Don Hale Blog

*Thumbs up from NWRRC member Will Williams in the green vest. North Wales athletes raced the ‘Magic Triangle’ for Euro glory at the prestigious Pulford 10k race... Report by Don Hale. Photos courtesy of John Hatton. https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com *Pictured above - the Pulford 10k race winner Logan Rees at the finish line.   A large number of North Wales athletes competed within a massive entry of over 600 elite runners last Sunday at the Pulford 10k, which was a qualifying race for the European Championships. Formerly known as the Cheshire Elite 10k, this prestigious event was staged on the legendary Pulford loop, known in running folklore as ‘The Magic Triangle,’ and is considered to be one of the fastest routes in the UK, and measured to World Athletics standards. The race was a high-quality event and consequently it attracted a star-studded entry and included some of the top runners in the country, who competed against each other in order to bid for international selection. De...

*Pictured above just before the start of the Penrhyn Castle parkrun last Saturday are many members of the - Conwy on tour - contingent of runners. Conwy parkrunners on tour at the Penrhyn Castle ...plus other results... Report by Don Hale.  Photos courtesy of Michael (Pat) Finney, and Gwyn  Williams. https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com With Conwy parkrun being out of action for about 14 weeks, a large group of over 30 members – and calling themselves 'Conwy on tour' - took part in the Penrhyn Castle parkrun, with another party attending the Nova event at Prestatyn. The conditions were ideal last Saturday morning with bright sunshine and a slight nip in the air, and at Penrhyn some 300 mixed ability athletes enjoyed the challenging and hilly course, which included two large laps and two small laps of the spectacular grounds and woodlands. One of the Conwy run directors,  Gwyn Williams (*pictured right) , who also ran and helped to rally the touring team commented: “Fantastic ...

*Pictured above and below - the start of the final Conwy parkrun event for several months due to construction work on part of the course. Very busy final parkrun at Conwy as construction work is set to begin on the new riverside cycle trail from the RSPB site... Report by Don Hale.  Parkrun photos courtesy of Bethan Wyn Roberts, John Hatton and Don Hale. https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com Nearly 400 runners packed the Conwy parkrun course on a near perfect day last Saturday morning for an emotional final event for several months due to the start of some extensive construction work covering part of the existing 5k riverside course from the RPSB site. This latest parkrun therefore attracted a host of visiting club and social runners from across the UK, including representatives from Cardiff, Ripon, Oswestry, Widnes, Sandbach, Pitreavie, and Brecon, to name but a few. And there was also a large presence of some 26 travelling athletes from  Littleborough Runners , plus a generous co...

*Pictured above - athletes are pictured at the impressive start of the races. North Wales ‘Bobbies’ beat the course at Gwrych Castle National XC championships... Report by Don Hale. Photos courtesy of Gwrych Castle . https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com   More than 300 police officers, backed by a host of supporters, volunteers and marshals, enjoyed a spectacular running event last Wednesday during the PSUK National Cross-Country Championships held at Gwrych Castle, near Abergele. Officers past and present representing about 19 male and female athletic teams from counties as far apart as Devon & Cornwall, Humberside, Wiltshire, Cheshire, South Wales, and Warwickshire, plus representatives from the Metropolitan Police and the National Crime Agency, all competed to deliver an exciting series of races. *A tough climb (*above) for competitors along several laps of the Castle. The men ran four challenging laps around the Castle and the surrounding woodland area, whilst the ladies ran th...

A special 36-mile charity fundraising challenge in memory of Simon Lee. Message courtesy of Paula Jones at Porth Eirias Runners. https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com   The first of our charity fundraising runners takes on her challenge tomorrow (Saturday), so a huge shout out to  Nicola Goodall  who takes on a 36k run in memory of her brother, Simon Lee, who would have been 36 years old this month.  Her husband Gary is going to run 36 miles, with their children joining them for part of the run. They are raising money for three vital charities that support people bereaved by suicide - Cruse, SOBS and Suicide&co. These charities are included in our fundraising day on 29th March but if anyone would like to donate direct the links are at the bottom  Nicola joined Porth Eirias runners about 7 years ago and is one of our longest serving members!! She has trained extremely hard for this run joining other club members on their marathon training while juggling work, fami...

MY FINAL MEDIA REPORT FOR NORTH WALES ROAD RUNNERS. Special note from Don Hale. https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com This is my final post and newspaper report for North Wales Road Runners after about 8 years of extensive coverage and publicity. This is a copy of my report in the NW Weekly News today, including a good story about the controversy concerning the new cycle track at the RSPB Nature Reserve, that will affect the Conwy parkrun for about 14 weeks, and may even put the future of this popular event into jeopardy. My thanks to all the club members for their support. I will continue to write about athletics and other sports and business features on my blog, but this is my sign-off from NWRRC. Thanks.

*Pictured above - action from a previous Orme fell race. Great Orme Fell Race is back to its regular spot. Plus details of the Joe Brown Tuesday evening midweek series of Fell Races. Report courtesy of Mike Blake. https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com   Fell race organiser Mike Blake has just confirmed that the Great Orme Fell Race will now return to its normal spot on May 13th, following reports that it may have had to be postponed. Mike said this week: “Please note that d ue to popular demand the Orme Fell Race is back in its normal spot thanks to Gavin Gog. This means that the Northerner's only have to travel south once as far as the Llanberis Valley to get the five counters in, while the southerners only have  to go as far north as Y Fron, to get their 5 counters in. ” Mike also confirmed details of the other Joe Brown   – Tuesday evening – midweek Fell Race fixtures for 2025 , and again he stated: “Ok folks, time to mark your wall planners, 1st April will soon be her...

*Carla and Martin Green enjoyed some good results at Wrexham. Good performances by the Road Runners at the Village Bakery Wrexham half-marathon. Report by Don Hale. https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com   Martin Green led the North Wales Running team home at the Village Bakery half marathon race at Wrexham last Sunday with a very impressive display just days after returning from a family holiday. Martin , who now has dual registration with  Meirionnydd RC , recorded a fast time of 1.14.06, in 72nd place overall, out of 1,834 entrants, and he won his M50 age cat.  Will Evans  was another athlete in top form, and he was thrilled with his new PB time of 1.25.34 in 33rd place, whilst Martin’s wife  Carla Green  finished 3rd in her F50 cat in 506th place, and the 47th female, in 1.31.19. Karl Morris ran his fastest time since 2019 in 726th place in 1.39.33, and *Pictured (*above left), Will Evans, with Adam Lemalle, and Cheryl Frost with Kay Hatton, all took part in...