Runners from the Bedale and Aiskew club (BAR) attended three different Parkruns last Saturday. There was a field of 190 at the Catterick event with nine BAR athletes, four achieving personal best (PB) times. Alex McNairn clocked an all time PB of 21.12 for the 5K course, followed by Becky Smith achieving a course PB of 21.55. Marian Hunter also recorded a course PB of 27.35, as did Alison Grayson in 28.43. Paul Berry was timed at 21.56, Raymond Lightle 24.28, Kat McCann 27.46 (whilst pushing a buggy!), John Hunter 28.34 and Rachel Burr 29.13.

Paul Simpson equalled his all time PB at Fountains Abbey Parkrun in 20.05 and 24th position out of 422 taking part. At Northallerton Matt Randall recorded a course PB in 22.50, as did Jess Mallinson with 33.55.

Last Sunday saw the running of the Dishforth Dash 10K on the runways of the old aerodrome. The very very flat course saw this year’s best times for Paul Bainbridge of 49.03, and Raymond Lightle of 50-09.

Although the Dishforth Dash isn’t a championship race, it counts as a wildcard for now for Paul and Raymond – at least until they have an even better one! The championship has therefore been updated.

Club runners Lena Conlin and Stuart Black completed the Hardmoors 50 Ultra Marathon last weekend. Both runners are very experienced at these very long distance races, but the weather made this one particularly challenging – gale force winds combined with torrential rain (and therefore lots and lots of mud!) meant that they had to work extra hard for everyone of those 50 miles.

Stuart completed the ultra in 14:25:13 finishing in 161st place, with Lena in 183rd place in a time of 14:51:20. There were 287 finishers on the day. A huge well done to both!

The Bedale and Aiskew Runners (BAR) 10K coaching group reached their target race last Sunday at the Lightwater Valley 10K. Many were running a race for the very first time, and so nerves were jangling and questions were being asked. New club Chairman, Paul Ellis, was on hand to calm anxieties, and pass on advice from his many years of taking part in this sort of event. The twelve first timers were led home by Matt Randall in an excellent time of 45.39 and an overall position of 30th out of the 241 taking part. He was followed by Matt Barnes in a time of 50.00 and 63rd.

Kat McCann had an excellent run to finish 88th in 53.19, followed by Beth Grayson and Louise Baker finishing together in 123rd in 57.29, with Alison Barron 132nd in 59.23. Ken Mountain was next in 161st in a time of 62.22, closely followed by Alison Grayson 162nd in 62.24, and Rebecca Barker 163rd in 62.27. Jess Mallinson was 173rd in 63.42, with Katie Watson 174th in 63.57, and Chloe Rendall 234th in 77.55.

Nine further BAR members took part, with present club champion, Will Retchless, running really well to finish 11th overall in a personal best (PB) time of 40.30. The fast improving Kev Gaskell finished 23rd in 44.22, followed by another superb run from Becky Smith finishing 35th overall, and 4th female out of 138, in a time of 46.34. Becky has been training with the 10K group recording a PB by over 2 minutes, having only just beaten it by a similar amount at the Muddy Boots last month. That is 5 minutes off her previous 10K PB which she only set at Jolly Holly in December. Amazing.

Alex McNairn has also been following the 10K group, finishing 36th in a PB of 46.43, which again is a massive improvement on where he was at the start of the program. He was followed by Paul Bainbridge in 71st overall, and 1st in his M70 age group, in a time of 51.27. Jennifer Wilkin was 168th in 63.30, Chris Appleton 184th in 64.45, Tony Wheeldon 200th in 66.29, and Sue Wheeldon 216th in 69.09.

The high profile and long standing Thirsk 10 mile race also took place last Sunday with five Bedale and Aiskew Runners taking part in a field of over 1000 competitors. Paul Simpson had a superb run finishing 172nd in a PB for the distance of 1 hour 8 minutes and 40 seconds. Present club female champion, Nicola Simpson, also recorded a PB finishing 305th overall in 1-14.22, with Henry Anderson making it a hat trick of PBs finishing 477th in 1-21.16. John Hunter was 864th in 1-38.47, with Raymond Lightle 504th in 1-22.25, having completed his 100th Parkrun the day before in torrential rain at Catterick.

These results have also been reflected in the Championship.

Last weekend I took on a massive challenge.

I attempted to complete an ultra-run with a difference.

The Tunnel Ultra was a brand new race and the aim was to run 200 times through the Combe Down Tunnel within 55 hours.

The Combe Down Tunnel near Bath was a disused railway tunnel near bath which is now part of the Two Tunnels cycle path, it is about a mile long. The tunnel is dimly lit from 05:00 – 23:00 Then the lights go off. There is also a sound installation in the middle of the tunnel which is a series of lights and violins this plays constantly in the central third of the tunnel between about 09:00 and 19:00.

