Don Hale Blog

* Welsh karate champion Ioan Beards (*above) promotes the Italian event. British and Welsh Karate Champion Ioan Beards set for top international date in Venice... Special report by Don Hale. donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025 Ioan Beards is an award-winning teenage Karate champion from Deganwy, in North Wales, who is all set to take part next month in the Parakarate Cup Championships, which is a prestigious international tournament, being staged in the stunning Italian City of Venice.   This talented and inspirational 16-year-old will be competing in the  Autism category , and he is already both the Welsh and British champion, and has high hopes of further success on 3rd December, but realises he will face some stiff competition from many keen rivals.   Ioan’s event will be held at the  Palazzo Turismo,  which is the location of the ‘Karatei Youth League,’ at Jesolo, Venice, and this latest venture follows hot on the heels of his recent victory as the British Champio...

Destination Conwy – have a look this unique special promotional video promoted by Conwy Council in 2010 to encourage people to visit this unique part of North Wales. This is now available to view and for our current generation to examine and compare. Promoted by Don Hale.  donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025 Visit Conwy in North Wales: Now available on YouTube: https://youtu.be/ue91Ra4ic9o?si=6vh07oqmx-4lVA9V via @YouTube   Flashback to about 15 years ago when Conwy Council produced a short promotional video  highlighting the many benefits of visiting this popular holiday destination... Take a fresh look at North Wales, could you pack all this into your last holiday destination? The all-new Destination Conwy , promotional video.  Visit us at http://www.visitconwy.org.uk

MENTAL ELF – Festive Fun Run for Conwy Mind at Eirias Events Centre...Sunday 30th  November... Report by Don Hale.  donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025   There will be a Festive Fun Run on Sunday 30th November at 11am for Conwy Mind at Eirias Events Centre, in Colwyn Bay. There are two choices to choose from at the  Mental Elf Festive Fun Run : -  A 5k Mental Elf, or a 2k Mini Elf.   The event organisers have invited everyone to join them  on Sunday 30th November 11am at Eirias Events Centre, Colwyn Bay for a day of fun and fundraising.   They say you can walk, jog, skip, or run, whilst soaking up the festive spirit and supporting Conwy and Vale of Clwyd Minds, and confirmed: “Together, we can go the extra mile for mental health!  The Mini Elf 2k Fun Run, is a new event this year! Mini elves can join in the fun too with a 2km fun run packed full of all the jingling fun. There is also a Free National Trust pass for every particip...

*Pic tured above - Mike Hayton and Kay Hatton at Newborough. Unfortunate mix-up costs NW runner an extra 5-mile trek!   Three members of North Wales Road Runners competed in the challenging Newborough Trail 10k race on Sunday, but unfortunately one athlete at least was misdirected into the adjacent half-marathon race at a late turn point and ended up running an extra 5-miles! Despite the drizzle and the winds Kay Hatton  continued with her excellent top form and won her VW60 age category in 58.07, with colleague  Mike Hayton  claiming the second spot in his VM70 cat in 73.02, but fellow master veteran runner  Rob Fryer  faced an extra unplanned 5-mile trek after a mix-up at an important turn marker, eventually finishing in 97.53.  This was a great shame for Rob, who like Kay, has been in excellent form of late, and Kay said he was going well until about 9k, when he was somehow misdirected away from the shorter course.   Rob later confirmed: ...

*Pictured above - Welsh Master athlete Arwel Lewis at the awards ceremony. Arwel Lewis given special Services to Athletics award by Welsh Athletics... Special report by Kay Hatton from the NW Regional Athletics Council. donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025 Huge congratulations to Arwel Lewis who was presented with the Services to Athletics Award at the Welsh Athletics Awards evening last weekend.   Arwel competes regularly for Eryri Harriers in all disciplines and has competed for Wales on the road, cross country, trail and mountain. He also puts in a huge amount of time as a volunteer for his club, is a race adjudicator and a race organiser.  Arwel is also the fell/trail representative on the NWRAC and WA General Council, Welsh Athletics  mountain/trail secretary and team manager as well as Welsh Ultra representative and team manager. Such a well-deserved award! A modest Arwel later acknowledged:  “I am very honoured and feel very privileged to have received the Welsh Ath...

Val Crowson publishes a fascinating new SEARCH FOR THE WORDS book... Coast and Country - a North Wales online magazine  promotion.  donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025 The author of this brand new  Search for the Words  puzzle book is Val Crowson , a retired teacher, who previously used word searches in the classroom to help promote the learning of topics and vocabulary extension.  Val lives in South Africa and she is married with three children and six grandchildren, and now retired, she has collated and created several new wordsearches with the idea of publishing them within this exciting new book.  NOW AVAILABLE ON AMAZON:   https://amzn.to/4qH1IqC   ABOUT THE NEW SEARCH FOR THE WORDS BOOK by Val Crowson. A collection of 200 distinctive and individually created wordsearches just for you to enjoy! Words can be found horizontally, vertically or backwards, but not diagonally.  The letters that make up these words can be used more than once and can ...

