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JULY 2010

The hot and difficult conditions at the latest race in the Harwich 5K Handicap Series did not deter ten Great Bentley athletes. Whilst the dependable Simon Dale led the Blue Vests home in the Club’s fastest time of 17m 19s (180 pts), the star performance of the Bentley evening came from their lone woman runner Lex Carlisle. Her superb run in 27m 20s gained 199 handicap points. Carlisle is running in her first season for the Club and, thanks to some hard work in training, has shown herself to be a key member of the Bentley women’s veteran squad over the shorter distances.

Jamie Ash, sporting a new short haircut, has made his way back from a series of disappointing runs to push the 20 minute barrier hard finishing in 20m 03s (159pts) The third fastest time was provided by Paul Carlisle, who missed his Club Silver standard by a heartbreaking 3 seconds (21m 20s, 175pts). The hardworking men’s veteran trio of Brian Telford (22m 07s, 185pts), Frank Gardiner (22m 12s, 144pts), and Dave Sawyer (23m 50s, 171 pts), narrowly beat Peter Reeve (27m 07s, 151pts), whilst Michael Sommerlad (30m 44s, 121pts) and Dave Nugent (35m 18s, 165 pts) rounded off the Bentley squad.

Seventeen Great Bentley runners took part in the last race of the popular Friday Five race series on 9 July in Great Bentley. Despite the 7.30 pm start the race was run in very hot, sunny conditions making the race difficult. Breaking his long line of 15^th places was Simon Dale in 14^th place in 29m18s, followed by V60 runner Michael Beckett in 31m 51s in 40^th place. Whilst the series results have not been published at the time of writing Beckett is in an unassailable first place in his age group and will bring the V60 Series Champion’s award home to Great Bentley. Dan Foster ran a superb race in 32m 02s to gain 47^th place, closely followed by Great Bentley’s top junior James Porter(49^th, 32m 22s). Other members of the Blue Vests to complete the course were 69^th 33m 03s Scott Crawley; 85^th 34m 08s Jamie Ash; first GBRC woman Vicky Presland in 99^th place 34m 42s; 110^th 35m 17s Michael Simmons; 116^th 35m 32s Paul Carlisle; 191^st 38m 44s Shaun Leek; 198^th 38m 57s Anna Lyon, 216^th 39m 58s Frank Gardiner; 252^nd 42m 17s David Sawyer; 289^th 44m 35s Peter Reeve; 298^th 45m 14s Chris Hayes; 300^th 45m 18s Lex Carlisle; 362^nd 45m 18s Michael Sommerlad.

On Sunday 18th July 38 members of the Club made the annual pilgrimage to St Joseph’s School in Ipswich to participate in this year’s Ekiden Relay. Eighty-four teams competed overall with GBRC entering five teams, three Men’s and two Women’s, and despite the hot conditions and the winding course recorded some good times. First home for Bentley in 11^th place was the Men’s Open team of Russ Sharp, Jamie Ash, Dave Wright, Scott Crawley, Simon Dale, and Shaun Leek in 2hr 49m 39s. Sharp’s fast first leg put the team in a good position from the start and Sharp did especially well to beat the experienced Peter Pearce, the Bentley Vets’ team first runner. Second home for Bentley was their first Men’s Vets team of Peter Pearce, Michael Simmons, Michael Beckett, Graham Semple, Clive Thomas and Paul Carlisle in 2hr 53m 50s and 16^th place. There is a longstanding , friendly rivalry between the Open and the Veterans teams. This year thanks to some strong performances by Sharp and Dale, the Open class runners were victorious. Third home but a long way back, was the Veterans B team of Gary Eldred, David Sawyer, Bob Watt, Andy Cable, Frank Gardiner and Eric Shaw. Shaw ran a superb final 5k leg for this team at a faster pace than his rival in the Men’s Open team. The Men’s Vet B team finished in 50^th place in 3hr 23m 41s.Fourth home for the Blue Vests was the Women’s Vet A team of Vicky Presland, Anna Lyon, Lex Carlisle, Lorna Sharp, Janine Simpson and Vicky Law in 57^th place in 3hr 29m 19s winning the prize for second place in their category. Superb opening runs by Vicky Presland and Anna Lyon kept them ahead of the Men’s B squad until the first 10k leg. Completing the line-up was the Women’s Vet B team who finished in 76^th place in 3hr 50m 55s.

Keith Scrivener ran his 118^th marathon at the age of 68 in the Fairland Valley Challenge and finished in 6hr 13m 52s.

