Week Ending - 2022/08/21

HORTON’S RECORD-BREAKING SEASON CONTINUES

Long-serving Badgers runner Chris Horton continued his super season with yet another club record, this time at the Trimpell 20 race on Sunday. This means he has now set an incredible eight new records over the course of the campaign so far across six different distances ranging from 5K to the marathon. The flat Lancaster-based 20-mile race was well-attended, predominately from runners looking to test themselves ahead of the London marathon in six weeks’ time, and Horton set off at a strong tempo, looking to improve on his previous best time of 2:09:13, set at Ashby-de-la-Zouche in 2017.

After going through halfway in just over 61 minutes, the signs were promising for the bespectacled Badger, who was aided by a cooling breeze on an otherwise warm and sunny day. With five miles left to run, the record was his to lose and with a big chunk of time already in the bank, he was able to take his foot off the gas and still make the grade. However, the 20-mile distance is a long old haul, and it wasn’t long before his energy began draining away. The final few miles were far from pretty, with a handful of competitors overtaking the 47-year-old, who began to rue his decision to run without the aid of energy gels or fuelling. He crossed the line 20^th in 2:06:45, a great effort even before including the 270-mile round trip, to take his eighth record and ergo personal best of the season. Already the holder of every Badgers V40 record, this was the oldest of all them all, possibly due to the dearth of races covering the distance.

There was a week-long competition at Aldi in which running employees had to clock up as many verified miles as possible on foot to win a star prize. Badger Ryan Preece weighed in with a jaw-dropping 214 miles at an average pace of nine and a half minutes per mile. Incredibly, despite this barely imaginable feat, he was pipped at the post by a chap from Wolverhampton and by the relatively slender margin of 23 miles too, herculean efforts all around.

Parkrun saw plenty of Badger action over the weekend too with in-form Dave Hill leading the way at Kingsbury Water Park. The Polesworth man romped home in first place clocking a quick time of 17:23 in the process. He was followed over the line by veteran ace Sam Starkey who made it a club 1-2 in 17:55, another great time for a man with an autumn marathon well and truly in his sights. The successes didn’t end there however as Ashley Taylor ran 20:29 for sixth place and Glyn Broadhurst also made the top ten in 21:13. Megan Griffiths was the fourth fastest female in 24:04 and the rejuvenated Rachael Shelton ran with real rapidity in 25:35 to take the eighth spot.

Holidaying Neil Clemons managed seventh place at Penrose in the southwest with a brisk 18:58. Dave Jackson cashed in on his heavy summer mileage with a respectable 19:24 (fifth place) at the Monsal Trail parkrun and his namesake Sharon also bagged fifth up at Frickley County. Elsewhere, Dave Purvis ran a course best 22:41 at Woodgate Valley as his good form continues apace. Last but not least, Sarah O’Donoghue ran the Whinlatter Forest parkrun in Cumbria, one of the hilliest in the land in 41:03.