The race organiser Mark Cockbain designed an ultra that would not just test physical strength but the mental strength to run for hours on end with no mental stimulus. The rules were tough too:

• no support allowed, athletes needed to be able to take care of themselves
• no ear/head phones were allowed as the tunnel was still open to cyclists and other runners and walkers so runners had to be aware of their surroundings
• runners were to run on the left hand side in single file unless passing another runner
• mandatory kit was a whistle, a phone and hi-vis was to be worn at all times
• timing was a dibber to be dibbed at each end of the tunnel.

Starting at 15:30 on Friday 8 March there were 31 starters who were set off in small batches a few minutes apart.

I was nervous as I did not know what to expect, The race had never been run before so I was unable to research it. Also I am not keen on tunnels, have only ever run 113 miles in 33 hours as a previous long distance and never attempted to stay awake through 2 nights.

The first lap was not so bad but it was definitely longer than a mile.

Later on I noticed markings on the floor that stated that the tunnel was actually 1700 metres long.

The sounds went off at around 7 pm and there were less and less members of the public, there was no light at the end of the tunnel then the lights went off. Even though I had expected it to happen it was still a shock. I turned on my head torch and suddenly the tunnel was brighter than it had been when the lights were on. The tunnel seemed massive. As the night went on there were less and less runners. The already cold tunnel was even colder.

At 5 am the lights were back on and by 6 there was light at the ends of the tunnel again. At 9 am the sounds started again and the tunnel got busier. It was much busier than Friday afternoon. 

I had 27 ½ hours to reach 100 times through the tunnel. I was a little worried as the tunnel was longer than a mile and I had done my pacing calculations on a mile. I was relieved to get to 100 lengths in 25 ½ hours 105.6 miles. And that is without the trips outside the tunnel to the loo tent or the support tent for coffee.

 As the sounds stopped in the tunnel for the second night there were only a few of us left and not many members of the public. I was spending a lot of time on my own. About 22:00 the tiredness kicked in, I struggled to focus my vision. I had a 15 min power nap. Getting going was tough my muscles had stiffened up. It took a couple of lengths to get going again then the lights went off again.

I spent most of the night alone I think there were only about 9 runners left and we were all spread out. I was relieved when morning came, I hoped that it would stop the road and the walls moving around which had slowed me down enormously. I knew now that I did not have time to complete 200 lengths but I was not giving in until I could not carry on. I had been managing a lap (2 lengths) in under half an hour but this had slowed overnight to around 40-45 minutes. There were soon only 4 runners left, I was the only female, the tunnel was really busy. I was moving much slower and struggling to keep warm. I layered up and carried on, but very slowly.

Then there were three.

On my 73rd lap I really struggled, the floor and walls would not stay still, I stopped and started making very slow progress. My vision was all over the place, I was struggling to concentrate.  It took me an hour and a half to complete that 3400 m. I dibbed for the last time and handed my dibber over. I had gone as far as I could.

I failed to complete the 200 laps, I completed 146. The official distance at 146 lots of 1700 metres is 154.22 but I have rounded that up to 156 miles as distance covered including trips to the support tent for coffee and to the  loo which were quite a distance outside the tunnel. and stopped running after 46:01:10

I am very pleased with my effort, I’m not really disappointed because I really could not continue. I am really pleased with my effort. I did my best and ran the 4th furthest distance and the furthest distance by any of the females.

There were only 2 finishers.

The 2 men I left running were the only finishers, first was in just over 50 hours and the other in 54 hours 35 min.

If I got the chance I would probably give this race another go.

This unusual 6k distance race will take place on Wednesday the 21st August and registration is now open on BookItZone (https://bookitzone.com/marian_codling/vqjFFX). It is the shortest club championship race apart from the one allowable parkrun, and a lovely mid-week alternative to the usual weekend races. Hope to see many of you there!

A great turn out from BAR for our fourth club championship race of the season at the beautiful Fountains Abbey Parkrun. Fourteen of our runners joined over 450 others taking part and put in some very impressive performances on this tough course, with six course PBs and four all time PBs!

First home in an amazing 18:53 and 6th place overall was reigning club champion Will Retchless, smashing his previous PB by over 30 seconds.

Chris Lees finished in 19:55 and 18th place, with his all time PB and first sub-20 minute 5k (also taking nearly 30 seconds off his PB and putting himself back in pole position in the male championship at this early stage). Next back were Paul Berry who ran an impressive course PB (20:27 in 27th place) and James Bartram (who unfortunately forgot his barcode and so has no time, but finished in either 31st or 32nd place with a time between 20:42 and 20:52).

Matt Randall shaved 4 seconds off his all-time PB finishing in 21:40 (45th place) with Becky Smith beating her course PB just a few seconds behind (22:04 and 52nd place) to take the lead in both female competitions. Matt Barnes finished next (23:17 and 78th place) with Paul Bainbridge not far behind and doing just enough to re-take the lead in the male handicap competition (23:59 and 98th place).