Wednesday 21st July saw the third round of the Club’s Mickey Edwards Handicap competition . This round was won by George Ferriera in only his second race. George completed the course in 31m 44s knocking 1m 46s off his previous time, showing the biggest improvement in his performance and scoring the maximum 40pts. Second place went to Sue Thomas with a 1m 10s gain and third was Shawn Leek with a 40s improvement. The Handicap Table for the Club shows Peter Reeve in the lead with 76 points, followed by Leek (74pts ), Lex Carlisle (72pts) and Janine Simpson with 71pts.

Thursday 22nd July saw the last race of the popular Harwich 5K handicap series. Nine men from Great Bentley took part. First Blue Vest home was Simon Dale in 17m 20s earning himself 144pts, followed thirty seconds later by Russ Sharp (136 pts). Jamie Ash completed the course in 20m 20s with 126pts. Paul Carlisle in his first season with the Club ran a great race finishing in 21m 06s and 160pts. Frank Gardiner (23m 26s, 102pts), David Sawyer (24m 38s, 117pts), Chris Hayes (25m 42s, 183pts), and Peter Reeve (26m 24s, 173 pts) all ran strongly, however the top Bentley scorer on the night was Dave Nugent. Nugent completed the course in 34m 04s scoring 187 pts, giving him his second best score of the entire series and gaining him third place in the Championship.

On Friday 23rd July five Bentley men turned out for the Brantham 5 mile multi-terrain run. For four of the runners it was two races in two days. Leading the Blue Vests home once again was the irrepressible Simon Dale. Dale ran the hilly 5 mile course in 29m 51s and finished in 15^th place. Chris Hayes was 129^th in 45m 25s, Peter Reeve 132^nd in 45m 43s. Eric Shaw paced his daughter round the course and so he was placed in 136^th place in 46m 45s, although this amounted to a personal best for his daughter. Completing the card was Dave Nugent in 163^rd place in 1hr 02m 30s.

On Sunday 25th July two members of the Club travelled to Harlow to compete in the County Championship 10 race. Barbara Law ran superbly to finish in 1hr 31m 04s which was in second place for her Female Veteran 65+ class; however Law won the County Gold medal because the runner who beat her by a mere 30s came from outside the County. Keith Scrivener dropped down to 10miles from his usual diet of marathons and completed the course in 1hr 39m 03s.

JUNE 2010

GBRC staged the first heat of it’s annual Mickey Edwards Handicap Competition on the evening of Wednesday 2 June. Named after ‘the running dustman’ – former member Mickey Edwards, the 3.7 mile race series is run every summer over a flat course from Great Bentley round Aingers Green on a handicap basis. Runners set their handicap time in the first heat and score points by beating their handicap in succeeding races. 28 runners completed the course with the first home was Simon Dale, closely followed by Russ Sharp. The first woman home was new member Janine Simpson setting a challenging target for women over the summer. The most exciting tussle of the evening was between junior James Porter and Jamie Ash. Young James won the battle by the margin of 1 second recording a time of 25m 03s.

Friday 4 June saw Great Bentley runners in action again at the Kirton Friday Five part of the Friday Five summer evening series. Top Bentley runners were, once again, Simon Dale 15^th place equalling his PB and James Porter in 49^th place with a new PB. Vicky Law led a Great Bentley ladies team, depleted by half-term holidays, home in 251^st place and 40m 11s. Vicky’s mother Barbara was 294^th in 42m 01s and Caroline Porter completed the women’s line up in 325^th place and 43m 44s.

At Harwich once again Simon Dale led the Blue Vests home with an excellent time of 17m 35 s (176 handicap points), he was closely followed by Russ Sharp in 17m 55s (121pts). Jamie Ash followed behind in 20m 6s. The dependable Gary Eldred was fourth home for Bentley (21m 34s, 188pts) beating newcomer Paul Carlisle by 3 seconds. Whilst Eldred beat Carlisle and gained revenge for his defeat in the Club’s Mickey Edwards series race the previous week, newcomer Carlisle gained the Club’s highest point score of the race taking an excellent 195 points confirming his bright future in the veterans’ classes.

