Golf Ball | Stan Curran 5k | Burnsall Classic | Honley 10k | Thames Gateway 60

A pair of Todmorden runners were in attendance on Wednesday evening at the Golf Ball Fell Race from Loveclough, with Marcel Ellison completing the 5 mile course in 43:42 for 22^nd place and Clare Harris in 1:04:24 for 128^th overall, and 24^th woman.

The following evening saw a handful of Harriers take part in the Stan Curran 5k at Whitworth.

John Lloyd was the first Todmorden man around the two lap course of Cowm Reservoir, in a time of 16:48 which carried him into fourth place.

Paul Alexander stopped the clock at 19:53 for 22^nd place, with Richard Butterwick in 31^st with a time of 21:40.

Myra Wells finished in 29:19 for 53^rd position and Ian Stansfield was 60^th in a time of 36:11.

On Saturday Dave Collins finished in 47^th position at the Burnsall Classic Fell Race, with a time of 19:52 over a steep 1.5 mile up and down course.

The inaugural Honley 10k Trail Race took place in heavy rain, with Richard Butterwick finishing in 52:30 for 30^th place.

Jilly Davidson was racking up the miles in Kent at the Thames Gateway 60 mile Ultra Marathon, where she finished 3^rd lady.

Fleetwood Half Marathon | Stan Curran 5k | Padiham 5 | Burnsall | Norland Moor

Todmorden Harriers Road Championship was back on the agenda with a trip to the seaside for the Fleetwood Half Marathon.

John Lloyd and Sarah Glyde both consolidated their respective leads in the men’s and ladies standings, and with three races to go are looking strong favourites for this year’s titles.

John was the first Harrier to finish the 13.1 miles in sixth position, with nearest rival Robin Tuddenham finishing in 13th place.

Paul Alexander set a new personal best time for the distance as he crossed the line in 46th, whilst Andrew Bibby finished in 60th and Michael Harper in 73rd position.

Sarah Glyde won the ladies v35 prize and was 10th lady overall as she also improved on her best time, and Mel Robertson just beat her time from a year earlier to finish 33rd lady.

Peter Ehrhardt completed the Todmorden entry with 231st position.
Todmorden Results: 6 John Lloyd 1:17:56; 13 Robin Tuddenham 1:22:33; 46 Paul Alexander 1:31:20; 60 Andrew Bibby 1:34:33; 73 Michael Harper 1:35:30; 80 Sarah Glyde 1:36:10; 189 Melanie Robertson 1:48:49; 231 Peter Ehrhardt 1:52:13.



Other Todmorden Harriers in action included Myra Wells who was first v55 lady at the Stan Curran 5k at Whitworth on Thursday, and then repeated her prize winning form the following evening at the Padiham 5 mile Diamond Jubilee Race.

Also running at Whitworth were Richard Butterwick who finished 24th and Ray Poulter in 55th place, with Richard also going on the following night to finish 15th at the Padiham 5.

Dave Collins finished first v55 at the Burnsall Classic Fell Race, whilst Chris Preston was sixth lady over the 10 mile Burnsall road race course.

David Leslie and Julie Wyant took on the Tour of Norland Moor Fell Race on Sunday, finishing the 10.1km route in 57th and 80th places.



Many Todmorden Harriers will be looking forward to the Blackshaw Head Fell Race that takes place on Saturday 1st September at 2:00pm from the fete field, with entries taken on the day from 12:30pm.

Sedburgh Hills | Burnsall Feast Sports | Golf Ball Fell Race

The Sedburgh Hills Fell Race on Sunday marked the final race in this year’s English Fell Championships. The 16 mile race featured over 6500 feet of ascent and was also a counter in this year’s British Fell Championships.


Whilst Todmorden Ladies were safe in the gold medal position for the English Championships, the race was still an important chance to add to their score as they pursue a British Championship medal.

Lauren Jeska had already secured the individual ladies championship so opted not to race, but Sarah May led the Todmorden charge as she also sought to improve her own position. Starting the day in joint 8thplace, Sarah ran a strong race to finish in 8th place in the ladies race on the day. That result moved her up to 7th place in the overall standings for the year.

Gemma Kendall was the next Todmorden lady in 25th followed by Mel Blackhurst in 44th place, to take the ladies into 4th team on the day and keep them in 3rd place in the British Championships, with just one race to go.

Jane Leonard kept her hopes of an English Championship V50 medal alive with 52nd lady, and is currently second in the overall standings.

