Top-six finish for Briggs at Ilmington, while Dable picks up the MV65 prize

Wayne Briggs was the first of six Kenilworth Runners to complete the fourth Ilmington 10k Winter Series race, finishing sixth overall in 40min 6sec to pick up the first V35 prize.
Leamington C&AC's inter and senior boys:  Alex Ibbs, Daniel Chahal, Sam Lubrano, Sam Wadsworth, Tommy Ablett, Greg West, Kieran Chahal, Dominic Priest and Will Eadon. Picture submittedLeamington C&AC's inter and senior boys:  Alex Ibbs, Daniel Chahal, Sam Lubrano, Sam Wadsworth, Tommy Ablett, Greg West, Kieran Chahal, Dominic Priest and Will Eadon. Picture submitted
Leamington C&AC's inter and senior boys: Alex Ibbs, Daniel Chahal, Sam Lubrano, Sam Wadsworth, Tommy Ablett, Greg West, Kieran Chahal, Dominic Priest and Will Eadon. Picture submitted

Tom Dable (60:59) won the MV65 prize after finishing 146th overall.

The race was won by Richard Shephard of Stratford upon Avon AC in 36:00.

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Selected others: 13, Simon Corley (42:50); 18, Clive Pearce (44:47); 47, Christopher Lyons (48:30); 148, Pauline Dable (61:15).

Pulse Pursuits’ Dirtrun in the Dark was held on a freezing cold evening with competitors tackling a muddy two-lap 9k course around the valley at Evesham Country Park.

The race started with 50m or so on a rough tarmac surface before turning on to grassy paths, which in turn became muddy trails around fields, through woods and thickets before turning into a shallow incline back to the start.

It also incorporated a short, very steep muddy section in the woods, some challenging cambers and an unseen waterlogged mudbath stretch of trail that threatened to remove as many shoes as it could.

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Richard Broadbent was the first Kenilworth Runner home and fourth overall (2nd v40) in 40:08.

Mike Scandrett (46:03) was 17th, while Sheela Hobden was well placed early on but after her recent stress fracture did not want to unduly push her luck on the testing course and retired just after the start of the second lap.

Gail Bates came home in 71:32 and there were 135 finishers.

On a very cold Saturday, a good representation of Leamington C&AC athletes competed in the Warwickshire Schools Cross Country Championships at Kineton High School.

This race is used to select runners to represent Warwickshire at the English Schools Championships on March 18 in Norfolk.

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The minor girls’ race was won by Mel Gould (10:00), with Eva Fitzpatrick 21 seconds back in third.

In the junior girls’ race, Rosie Cale (11:56) pipped Molly Minshull (11:58) to sixth, with Minshull a place back.

Georgina Hurt was ninth in the inter girls’ category in 15:02, while Alex Gidney ran a strong race to finish runner-up in the minor boys’ race in 9:02.

In the inter boys’, Dominic Priest ran excellently to come home first in 17:52, with Tommy Ablett (18:03) fourth.

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Leamington C&AC athletes dominated the senior boys’ race with Greg West first in 17:28, closely followed by Kieran Chahal (2nd in 17:36), Sam Wadsworth (4th in 17:58) and Alex Ibbs (8th in 18:56)

Selected others: Minor girls: 19, Poppy Hilton (11:46). Junior girls: 13, Emily Lovett (12:18); 17, Lucy Green (12:33);24, Ana Lovett (13:02).Minor boys: 24, Sam Wells (10:17); 30, Zac Cale (10:25). Junior boys: 39, Joe Quinney (16:31). Inter boys: 12, Sam Lubrano (19:10); 17, Daniel Chahal (20:12)18, Will Eadon (20:18).

Kenilworth Runners’ Neil Sheward and Louise Andrews got away from the flat roads to take part in the Cannock Chase Trig Point Fell race, which featured 500 metres of ascent over 24k.

Sheward finished 54th in 2:23:42 and Andrews 56th and fifth lady in 2:24:00.

The race was won by Kim Collison of Borrowdale in 1:49:59 and there were 120 finishers.