18.

A couple of Harriers made the trip to Leeds on Sunday for the Abbey Dash 10k. The out and back course is well known as a fast flat course and had over 10000 participants. Martin Stork showed he is now back to his best following injury, with a great run and new personal best time of 36.40. Andy Mcfie managed to arrive on time this week and completed the Todmorden entries with a solid run of 38.17.

Saturday saw the annual Harriers v Cyclists race from the Fishermans Inn in Bingley. This involves cyclo crossers versus runners. The runners are quicker up the hill and the cyclists on the way back down, on a well balanced course for the challenge. Tom Adams continued his good form winning for the runners ahead of 1^st bike Andy Peace in 2^nd. First Harrier home was Robin Tuddenham just ahead of Steve Pullen. Emma Osenton was on her Cross Bike and managed a very respectable 163^rd position, showing how much she has improved since taking up the discipline only last year. Chris Preston managed to finish in front of Mandy Goth in the battle of the Tod ladies.

Todmorden Results: 48 Robin Tuddenham 41.13; 52 Steve Pullen 41.33; 163 Emma Osenton 53.45; 184 Chris Preston 56.41; 198 Mandy Goth 1.01.04.

Saturday sees the culmination of the Harriers Grand Prix season with the final race at Barley for the Tour of Pendle. At 17 miles long with nearly 5000 feet of climbing the race (in its 30^th year) is known as the toughest of the South Pennine races, with 3 very steep climbs one after another toward the end. Mud, tussocks and bogs are guaranteed in this season finale.  

Bolton Cross Country | Half Trog | Dunnerdale

by Paul Brannigan

The 3^rd Red Rose League Cross Country event provided mud galore for the 8 Todmorden Harriers who made the journey to Leverhulme Park in Bolton. This vibrant event attracts 700 runners from the age of 8 to 70.

First out of the traps was Jack Crummett in the Under 15 boys race with a consistent 2^nd consecutive 8^th place in a highly competitive group.

In the ladies event Jack’s mother, Kath Brierley, looked strong throughout the entire course finishing 3^rd in the Vet 50 category and 36^th overall. Kath was followed in by Andrea Marshall who put herself in pole position for the Tod ladies Cross Country title with one race remaining.

With the course churned up by the earlier races 200 men risked swallowing mud in a thunderous start that kicked up the contents of the many muddy pools. Dwane Dixon and Paul Brannigan, using the race as training for upcoming races, were the first two counters for Todmorden. Dwane executed a strictly planned tactical race that took him to 42^nd place overall and 6^th veteran over 40. Paul left it to the last lap to make up 35 places to finish 56^th and 6^th veteran over 45. Team captain Martin Stork, refined his pace judgement to finish 63^rd. Club stalwart Simon Anderton was next home in 116^th position followed by Andy McFie who decided to give everyone a head start arriving 5 minutes late. The battle for men’s cross country champion is still wide open with one race to go.

Results: U15 Boys:  Jack Crummett 8^th 17:54

Ladies: Kath Brierley 36^th 26:23; Andrea Marshall 98^th 31:33

Men: Dwane Dixon 42^nd 42:27; Paul Brannigan 56^th 43:56; Martin Stork 63^rd 44:17; Simon Anderton 116^th 48:17

 

Paul Hobbs continued his recent rich vein of form as first Todmorden Harrier home in 7^th place at the Wadsworth Half Trog. The race covers just over 9 miles and 1400 feet of climbing. Ben Crowther, one of Tod’s junior section coaches followed Paul in 14^th place. Rob Tyson completed the Tod team finishing 45^th. In the ladies race Elise Milnes was first home in 12^th place followed by Louise Abdy in 15^th.

Results: Ladies: Elise Milnes 12^th 1:59:00; Louise Abdy 15^th 2:10:00

Men: Paul Hobbs 7th 1:15:11; Ben Crowther 14^th 1:21.10; Rob Tyson 45^th 1:33:30; Phil Cook 63^rd 1:37:32; Mick Craven 73^rd 1:39:57; James Riley 74^th 1:40:31; Reginald Czudek 120^th 2:24:59.

5 Tod Harriers headed up to the lakes for the beautiful Dunnerdale Fell Race near Coniston in the Lakes. The battle of the day was between Sue Roberts and Mandy Goth with only 4 seconds separating them at the finish, but leading them home was Chris Preston in 32^nd place. In the men’s race Marcel Ellison and Martin Roberts finished in 41^st and 64^th places.

