Don Hale Blog

*Pictured above – some of the NWRRC team at the start of the Twin Piers race.   Fast times from the gun at the Twin Piers 10k and North Wales championship race... Report by Don Hale donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025   Over 300 quality athletes competed in the annual Arthur Bebbington Twin Piers 10k race last Saturday afternoon, which covered a scenic route between Llandudno to Colwyn Bay piers. Entrants came from a vast range of nationwide running clubs and social runners, with the event well organised by  Colwyn Bay AC , and it also formed part of the  North Wales Regional 10k championships. Meirionnydd RC  claimed a unique hat-trick in the 10k with three of their team taking the first three finishing places overall.  Owen Roberts  was the runaway winner of the race in a fast gun time of 31 minutes and 59 seconds, with  Ben Harding  second, and a minute adrift in 32,59, whilst  Gwion Roberts  took the third spot, and he was almost a mi...

*Pictured above - Gwen Charlton who organised the Conwy Urban event. Conwy Urban Night orienteering event proved a success. Report by Don Hale donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025   A brand-new Urban Night orienteering event held in and around the historic town of Conwy proved a great success last Thursday night with over sixty runners taking part in several individual or team categories. The event, which was postponed from the previous week due to the freezing conditions, attracted first time orienteers and some more experienced athletes from a varied range of backgrounds including road, fell, trail and triathletes. It also led to a family double with husband and wife Sam Drinkwater and Anna Drinkwater each winning their respective male and female individual categories. Organiser  Gwen Charlton  promoted the event as a chance to explore the Medieval streets of Conwy, and the 60-minute plus challenge included locating and discovering key information from a number of checkpoints...

*Pictured above left - Charlotte Rose Wilton Jones with her running friend Tanya Beattie after completing the challenging Delamere trail half marathon. Charlotte braved the ice and mud in the Delamere Forest half marathon...plus a night out at the Conwy Urban race. Report by Don Hale. donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025   NWRRC member Charlotte Rose Wilton Jones competed in the tough Delamere Forest half marathon trail event last weekend in her first race back after having her twins. Charlotte ran with her running friend  Tanya Beattie  and recorded a good time of 2 hours 14 minutes and 40 seconds over a very icy, muddy, and slippery course, and after the race she confirmed: “Last Sunday,  I ran the Delamere Half Marathon. My first race back since having my twins in August last year. It felt great to be back racing, even though the cold, icy and muddy conditions made it tough, and my legs struggled at times.” And last Thursday night,  Charlotte quickly recovered to ta...

*Steve Gardner (*pictured above) finished 7th and won his VM60 age cat Milder conditions, plus another major local race, boosted parkrun numbers...and parkrun results round-up... Report by Don Hale. donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025   The Llandrillo yn Rhos parkrun proved a magnet for visiting athletes once again, which this week was boosted by hundreds of people travelling to the area for the Twin Piers 10k race held later that day. Thankfully, the weather conditions were much better than in recent times, with bright sunshine and milder temperatures, that probably inspired a flurry of personal best (PB times) and proved an ideal warm-up for the afternoon event. The first three male finishers at Rhos were all first timers with  Tony Coyne  (Belle Vue Racers) the first man home on his course debut with a great performance in 17 minutes and 56 seconds. He was followed by  Mickey Armstrong  in 18.21, and  Danny O’Reilly  (Chester Tri Club) in 18.36. The first...

North Wales Cross Country Champs report from the Treborth Track, Bangor race on 10/1/2026.   A special report and photograph cortesy of Bernie Jones, the secretary of the NW Cross Country League. donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025 A big thank you to Eryri Harriers for hosting the North Wales Championships for the second-year running. Bangor is always testing and this year was no different.  Thank you to all the volunteers, not just on the course but behind the scenes and especially to Helen Blair for coordinating everything. Unfortunately, due to be stuck in one foot of snow we did not have the chip timing services of Dave Peters and had to revert to old school timing and recording.  “A late Friday night sorting out numbers from my loft ensured we were able to go ahead! I would therefore like to thank all the officials who enabled me to do some coordinating and sort out individual medals. THANK YOU ALL. Without them there would be no Championships. ALL TEAM MEDALS AND AGE GROU...

*Alex Aldous is pictured above with the leading pack at the Llandrillo yn Rhos parkun on the promenade. Hundreds of parkrunners braved the icy conditions at many North Wales locations... Report by Don Hale. Photos by Michael Finnie and Danielle Peevor. donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025   There was another excellent turn out at the Llandrillo yn Rhos parkrun last Saturday, despite the freezing temperatures and icy conditions underfoot, which caused the postponement of several other local events, at Conwy and Nant y Pandy amongst many others. The rather sandy 5k course at Rhos probably helped athletes to keep their feet and once again this particular parkrun attracted a host of visitors from far afield, and quite remarkably, nine out of the first ten finishers were course debutants! Sam Lewis Jones  (Parc Bryn Bach RC) was the first finisher on his course debut in just 16 minutes and 54 seconds, with the second runner unknown, but in 3rd place was visitor  Ian Lowe  (Oswes...

*The successful NWRRC quartet of ladies pictured above at the Regional cross country championships at Bangor (l-r): Kay Hatton, Gwen  Charlton. Cheryl Frost and Karen Butler. NWRRC quartet amongst the medals at the cross-country champs at Bangor... Report by Don Hale. donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025   A quartet of ladies from North Wales Road Runners enjoyed some great performances at the NW Regional cross-country championships held at Treborth, Bangor last Saturday. Cheryl Frost  collected a prestigious gold medal after winning her W60 age cat whilst finishing 20th overall in 28 minutes and 38 seconds, and  Kay Hatton  was third in the same age category as Cheryl, and she won a bronze medal in 30.13. Karen Butler  was also on top form, and she won a silver medal after finishing second in her W65 cat, and she was 28th overall in 30.28, with  Gwen Charlton  performing well in 40th place, but she narrowly missed out on a medal in her W35 cat after fin...

PLEASE CAN YOU HELP US TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE? This is an urgent fundraising appeal for Wilfred and Friends 24/7 Animal Rescue Service... donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025 At Wilfred and Friends Animal Rescue, we been urgently trying to raise funds to help secure a vital thermal drone, and thanks to an incredible act of kindness our target is now just £3,000 A thermal drone will help us find injured and lost animals faster, no matter the hour. It means fewer animals left terrified and alone overnight. It means more lives saved, and more families made whole again. We also partner with mountain rescue teams, who don’t have drones and depend on North Wales Police for aerial searches. If you can spare anything—no matter how small—please consider donating to help us reach our goal of £3,000. Every gift helps us be there in the darkest hours. Even sharing this post makes a real difference. Thank you for believing in us and helping us to save lives, rescue animals, and reunite lost families. Donati...