Alex McNairn (who ran with his granddaughter) was next (28:16/232nd place) followed by Katie Watson (30:17 and 299th place). Ken Mountain wasn’t far behind (30:26 and 302nd place) with Rebecca Barker hot on Ken’s heels (but without a barcode unfortunately, so an estimated time of 30:30 and around 303rd place). Jess Mallinson finished in an all-time PB of 32:34 and 344th place, with Michelle Dinsdale coming in 408th place in 35:17.

Nine of these results qualified for the club championship and this has been updated: Championship 2019. The next club championship race is the Lightwater Valley 10k on 17th March.

Two of our members travelled down to Harewood House for last weekend’s races – a 10k and a half-marathon. Both courses were hilly and off road making them challenging events.

Louise Baker completed the 10k in a time of 1:02:55 and finishing in 623 place out of a field of 1,078. Kev Gaskill took on the half marathon and finished in 271st place out of 1,000 runners who finished.

These were both club championship races, and these results put Kev on top of both male competitions (as the only person to have competed in two races) and adds Louise to the female competitions. For the latest championship details, see Championship 2019.

This Saturday is the first of the four parkruns nominated in the 2019 championship at Fountains Abbey. One of these four parkruns can count towards the 6 championship races. We hope to see as many club members as possible there to enjoy one of the most beautiful parkruns in our area.

Saturday saw fourteen Bedale and Aiskew Runners brave a very windy Catterick parkrun and two of the 10k program athletes recorded personal bests – Beth Grayson (28:00) and Alison Barron (28:10).

Also on Saturday, Lena Conlin ran just a little further, tackling the longest distance at the “Pateley Pie and Pint”. Lena completed 6 laps of the 5 mile course to finish in 6:15:38 – 2nd lady in the 30 mile distance.

On Sunday Lena was out again, this time for the Hardmoors Saltburn Marathon, where she was joined by Stuart Black (clearly not resting on his laurels after picking up the club’s 2018 Outstanding Male Performance award the previous evening). The 28.2 mile mixed terrain course covered muddy coastal paths, woodland, boggy moorland, dry hard trails and roads, not to mention over 4,000ft of climb. The stunning views helped both runners (pictured) complete the course in a very respectable 6:12:00.

The conditions were good for the first club championship race of the season down at Ripon this morning. Perhaps a little chilly at the start line but the eleven club runners soon warmed up once they started, helped by the great support from the BAR spectators.

First home was Chris Lees (44:19, placed 35) who  last night collected the runner-up prize for the 2018 male championship and takes an early lead in the 2019 competition. Less than a minute later Paul Simpson (45:10, placed 44) came in, and less than a minute after that Ben Smith (46:01, placed 51).

Nicola Simpson (47:04, placed 66) led the women home continuing her winning form from the 2018 championship into 2019, taking top spot in both the female championship and female handicap. Rebecca Smith (49:21, placed 98) came in next smashing her 10k personal best time by over 3 minutes, even on this challenging course, and just a few seconds ahead of Kev Gaskill (49:28, placed 105).

Paul Bainbridge (52:56, placed 137) was next home and won a prize for first in his age category with a time that puts him at the top of the male handicap, and successfully completing the race without aggravating his injury. Raymond Lightle (53:36, placed 147) was hot on Paul’s heels, with Alex McNairn (53:48, placed 153) just a few seconds behind, despite nursing a hip injury.

Jennifer Wilkin (1:08:01, placed 355) and Chris Appleton (1:08:15, placed 358) were next back, meaning all the BAR runners finished the race.

The Championship Standings and Race Summaries are on the club website.

Following our very successful Couch to 5k program last year, we are delighted to be offering it again starting on the 20th March. The course lasts for approximately nine weeks and is suitable for complete beginners and those returning from injury.

If you or someone you know would like to take part, please go to the registration page here: Couch to 5k Registration, read it carefully, and then submit the registration!

26th November 2018

The Bedale and Aiskew Runners have been organising a ‘Couch to 5K’ course under the watchful eye of club coach Chris Lees. After nine weeks of introduction and training, up to three times a week, the group were ready for reaching their goal at the local Parkrun at Catterick. To add to the occasion up to 20 officials at the event were recruited from the Bedale club led by Run Director, Paul Simpson. Four club members and regular Park runners, Will Retchless, Henry Anderson, John Hunter and Marian Hunter acted as Pacers to guide runners to a target time, with Anne Johnson taking up Sweeping duties with the final participants.

The weather was calm, and excellent for running at this time of year, with 170 setting off at the start. All the group were taking part in their first ever Parkrun and looked confident after the first of three laps.
Christopher Chambers led the group home in a time of 24-00, with Kathryn McCann next in 26-51. Beth Grayson finished well in 28-18, followed by Rebecca Barker in 28-40, Jill Davenport in 28-47, Katie Watson 28:19, Alison Barron in 30-15, Alison Grayson in 30-28, Jess Mallinson 33:22, Chloe Rendall in 36-12, Marie Brant in 36-56 and Polly Oldacres in 36-56. All were presented with medals from the Running Club for their achievement, with all keen to continue their progress in the future.

