(TLDR. The Headlines: On Tuesday we have our interval sessions on Wheatlands Road East, and are meeting at 6pm and 7pm. On Thursday, we have a club run round Knox and we have a XC championship race at the Chevin Forest Parkrun on Saturday. Read on for other interesting information about the club championships, awards night and, of course, a few wise words).
Hi all,
It’s been a busy old time here at Nidd Valley House. We’ve been wrapping up the 2023 championships and planning the races for next year. We’ve got the cross country championships now in full swing, and so the whole place is a lot more muddy than usual, what with runners traipsing through in their running shoes. We’ve been tying up the loose ends from the Guy Fawkes 10 (well, that fan mail won’t answer itself), and we have an Awards Night to organise, too. On top of that, some pillock has told Fingers that it is only 36 sleeps until Christmas, so I can’t imagine we’ll get much sleep between now and then. Still, even with all this going on, we’ve always got time for a brew and the kettle is always on here in Nidd Valley House, so come on in, pourself a cup, and let’s have a look at what we’ve been up to.
Results from the Week That Was…
Due to my business last week, I omitted the results but did promise to get the results included in the round up this week. And I’m nothing if not a man of my word. Captain Dazzler (18.27) was the first to finish at the York 5k last Friday evening, with Chris Carvey (19.35) and Connor Featherstone (20.38) following in his speediest of wakes. Sarah Staiano (21.39) clocked the kind of time which makes you wonder how she has recovered from injury so quickly, and we also had some cracking times from Nick Crebbin (21.41), Nigel Scaife (21.53), Guy Parker (28.03), Moira McTague (28.04) and Sarah Bracher (29.18). Moira did question the logic in driving a 70 mile round trip for a badge that she has designed, but it takes all sorts, I suppose ;-). Great efforts all round, and well done.
You might be interested to hear that Kev Clark took part in the Alton Towers Half Marathon last weekend. He did it in 1:29.25, too, which is a fabulous time. Well done, Kev.
We continue with the results from the Wadsworth Half Trog last weekend. The weather properly came down and the full nine mile course was shrouded in thick fog which made the already muddy course all the more challenging. It’ll be no surprise to you, however, that Brian Hainsworth (1:40.08) was the first to show for the squad, with a great time from Amy Shepphard (1:45.02) as she collected the full points for the ladies. Emma David (2:02.47) was the next to show, and we enjoyed brilliant results from FRP (2:17.06) and Sarah Chalmers (2:48.31). We’ll give a special shout out to Jonathan Kay and Debbie Gibson who took the decision to pull up given the challenging conditions. Running is all well and good, but sometimes knowing when to stop is the hardest decision of all. Well done to you all.
From last weekend, we also have the first results from the PECO XC league. In the one mile junior race, we had great performances from Jessice Webster (11.33), Freya Dart (12.22) and Tobi Dolman (14.04). In the two mile junior race, we dispatched five of our finest Niddlings to do battle, and they were none other than Eleanor Easton (14.59), Fraiser Dobinson (16.48), Eva Anwyl (17.33), Preeti Chadrashekar (18.13) and Owen Dart (18.58). Congratulations to you all.
I’m not sure why the results for the senior PECO races are separated by gender, but we are where we are. Much as I am all for gender and sexual equality, I don’t quite have the heart to amalgamate the two into one list. Let’s start with the results for the women. Louise Kingston (33.05) was the first Nidd to finish, and was joined by Thereas Oldyrod (36.05), Kirsty Walter (39.24), Fiona Deacon (39.34), Sarah Staiano (39.57) and Cath Barber (42.06). Rachel Mills (42.24) finished just ahead of Christine Holleran (42.52), Reb Ventress (43.26), Katharine Woodhead (45.26), Anna Bulcock (45.47) and Victoria Thomas (45.57). Karen Mills (48.20) was just behind of Nadene Wilkinson (47.40), but managed to hold Emily Wighton (49.00), Susy Rhodes (51.13) and Jo Lane (53.08) at bay. Our six female finishers were none other than the incredible Sarah Bracher (53.22), Michelle Smith (55.05), Liz Ahmed (55.11), Jill Hornsby (55.14), Sylvia Morten (58.07) and Lianne Coilley (1:03.38).