The action then moved to Stowmarket for the Friday Five. Great Bentley runners collected three trophies in this hard fought competition showing their strength in two veterans’ categories and amongst the juniors. First home for the Blue Vests was the excellent Michael Beckett. Beckett has run well all season and took 43 place our of 309 runners in 33m 47s. Once again Beckett took the first place in the male veteran 60 category showing a number of much younger runners a clean pair of heels. Following Beckett across the line in 44^th place was junior James Porter in 33m 53s , Porter was first under-16 home. Following his great run on the previous evening in Harwich was Jamie Ash in 85^th place recording a time of 36m 00s. Vicky Presland led the Blue Vests’ women’s team home in 94^th place. More than a hundred other runners passed the line before David Sawyer took 209^th place in 42m 32s leading Vicky Law (217^th, 43m 05s), Tony Adasms (220^th, 43.13s) and Caroline Porter in 262^nd place (47m20s). Barbara Law finished in 48minutes exactly taking 270^th place and, as she remarked, since she was the only FV 65 runner in the race, she took top spot. Law beat Chris Hayes running his second race in two days by 40seconds and six places. The Bentley placings were completed by Peter Reeve (287^th, 50m 40s), Keith Porter (305^th, 55m 38s) and Dave Nugent (309^th place, 1hr 05m 02s)

The Southend Half Marathon is a two lap circuit starting and finishing at East Beach Shoeburyness. This year the weather was slightly cooler so the going was easier. Apart from Presland’s excellent performance in leading the four Great Bentley runners home, Michael Simmonds, running his first half-marathon, completed the course in 297^th place in 1hr 41m27s. Janine Simpson ran 1hr 45m 53s and finished in 405^th place. Finishing 5^th in a surprisingly large group of veterans aged over 70 was Michael Sommerlad in his second race in 4 days; Sommerlad finished in 1318^th place overall in a field of 1510 finishers in 2hr 21m 03s.

The Bluewater 10k race on Sunday 13th June is a popular race attracting over 2000 runners and this year it was run as the Kent County Championship. Bob Watt, who took nearly six minutes to weave through the crowds to cover the first kilometre, then settled into his stride to reach 448^th place in 48m 28s (47m 43s chip time) Watt took 6^th place in his MV55 class. Lyn Foster, who had an equally difficult start, ran very fast to 819^th place in 53m 20s ( 52m 36s chip). Foster gained an excellent second place in her FV55 class. Foster has been in top form this year and has been awarded a number of Club Diamond Standards. Lyn’s husband Paul, running his first race for exactly one year following illness, accompanied a guest runner, Heather Morris, in her first race in 1hr 03m 52s. Paul Foster finished in 1581^st place.

Wednesday 23^rd June saw the second leg of the Club’s Mickey Edwards Handicap Competition with runners recording some excellent times. On the 3.8 mile Great Bentley course run under handicap rules, with runners racing against their own targets, the three top spots were claimed by Peter Reeve scoring the maximum 40 points in a time of 32m 50s beating his handicap by 2m 12s. Janine Simpson scored 39 points by beating her handicap by 1m 15 s, completing the course in 27m 39s, followed by Caroline Porter with 38 points with a 45s margin in 31m 33s. The fastest performances on the night were by Simon Dale who almost flew round the course in 21m 35s, some 8s slower than his previous effort and Russell Sharp in 22m 35s, again slower than his previous effort, this time by 9s. Other great performances were by James Porter (37pts), Shawn Leek (36pts), Lex Carlisle (35pts) who beat husband Paul who scored 34pts, Michael Beckett (33pts) and Michael Sommerlad (32pts).

Sunday 27th June, which was probably the hottest day of the year so far, saw seven Great Bentley members participating in the Harwich Triathlon. On a hot and windy day the following results were achieved: first home for the Blue Vests was Dan Foster in a total time of 1hr 16m 15s for the three elements of swim, cycle ride, and run gaining him 43^rd place. Lyn Foster was followed in 75^th place by a greatly improved David Sawyer, whose training has clearly paid dividends. Sawyer swam and cycled well and his speed in those elements carried him through the run where he was affected by the heat, giving him a total time of 1hr 22m 01s. Third home in 80^th place a mere 20 seconds behind Sawyer was Frank Gardiner. Brian Telford was next home in 113rd place in 1hr 26m 33s, followed closely by Lyn Foster who won her FV55 category in 116 place in a time of 1hr 27m 23s. Claire Fathers making her triathlon debut gained 130^th place in 1hr 30m 53s, whilst Jennifer Hill completed the lineup in place in 1hr 49m 37s.