Results: Ladies: Chris Preston 32nd 64:29; ; Sue Roberts 40^th 1:07:26; Mandy Goth 41^st 1:07:30

Men: Marcel Ellison 41st 48:30; Martin Roberts 64^th 51.13

Todmorden Harriers welcome and look after runners of all ability. Check out www.todharriers.co.uk for details.

Capesthorne Half Marathon | Shepherd's Skyline Fell Race

by Dan Taylor

Sunday saw the penultimate round of the Todmorden Harriers Road Championship with 6 Harriers taking the trip to Capesthorne Hall for the Cheshire Half Marathon. The weather was bad but cleared just before the start, although rain came towards the end of the race.

Todmorden’s Nick Barber surged to the front straight from the start followed by the Road Champs leader Paul Brannigan. These 2 managed to pull out a bit of a lead and soon realised it was between the 2 of them for the win. Brannigan (who has been in brilliant form in the last few months) made his move after 10 miles slowly catching and overtaking Barber, who couldn’t quite hang on to him. They finished in first and second with very impressive times just under 1 hr 17.

Behind there was a trio of Harriers who used the occasion to re write their Personal Bests. Dan Taylor, in a rare appearance on the roads, continued his recent improvement finishing in 35th place. He knocked over 2 minutes off his best and was the 3rd counter as Todmorden also took the mens team prize.

Paul Alexander sprinted over the line for a sub 1hr 30 minutes time and Sarah Glyde continued a season of great improvement to finish a minute later, knocking over 3 minutes off her best and taking the V35 Ladies prize.

 Andrea Marshall was the last harrier to finish just over her target time of 2 hours. This result means Paul and Sarah are now assured of the Road Championships prior to the final race at Preston 10.

Todmorden Results: 1 Paul Brannigan 1:16:41; 2 Nick Barber 1:16:57; 35 Dan Taylor 1:27:43; 49 Paul Alexander 1:29:54; 55 Sarah Glyde 1:30:57; 524 Andrea Marshall 2:04:40.

Saturday saw the 28th running of the famous Shepherd Skyline Fell Race. Expertly organised as always by the husband & wife team of Phil Hodgson and Mandy Goth, ably assisted by the Todmorden Harriers Crew. The main race for the adults was well attended despite the bad weather, with over 280 people braving the rain.

Tom Adams from Ilkley led the way from the start and was never challenged winning in a little over 41 minutes. There was a close battle for second with Chris Farrell from Horwich narrowly beating Tim Ellis, Shaun Godsman and Alex Whittam of local club Calder Valley.

First Todmorden man was Jon Wright in 8th position (incidentally Jon came 9th as long ago as 1995 so good consistency there).

First lady home was Helen Fines of Calder Valley with first Todmorden lady Rebecca Patrick in 8th.

Junior races were also held with good participation from a number of local clubs. Tod Harriers had some good performances, including Jack Crummett who won the Under 16’s and Jack Willis who was 2nd in the under 8s, as the junior team continues to grow. Junior sessions for 6 – 12 year olds are held on Tuesdays at the Todmorden High School Gym from 5 – 6.30pm. 

Tod Results: 8 Jon Wright 46.07; 46 Craig Stansfield 52.42; 48 Steve Pullan 53.06; 77 Martin Roberts 56.27; 115 Simon Galloway 60.24; 116 Rebecca Patrick 60.37; 172 Jackie Holden 66.33; 199 Kirsty Patten 70.01; 203 Chris Preston 70.29; 207 Laura Sutcliffe 71.03.

Tod Juniors U8’s: 2 Joseph Willis 4.30; 5 Euan Logue 5.25; 8  Ben Hodgkinson 5.55; 11 Jack Suthers 6.37; 12 Erin McGrath 6.38

U10’s: 6 Joseph Hobbs 8.34; 17 Maebe Logue 9.32; 18 Jack Willis 10.03; 19 Oonagh Brooks 10.50; 22 Noah Lane 11.13; 23 Thea Crowther 11.49

U12’s: 7 Jacob Brady 8.40; 13 Jake Blackhurst 12.52

U16’s:  1 Jack Crummett 9.39

Todmorden Harriers next race is the Hot Toddy road race which will be held on Sunday 29th December. Perfect for getting rid of the extra inches put on over the Christmas period.

Tandle Hill Trail Race | OMM | Marathon Eryri | Bronte Way Fell Race

by Richard Butterwick (Final report, hanging up keyboard after 5.5 years)

Todmorden Harriers’ Trail Championship reached its conclusion at the Tandle Hill Trail Race on Sunday with the top three men in the standings all in attendance.

