Heading for an oasis in the Canaries this weekend was a band of Burndeners ready for a masterplan. Some might say it was a bit too far to go for a run but our Club members travel all around the world for the sport.
Media man, Lawrence McDonald had a bird’s eye view and has provided a supersonic summary of the race weekend.
“In its 31st edition, the Lanzarote Marathon was attended by more than 2,800 participants of more than 60 nationalities.
Burnden Road Runners were represented by 15 runners taking the trip to the Canary Islands.
The route saw runners follow the costal roads and paths covering the districts of Puerto del Carmen, San Barlotome, Arrecife and Costa Teguise.
The conditions were tough with the runners facing a head wind as they ran towards Costa Teguise from the starting points in Arrecife for the 10k and Puerto Del Carmen for the half marathon. Conditions changed frequently with the Lanzarote micro climate with heavy rain showers part way through the race.
Special mention to Nia and Tess who supported Alex Hooton.
Alex joined us for the weekend and ran the full marathon and faced the tough head wind on her return into Costa Teguise. Nia and Tess upon seeing the tough conditions she had just encountered supported her in the final miles into the finish, Tess grabbing and carrying her bag and then running in together holding hands for an epic finish. “
Here are the results from the 10K and Half Marathon distances from our members.
10k
She’s electric for sure as Joanna Warburton was the first home in 01:07:04. Cheryl Dunleavy was no slide away as she followed in 01:17:43 and Ian Mann cast no shadow as he finished in 01:25:27. Trevor Eagle soared home in 01:53:54.
Half Marathon
Jonathan Sangster and Sarah Watton surely celebrated with a champagne supernova after finishing in matching times of 01:37:59 and 1:37:58 – first man and first lady for Burnden. Sarah had extra reasons to celebrate as she clocked in as 7th overall lady and 2nd in her age category.
Stepping out as second male was Andy Dunleavy in 01:39:29 who took the 2nd age category crown.
Other results that definitely maybe were fantastic - Patrick Filo 01:49:40, Lawrence McDonald 01:57:34, Martin Fielding 01:57:41, Tess Riley 02:31:33, Nia Bell 02:31:33, Gillian Morris 02:38:13, Tony Fulop 02:39:37, Sarah Brown 02:50:30.
CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPS
Here is the latest from the cross country world as the team were over in Liverpool for what has been described as ‘the UK’s premier event in the cross country calendar.
Paul Duke writes,
“ This race incorporates the trails for the European Championships, which gives elite athletes the chance to own and wear a GB vest and the chance to represent their country. The opportunity just to be involved in these events is not only good for the club but also for each runner representing Burnden.
The Euro Cross Challenge event was held in Sefton Park, Liverpool, with runners from as far as Northern Ireland, Scotland and London. They say being involved in these type of events brings the best of out of you and this was true of our very own Tony Fulop who had the race of his life completing the same course as last year in a remarkable 14 minutes quicker. Tony is now reaping the benefits from the hard work he puts into training and his commitment to his overall health and wellbeing.
Other results in the men’s race –
Paul Duke position 407, Steve Nolan 479, Andy Staveley 487, Stephen Horsman 580 and Keith Thomas 602. Andy Warburton unfortunately felt a twinge and decided to pull out midway through lap 2. The men’s race had 711 competitors.
In the ladies race we witnessed 424 competitors take on the mud of Sefton Park. Lyndsay was leading the Burnden team through lap one before Gwen found her rhythm finishing just ahead of Lyndsay. Not far behind was Shirley who also put in a shift. Anne dominant as ever was 2nd in her age category and to round up the ladies was Francesca who has had some time off from running to focus on her Studies - good to see her back racing for Burnden.
Ladies results - Gwen Kinloch position 204, Lyndsay Darbyshire 213, Shirley Staveley 228, Anne Ferguson 277 and Francesca Caine 328
BLACKBURN ICE DANCE
A flurry of Burndeners swapped a freezing Bolton for a freezing Blackburn this Sunday as they competed in the Blackburn 10K at Ewood Park. Starting and finishing inside the stadium, the course takes runners onto closed roads for a fast 10K route that takes in Blackburn town centre before looping back towards Ewood. Many run the race for charity, and it attracts up to 3000 racers.
Despite the snow, six Burndeners finished with a sparkling array of times. Michael Kermode was first man home in 43:10 followed by first lady and first in her age category,Gwen Kinloch, in 44:18. Richard Blake, in his first race this year cracked the sub-hour in 55:40, Andy Warburton finished in 59:23, Bernie Jones crossed in 59:56, and Gillian McGowan reunited the Burnden crew in 01:11:23
POLAR BEARS THWART PARKRUN
Due to the number of Arctic bears on the paths of Leverhulme this weekend, it was decided that Bolton parkrun should be cancelled on safety grounds. Just 11 members managed to find another course and, thankfully, all survived to cross the finish line.
Heaton Park (attendance 531) – Gayle Gerrard – 25:43, Chris Greenall – 25:55.
Erddig (attendance 91) – Simon Marland – 25:07, Sue Marland – 34:43
Peel (attendance 317) – Mark Jackson – 21:42, Adrian Ashburn – 22:22, Carol Richardson – 29:50
Pavillion Gardens (attendance 122) – Gareth Doherty – 21:30 (10th position)
Clarence (attendance 122) – Katherine Baines – 23:37, Mark Charlton – 29:19, Luke Newell – 31:26