Regular club members were also enthused to take part in their first parkrun with Ben Smith flying round in a time of 21-22, and Nick Hatch in 27-04. Rebecca Smith is improving every outing and recorded a personal best time of 23-17 for 4th placed woman overall. Membership Secretary Helen Simpson had been following the Couch to 5K programme after sustaining a broken ankle injury a year ago and was very pleased to be in action again finishing in 32-47. Second claim member Lena Conlin usually runs much longer distances than 5K but enjoyed finishing a lot sooner in 26-01.

The previous weekend Lena had been taking part in the Town Moor Marathon in Newcastle. This was a seven lap traffic free course on good footpaths through and around the historic Exhibition Park. She completed the 26.2 miles in 4 hours 14 minutes and 20 seconds, finishing 1st in her age category. A weekend rarely goes by without Raymond Lightle taking part in a race and he was very pleased to finish the Town Moor Marathon just 8 seconds under the 4 hour mark, and also take 1st place in his age group.

3rd December 2018

Raymond Lightle travelled to near Kirkby Stephen to run in the Ravenstonedale 10K race recently. Conditions were good and he was pleased to finish 7 seconds faster than the previous year, in a time of 51-07 for 105th out of the 211 finishers.

Meanwhile club members were taking part in the popular sell out event, the Wensleydale Wedge, which is organised by the Nidderdale Long Distance Walkers Association. This started as a walking challenge but over the years more and more people have tested their fitness over the rugged course at a faster pace. Eight Bedale and Aiskew Runners were ready at the start of the 24 mile route at Askrigg village hall, taking in check points at Semmerwater, Thoralby, Castle Bolton, Carperby and back to Askrigg. Former club champion, Paul Ellis, is regaining his impressive form and was up with the leaders from the start. He finished in 7th position out of the 236 who competed, in a time of 3 hours 38 minutes. Nicola and Paul Simpson ran together to record a time of 4-05, for 28th overall. However Nicola was holding a strong 2nd place female, and on schedule for a sub 4 hour time, when she and Paul got lost near Carperby in the fog. This led to her being overtaken, but still an excellent result as 3rd female.

James Bartram had a strong start but also got lost, at the Bolton Castle section, and dropped places as a result, but still recorded 4-15 for 39th overall. Henry Anderson is running well at present finishing 70th in 4-41, followed by friends Tasha Miller and Kim Taylor-Maskell running together and finishing in 5-36 for 118th. Sue Allen has walked the Wedge previously and decided to run/walk this year finishing in 5-46 and 131st.

Paul Ellis is running some hard miles in training, and put these to a good test down in Surrey last weekend. He raced in the Hurtwood 50K, which was a very hilly and muddy race on the Greensand Way in Dorking. He finished in a very creditable 5 hours 51 minutes coming 58th out of 203 finishers.

Catterick Parkrun attracted its usual clutch of club runners. Chris Lees has been working hard coaching the ‘Couch to 5K’ group who all ran successfully at Catterick the previous week. Chris was in top form storming round in 21-02 for 11th place and his first 5K at Catterick. One of his group, Polly Oldacres, ran for the second week in a row, and shaved a massive two and a half minutes from her previous time finishing in 34-28. Regular club Parkrunners were in action with Raymond Lightle recording 24-00 for his 41st Parkrun of the year, Anne Johnson 27-26 for her 25th of the year, and Alex McNairn, running with his granddaughter Lola, 28-47, for his 15th of the year. Meanwhile at the Harrogate Parkrun, Mat Randall of the ‘Couch to 5K’ group ran a fantastic time of 24-02, for his first run in Bedale colours.

17th December 2018

Stuart Black and Lena Conlin have been competing in the Hardmoors series of races throughout the year. The races are based on the North Yorkshire Moors, usually of considerable length and on rough trail terrain, so not to be taken lightly. The latest venture was the Roseberry Topping Marathon, which in Hardmoors tradition totalled just over 30 miles. The course started at Guisborough up a very muddy Tees Link to High Cliff Nab. Then up and over Roseberry Topping twice, before reaching Kildale via Captain Cook’s Monument. Several miles later the muddy descent through Guisborough woods took the runners to the finish. Lena had a fantastic run to finish joint first FV50 in 7 hours and 1 minute, with Stuart close behind in 7-16 for 89th overall out of 137 finishers.

