Don Hale Blog

*Pictured above and below - volunteer and photographer John Hatton captures the unique atmosphere as the  large number of runners begin their Easter dash at Conwy parkrun last Saturday morning. Bumper Easter turn-out at Conwy parkrun boosted by a host of visiting UK club and social entrants. Report by Don Hale. Main photos by John Hatton. https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com www.welshmastersathletics.co.uk   It proved to be another bumper Easter attendance at Conwy parkrun last Saturday as some 435 entrants from all parts of the UK, tackled  the   picturesque  but soggy 5k riverside route to help celebrate the Bank Holiday weekend, and they  just missed out on setting a new attendance record! Parkrun official Mark Jessett  confirmed: " Saturday was our second highest attendance, and our highest since we restarted post-2020. Our highest attendance was at Easter in 2019.  "Overall, across the UK, parkrun saw its highest attendances since the restart. Many parkruns in North Wales (D

*Carla Green (*above) finished as the first female at the Nova parkrun. North Wales Road Runners travelled to various parkruns. Report by Don Hale. https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com www.welshmastersathletics.co.uk   It was another very busy weekend with many club runners travelling to take part in numerous parkruns around the country.   *Prestatyn: Carla Green  was the first female finisher at the  Nova parkrun  at Prestatyn last Saturday, in 13th place overall, and she also won her VW50 age cat with another excellent performance in 21.39, and she was just ten-seconds off her PB. This result mirrored her run the previous week at the  Aberystwyth parkrun , where she also claimed the first female title, and she was 12th overall, in 21.05. *Ben Hudson (*above left) with Sarah Ferguson Hudson. *Keswick: Ben and Sarah Hudson   made their course debuts at the  Whinlatter Forest parkrun  near Keswick but faced mixed results on a very tough and challenging route. Ben finished 21st overall in 25

*NWRRC member Will Williams (*above), called-up for double Welsh date. Easter surprise - Double date Welsh selection for Will Williams - and international call-ups and news for other NWRRC athletes. Report by Don Hale.    North Wales Road Runner Will Williams received a welcome Easter surprise this week with confirmation that he has been selected to represent Wales in two varied international distance races next month against the old enemy England! He is now one of three top-level club athletes who have recently had their talents recognised by the sporting authorities following some consistent and outstanding performances. Will, who has just recovered from a niggling knee injury, confirmed that he will compete in the Masters’ International 10k race at Birmingham on Sunday 5th May, and then again for the Masters’ International half-marathon event at Manchester on Sunday 26th May. Following news of his selection, based on several previously outstanding efforts in the red vest on both the

Non-stop action in six-goal thriller for Kinmel Bay. Kinmel bay FC (3) v Abergele FC (3)  23 March 2024 played in St Asaph.   Special match report and photos courtesy of Barry Griffiths – media officer Kinmel Bay FC. Cold and windy but a sunny day saw wall to wall action from these local teams in the Worth Wales Coast East Football League Premier Division. Kinmel Bay warmed up in the Conwy Mind shirts to raise more awareness that mental health needs to be taken seriously by all of us. No score and 24 minutes in the Bay’s  Leon Bower  received a red card putting them a man down for the rest of the match. Despite this loss the team pulled round to hold Abergele to a 3 all draw, a commendable performance and example of determination in teamwork.  For the match there was no score until the end of the first half when Abergele’s  Dominic Holland  assisted by  Ryan Jones  drove home his first of two goals. The Bay equalised 12 minutes later when  Liam Jones  assisted by  Paddy Hamid scored, t

*Carolyn Arber pictured above at Colwyn Bay after winning her age cat. Welsh Masters newbie Carolyn Arber celebrates Metric Marathon race success on former home patch. Intro by Don Hale. https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com www.welshmastersathletics.co.uk   It’s always good to receive notifications from Welsh Athletics members, and this week I was pleased to read a note from  Carolyn Arber , who is a WMAL newbie, who coincidentally took part in a longer version of the same Metric marathon, and half marathon races as myself, last weekend organised by RunWales. The following report is based on her own personal experiences.   Running down Memory Lane by Carolyn Arber:   I am a new member of Welsh Masters and last Sunday I ran in the Colwyn Bay Metric Marathon. I was born in Colwyn Bay but live in Cheshire so was determined to have a medal and T shirt with my place of birth on.  It was a windy old course to Penrhyn Bay, twice, but was lovely to take a trip down Memory Lane. Starting in Eirias

*Juliet Sidney (*back right) is pictured with her team mates in Poland. Medal winner and 'pocket rocket' Juliet Sidney talks about her recent success at the European championships at Torun in Poland. Report by Don Hale. https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com www.welshmastersathletics.co.uk   Welsh Master sprinter and medal winner Juliet Sidney has recalled her exploits from the European Championships at Torun in Poland from last week. Juliet, who is perhaps better known as the ‘Pocket Rocket,’ competed in the 60m, the 200m and relay events. Although she was a little disappointed with her efforts in the earlier heats for the 60m race, Juliet deservedly made it to her first ever 200m indoor W55 final, and later ran as part of the bronze medal winning relay team. She later confirmed: “It was a  week of ups and downs. I finished with a bronze medal in the W50 4 x 200 relay, with thanks to my team  mates  Fiona Steele , Sarah Loades , and Stefano Dornbusch.  They all ran amazing legs to

Llyr ApGeraint-Roberts (*pictured above) wins qualification to the GB Team for 2025 Duathlon Championships. Report by Don Hale. https://donhaleblog.blogspot.com www.welshmasterathletics.co.uk North Wales Road Runner Llyr ApGeraint-Roberts has gained qualification to the GB Team after finishing 3rd in his respective age category during a 2025 Duathlon Championships qualifying event, held last Sunday on the East Fortune Race Circuit, near Edinburgh. Welsh master Llyr competed in a 5k run, followed by a 21k bike ride, and a final 2.5k run, with his excellent times, and age cat position ensuring him an automatic qualification. His very fast times for each event included his first run of 5k in just 18 minutes, the 21k cycle race in 36 minutes, and the final 2.5k run in 9 minutes. After the event, he confirmed: “I secured my qualification for the 2025 championships by finishing in the top-four of my age group at this event (I missed out at Castle Combe at the beginning of March). “Overall, I