Team Blizard Race Reports
The sun was out at last as our Team Blizard athletes shone with PBs aplenty once again!
Heading this week’s race report has to be our own Blizard massage therapist Owen James’s wife Lindsy, who reaped the benefits of months of gruelling training pushing their young son Archie around on long runs when the talented 38-year-old became a world record breaker at the Derby Ramathon on Sunday!
Literally pushing on through blistering heat with Owen by her side every step of the way, she pelted to an astonishing 87:34 result, with the full weight of their 8 month old son Archie added into the challenge.
The impressive Kimberworth Strider - whose PB without a buggy is a speedy 84:47 - smashed the previous world best by more than three minutes! The wonder mum’s motivation for the challenge was to raise money for the Rotherham Cancer Hospice and Macmillan Cancer Support, following the passing of her mother to the illness last year. So far they have raised more than £3000!
Also impressing while making her international debut was Jono Frary’s coached athlete, Karen Lynch, who stormed through the standard distance age group World Duathlon championships to finish 17th in the sweltering heat in Spain!
After she had recovered and reflected on the fact that the course was significantly over distance, she said: “That was the toughest race of my life! Everything was longer than normal distances and the heat was overwhelming. But I gave it my everything and I am so proud of myself! 17th in my age category - I'll take that, and thank you to my coach, Jono!”
Just think what this girl will be capable of once she’s got a few more GB performances under her belt, the sky’s the limit for our Karen!
Over at the equally sunny Woodhall Spa 10k, our Team Blizard ambassador Emily Whall was in glistening form when she obliterated her PB by a whole minute, crossing the line in a well-deserved 45:13!
There were scores of fantastic results from the Lincolnshire race, with the battered and bruised David Corbett’s 39:59 standing out in particular, it being his fastest time in 15 months, despite - or perhaps partly because of - his literal fall over the finish line to just dip under the 40 minute mark!
Further up the finishing order, the host club’s Ben Evison ran a superb 34:08 to finish sixth overall, while Sheffield’s Christian Burley was hot on his heels to finish in a fantastic PB of 34:53, knocking 28 seconds off his previous best, a huge amount at this level!
Skegness’s Mark Harvey also ran a stormer, swiping more than half a minute off his previous lifetime best to clock 36:37, while club mate Sam Bradley matched his counterpart when he knocked 36 seconds off his PB with a strong 40:20.
Perhaps the most impressive result of the day, amongst so many other phenomenal performances, came from the host club’s Robert Rennie, who ran his heart out to cross the line in a new best of 42:59, just seven days after racing to a new marathon PB of 3:15:09 in Edinburgh!
However, also fighting for the title of ‘run of the day’ was Wolds Vets’ 69-year-old Mick Casey, who ran a top 20 UK ranking time of 43:24 to finish third V60, while Caistor’s equally impressive V55 was never far behind when he crossed the line in 43:58 in a brand new PB, at the age of 55!
Skegness’s Martin Jessop also scored a massive life time best of 45:03, smashing his previous PB by well over two minutes. This followed his PB in Manchester just a few weeks earlier, so the future looks very bright indeed for Martin.
Returning to the record breaking Derby Ramathon, Clowne’s top veteran, Gareth Lowe was also excelling in the heat, defeating almost everyone around him regardless of age when he clocked a solid 72:37 to finish fourth overall!
Last but most definitely not least was fell running star Matt Lalor, who won the Burnley 10k in 34:14, finishing more than a minute clear of his nearest rival, and staunch Team Blizard ace Russell Walker, who completed the astonishing challenge of the 100 mile Flat and Fast cycling sportive in a fantastic 6:19!
