Don Hale Blog

                                 French pilot Louis Paulhan LONDON TO MANCHESTER – DAILY MAIL AIR RACE 1910:  Two amazing flying-machines competed for £10,000 prize money Report by Don Hale. On 28th April 1910, and after more than four years of prompting by the public and press, two intrepid pioneer flyers, an Englishman Claude Grahame-White, and a French rival, Louis Paulhan, fuelled the country’s enthusiasm for aviation racing, by taking part in an exciting challenge, flying from London to Manchester in an attempt to win an incredible £10,000 prize offered by Daily Mail newspaper proprietor Lord Northcliffe.                                                         Louis Paulhan Paulhan and Grahame-White were thrust into direct competition and the previous...

                            Martin Green won gold at the half-marathon championships NWRRC athletes struck gold at half-marathon championships Report by Don Hale. Photos by Steve Jeffery. Athletes from NWRRC claimed seven prestigious awards, including five gold medals last weekend, at the North Wales virtual half-marathon championship event. Run as individuals on their own preferred local courses due to Covid-19 restrictions, the team of nine, all celebrated with an unexpected bag-full of medals, and some excellent finishing times, despite often competing on waterlogged trails, or on other challenging routes, in wet and windy weather conditions.                                                           Carla Green - another gold medal winner Golden couple  Martin and Car...

Newborough Forest won the virtual World Cup Parkrun Final against North Wales rivals Archive report by Don Hale. Flashback story to earlier in 2020. The picturesque beauty spot of Newborough Forest on Anglesey finally won the epic local derby Parkrun battle over their North Wales rivals Conwy earlier in 2020 to win the top global tourism prize, with both teams recording a record number of votes. In a dramatic 24-hour final staged online, Newborough led for most of the way, and backed by tremendous Island support, fully deserved their victory. With this inaugural, virtual running competition, which attracted 24 teams worldwide from a variety of tourist locations based in Australia, Germany, Holland, Norway, and from all around the UK, it seemed quite bizarre, and perhaps a shade unfortunate that two teams situated just 30-miles apart in scenic North Wales, should meet in the final.                              ...

Llinos recovered from Coronavirus symptoms to complete extreme challenges                                                                                                    Llinos Davies Report by Don Hale   A Deganwy based triathlete, who faced a gradual recovery from several debilitating Coronavirus symptoms, has just run the equivalent of three marathons to complete a demanding task as part of a unique “Mudder Challenge,” in memory of her late father. GOG member Llinos Davies explained that her interest in extreme challenges first began during lockdown and admitted that she was trying hard to keep herself motivated and active, after a host of regular races were suddenly cancelled due to this horrific virus. She said: ‘I entered so ma...

THE DAY THE WORLD CHANGED AN INCREDIBLE PERSONAL STORY WITH EXCLUSIVE PHOTOGRAPHS ABOUT THE TWIN TOWERS’ ATTACK:   *READ THIS SPECIAL COMMEMORATIVE BOOK: 9/11 GROUND ZERO: ENGLISHMEN IN NEW YORK - AFTERMATH.  Order your special edition book via Amazon:   https://amzn.to/4egiLc0   Don Hale reports on one of the world’s most dramatic terrorist attacks ever. PLEASE SEE THE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE: IT IS LESS THAN 3 MINS BUT IT MIGHT CHANGE YOUR LIFE AND GIVE YOU AN INSIGHT INTO THIS TERRIBLE ATTROCITY WHICH TOOK THE LIVES OF SO MANY INNOCENT PEOPLE: THE DAY THAT CHANGED THE WORLD - 9/11 Ground Zero https://youtu.be/xj17ZHGzuOM via @YouTube Exactly 23-years ago, I was contacted by my friend Dr Sam Allen, a well-known, and highly-respected doctor, and a global specialist on highly infectious diseases. I have known Sam for about 40-years, and we both ran for the same Derbyshire athletics club in Matlock, when I was editor of the local newspaper, the Matlock Mercury. Just a few ...

THE LOSS OF HMS CONWAY During the early morning of 14 th  April 1953, HMS Conway, a large 19 th  century wooden battleship used for the training and education of cadets, all hoping to become officers in the Merchant and Royal Navy, was driven ashore and wrecked by some exceptionally strong tides, and eventually broke her back in the Menai Strait.  Archive report by Don Hale.   This in fact, was the second attempt to move such a large and difficult ship from her relatively safe berth at Bangor, and head back to Birkenhead for a refit. A similar attempt the day before had been aborted due to extreme difficulties, and the assessment that it was always going to be a ‘great risk.’  HMS Conway was considered to be the largest ever ship to attempt to pass through this notoriously demanding stretch of swirling waters known as the ‘Swellies, that separates Anglesey from the mainland, and included a challenging passage under two major bridges. The vessel had an enormous d...

SOUNDS FROM THE 60s - A nostalgic look back at the top stars from Club & The Esquire Some great memories and loads of exclusive stories and photographs from a memorable era SEE ALSO THE EXCLUSIVE VIDEO AND HEAR JOE COCKER LIVE:  https://youtu.be/_bZk5TzTWAA This is a revised, updated and expanded book: SOUNDS FROM THE 60s - which takes you behind the scenes with the stars of rock n' roll, pop, blues and jazz at two of the top Northern UK clubs, Club 60 & The Esquire, owned by Terry Thornton.                                  Joe Cocker as Vance Arnold with his band members 'The Avengers' This is a fascinating and unique account of life behind the scenes during the 1960s in the great industrial city of Sheffield, when a musty old beer cellar helped stage a remarkable revival of popular music, and provided a unique live showcase and platform for a host of top British and international performe...