Ring of Steall Skyrace
Performance of the week goes to Dr Elsey Davis, who is fast becoming one of the queens of the fells as she chalked up yet another impressive victory in the mountains, this time winning the Salomon Ring of Steall Skyrace in Scotland, which consisted of over 17 miles of steep ascents, traverses, descents, and mountain ridges with spectacular views of Ben Nevis from within the Mamores. Davis completed the race in 04:16:39 to not only win the women’s race and take 5th place overall, but also earn herself a Team GB call up to the World Trail Championship in the Azores in Portugal. Elsey described the race as the hardest she has ever done and said that she enjoyed picking off the male entrants one by one as she moved through the field.
Hurstwood Hills trail race
Earlier in the week, the Pennine Trail race series came to its conclusion, with the fast and furious Hurstwood Hills race, a rolling 5k across farmland, through woodland and around Hurstwood Reservoir. Once again Wes Wilkinson was in fine form as he took 4th place in 20:05. Will Metcalf was next in, as he put in his best performance of the series, and arguably one of his best performances as a Harrier to date, putting Wilkinson under pressure before taking 6th place in 20:16. Simon Collins took 9th place in 20:47 putting the disappointment of his North West road relays performance behind him, and finally, Rob Worsey, who like Metcalf saved his best performance for the last, crossed the line in 17th place in a time of 22:23. Former Harrier Chris Tully placed 10th to secure the male vet-40 series title, a fantastic achievement for a runner known more for the roads then the trails.
Liverpool Throws and Jumps Meet Saturday 18th September
Saturday saw the staging of the Liverpool Throws & Jumps meet with Preston represented by four athletes: Emma Harrison who won the women’s U17 hammer throw, Verity Glassey who took 2nd in the women’s U17 shot put, George Lowe who took second in both the men’s U17 high jump and shot put, and 3rd in the men’s U17 javelin and hammer throw, in what must have been a very busy day for the multi-talented youngster. Finally, Kacie Calvert took 4th in the senior women’s javelin to ensure all four athletes went home having put in a great day’s work.
ESSAR Chester Half Marathon Sunday 19th September
On Sunday Sam Evan made his Harrier debut at the ESSAR Chester Half Marathon, announcing his arrival on the club scene with a fine performance to complete the race in 01:18:37, taking 33rd place. Across the way in Manchester, Mark Lee and David Kerfoot were in 10k action at the Trafford 10k. Lee, who is running really well at the moment, finished in 38:22 to finish fourth in the Vet-55 age category. Vet-60 Kerfoot also put in an age defying performance to finish in 58:37.
Harriers stateside
Some of Preston’s US based athletes dusted off their spikes as the cross country season kicked off. Byron Sowerby was 61st at the Redbird Invitational in Normal, Illinois, Kian Davis took 67th at the Cowboy Jamboree in Stillwater, Oklahoma, and Jake Lonsdale took 82nd at the Florida State University Invitational in Tallahassee.