Lena was competing the following weekend in her 20th marathon of the year at Elescar near Barnsley in sub zero conditions. This was organised by the ‘It”s Grim Up North’ company over a 6.7 mile lap of frozen trails, with several different distance races taking place. Former club champion and local Bedale businessman, Paul Ellis, accompanied Lena over 4 laps to cover the marathon distance. Paul is coming into some excellent form at this late stage of the year finishing in 5th position overall in a great time of 3 hours 38 minutes 42 seconds. Despite the cold conditions Lena was very pleased finishing 23rd overall and 4th female in a time of 4-34.54.

Over a much shorter distance of 5K, but still in the icy conditions of last Saturday morning, competitors at the Catterick parkrun were looking at each other wondering what they were doing there. It was a great bonding experience for all concerned, including the resolute and encouraging volunteers marshalling the event. Paul Simpson was the first Bedale runner to finish in 21-03 followed by his wife Nicola in 22-16. Mat Randall having his first run at Catterick recorded 23-54, with almost ever present Raymond Lightle in 24-42. Paul Bainbridge was back in action after a six month injury lay off and was pleased to record 24-42, followed by Jess Mallinson in 33-34.

31st December 2018

The Jolly Holly Jog held annually in Ripon is very popular with runners from far and wide and sells the full allocation of entries well in advance of the event. Held between Christmas and New Year there is always a very festive and friendly atmosphere. This year, with mild sunny weather, it was the perfect stage for the 13 runners from the Bedale club to tackle the 10k course, which included the beautiful Studley Park. It was a new route this year and the general consensus was that it was an improvement, although a lot tougher with some stiff climbs to tackle.

The men’s club championship title was still in the balance with several of the leading contenders in action. Will Retchless had run, for him, a steady Parkrun at Northallerton the day before, but he really put his foot down to lead the Bedale and Aiskew contingent from the start. He finished 32nd overall in an impressive time of 41-57, out of nearly 800 taking part. Paul Ellis likes the off road terrain and ran well to record 44-07 for 66th overall. Paul Berry was running strongly to finish 92nd and a time of 45-43, followed closely by Ben Smith in 108th and 46-55.

The first Bedale lady was Caroline Glover who also enjoys this sort of course, finishing 8th out of 132 in her F50 age group, in a time of 52-06 and 209th overall. Becky Smith was next, running a blistering pace, virtually matching her previous 10K record, which was all the more impressive considering it was on the road. Becky finished in a time of 52-53 for 221st overall, and 12th out of 71 in the F30 age category. Rita Berry was third club lady to finish in 69-54 and 633rd, followed by Sue Wheeldon in 700th and 74-03.

Henry Anderson was pleased with his time of 52-56 for 222nd, followed by Raymond Lightle in 244th and 53-51, and Tony Clark in 271st in 54-39. Phil Johnston is always positive and was pleased to record 61-09 for 447th, with Alex McNairn in 519th and 64-06.

Several club members ran at the final Parkrun of the year at Catterick. Billy Conlin made a rare appearance recording an excellent time of 22-09 for the 5K course. Raymond Lightle ran his 45th Parkrun of the year, which is an amazing record. Anne Johnson ran her 27th and John Hunter his 26th, to be the top 3 club members out of 55 who ran at least 1 Parkrun in 2018.

Tickets are now on sale for the Awards Night, an evening to recognise and celebrate our members achievements, to enjoy an evening of laughs with a meal and a dance.

The Awards Night will be taking place on Saturday 9th February, at 7pm, at Bedale Golf Club. Tickets are £20 each, and include a 3 course meal followed by a disco. Please follow the link below to buy your tickets.

Tickets Link

Tickets are limited to 70, so don’t miss out.

We look forward to seeing you there.

After the final Wildcard race of the year, the Championship results have been finalised. What an exciting time it has been watching everyones race times come in, and the impact on the leadership table.

Championship Results

Well done to everyone who has taken part in the Championship this year, you have a lot to be proud of, with some amazing achievements, and loads of PBs. 

Roll on 2019, with more PBs to look forward to with our growing membership.

Happy New Year Bedale & Aiskew members!!!

On Wednesday 19th December we will be doing our usual Xmas run around Bedale.

We will meet at the Xmas Tree on the high street at 6:30, and take group leisurely run to view the Xmas lights of Bedale.

We will follow the run with a drink in the Black Swan for anyone that would like to join us.

Please note there will be no run from BASA on 19th December.

The Leeds Abbey Dash had more than 10,000 people running through the city centre for Age UK charity, raising over £250,000. The 10K race attracted more than 8,000 runners from across the UK, with many aiming for a personal best on the flat fast course, which is an out and back route to Kirkstall Abbey from Leeds City Centre.

The atmosphere was great with lots of encouragement from the supporters as you came back into Leeds. Bedale and Aiskew Runners Paul and Nicola Simpson was participating for the club. Paul finished in a top eighth position of 1023, achieving a new PB for a 10K of 43:01, beating his previous best by a massive 45 seconds. Nicola Simpson, who is recovering from a calf injury, was pleased to be back racing and even more so at her first event in her home town. She posted a time of 46:57 for an overall position of 1520th, and 28th out of 638 in the FV40 category.