Osian was the runaway winner at the Eirias Park NW cross-country league race. Report by Don Hale.  donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025   It was another good turn-out with some excellent performances last Saturday by a host of experienced club runners at Eirias Park, Colwyn Bay, for the second highly competitive match of the season in the ‘David Alun Williams,’ North Wales Cross-Country League, sponsored by Grand Prix Express. Elite senior male athlete  Osian Perrin  (Menai T&F) was the runaway winner of the  Senior Men’s  race in just 26 minutes and 28 seconds, and he finished over a minute ahead of his nearest rival  Ed Slaughter  (Bangor University), who was second in 27.31, with  Dan Kashi  (Meirionnydd RC) third in 27.40.  *In the Male Over 65 race, this was won by  John Jones  (Shrewsbury AC) in 20.14, with  Andy Clarke  (Oswestry Olympians) second, and he was only four-seconds behind in 20.18, with  Dyla...

MENTAL ELF – Festive Fun Run. Sunday 30th November at 11am for Conwy Mind at Eirias Events Centre. Put on your Elf hat and join our Festive Fun Run. donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025   There are two choices to choose from: - A 5k Mental Elf, or a 2k Mini Elf.   Join us on Sunday 30th November 11am at Eirias Events Centre, Colwyn   Bay  for a day of fun and fundraising.  Walk, jog, skip or run while soaking up the festive spirit and supporting Conwy and Vale of Clwyd Minds. Together, we can go the extra mile for mental health! Mini Elf 2k Fun Run: A new event this year! Mini elves can join in the fun too with a 2km fun run packed full of all the jingling fun. A Free National Trust pass for every participant*   This year, Mind is partnering with the National Trust. If you take part or volunteer in a local  Mental Elf event, you’ll receive a free family access pass to National Trust sites! It’s our way of thanking   you for supporting mental health ...

*Simon Cole (*above) was the runaway first finisher at Conwy parkrun Parkrunners beat the weather in North Wales. Report by Don Hale.  donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025   It was one of those horrible early morning days when you wonder why you ever climbed out of bed, as gale force winds and rain challenged my senses for a parkrun, and/or for other events last Saturday morning. With a variety of competing races across North Wales, many club runners probably opted for challenges, yet at so many parkruns across the region, this extraordinary void was quickly filled by numerous social runners visiting during the start of the half-term break. Conwy parkrun  welcomed people from all parts of the UK and beyond, but the first man home was local athletic star  Simon Cole  (GOG Triathlon), who beat the elements to record a positive time of 17 minutes and 13 seconds over the twisting 5k course. He was closely followed by  Cai Curtis-Roberts  in 17.38, with visiting d...

*When the going gets tough, the tough get going; pictured above (l-r): Mandy Owen, Elizabeth Driscoll, Hannah Griffith and Gwen Charlton, and (*below) Kevin Slattery in the white top is shown with Steve Bozier on a challenging hill climb ( *photo courtesy of Sport pictures Cymru). Tough day on the rolling hills for hardy athletes in the Eryri Marathon...local results  round-up... Report by Don Hale.  donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025   It was a very tough day for the 2,208 hardy athletes and all the volunteers on the rolling hills around Snowdonia last Saturday as they battled gale force winds, hail, and driving rain at times for the gruelling Eryri Marathon. And, as if the unpredictable weather was not bad enough, the varied range of mixed ability, but mainly experienced competitors from far and wide, also faced a series of picturesque but undulating challenges over roads, rough tracks, and steep mixed terrain descents. *Pictured above - The mass of runners at the start of t...

*Pictured above - NWRRC member Steve Bozier and  his  family at the Penrhyn  Castle  Dark Run last Saturday. Penrhyn Castle Dark Run raised about £10k for children's hospices...and all set for this Saturday at Conwy Quay. Report by Don Hale.  donhaleblog.blogspot.com/2025   It proved to be another great night at the  Penrhyn Castle Dark Run  last Saturday with 384 participants helping to raise about £10k for  Hope House and Ty Gobaith  children's hospices. One of the event organisers and MC  John Hatton  later confirmed: “ Penrhyn Dark Run  last night. I went to the morning parkrun, then back as MC for the Dark Run, which was an absolutely fantastic evening.  We had so many volunteers, which made it so special all around the course, and we were overwhelmed by the response.  “Out of interest the provisional amount raised at Penrhyn was £10k and just looking forward to my next role at  Conwy Dark Run ...