MAY 2010

Honorary Great Bentley member, Larry Wise, took part on 29 May in one of the toughest races in the world; the South African Comrades Ultra Marathon of 56 miles. Wise, now a Corby AC member, wore his blue Bentley shirt for the race. This race which has been run, with only a suspension for the 1939-45 War years, every year since 1921. It was founded by a British man , Vic Clapham, who emigrated to South Africa , fought in the Great War and established the race in memory of the South African soldiers who fought and died. This year the race followed the course from Durban to Pietermaritzburg – it is run in opposite directions in alternate years. The race starts at 5.30 am and must be completed by 7.30 pm; runners who fail to complete the course in this time are deemed not to have finished. Larry finished the race, which is in itself a great achievement, in 9962^nd place in 10hr 41m 34 s and was 856^th in his male veteran 50-59 class.

Friday 28 May saw 16 members of GBRC run the first race of the 2010 Friday 5 Series of 5 mile races at St Joseph’s College Ipswich, which is a testing multi-terrain course. First home for the Blue Vests was the consistent Simon Dale in 15^th place in 30m 04s. Dale has been running sub-30min five miles all season, but was slowed by the demanding course. Second home for Bentley was Michael Beckett in the V60 class in a very fast time of 32m 10s in 33^rd place. Junior James Porter , who has maintained his top form all year was the third Bentley runner home in 32m 51s and 40^th place Porter was the 3^rd in his under 17 class and since he is only 15 shows great promise for the future. Making a welcome return to racing was Ben Johnson showing no ill-effects from his long lay-off; Johnson finished in 44^th place in 33m 11s. Dan Foster ran well to finish in 61^st place in 34m 07s. First woman home for Great Bentley was Vicky Presland in 91^st place in 35m 27s. Presland’s time was slightly disappointing by her exemplary standards, but her position as 8^th woman home showed the effects of the demanding ,hilly course.

Frank Gardiner, who has showed excellent form in training, achieved 167^th place in 39m 49s. Vicky Law continued her good line of good performances finishing in 205^th place in 41m 36s. David Sawyer, Guy Halliday, Paul Blackwell and Tony Adams finished in 208^th, 219^th, 233^rd and 249^th places respectively, beating Barbara Law into 268^th place in 45m 41s. Caroline Porter 46m 12s (277^th ), Chris Hayes 47m 41s (291^st ) and Keith Porter 52m 58s (315th) completed the Bentley line-up

Quite a bit of activity from club runners at the weekend with two ½ marathons and a 15 miler.

Brentwood ½ marathon
Two runners, Michael Sommerlad and Heidi Baker took part in this popular race in excellent running weather with over 1800 finishers. Michael ran a respectable time of 2:22:55 with Heidi running her best time of 2:36:02.

Reading ½ marathon
Lyn Foster and Barry Eve were the club runners at this very well supported annual race starting at finishing at the Reading football stadium. In the 12500 finishers, Barry came in with a time of 1:33:10 and Lyn finishing, as 10th female in her category V55, in 2:00:11.

Orion 15
Club hard men, Paul Blackwell and Frank Gardner took on this muddy off road course through Epping Forest. In a limited field of runners, both Paul & Frank crossed the finishing line in 2:38:00.

Great Notley XC
First home for the Bentley men in 19th position was Simon Dale, beating his rival Russ Sharp into 21st. place. Dave Wright in 63rd place led a fairly tight group of Bentley runners consisting af Dan Foster (65th) Jamie Ash (65th) Clive Jones (70th) who beat his team mate Geoff Tomlinson into 73rd place. Mark Ross (92nd) Frank Gardiner (126th), the hard-working Dave Sawyer (138th) and the ever-present Keith Porter (155) completed the GBRC men's line-up.
Vicky Presland led the Bentley ladies home in 14th place, followed by a group of Bentley ladies, Davina Swindell (37th), Vicky Law (44th), the ladies' captain Nicky Brown in 46th place narrowly beating the Club Chair, Lyn Foster, into 47th place, and followed by Caroline Porter in 54th place.
Hadleigh XC
James Porter, Bentley's male junior runner of the 2009 year, finished an excellent season in which he had won two races with a superb eighth place in the junior race.
In the senior race Bentley did well enough to maintain their fifth position in Pool A of the League, finishing eight points above Halstead.
First man home for Bentley was Simon Dale 14th, followed by Dave Wright 35th, Kevin Jeffries 44th, Geoff Tomlinson 60th, Chris Green 66th, Mark Ross 69th, Jamie Ash 95th, Clive Jones 96th, Frank Gardiner 99th, Dave Sawyer 111th, and Keith Porter 115th.
The Ladies' team positions were Jo McKay 20th, Davina Swindell 29th, Vicky Law 32nd, Nicky Brown 37th, Caroline Porter 43rd, and Barbara Law 46th.