The previous day several club members were taking part in Parkruns. At Catterick, Anne Johnson reached the milestone of taking part in her 50th Parkrun in a time of 27:07. She is the third member of the club to reach this target. One of those higher is Raymond Lightle finishing 46th in 25:26, with Marian Hunter 92nd in 29:07, and John Hunter 101st in 29:34 out of 188 taking part. At the beautiful Fountains Abbey course Jayne Rosamond, Daren Rosamond and Chris Appleton ran in close formation to record 34 minutes, in the nearly 400 strong field.

The Hamsterley 10 mile race took place last Sunday. At 11am a live bugler played ‘The Last Post’, followed by a minute’s silence, to commemorate Remembrance Day. 169 competitors then set off in cold and damp conditions, with rain following about half way into the race. The course was through the heart of the forest on gravel tracks with challenging peaks and troughs totalling over 1250 feet, so not a course for a personal best time. Paul Simpson enjoyed the challenge of the hills and was very pleased with his time of 1 hour 14 minutes and 56 seconds and a position of 20th overall, and 5th in his age category. Raymond Lightle, as always, ran a great race to finish 1st in his age group with a time of 1-27.10, and an overall position of 67th.

Lena Conlin and Stuart Black also headed for the hills last weekend taking part in the Hardmoors Goathland Marathon. The weather on the Saturday was perfect for trail running, bright and cool, but previous night’s rain led to some boggy areas. The race starts and finishes in Goathland and takes in Simon Howe, Hole of Horcum and Fylingdales, with almost 1000m of ascent over the 27.7 mile course.
Lena was pleased with her time of 5-49.05, 48th overall out of 122 finishers, and 3rd position in her age group. Stuart was next to finish in 49th, with a time of 5-50.43, and 4th in his age group.

Lena was out again the next day to take part in the ‘It’s Grim Up North Swinsty and Fewston Marathon’. This was a 4 lapper on good tracks around the two reservoirs. It was foggy and cold to start with, and as the fog lifted the rain came making for a chilly race. Nevertheless Lena was pleased to record 5-02.29, and complete the 77th marathon of her running career to date, and her 2nd in the weekend.

Paul Ellis recently took part in an ultra event in the Lake District called ‘Lakes in a Day’ over a 50 mile gruelling course. This started in the north of the Lakes at Caldbeck, finishing in the south at Cartmel, via the stunning Helvellyn Ridge and the western shore line of Lake Windermere. The conditions were hazardous with 80 mph wind gusts, torrential rain and knee level water to wade through. On top of this Paul sustained a swollen foot but battled over the 4000m of ascent to finish in a time of 15 hours 33 minutes and 9 seconds. This gave him a position of 63rd out of the 195 who finished, with 139 others retiring along way. A truly remarkable performance.

The Championship results have been updated following the races this weekend – Shaun Lee Johnstone 10 and Osmotherly 10k. The competition is still going strong in the mens race!

Well done to everyone that took part!

Results page

Well who would have thought the Male Championship could get more exciting!! After the latest Championship race on Sunday, at Grewelthorpe, the top 5 places have had a further move around. The last few races of the season means there is everything to run for – well done everyone!!

Link to results

Prostate Cancer Charity Event – Friday 2nd November at 7pm for 7:30pm at Bedale Sports Club at BASA

The charity evening coincides with the opening of the refurbished clubhouse after months of hard work. Tickets cost £10 per person to include Freddie Cleary, a young up and coming singer/guitarist, a raffle and a supper comprising of Heck sausages, Hall’s chips and Gav McGregor’s classic coleslaw, Mediterranean orzo salad, Victorian apple chutney and red onion chutney.

If you are interested, please contact one of the committee members, email info@bedaleandaiskewrunners-org-uk.stackstaging.com or Martyn on martync55@gmail.com/07885 228097.

The Championship results have now been updated to include the results from Redcar. What an exciting competition we’ve got going on with the men. Very close, and everything to run for in the closing part of the season. Good luck!!

Championship Results

An achievement to be very proud of! Julie Giblin took part in Equinox 24, a race held over a period of 24 hours, with the purpose of completing a 10k course as many time as possible.

Julie took part as a solo entry, completing 120km (12 laps) and finishing 17th lady out of 189.

The Snape 10K is the Bedale and Aiskew Runners’ local event and also part of their club championship. The weather was good for running, with the strong winds of the previous week having calmed down. The rain was not enough to make the ground soft, and in fact the race director described the going as firm. In total there were 105 runners with 7 men and 3 women from the local club. All finished well with a number of personal bests on a multi terrain course which is certainly not easy.

First to finish for Bedale was Will Retchless who is proving to be strong over the 5K and 10K distances. He posted a PB of 41 minutes 22 seconds to beat his previous fastest 10K by 1 minute 20 seconds, to take 9th overall. Second in for the club was Chris Lees who had a great run in his debut on this course to record a PB of 42.21 for 14th place. Next was Paul Simpson in 43.46 and 17th which amazingly equalled his PB at Tholthorpe two weeks earlier.

