Don Hale Blog

Great day for GOG Triathlon members at Bala in Welsh Championship race - and Rhian Roxburgh claims unique double.   Report by Don Hale.   GOG Triathlon had a strong team of over 30 members competing at Bala during Stage 5 of the Welsh Triathlon Super Series and they won gold and silver medals for several top podium placings in different age categories, with Rhian Roxburgh completing a unique double. *A unique double by Rhian Roxburgh at the Bala Triathlon. The event included a 1500m lake swim, a 40k bike ride and a near 10k run, and attracted 463 finishers.  Rhian Roxburgh  was the first female club runner home in 21st position and claimed gold for winning her Vet Female 40-49 age cat, finishing in 2 hours 11 minutes 19 seconds, and she won silver as the 2nd female finisher overall to celebrate a unique double. *Another great performance by teenager Caitlin Owen who won her age cat. Gareth Bowyer  was another worthy gold medal winner claiming 1st place in his Vintage Vet 50-59 age cat,

Liz Driscoll celebrates fantastic day at Bala Triathlon. Report by Don Hale.   North Wales Road Runner Liz Driscoll, who last weekend competed for her second claim club GOG Triathlon, tells of her unique experience in taking part in her first ever triathlon race at Bala. The event was said to be the ideal race for both beginners and experienced athletes alike, and the race seemed to live up to its pre-race publicity as “one of the most exciting triathlons the UK has to offer,” and soon became one of the most unforgettable races on the Welsh Triathlon Super Series. Race organisers, Tough Runner UK, teamed up with highly experienced local club, Clwb Beicio Bala, to bring back this amazing event, which was previously considered one of the most popular races on the circuit. And  this year, the event was included as Stage 5 of the Welsh Triathlon Super Series , which was also televised on S4C. Billed as the Bala Standard Triathlon, it involved a closed road triathlon, which started with a 1

Carla Green realises PB dream at Altrincham 10k race.   Report by Don Hale.   Carla Green finished as the 3rd female runner at the Altrincham 10k race last Sunday, and finally realised a four-year PB dream to dip under 40-minutes for this challenging distance. The NWRRC member celebrated a very positive performance, finishing 35th overall out of 1,188 finishers and she was 3rd Lady in 38 minutes 49 seconds. Carla also won her FV45 age category.  The female race was won by  Joanna Marsden  in 36.18, with  Molly Cawthorne  2nd in 37.41 with Carla 3rd. The male race was won by  Marco Parolin  in 33.09, with 2nd  Matthew Beacock  in 34.34, and  Matthew Harrison  3rd in 34.39. Silver medal for Kelly-Marie at Wrexham 10k.   Kelly-Marie Alford  and  Cai Roberts  ran in the re-arranged Village Bakery half-marathon race in Wrexham on Sunday and both rummers were satisfied with their performances on a very hot day.  Kelly-Marie also finished second in the North Wales championships and won a pres

TROY KETTLE TACKLED TOUGH ANGLESEY FIRELIGHTER ULTRA-DISTANCE CHALLENGE RACE Report by Don Hale. Photographs courtesy of the Kettle family. North Wales Road Runner Troy Kettle continued his love of ultra-distance events and finished 9th last Friday in the highly challenging Anglesey Ring of Fire – Firelighter race – which involved tackling a 35.7-mile course (57.2kms) with a 2880 ft of elevation (877m). Troy was the youngest ever finisher and this race added to his recent experience of running sections of Anglesey’s spectacular coastal paths. The Firelighter race is part of the major 135-mile Ring of Fire Coastal ultra-marathon event, which is staged over three days around Yns Mon. *Troy is pictured awaiting starters orders at the Anglesey Firelighter event. His race was identified as a “taster” run over a shorter distance, and a chance to compete on Day 1 of this established and prestigious event but it’s a tough ultra-marathon race in its own right. It is considered an epic foot race

*Martin Green leads the pack across the  Menai Suspension Bridge. Victory for Martin Green at Anglesey half-marathon race. Report by Don Hale.   Martin Green won the prestigious Anglesey half-marathon race last Sunday morning following a fierce battle with several keen rivals.  The North Wales Road Runner, who is hard in training for the forthcoming London Marathon, finally finished more than 30-seconds ahead of second placed local runner  Steffan Sayer  from the Menai Track and Field club, to win in 1 hour 13 minutes and 44 seconds, with 3rd place going to local athlete  Anna Bracegirdle , who also set a new all-time female best time NWRAC record of 76.07, by over a minute, which had stood since 2015.  Martin was one of five NWRRC runners who took part in this re-arranged event following previous Covid-19 restrictions, and four members of the team also won age category honours. *Kevin Slattery won his M65 age category at the Anglesey half-marathon. Martin claimed 1st place in his MV45

Another fast finish for Jonathan Kettle at Conwy Parkrun. Report by Don Hale. Photographs by Steve Jeffery.   Conwy parkrun returned to near normality last Saturday morning with its usual mix of tourists, fun-runners, and numerous top-quality club athletes from various parts of the UK. Despite fierce competition at the sharp end of this popular 5k event, which recorded 278 finishers, three local runners still took the plaudits, and claimed two of the main podium positions. Colwyn Bay’s extraordinary talented teenager  Bryn Woodall  also registered a unique hat-trick of exceptional wins during consecutive weeks. And for North Wales Road Runner  Jonathan Kettle (*pictured above top)  it was a case of same again, as almost identical to last week, and despite a fast finish, he eventually finished as runner-up to Bryn, who still proved unbeatable in his determination for further success over this distance. *Mark  Jessett claimed a great new parkrun PB at Conwy finishing 3rd overall. Bryn wa

CARLA GREEN CELEBRATED QUADRUPLE SUCCESS AFTER HOLIDAY DASH. Report by Don Hale. Most photographs by Steve Jeffery. Carla Green celebrated an amazing quadruple achievement at the Conwy Parkrun last Saturday, which attracted a bumper Bank Holiday attendance, and saw last week’s overall course record-breaker winner Bryn Woodall, just miss another stunning attempt by a mere four-seconds. North Wales Road Runner Carla (*pictured top of page), who had only just unpacked her suitcase after arriving back from holiday, blitzed around the hard, sun-baked course, and was the 1st female finisher, recording a superb new parkrun PB of exactly 20 minutes in her 100 th  Conwy parkrun, and she easily won her VW45-49 age category, finishing 21st overall. The event again attracted much interest and excitement from a host of top club runners, who were representing many varied parts of the UK, together with a generous sprinkling of tourists enjoying a summer break, which boosted the number of finishers to