Great Bentley Half Marathon 7th Feb 2010
Men
Russ Sharp 1.21.46, Simon Dale 1.21.53, David Wright 1.23.27, Kevin Jeffries 1.23.41, Jamie Ash 1.33.04, Michael Sommerlad 2.30.49
Ladies
Lara Townsend 1.37.05, Vicky Presland 1.38.16, Jo McKay 1.38.46, Theresa Bishop 1.42.43, Anna Lyon 1.43.18

Standards acheived

Thersea Bishop 1.42.43 GOLD
Russ Sharp 1.21.46 SILVER
Simon Dale 1.21.53 SILVER
David Wright 1.23.27 SILVER
Kevin Jeffries 1.23.41 SILVER

Martlesham cross country
Twenty eight members competed in the fifth race of the popular 53-12 cross country league on a muddy testing two lap course at and were very well rewarded with some fine performances coming to the fore to claim 4th place on the day.

Young Great Bentley member James Porter led the way for the day with a fine win in the junior race showing months of hard training are reaping rewards for the talented youngster and upon learning of this fine victory on their way to the start line the senior members were truly fired up despite a couple of key members missing due to injury and illness.

Vicky Presland, female runner of the year, led the way for the ladies crossing the finish line in a fine 15th place and ahead of, for the first time this season club team mate Amy Neve also finishing strongly in 16th place chased hard all the way to the line by Lara Townsend finishing strongly in 19th place. Jo McKay enjoyed a good race finishing in 23rd place.

Other ladies results were Davina Swindell 33rd, Theresa Bishop 35th, Anna Lyon 36th, Lyn Foster 41st, Nicky Brown 45th, Caroline Porter 47th, and Sue McKay 56th.

Simon Dale led the way for the men claiming a highest ever 13th place in his cross country debut season after a terrific 50 metre sprint to the line with club team mate Russ Sharp who settled for a great 14th place and he was also chased hard all the way to the finish line by Mick Ruth finishing in a good 15th place. Peter Pearce also ran well finishing in 20th place with Kevin Jeffries finishing in 37th place.

Other Great Bentley male results were Clive Thomas, male runner of the year, 41st, Chris Green 57th, Jamie Ash 58th, Club captain, Clive Jones 61st, Mark Ross 72nd, Frank Gardiner 98th, Des Bishop 109th, Simon Price 120th, Dave Sawyer 124th, John McKay 129th and Keith Porter 131st.

Benfleet 15 mile
Keith Scrivener was Bentley's sole representative at the notoriously tough 15 mile off - road race ran along the seafront, mudflats and sections of Country Park around Canvey Island. Large sections of the course are very exposed to the elements and the low lying mudflats are often flooded at this time of the year making large sections of the race very muddy which saps the strength of the hardiest of competitors.
Keith started the first half of the race well although, as is normal amongst most of the competitors, started to tire through the much tougher muddier sections. This good start early in the race enabled Keith to achieve a good time of 3:14:00 beating his time of last year by a staggering 25 minutes.

Club race report for year end 2009

Club member, Keith Scrivener, was the clubs sole representative in the '100 Marathon Club' championships held on a technical 5 lap course at Bromley, Kent. The race was V60 Keith's 113th marathon and was ran over local roads and a muddy off - road course made even more testing by large patches of ice . Keith ran very well in the arduous conditions although he began to tire after eighteen miles yet still finished in a good time of 5:28:00

The clubheld their annual awards presentation night at the Ramada Hotel in Ardleigh on 18th December 2009 and sixty two runners and guests were seated to enjoy a fine three course meal.

The awards are decided by nominations from fellow club runners and also club committee members and are judged over results achieved throughout the year.

Two additional trophies were donated to the club this year by club committee member Kevin Cox in memory of his late father Alan Cox and will be contested for many years to come by future male and female club runners of the year. This year the Alan Cox Memorial trophy Female Runner of the Year was won by Vicky Presland who enjoyed a brilliant debut club running year and The Male Runner of the Year was won by a richly deserved Clive Thomas.

