Sandbach Striders

It has been yet another exciting week at Sandbach Striders Running Club as members participated in eight different events ranging in distance between 5k and 55 miles.

Sandbach Striders at Congleton parkrun


In Congleton at one of the many free weekly parkruns held each Saturday morning eight Striders ran the three laps of Astbury Mere.  Helen and Cat Child who have progressed through the free Couch-to-5k course run each year by the Striders both ran their first 5k finishing in an impressive sub 30 minutes debut time, with Cat outsprinting her mother over the final mile.

The full results were as follows:


18:22 Darren Varley 

19:33 Tony Taylor 
25:37 Denis Culloty 
26:05 Elizabeth O'Keeffe 
26:21 Tim Woods 
28:18 Cat Child 
29:20 Helen Child 
30:24 Isobel Bennett 

At the Princes parkrun in Liverpool Paul Barnett finished in 22:15. Meanwhile in Bangor, North Wales Michael Escolme ran the Penrhyn parkrun. The route which started in the courtyard of the enormous 19th-century neo-Norman castle sited between Snowdonia and the Menai Strait. Michael finished the course in 24:39



Michael Escolme at Penrhyn parkrun
On Sunday it was the Wilmslow Half-marathon, a popular and fast 13.1 mile road race starting at Wilmslow Rugby Club. Three Striders participated finishing in the following times:

01:32:14 Steve Farnell 

01:52:54 Robert Kettle 
02:23:51 Karen Lovatt
Karen Lovatt at Wilmslow Half-marathon

Steve Farnell at Wilmslow Half-marathon
On Saturday Jason Bulley completed the hilly and windy Charnwood Hills Marathon in Leicestershire in a time of 4 hours 56 minutes.
Jason Bulley at Charnwood Hills Marathon
Two Striders found themselves in North Yorkshire to participate in the Hardmoors 55 mile trail race. Starting in the village of Guisborough and finishing at Helmsley Town Hall this challenging route takes in a series of off-road routes popular with trail runners.


Chris Brumby and Paul Nicholls at Hardmoors 55
Denis Culloty ran the Jacob's Leg-It 10k at Edge Hill University in Ormskirk, Lancashire. Coinciding with World Autism Awareness Day this event aims to raise awareness of Autism. Denis finished the course in 56:16.

Meanwhile Nick Hogan and Rachel Green ran the Lincoln 10k, a popular road race finishing in the shadows of the iconic Lincoln Cathedral whose origins date back to the 11th century. Nick finished in 43:40 and Rachel in 51:16, both Striders managing to earn themselves new personal best times.

Rachel Green and Nick Hogan at Lincoln 10k
Sandbach Striders are a friendly, supportive and welcoming running club serving the communities of Sandbach, Middlewich, Alsager, Holmes Chapel and beyond for over ten years. As well as a varied running programme the club has an excellent social calendar and for those runners looking to improve, Sandbach Striders have a number of fully-qualified running coaches to advise on training and ensure the safety and well-being of its members.