Dan Taylor, who was lying in second place in the table beforehand, was the first Todmorden Harrier to finish the 5.8 mile route in 39:28 for 9^th place, closely followed by Trevor Davies in 11^th who kept the gap between them small enough to enable him to clinch the men’s Trail Champion title.

Rob Gray finished in 40:47 which cemented his third place in the Championship.

Issy Pollard was not racing but previous results meant she claimed the women’s Trail Championship.

On the day, Bev Wright was the first Todmorden woman, finishing 17^th woman in a time of 53:28.  She was followed by Louise Abdy who battled on with a suspected broken finger after a fall to finish 21^st woman and Andrea Marshall who was 23^rd woman.

Todmorden results:  9 Daniel Taylor 39:28; 11 Trevor Davis 39:41; 16 Rob Gray 40:47; 21 Jon Wright 41:45; 44 Phil Cook 47:09; 48 Nick Barber 47:25; 53 Kevin Coughlan 48:48; 73 Bev Wright 53:28; 83 Peter Ehrhardt 55:59; 85 Louise Abdy 56:19; 89 Andrea Marshall 57:01.

Mandy Goth and Rachel Skinner finished first female pair in the long class at the OMM Marathon Mountain in the Brecon Beacons.  After holding a 5 point lead overnight after the first day, they completed the two day navigational event with a 15 point lead over their closest rivals.

Mel Blackhurst was also in Wales for the Marathon Eryri, completing the 26.2 mile route in Snowdonia in a time of 3:53:05, finishing 44th woman, and 7th in the v45 age category. 

Closer to home, a trio of Harriers tackled the Bronte Way Fell Race, an 8 mile point to point race from Wycollar to Haworth.

Martin Roberts finished in 46th place in a time of 1:06:30, followed by Chris Preston in 125th at 1:20:54 and Sue Roberts crossed the line at 1:32:32 for 159th position.

British Hill & Fell Relays | Chorley Cross Country | Race You to the Summit | Yorkshire Marathon

Todmorden Harriers had four teams competing in the British Hill and Fell Relay Championships at the weekend. The event is split into 4 different legs, with 2 individual runners and 2 pairs competing as a team of six.

The venue for this year’s relay was Llanberis in North Wales and runners were greeted with some very autumnal wind and rain making for tough conditions.

Todmorden Men’s A team finished in 23^rd place with an overall time of 4:50:44, with the B team completing with a time of 5:28:29 for 47^th position.

The Women’s team finished 16^th women’s team at 6:14:43 and the club’s mixed team finished 88 overall in the open category with a combined time of 7:07:26. 

At the second fixture of the Red Rose Cross Country League, Paul Brannigan was the first Todmorden runner in 41^st place, followed by Martin Stork in 55^th position.  Dan Taylor was 72^nd and Darren Tweed finished in 108^th position.

Jack Crummett put in a fine performance in the Under 15’s, finishing in eighth place.

At the Race You to the Summit Fell Race, Andrew Wrench battled his way into third position, and first veteran with a time of 31:53.

Elise Milnes completed the course in 47:29 for 42^nd position, just ahead of husband Graham who was 45^th with a time of 48:16.

Robin Tuddenham finished in 20^th position out of almost 4000 runners at the inaugural Yorkshire Marathon, completing the 26.2 mile distance in 2:47:03.

Blackpool to Fleetwood 10 | Ian Hodgson Mountain Relay | Chester Marathon | Saddleworth Edges

Todmorden Harriers enjoyed a successful trip to the seaside with the Blackpool to Fleetwood 10 mile road race featuring in the club’s Road Championship.

Paul Brannigan and Robin Tuddenham battled it out for second and third places, with both improving their best time for the distance by a few seconds, crossing the line in 57:05 and 57:13 respectively.

The performance of the day was undoubtedly Sarah Glyde who finished second woman, in 1:07:14, with a huge improvement of 4 minutes on her previous best for 10 miles.  Sarah is now assured of retaining her title of Women’s Road Champion.

Andrew Bibby finished first v60 in 28^th position overall with a time of 1:10:08.  Simon Galloway was 40^th in 1:13:53 and Peter Ehrhardt was 108^th in 1:27:53. 

Todmorden fielded two teams at the Ian Hodgson Mountain Relay in the Lake District, with poor visibility making for some difficult navigation and several teams going astray over the 4 leg course.  Unfortunately this included the club’s mixed team who missed a checkpoint and joined the list of disqualifications.