Ben Smith was also running for the first time at Snape and was pleased to finish 19th in 44.10. Dave Fenn, running the race for the third time, had a good finish to take 29th in 47.50. followed by Raymond Lightle, who has suffered the last two weeks with a calf injury, finishing in a time of 50.21 for 38th position. Tony Clark finished in the top half of the field in 39th position, in a time of 50:50.

Nicola Simpson was the first Bedale lady in a PB time of 45.05 for 22nd overall, and winning the prize for 1st lady finisher. Becky Morris was the next club member to finish, also recording a PB time of 51.22 for 45th overall. With Vilma Campbell finishing in 51st position, in a time of 52:43.

The next day, last Sunday, saw the new Fells and Castle 18 mile fell race, organised by the Wensleydale Railway, take place. It started at Castle Bolton with a big climb to the top of Carperby Moor and then back through Askrigg and Aysgarth Falls. The early start meant the initial conditions were cold and the first half of the race, which included the climb, had a very strong head wind, that got stronger the more the runners climbed.

There were three runners from the Bedale club taking part, with a total of 42 from across Yorkshire and the North East. Paul and Nicola Simpson ran together to help each other navigate the course, finishing in a time of 2 hours 44 minutes 34 seconds for positions 9th and 10th respectively. Nicola completing the course as the 2nd fastest lady to take her 2nd prize of the weekend.

Henry Anderson used the race as part of his marathon training and ran strongly to finish under 3 hours in 2-56.33 and a position of 21st overall. Henry also won the prize for the 3rd fastest senior male (18 – 39 years).

The first quiz of the new season is Friday 28th September, and we are looking for volunteers to make up a team of 6

7pm for 7.30pm start, £3 per person including a Pie supper.

If anyone is interested, please contact Louise, animal_57@hotmail.com or see me Wednesday.

The Great North Run, as the biggest participation half marathon in the world, was highly anticipated by the Bedale and Aiskew runners who took part last weekend in Newcastle and Gateshead. This was the 38th running of the event with the most finishers ever, over 43,000.

It was quite warm with a strong sun, with the wind making it difficult to feel the full effects. This resulted in many runners not completing the race due to dehydration. The last two miles were difficult with a strong head wind, which even slowed Mo Farah. Not by much though!

That said there were some excellent performances from the six Bedale runners taking part. James Bartram was very pleased with his personal best time of 1 hour 37 minutes and 46 seconds for an overall position of 1425th. Paul Simpson was next, also in a PB time for the half marathon of 1-38.32, and 1539th position.

Nicola Simpson is having an excellent summer on the road, finishing 1st Bedale lady in 1-44.00, 2608th overall and 32nd in her F40 age group. Becky Smith struggled from mile 4 with very painful blisters, and at mile 8 the heat also affected her. After a short stop and encouragement from her supporting family she continued on to the finish for her chosen charity, in a time of 2-25.10, and a half way up the field finish.

Raymond Lightle, as always, ran a great race to cross the finish in 1-50.12 and 4407th, and a fantastic 10th in the M65 age group. Alex McNairn, only just recovered from illness, also ran well to finish 9120th in 2-01.45.

Meanwhile at the Northallerton Parkrun Will Retchless ran a superb sub 20 minute PB of 19.55, and 4th place out of 162 completing the event. While at Catterick, regulars Anne Johnson and John Hunter were flying the Bedale colours with times of 28.13 and 29.15 respectively.

The Tholthorpe 10K is a well established event in the North Yorkshire Championship and so attracts top athletes from all parts of the region. The warm sunny weather brought out a record number of 473 runners to tackle the relatively flat all road course. It is thought of as a good PB (personal best) course, with three Bedale and Aiskew Runners achieving just that.

Paul Berry led in the Bedale contingent in a PB time of 42 minutes and 30 seconds and a position of 65th overall, with the ever-improving Will Retchless very close behind in his PB time of 42.44 and 67th. The third PB was achieved by Paul Simpson in a time of 43.48 and 87th. Chris Lees followed in another excellent time of 44.20 and 91st. Running in the M60 category for Bedale was Raymond Lightle and John Hunter, with Raymond finishing strongly to finish 157th in 48.41, and John running a good race for a position of 367th in 62.58.

Nicola Simpson was the only woman from the Bedale club taking part, finishing strongly in a time of 46.03 for 128th overall, and an excellent 12th out of 200 women taking part. This was after finishing 1st woman in the Catterick 5K Parkrun the day before.

The previous Wednesday evening the excellent Sessay Swift 6K took place with Will Retchless, 29th in 23.50, this time just in front of Paul Berry, 33rd in 24.09, over the shorter distance. Raymond Lightle clocked 28.14 to finish 92nd, and Becky Smith was 101st out of the 228 taking part, in 29.04.