In the world of the chaps, it fell to Craig Mills (30.19) and Rob Kingston (30.46) to deny Captain Dazzler (31.56) his usual top spot. The ever lovable Andy Todd (33.11) was joined by the equally as lovable Chris Carvey (35.15), Andy Iddon (35.18), Simon Cocker (36.29) and Jon Easton (36.34). We also get to celebrate some remarkable results from Steve Turner (37.02), Matt Rickard (37.45), Nigel Scaife (38.41) and Mark Tyrell (39.47). Congratulations are also due to Steve Newton (41.30), Chandra Shekar (42.16), Carol Read (42.16), Mike Deacon (42.30) and Michael Shaw (44.03). Chris Morris (44.15) was just ahead of our finishing trio, who were the inexhaustible Dave Seaman (55.56), Marcos Montana (56.54) and Graham Hyde (57.31). Well done to you all.
Looking at this weekend, we have a result from down south. Yes, indeed, Craig Mills has been all the way down in Brighton. Craig raced in the Brighton 10km, finishing in a remarkable 35.54. Congratulations, Craig.
Oh good grief, we’ve got a right old long results write up from the Tadcaster 10 Mile this morning, so without further ado we’ll say a quick congratulations to Steve Newbould (1:00.37) as he just missed out on slipping under the one hour barrier, but was still too speedy to face much of a challenge from Captain Dazzler (1:04.20), Andy Todd (1:06.11) and Luke Scorer (1:06.18). We’ve got nothing but the highest praise for Ian Hersford (1:07.13), Chris Carvey (1:08.40) and Kev Clark (1:08.54). Theresa Oldroyd (1:10.03) was the first of the Nidd ladies to cross the line, with Connor Featherstone (1:11.20), Fiona Deacon (1:15.02) leading the birthday girl Sarah Staiano (1:16.11) to the finish. 21 again, you know. Nick Crebbin finished in a brilliant time of 1:17.05, and we couldn’t be happier to see what Richard Evans (1:18.26), Jeremy Scott (1:19.31), Rachel Mills (1:20.34), Mike Deacon (1:23.10) and Chris Morris (1:28.18) achieved. Steve Newton (1:26.01) was just ahead of Martin Luxton (1:29.07), while Paul Manning (1:28.56) was joined by the inexhaustible pair Katharine Dolman (1:30.24) and Chatty McChatface (1:33.44). Let’s have three cheers for Nick Smith (1:33.45), Sarah Gore (1:43.54), Dave Seaman (1:49.46) and Sarah Bracher (1:52.06) and let’s go totally wild for the best finishing trio a club captain could ever hope for: Michelle Smith (1:52.58), Carolyn Jones (1:54.34) and Fiona Robinson (2:18.01). Congratulations to you all.
And with that, the road championship joins the fell championships in rounding off for the year. I know, I feel emotional too.
Captain Dazzler did his parkrun ablutions at Woodhouse Moor yesterday, coming in 16th place. Emily Wighton and Laura Francis headed over to York and took a spin round the Knavesmire, getting some cracking times in the process. I can’t pretend that it is on my hit list of places to visit, but we’ll celebrate Josh Bryer who did his parkrun at Pontefract, if only because he came first place in a remarkable 18.40. Chris Carvey was up in Stewart Park in Middlesbrough, Iain Scott was in Skipton, and John and Susie Mallett were down to visit the rellies and so did Barclay Parkrun while they were at it. Karen Mills ran at Jersey Farms which is, as you might not expect, not on the island of Jersey but is near St Albans. Still, every day is a school day here at Nidd Valley House. Adam Kirk ran at Potternewton (if memory serves me correctly, it’s an absolute sod of a hilly course), the Robinsons ran at Penistone (grow up), Katharine Woodhead ran at Philips Park (just across the road from Mancehster’s Etihad Stadium, if you’re taking notes), and the Deacons continued their alphabet-hunting challenge with a trip to Millfield. We had plenty of other Nidds at Fountains, at Conyngham and Harrogate, as you might expect. You can read all of their results and satisfy your inner data-geek here: https://tinyurl.com/47nsmxd6.
He gonna make pretty womens / jump and shout / then the world wanna know / what this all about: chair@niddvalleyroadrunners.co.uk.