The men’s team fared slightly better although they also lost several places on the second leg, but recovered well to finish in 30^th place. 

Two Todmorden runners tackled the Chester Marathon, with Paul Alexander improving his personal best for the distance by a few seconds to finish in 3:26:03 and Kevin Coughlan crossing the line in 3:43:07. 

A pair of Harriers were also present at the Saddleworth Edges Fell Race, with Dave Collins finishing the 10 mile route in 1:14:03 for 26^th place and first v55.  James Riley followed him in at 1:23:07 for 72^nd place.

Ron Hill 5k | Edale Skyline | Leigh Cross Country | Thieveley Pike

Todmorden Harriers joined almost 400 runners in Littleborough to celebrate the 75th birthday of Dr Ron Hill MBE, with the annual 5k road race that is held in his honour.

Over thirty Harriers took to the hilly course along Rochdale Road, Smithy Bridge Road, along the side of Hollingworth Lake and finishing with a downhill section back into Littleborough.

Nick Barber led the way for Todmorden, finishing in fifth position with a time of 17:04, ahead of Paul Brannigan at 17:33 for 11th place and Martin Stork in 30th place stopping the clock at 18:36.

Sarah Glyde was the first Todmorden woman, collecting the v35 prize with her time of 20:36.  Kath Brierley completed the distance in 22:18 and Mel Blackhurst in 22:36.

Derek Clutterbuck enjoyed a rare race appearance and crossed the line first v80, after a race long battle that saw him claim a 13 second advantage over his nearest rival.

Todmorden results:  5 Nick Barber 17:04; 11 Paul Brannigan 17:33; 30 Martin Stork 18:36; 38 Dan Taylor 19:05; 41 Paul Alexander 19:24; 45 Robert Gray 19:28; 51 Ben Crowther 19:38; 79 Sarah Glyde 20:36; 88 Michael Harper 20:51; 97 Andrew Bibby 21:08; 104 Simon Galloway 21:31; 110 Richard Butterwick 21:34; 135 Kath Brierley 22:18; 138 Kevin Coughlan 22:26; 143 Phil Cook 22:34; 145 Melanie Blackhurst 22:36; 152 Keith Parkinson 22:59; 176 Richard Leonard 23:28; 210 Bev Wright 24:40; 224 Jane Leonard 25:28; 233 Nigel Hanson 25:41; 242 Mandy Goth 25:56; 246 David Leslie 26:02; 248 Julie Wyant 26:06; 258 Ray Poulter 26:28; 263 Andrea Marshall 26:42; 271 Peter Ehrhardt 27:03; 306 David O'Neill 29:00; 346 Derek Clutterbuck 35:26; 349 Ian Stansfield 36:21. 

Steve Bateson's Ron Hill 5k photos...

After being rearranged due to snow drifts on the original scheduled date in the spring, the Edale Skyline Fell Race was blessed with sunshine and blue skies at the weekend as the 34km Peak District race made up the final round of this year’s English Fell Championships.

Nick Barber recorded his highest finish in a Championship race, with 29^th place after 3:09:01, with Paul Brannigan finishing in 49^th position in 3:22:27.  Rob Tyson completed the route in 3:58:09 for 129^th place.

Mel Blackhurst was the first Todmorden woman in 160^th with a time of 4:08:01, followed by Kath Brierley in 201^st in a time of 4:21:37 and Jane Leonard in 251^st at 4:51:00.

David Leslie completed the Todmorden finishers with 270^th position in a time of 5:35:20.

A trio of Todmorden runners were present at the first fixture of this year’s Red Rose Cross Country League held on a fast dry course at Leigh Sports Village.

Martin Stork completed the course in 62nd place in a time of 38:59, followed by Dan Taylor in 85th with a time of 40:23.

Andrea Marshall was 83rd in the women’s race, with a time of 27:45.

There was a large entry for the Thieveley Pike Fell Race, with Andrew Wrench finishing in 6th place, and first v45.

Stephen Pullin just edged out Jamie Wrench as they finished 27th and 29th respectively, with Jamie claiming the first u18 prize.

Martin Roberts was 41st, with James Riley 59th and Phil Cook in 81st place.

In the junior races, Mayah Brooks finished first U12 girl, whilst Jaden Riley was second U12 boy.

Todmorden runners dominated the U8 boys race with Alex Duffield finishing first.  Noah Lane was second, with Harvey Riley third and William Beresford in fourth place.