Alistair Rhodes-Dawson returned from injury to lead in the Todmorden men in 65th place, with Dwane Dixon finishing in 97th place.

Todmorden Results: 65 Alastair Rhodes-Dawson 2:30:40; 97 Dwane Dixon 2:39:09; 122 Nick Barber 2:47:58; 129 Sarah May 2:50:03; 130 Dave Collins 2:50:31; 180 Andrew Bibby 3:06:05; 190 Gemma Kendall 3:07:11; 247 Melanie Blackhurst 3:23:10; 275 Jane Leonard 3:33:46; 295 Peter Ehrhardt 3:43:39.


On Saturday, several Harriers took part in the Burnsall 10 road race in the Yorkshire Dales which featured in this year’s club road championship.

Paul Brannigan finished the course in 8th place, with Martin Stork in 13th and John Lloyd in 15th, winning them second placed team prize.

Richard Blakely crossed the line in 74th, with Peter Ehrhardt in 79th and Mel Robertson in 82nd place.

Todmorden Results: 8. Paul Brannigan 1:02:23; 13. Martin Stork 1:04:12; 15. John Lloyd 1:04:46; 74. Richard Blakeley 1:24:12; 79. Peter Ehrhardt 1:27:14; 82. Melanie Robertson 1:28:49.


The race formed part of the Burnsall Feast Sports Day and was followed with the classic Fell Race, which a trio of Todmorden runners entered.

James Riley completed the 1.5mile course which features a lung busting 900 feet climb and a precipitous descent in 19:46 for 41st place, with Peter Clarke in 77th in a time of 22:24. Sue Roberts claimed the 10th lady position with 25:44.


Sean Carey enjoyed a titanic battle with Eryri’s Matthew Roberts at the Golf Ball Fell Race on Wednesday as the pair left the rest of the field trailing in the distance, with Sean eventually losing out on the line by one second.

James Riley in 75th and Kevin Booth in 84th place were the Harriers other representatives.

The race was the fourth and final race in Rossendale’s Mid Week Fell Series and second place on the night was sufficient for Sean to claim a comfortable win in the series overall.

August Round-up

Todmorden Harriers saw out August in fine form, including several winning performances.


Sean Carey won the Rossendale Harriers mid week series of fell races, with a measured 6th place at the final event, the Golf Ball Fell Race, being sufficient to take the series after a 1st and 2nd in earlier races.

Despite missing the last race - at Worsthorne Moor - of the 12 race Pendle & Burnley GP, Ian Stansfield won the v65 category after completing all of the first 11 races.

Alistair Rhodes-Dawson won the v40 trophy at the Grasmere Sports Senior Guides Fell Race, a short and steep up and down featuring a 900 foot climb in its 1.5 mile course.

Dave Collins won the v50 category at one of the longest standing fell races, the Burnsall Feast Sports Classic Fell Race which has been a fixture since the mid 19th century. It also covers a 900 foot climb over a 1.5 mile up and back course. James Riley, Peter Clarke and Peter Ehrhardt were Todmorden’s other representatives in the 150 strong field.

Robin Tuddenham finished 6th overall, and first v40, at the Round Latrigg fell race in Keswick on Wednesday – to follow his first place at the Oldham Parkrun the previous Saturday. Elise Milnes was first lady v50, with Ali Richards and Graham Milnes also completing the 5.5 mile course, which featured over 800 feet of ascent.

Also on Wednesday, Todmorden narrowly missed out on the ladies team prize at the Chunal Fell Race in Glossop. The 4 mile route included 950 feet of climb and Sarah Warburton led the way for the Harriers in 2nd place, only 8 seconds behind ladies winner Mary Edgerton of Pennine Fell Runners. Kath Brierley was a few seconds further back in 3rd with Emma Osenton finishing 10th lady.

On Saturday, five Harriers travelled to Clitheroe for the five mile Pendleton Fell Race, with Jon Wright in 7th and Dwane Dixon in 15th place.
Mick Craven finished 78th, with Dan Taylor making a return from injury in 104th and Andrea Marshall in 166th.

Sarah May meanwhile has been setting the triathlon world alight with two consecutive wins. First up was the Lakeland Triathlon, made up of a 1500 metre open water swim in Bassenthwaite Lake, and a hilly 40km cycle and a 10km run. She then followed that up just a week later with first female at the Clitheroe Triathlon over a slightly shorter course with a 400 metre swim, 30km bike and 9km run.