The Fixtures for the Week Ahead
Oh good, they’ve got more hilly intervals planned for us this week. Excellent. And this Tuesday, we’ll be doing the double dip on Wheatlands Road East. Meet at the junction of this road with Oatlands Drive, and consider going for a small jog beforehand to make sure that you are all warmed up. Whether you do the 6pm or the 7pm session, you are sure to be in safe hands, as Martin and Cath will be leading the early group with Rachel and Karen picking up the tailgate Charlies in the later session.
What do you fancy doing on Thursday night? What’s that, you fancy running the Knox route? Well, okay, if you insist. We’ll meet at the Hockey Club and be good to go for 7pm. We’ll head over the iron bridge, round Woodfield Road, over Bilton Lane, along Tennyson Avenue, and to the top of Batchelor Gardens. From there, we can head along Knox Lane and Knox Avenue onto Skipton Road. You can then head back to the club from there, or you can run down to the roundabout, up Ripon Road hill, up Parliament Hill, and along West Park, turning back for the club along York Place. If you want to do something different, shorter, longer, slower or faster, then please feel free. All are welcome.
Afterwards we’ll be heading for a pint in the Hockey Club bar, so if you want to hear some of Jonathan Kay’s appalling (but quite funny) dad jokes, then you know where you need to be. If, however, you want to have an enjoyable evening then feel free to go and do your own thing.
On Saturday, we have the next feature in the XC championships with a trip to run the Chevin Forest Parkrun. Luckily, with this being a parkrun and all, you don’t need to enter in advance and it won’t cost you a penny, you just need yourselves, your running shoes and your barcode. Like all parkruns, this starts at 9am, but it can get a bit busy with parkring so try to arrive in good time and car share if you can. If you want any relevant reading material, you can find it here: https://tinyurl.com/2p9xeahe.
On Sunday, Jeremy Scott is leading a steady and social 11km run from Hampsthwaite. You’ll need some off-road grippy shoes as mud is guaranteed, but there is a rumour of going to Sophie’s Cafe afterwards for a cup of tea so it surely isn’t all that bad. Meet outside Hampsthwaite Church and be good to run for 10am. It would be lovely to see you.
Further Ahead & Booking Now Open
Things are quieting down a bit on the races-to-book front, as the road and fell championships are now concluded. Still, if you want to get ahead of the game, then booking is now open for the Jolly Holly Jog. This is held on 31st December 2023, so if you fancy rounding off your year with some championship points and some muddy running shoes, then this is where you need to be: https://tinyurl.com/yvaak3ru.
Club Championships 2024
We’re meeting in a couple of weeks to put the club championships together for 2024, so if there are any races that you’ve particularly enjoyed / hated / want including next year, then we’d love it if you might let us know: https://tinyurl.com/3jx7cp5b.
You might have seen on Facebook that the 2024 running of the Muddy Boots has been cancelled. Somebody get me Captains Emma and Dazzler on the phone immediately. We need to know what contingency plans are in place for the cross country championships.
Awards Night: 27th January 2024
Places for the Awards Night are selling much quicker than we anticipated, and we’ve only got about 20% of available places left. If you want to get in on the action, then I should strike while the iron is hot. It’s always a great evening where you get to see your club mates when they’re not wearing lycra and have done their hair, and we will be handing out the trophies as we celebrate another brilliant year of running. You get to listen to me whitter on, too, but I shall keep it brief so try not to worry. Get involved: https://tinyurl.com/2nn75rt5.
As an aside, some of you have registered (which is lovely), and have said that you want to sit next to your partner or on a certain table with your friends. You’ll only be able to do this if your partner or your friends also book themselves a place. Don’t miss out!!
Word to the Wise
This week’s weekly wisdom comes from Nigel Scaife and Martin Lofthouse, as Nigel was leading the interval sessions down on Knox Avenue on Tuesday night. Imagine the scene, scores of runners in the road doing their warm up stretches. It is dark, we’re on a public road, and some car headlights are bearing down on us from further up the road.
Nigel: “It’s okay, don’t worry. We have the right of way…”
Martin: “They’ll be putting that on your headstone at this rate, Nige…”
So from Martin, from Nigel, from me, and from everybody else at the Tufty Club (outdated cultural reference #318), have a wonderful week.
See you soon,
Chairman Sam x