Other award winners:
Male cross country runner of the year: Dave Wright - led the way for the men's team off -road
Female cross country runner of the year: Lara Townsend - strong determined running
Micky Edward's memorial trophy: Simon Dale
Handicap race series Male winner: Eric Shaw - capping a brilliant year for the popular veteran
Handicap race series Female winner: Vicky Presland
Male Veteran: Eric Shaw - great year beating a lot of the younger club runners at the tender age of 63.
Female Veteran: Nicky Brown - a good year for the Ladies Captain with some strong running leading by example
Most Improved Male: Mick Ruth - showing lots of hard training are reaping deserved results
Most Improved Female: Theresa Bishop - a really good year of running and well deserved award for her efforts
Best Male Newcomer: Jamie Ash - a most popular individual with a great debut season now behind him
Best Female Newcomer: Vicky Presland - another fine runner to join the ladies team at Great Bentley...brilliant first year
Best Male Performance: Dave Green - for his fine London Marathon performance
Best Female Performance; Anna Lyon - for a gutsy and determined run at the Felixstowe Half - Marathon
Club Person: Clive Jones - a most popular choice
Chairman's award: Eric Shaw - for all his hard work on behalf of the club
Eric Dunne award: Dave Nugent - well deserved by the club stalwart.
Junior Male runner of the year: James Porter - encapsulating a fine year of running by him which has seen him rise from Junior running into the much tougher senior running section putting together a good run of results in the process. At his current level of improvement he will soon be challenging for the higher places in local races.
Junior Female Runner of the Year Fiona Watt: - more to come from Fiona as she steps up into the senior section.

The club is allocated three tickets for the London Marathon and these are drawn out at the award presentation night. The lucky winners of a coveted London Marathon 2010 place are Stewart Baggs, Michael Sommerlad and Lara Townsend.

That's all for now, Kevin.

Halstead Cross Country
In the third race of the 53 -12 cross country league held on a notoriously muddy course at Gosfield 23 members competed in the large field.
In the junior race Great Bentley junior member James Porter won the race with a strong determined run leaving the field trailing in his wake to record his first ever victory.

For the ladies in-form Amy Neve ran well to record a fine 8th place with Vicky Presland chasing hard all the way to record a good 18th place. Lara Townsend ran well finishing in 34th place with Davina Swindell running a strong race to finish in 43rd place. In-form club Chairperson Lyn Foster made good progress through the clinging mud to record a well earned 51st place chased hard all the way to the line by Caroline Porter finishing in 56th place. Sue McKay V60 ran her usual strong race to finish in 62nd place.

Russ Sharp had yet another strong race finishing in a fine 23rd place chased hard all the way by in- form Simon Dale finishing in 31st place. Dave Wright ran a determined race to earn a good 33rd place closely followed by club coach Peter Pearce finishing in 35th place despite suffering from a heavy cold. Kevin Jeffries ran well finishing in 46th place with club coach Geoff Tomlinson running hard all the way to the line to record a good 52nd place. Other Great Bentley finishers were Clive Thomas 57th place, Clive Jones 71st place, Jamie Ash 77th, Mark Ross 109th, Frank Gardiner 113th, Dave Sawyer 174th, John McKay 177th and Keith Porter finishing in 178th place.

Cross country - Hylands Park Springfield
In the second race of the league held on a wind and rain swept course at twenty four members from the club competed on the notorious tough course which seems to get more testing each year.
Amy Neve again ran very strongly and was well rewarded with a fine 9th place overall for the ladies chased hard all the way by a determined run from in- form Vicky Presland finishing close behind in 10th place.
Jo McKay is now rediscovering her form of last year and ran well to achieve a good 25th place finish chased hard all the way to the finish line by Lara Townsend who claimed a hard earned 25th place. Anna Lyon, in her first year of cross country running is performing well in the harsh conditions and again ran well to finish in 37th place narrowly beating a late charge to the finish line by Davina Swindell who finished in 39th place and Vicky Law who finished in 40th place. Caroline Porter adapted well to the testing muddy conditions to claim 57th place with Sue McKay V60 claiming 70th place.

In- form Russ Sharp led the Great Bentley men across the finish line running a fine race to finish in 25th place overall . Dave Wright ran well finishing in 32nd place chased hard all the way to the line by Peter Pearce finishing in 36th place and Kevin Jeffries finishing in 41st place. Club coach Geoff Tomlinson ran well despite feeling unwell prior to the start of the race and claimed 51st place. Chris Green , back in cross country action after a lengthy injury absence finished in 57th place chased hard all the way to the finish line by club captain Clive Jones finishing strongly in 58th place. Jamie Ash in his first cross country season ran strongly through the numerous water filled ditches to score valuable points for the Bentley men's team in only his second race.

