From Easter egg hunts on trail marathons, to a speedy 10k in Crewe this was another busy week for the members of Sandbach Striders running club.
On Wednesday evening it was the Essar Chester Spring 5. This 5 mile race starts at the Cheshire County Sports Club and consists of an undulating route along scenic country lanes. Four members of the club took part, two of which earned themselves a new personal best time.
| Runner | Chip Time | Gun Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Darren Varley | 00:29:18 | 00:29:22 | |
| Tony Taylor | 00:31:28 | 00:31:33 | Personal Best |
| Andy Thomas | 00:32:18 | 00:32:24 | |
| Heather Carter | 00:32:47 | 00:32:42 | Personal Best |
On Thursday night Tony Taylor was in action once more. This time he ran the Hanchurch Hilly Trail Race, the first race in the three part Stone Master Spring Treble Series. Tony finished the off-road 5.25 mile race in a respectable time of 37:37.
Good Friday saw #teamfallows take part in the Delamere Easter Bunny run. This was a 5k dash through the forest, before collecting an egg and medal at the finish line.
Sandbach Striders continue to demonstrate their support for the free weekly 5k parkruns held around the globe each Saturday morning by participating in seven different events this week. Nearest to home were the 13 Striders who ran the three laps of Astbury Mere at the Congleton parkrun. Tony Taylor and Andy Thomas continued their run of good form both finishing in sub-20 minutes. Chris Brumby and Jill Jenkins both recorded impressive times considering their recent time out due to injuries. The full results were as follows:
| Runner | Time | |
|---|---|---|
| Tony Taylor | 00:19:34 | |
| Andy Thomas | 00:19:50 | |
| Lindsay Beeston | 00:23:32 | |
| Louise Lewis | 00:24:56 | Personal Best |
| Gillian Fallows | 00:25:43 | |
| Catherine Winders | 00:26:27 | |
| Chris Brumby | 00:26:32 | |
| Rachel Mason | 00:26:45 | |
| Tim Wilson | 00:26:58 | |
| Jill Jenkins | 00:31:02 | |
| Denis Culloty | 00:32:03 | |
| Nathan Lee | 00:32:36 | |
| Lucy Lee | 00:32:42 |
Next nearest to home were Joanna Askey and Lee-Ann Galway who ran the Delamere parkrun finishing in 25:44 and 26:24 respectively.
Gordon Hutchins, meanwhile was in Crawley, West Sussex to run the Tilgate parkrun. Gordon completed the figure of eight course around Tilgate Lake in 23:31.
Tom Mayell and his son Adam completed their run of parkrun tourism by completing the Long Meadow parkrun in Taunton, Somerset. Adam was first to cross the finish line in a time of 27:21 just one second ahead of his Dad.
Claire and Colin Dalton were in action at the Rutland Water parkrun in Oakham, Leicestershire. Colin took the family honours on this occasion finishing in 22:03 with Claire finishing narrowly behind in 26:00.
In Wales, Julia Dunlop ran her usual parkrun course at the RSPB reserve in Conwy, finishing in a time of 31:52.
Also in Wales were three Striders taking on the Dolgellau parkrun, a two lap course along the Mawddach Trail.in the Snowdonia National Park. The Striders all recorded excellent times on a challenging course, the results being:
| Runner | Time |
|---|---|
| Darren Varley | 00:19:02 |
| Stephen Mclean | 00:19:55 |
| Lisa Highfield | 00:23:12 |
Also on Saturday eight Striders opted to run a longer distance event. Katie Payne, and June Wray chose the rather undulating and hilly Newcastle Way marathon ran by Gold Events for their first attempt at completing a marathon distance event. The race started at Mow Cop in North Staffordshire and consisted of a route which included hills, stiles, nettles, country parks, woods and easter eggs! Heather Carter took silver medal, crossing the finishing line as second female overall.
The full results were as follows:
| Runner | Time | |
|---|---|---|
| Heather Carter | 04:11:48 | |
| Jayne Pyatt | 06:16:12 | |
| Jan Peake | 06:16:13 | |
| Chris Holden | 06:16:35 | |
| Katie Payne | 06:32:10 | Personal Best |
| June Wray | 06:32:10 | Personal Best |
| Paul Nicholls | 06:32:12 |
To finish off the Easter weekend, there were 10 Striders in action at the Crewe Air Products 10k. This event, with minimal elevation and wide pathways, promises to be the fastest road race in Cheshire. These preferential conditions allowed four of the club to achieve new personal bests.
| Runner | Chip Time | Gun Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tony Taylor | 00:39:10 | 00:39:12 | |
| John Pemberton | 00:39:35 | 00:39:38 | Personal Best |
| Andy Thomas | 00:39:59 | 00:40:03 | Personal Best |
| James Halling | 00:46:05 | 00:46:21 | Personal Best |
| Lee-Ann Galway | 00:50:08 | 00:50:24 | Personal Best |
| Matt Wood | 00:50:22 | 00:50:41 | |
| Gaynor Beckett | 00:53:47 | 00:54:08 | |
| Claire Dalton | 00:53:48 | 00:54:09 | Personal Best |
| Elaine Wood | 00:56:03 | 00:56:23 | |
| Liz O'Keeffe | 00:56:17 | 00:56:31 | |
| Amy Norman | 00:56:35 | 00:56:57 | Personal Best |
Entries are now open for the Sandbach 10k sponsored by Butcher and Barlow. This year's event takes place on an exciting new course and is run entirely on traffic-free roads. It promises to be a great event for both new runners or for those looking to beat their personal best. Secure your starting place now at our races.