The Roseberry Topping Fell Race was another mid week event in the Esk Valley series, which entailed racing from the NT car park up to the trig point and back. Experienced fell runner Lena Conlin was pleased to record a time of 26.55, with recently rejoined member Caroline Pollard speeding to the top and back in 18.02 for a 1st place in the F55 category.

Finally Raymond Lightle travelled to Burnsall to run in the village’s Feast 10 mile race. It was a hilly moorland terrain and so Raymond was pleased to have finished in 1-22.45, which was 6 minutes faster than when he was 3 years younger!

Reminder that the running club are organising a day out at Catterick races on Saturday 22nd September, the first race is at 2:25

If you are interested in coming please can you contact Tasha Miller, Social Secretary (tashamoseley@hotmail.co.uk), so we can confirm numbers and organise transport.

We hope to see you there!!

A reminder that there will be no club run at Bedale Sports Club this week, we will instead be meeting at the Queens Head Pub in Finghall for our final away run this year. We will be meeting at 6:20pm, to be running for 6:30pm. There will be 3 distances offered as normal.

Sandwiches and chips will be on offer after the run, for £2.50, please indicate when registering Wednesday if you will be staying for food.

If you have any questions, please email us or contact one of the committee members (info@bedaleandaiskewrunners-org-uk.stackstaging.com).

We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday.

A reminder that the running club family fun day is taking place on Sunday 26th August, starting at 1:30pm. 

Please bring your own picnic, puddings will be supplied by the club. Plus your first drink is on us!!!

There will be an inflatable slide and a few games of rounders – to keep things competitive – Bedale v Aiskew again maybe???

We hope to see you there, even if you can only come for a short time. It’s a great social afternoon, full of laughs!

Please contact one the committee members if you have any questions!

The Scorton Feast Memorial 10K race was the latest in the Bedale Club’s Championship. Unusually for this flat, off road, scenic race, only 102 were taking part with five Bedale runners among them.
Paul Berry and Raymond Lightle had run in the Catterick Parkrun the day before, with Paul finishing 9th overall and 2nd in his age group in a time of 20.13, and Raymond 30th overall and 1st in his group in 23.40. At Scorton they were both 2nd in their age groups with Paul pleased with his time of 42.49 and 19th overall, and Raymond finished in 49.19 and 42nd overall.

Will Retchless had a good run at Scorton finishing one place behind Paul Berry in a time of 43.59, closely followed by Ben Smith in 22nd and 45.12. John Hunter was 4th in his age group in a time of 64.24 and 89th overall. All were cheered in by a good contingent of Bedale supporters, to set up some fast finishing sprints.

James Bartram ran his first ever Parkrun at Catterick finishing in an excellent time of 21.11 for 14th place. Anne Johnson was appearing for the 18th time this year, the second most appearances in the club, finishing 1st in her age group, in a time of 28.09 and 58th overall.

Photo: Bedale and Aiskew Runners at the Scorton Feast Memorial 10K last Sunday.
Left to right: Ben Smith, Paul Berry, Raymond Lightle, Will Retchless, John Hunter.

The Darlington 10K is a fast two lap course attracting runners from all over the North East to try and post some quick times. Eight Bedale and Aiskew club members joined nearly 2000 other competitors in this prestigious and well organised event. Ben Smith has been training well and was very pleased with his time of 44.25 in 290th position overall and first Bedale runner to finish. His wife Becky was first Bedale woman to finish in 52.13 and 791st, making it a family double for the Smiths. Becky Morris was Bedale’s 2nd woman to cross the line in 53.15 and 851st overall.

Alex McNairn has also been training well lately and he was aptly rewarded with 2nd place Bedale man in 47.46 and 495th. Henry Anderson had an excellent run to record 48.16 for 524th, with Raymond Lightle finishing 546th in 48.36, and a very creditable 3rd out of 34 in his M65 age group. John Hunter was pleased with his sub one hour time of 59.14 for 1220th, followed by Chris Appleton in 1451st and 63.26.

Meanwhile Stuart Black had been competing in the Rosedale trail marathon, which ended up covering 28 miles over moor land tracks, with 4,000ft of ascent and descent in 28 degrees of heat. He was very pleased with his position of 51st out of the 113 competitors in a time of 6 hours 40 minutes.

Catterick Parkrun always sees a few Bedale Runners taking part over the 5K distance, with Paul Simpson recording a Parkrun personal best time of 20.35. Raymond Lightle rarely misses a Saturday morning Parkrun recording 23.38, often before then running a longer race the next day. Other regulars Anne Johnson (27.53) and John Hunter (28.43) ran well, as did Rachel Tait (26.49). Peter Bridgstock ran at the Rother Valley event in 27.55, and Billy Conlin on a visit to Glasgow clocked 23.25.