Other Great Bentley men's finishing results were Mark Ross 96th place, Des Bishop 118th place, Frank Gardiner 120th place, Simon Price 161st place, John McKay 169th place, and despite falling over heavily into the mud Keith Porter scrambled to his feet to finish in style claiming 169th place. Don Welsh was unfortunate to sustain an injury which forced him to withdraw from the race just past the halfway point.
The club are currently 5th in Group A of the 53-12 cross country league

Club race report for w/e 22/11/09

Harwich cross country 15/11/09
Twenty four members competed in the first race of the 53-12 cross country league hosted by Harwich Running Club.

On a tough 5 mile course made even more testing for the large field of runners by heavy overnight rain, the inclines across the freshly ploughed fields soon split the competitors.
An in-form Amy Neve led the Great Bentley ladies across the finish line on her debut cross country race to claim a fine 11th place closely followed by another cross country debutant, Vicky Presland who finished well in 12th place.
Jo McKay ran a strong determined race to finish in 25th place chased hard by Anna Lyon also making her cross country introduction in a well deserved 31st place. Vicky Law battled through the clinging mud to claim 42nd place while Emma Vincent ran a determined race to finish in 63rd place.

The male runners were in good form and grouped well up in the higher placed finishers. Dave Green led the way finishing in a fine 5th place overall. Mick Ruth has made big improvements in his running over the past year and this came to the fore with another fine performance to claim 27th place closely followed by Dave Wright in 28th place and Russ Sharp in 32nd place.
Geoff Tomlinson ran well finishing in 34th place chased hard all the way by Kevin Jeffries who finished in 42nd place. Club coach, Clive Jones, ran his first cross country for some time and soon settled into a good pace to finish in a good 47th place chased hard all the way to the finish line by a welcome return to running for Chris Green, after a lengthy injury absence, finishing in 48th place. Other Bentley runners were Jamie Ash 82nd place in his first ever cross country race, Mark Ross 104th, Frank Gardiner 107th, Paul Blackwell 111th, Brian Telford 118th, David Sawyer 141st, Simon Price 149th, Don Welsh 152nd, Mike Vincent 153rd, and Keith Porter in 154th place.

The second race of the popular 53-12 cross country league is hosted by Springfield Striders on 29th November at Hylands Park, Chelmsford

Hadleigh 10 mile 22/11/09
Clive Thomas led the way home for three Bentley runners in affine time of 01:04:58 on a tough, hilly windy course. Lyn Foster ran very well and completed the course to finish in a good time of 1:27:54, showing that recent hard structured training is starting to show rewards. Simon Price, also training hard lately was running well until an injury (hamstring) forced him to slow down, but he finished in a good time of 01:31:45

Club race report for w/e 18/10/09

Harwich 10k race
David Sawyer was the sole competitor for this race. In perfect conditions for running David was quickly into a good stride rate and was well rewarded with a finishing time of 56:12.

Abington marathon
Keith Scrivener ran his 110th marathon at his third marathon in successive weekends and ran a strong determined race finishing in a fine time of 4:42:00, his fastest time at this distance for over two years.

Wix 5 mile road race
Club members were abundant at the popular and well hosted race by Harwich Running club with no fewer than 44 members taking part eager to win back the inter club trophy challenge between Harwich and Great Bentley.

David Green , back from university in Bristol just for the day led his team mates across the finish line in a fine time of 29:08 chased hard all the way by club coach Peter Pearce in a good time of 29:21. He too was chased hard all the way to the finish line by in- form Russ Sharp finishing in a good time of 29:52.
Newcomer to the club Michael Beckett continues to impress his new club mates with another fine performance finishing in 30:05 which also earned him a Diamond standard award. Geoff Tomlinson ran a determined race after a lay-off through injury and was rewarded with a good time of 30:08, with Mick Ruth claiming a new personal best time with a good 30:28 finish chased hard all the way to the finish line by David Wright finishing in a good time of 30:43.
Other finishing times were Clive Thomas 30:47, Dan Foster 30:50, Simon Dale 31:05, club captain Clive Jones 31:10, Martyn Patterson 33:14, Jamie Ash ( voted by club members as performance of the day ) 33:26 which also earned him a club bronze standard award, Lea Turnbull 33:30 club bronze standard award, Kevin Cox 33:.44, Vicky Presland 35:09, Amy Neve 35:25, Bob Watt 35:35, Eric Shaw 35:44 and a new personal best , Lara Townsend 36:04 , Frank Gardiner 37:15 club silver standard award, Jo McKay 38:15, in - form Theresa Bishop 38:31 club gold standard award, Des Bishop 38:32, Stuart Baggs 39:50, Vicky Law 39:52 club silver standard award, Chris Hayes 40:29, Nicky Brown 40:30, Andy Cable 40:46, Lyn Foster 41:06 club gold standard award, Sally Cable 41:10, Barbara Law 41:52 club diamond standard award, Peter Reeve 41:59, Caroline Porter 42:29 club silver standard award, Emma Vincent 43:25, Don Welsh 44:34, Davina Swindell 44:44, Michael Sommerlad 49:41, Keith Porter 49:48, Rita Page 54:39, Heidi Baker 55:54, Naomi Mellersh 56:04, Dionne Meecham 56:33 and club stalwart David Nugent finishing in a timer of 1:04:40.
The men's and lady's running teams also had the accolade of both finishing in 2nd place in the team event and also won the inter club challenge trophy. A welcome return to its rightful home.
Many thanks to all at Harwich Running Club for a well organised event from everyone at the club

