Stilton 7, Stafford Half Marathon & BMAF XC Champs.

South Derbyshire RR to the fore !
On a sunny, but typically blowy spring weekend, members of the Club were to the fore in races in different parts of the country. By far the biggest contingent was in action on Sunday at the Stilton 7, the 3^rd race in this year’s Leicestershire Road Running Winter League. Over a typically challenging 2 lap course it was again Dominic Sharman who took the honours with an excellent 20^th place finish out of 355 runners in a superb chip time of 43.24. Only 3 places further back, and improving with every race, Chris Pearson was next in an excellent 44.06. After a PB in last week’s Fradley 10k Club debutant James Cassidy confirmed his form with a valuable 43^rd place finish overall in 45.44. There was then a really tight inter Club battle between Stuart Halsey & Paul Chapman with Stuart just edging this one in 70^th to Paul’s 71^st place and chip times of 47.34 & 47.39 respectively.
Showing he’s getting back to something like his best form in the lead up to the London Marathon, Andy Orme also made the top 100 with 87^th place in 48.31. Completing the team finishers were the evergreen Steve Fowler & the promising, but injury prone, Gavin Horton. On this occasion it was the senior athlete who led the way with 50.42 & 124^th place from Gavin’s 50.53 for 128^th. Steve Leafe & Adrian Middleton both battled well for chip times of 51.27 & 53.14 and finishing positions of 137^th & 162^nd before the Club’s first finishers in the women’s race, Tracey Glover & Nikki Reeves were virtually inseparable as they crossed the line. Tracey just found that bit extra on this occasion as she finished 35^th in 54.49 just one place and 3 seconds quicker than Nikki. Malcolm Moore was next to finish in 57.25 & 232^nd place ahead of the improving Tim Argent in 291^st & 62.48. Inge Moore completed the overall finishers for the Club with a battling 75.33 & 124^th place in the women’s race.
There was PBs all round for the four Club runners who tackled the Stafford Half Marathon on Sunday. Showing that he’s getting back to his best form & that he’ll battle all the way to retain the Club Championship, Andy Hawtin was first back in 1.24.49 & an excellent 49^th place finish. Another indicating that he’s coming into good form for an upcoming marathon, Gary Price was next in 1.42.06 followed by Sam Skidmore in a massive PB of 1.53.02 & 125^th place in the women’s race. The ever improving Mark Skidmore completed the club finishers in this race with 2.26.40.
Much further afield, and in more inclement weather, Chris Mason took part in this year’s British Masters Cross Country Championship over a challenging course around Tollcross Park in Glasgow on Saturday. Against top class opposition Mason ran well to finish 8^th in his age category, covering the 8k course in 31.46.