Langdale Half | Three Shires | Littleborough 10k | Good Shepherd | Stainland 10k

Todmorden Harriers Road Championship continued with the Great Langdale Half Marathon, with three Harriers making the trip on Saturday.
 

Paul Brannigan put in a strong run to finish first v45 and in third place overall with a time of 1:24:12.
 

Mel Blackhurst was first v45 woman crossing the line in 1:45:37, and Kevin Coughlan completed the demanding hilly course in 1:50:50 for 95^th place.

 

On the same day, the Three Shires Fell Race was taking place just around the corner with misty conditions on the hill tops making for a challenging day.
 

Geoff Read made the most of his navigational skills to finish in 124rd place, just ahead of Jane Leonard and Marcel Ellison as the trio all came in around the 3 hour mark.
 

Phil Hodgson and Richard Leonard followed them a few minutes further back in 132^nd and 135^th respectively.

Steve Pullan then crossed the line in 200^th position and Mandy Goth was just behind in 202^nd place.
 

Todmorden results: 123 Geoff Read 2.59.23; 124 Jane Leonard 2.59.51; 126 Marcel Ellison 3.00.24; 132 Phil Hodgson 3.06.09; 135 Richard Leonard 3.08.28; 200 Stephen Pullan 3.40.10; 202 Mandy Goth 3.43.36.

Closer to home, several Todmorden runners tackled the inaugural Littleborough 10k, which followed a scenic loop along country lanes, including a lap around Hollingsworth Lake.
 

Dwane Dixon and Martin Stork battled to end with Dwane finishing in 8^th position in 39:00, with Martin just 3 seconds behind.
 

Paul Alexander improved his 10k personal best to 41:08 as he finished in 18^th position, followed by Mark Anderton in 34^th with a time of 44:05 and Mick Craven in 43^rd position in 45:42.
 

Karen Gray finished 8^th woman and 67^th overall with a time of 50:59 and Ian Stansfield finished in 110^th place stopping the clock at 1:14:51.
 

Todmorden results: 8 Dwane Dixon 39:00; 9 Martin Stork 39:03; 18 Paul Alexander 41:08; 34 Mark Anderton 44:05; 43 Mick Craven 45:42; 67 Karen Gray 50:59; 110 Ian Stansfield 1:14:51.

Peter Ehrhardt finished first v65 at another new race, the Stainland Trail 10k, completing the hilly course in 1:05:25.

A handful of Harriers were in Mytholmroyd for the Good Shepherd Fell Race, a 14 mile route featuring 2000 feet of climbs including two ascents of Stoodley Pike.

Paul Hobbs finished in 10^th position in 1:54:57, followed by Dan Taylor in 21^st position, stopping the clock just inside 2 hours, at 1:59:54.
 

David Leslie finished in 2:46:01 for 81^st, followed by Sue Roberts in 89^th at 2:58:34 and Reg Czudek was 97^th at 3:42:00.

Robin Tuddenham was a little further afield, as he finished first at the Melbourne parkrun in Australia.

Peris Horseshoe | World Triathlon London | Turbine Tangle | South Cheshire 20

A handful of Todmorden Harriers were in attendance at the Peris Horseshoe, the fourth and final race in the British Fell Running Championships.

Todmorden look to have clinched the Women’s Team silver medal by the narrowest of margins, based on provisional results, tying on points with Mercia but finishing ahead on aggregate places, and just one point ahead of Wharfedale Harriers, whilst Ambleside were the clear winners.

Kath Brierley was the first Todmorden woman in 134^th place with a time of 5:11:40, followed by Jane Leonard in 143^rd place at 5:20:37 and Clare Harris was 160^th in 5:43:33.

Andrew Bibby was the first Todmorden man in 120^th position, completing the 17.5 mile mountainous route in 4:59:08 with Dan Taylor a couple of places behind in 5:00:49.

 

Sarah Vickers was at the World Triathlon Grand Final in London where she was competing in the Olympic distance open race, finishing in 9^th place in the v35 age group after a strong run section moved her up several places.

 

Marcel Ellison finished in 3^rd place at the Turbine Tangle in a time of 1:44:41, a new race at Cowpe that challenged runners to visit all 26 wind turbines on Scout Moor.  The order and route choice was down to the runners meaning that navigation skills were as important as pure speed.

 

Paul Alexander continued his marathon training with a strong run at the Cheshire 20 mile road race, finishing in 37^th place with a time of 2:24:46.