Jamie Ash sprinting to the finish line. His performance was voted best of the day.

Club race report for w/e 11/10/09

Martlesham 10k
Five members from Great Bentley Running Club competed in the race on a fast flat course consisting of four laps ran over an off - road course. In-form Clive Thomas had the accolade of being the first Bentley member to cross the finish line in a fine time of 38:38 closely followed by club captain Clive Jones in a good time of 39:50 minutes.
Nikki Bennett also had a good run finishing in a time of 45:38. Caroline Porter won a club gold standard award with a determined run finishing in a good time of 52:36 followed by husband Keith finishing in a time of 1:01:49.

Tiptree 10 mile
This popular ten mile road race attracted a large field of runners and three Great Bentley members were in their midst. Bob Watt , recovered from his foot injury sustained at last weeks Felixstowe half marathon ran very well finishing in a good time of 1:17:52 chased hard all the way to the line by Frank Gardiner V55 finishing in a good time of 1:21:57 which also earned him a club bronze standard award.
Barbara Law ran in her normal strong V65 and determined style finishing in a good time of 1:26:31 which earned her a club silver standard award.

Leicester marathon
Great Bentley marathon man Keith Scrivener V65 competed in his 109th marathon on a tough hilly course. In ideal weather conditions Keith quickly settled into a good pace and was well rewarded with a fine finishing time of 5:10:00

Peterborough half marathon
Six members from the club travelled north to compete in the Peterborough half marathon with three of those members coming away with a new personal best time!

A large field of runners approaching 5000 entrants were attracted to the fast flat course ran through the city and it was in-form Barry Eve who had the accolade of leading the Bentley charge to the finishing line finishing in a new personal best time of 1:31:11 chased hard all the way to the finish line by another in-form member, Jamie Ash, also claiming a new personal best time of 1:33:32.
Lara Townsend started the race very strongly although was unfortunate to suffer a mid race stitch yet still managed to record a good finishing time of 1:41:05 crossing the finishing line with Kevin Cox who is now starting to rekindle form.
Eric Shaw V60 ran a very strong race starting off in determined style and despite struggling over the last three miles still achieved a new personal best time of 1:41:11. Lyn Foster - Club Chair - also had a good race finishing in a good time of 2:03:54.

Left to right...Barry Eve, Lara Townsend, Eric Shaw, Lyn Foster, Jamie Ash, Kevin Cox.

That's all for now
Kevin

Nine members from Great Bentley Running Club competed in the race along the promenade and country lanes of the Suffolk town.

On a two lap undulating course with a brisk head wind which some of the competitors found testing , Clive Thomas led the way for the Bentley members finishing in a good time of 1:27:29. Newcomer to the club Barry Eve continues to improve finishing in style with a new personal best time of 1:34:01 as does in - form Jamie Ash finishing in a new personal best time of 1:37:12.

Vicky Presland led the ladies across the finish line and in doing so earned a club gold standard award with a good finishing time of 1:40:29. Kevin Cox had not run this distance since March and finished in a time of 1:46:49 closely followed by a jubilant Anna Lyon who after months of trying win a club gold standard award at this distance finally achieved her goal with a gritty determined run to finish in a fine time of 1:46:52 which is also a new personal best time!

Eric Shaw, Anna's training partner finished in a good time of 1:47:02, but Bob Watt unfortunately had to pull out of the race after four miles due to painful chafing of his toes caused by new socks after looking very strong earlier in the race. Lessons learned...do not wear new socks on a long distance race!

Anna - jubilant getting Gold! Team effort...(L to R) Kevin Cox, Lara Townsend, Anna Lyons, Eric Shaw, Jamie Ash, Barrie Eve