Yorkshire Cross Country Championships 14th January 2006

Saturday 14th January saw Herringthorpe Stadium, Rotherham as the venue for this year’s Yorkshire County Cross Country Championships and 26 Richmond and Zetland Harriers made the journey south. The course itself was relatively flat, with a serious of small, steep hills at the end of each lap to test the endurance of the athletes. The Harriers recorded some excellent results, especially considering that most of the large city clubs were present. No less than 4 athletes made the top 6 selection places in their respective age groups and will therefore go on to represent Yorkshire in the UK Inter-Counties Championships at Nottingham in March.

With excellent recent results from the NYSD league races, there were high hopes for the Under 13 Boys team, who did not disappoint. The team took the bronze medal, with Fergus Roberts qualifying for the inter-counties in 5th place, Marc Scott taking 10th place, followed by Thomas Allen in 16th, Sam Wood in 35th, Rob Scott in 41st and Rob McLean in 63rd place. Likewise the Under 13 Girls put on a fine performance, with Maddy Winzer achieving the highest-placed finish for a Harrier on the day in 3rd position; also qualifying for the inter-counties and was followed in by Rachel Holloway in 38th, Charlotte Dinsdale in 46th and Amy Coulson in 51st, bringing the team to an excellent 7th place overall.

Douglas Roberts was yet another inter-counties qualifier in the Under 15 Boys race, crossing the line in 5th place, while Rosie Adams was the sole representative for the Under 15 Girls and produced another first-rate result, finishing in 44th place. With no representatives in the Under 17 Mens race, it was up to the ladies to put their best foot forward and this they did with confidence. Jessie Roberts was the first to take the tape in 13th position, with Jo Adams in 25th and Katie Roberts in 28th, taking the team to a creditable 5th place finish. The final inter-counties qualifier of the day was Nick Zissler in the Under 20 Mens race, with a great result of 6th place overall.

Senior Ladies Team

The senior ladies fielded a team of 6 runners, who had a solid race and finished as 12th team. Heather Halliday had another superb race and finished in the top half of the field in 46th place; with another great placing in the Vet category. Good team running then ensured that the next 3 Richmond and Zetland athletes finished in 71st, 72nd and 73rd places, the honours going to Paula Copeland, Cara Penfold and Fiona Hughes, whereas Sarah Gregory was disappointed with her form on the day finishing in 80th position. Louise Foster enjoyed the occasion and made her cross country debut for the club, finishing well in 93rd place.

The club had 4 entrants in the senior men’s race and Jon Orange was the highest placed, producing a top quality run to finish in 35th, followed by Paul Roberts in 101st, while Brian Halliday put in another strong performance to finish in 139th and Mike Brooks in 149th.

RZH Results: Under 13 Boys – 5th Fergus Roberts, 10th Marc Scott, 16th Thomas Allen, 35th Sam Wood, 41st Rob Scott & 63rd Rob McLean, Team 3rd. Under 13 Girls – 3rd Maddy Winzer, 38th Rachel Holloway, 46th Charlotte Dinsdale & 51st Amy Coulson, Team 7th. Under 15 Boys – 5th Douglas Roberts. Under 15 Girls – 44th Rosie Adams. Under 17 Women – 13th Jessie Roberts, 25th Jo Adams & 28th Katie Roberts, Team 5th. Under 20 Men – 6th Nick Zissler. Senior & Vet Women – 46th Heather Halliday, 71st Paula Copeland, 72nd Cara Penfold, 73rd Fiona Hughes, 80th Sarah Gregory & 93rd Louise Foster, Team 12th. Senior & Vet Men – 35th Jon Orange, 101st Paul Roberts, 139th Brian Halliday & 149th Mike Brooks.

Forces Cross Country League - RAF Leeming 18th January 2006

On Wednesday 18th January, two Richmond and Zetland athletes took part in the Division 2, Forces Cross Country League at RAF Leeming covering 5K. Sarah Gregory had a much better run, finishing in 3rd position overall, helping the RAF Leeming ladies team to a winning 1st place, with her team mates taking the top 2 spots ahead of her. Paula Copeland maintained her fine form with another quality perfromance, finishing in 5th position and as first counter for her team.

Brass Monkey Half Marathon 22nd January 2006

Sarah Gregory was in action for the third time in a week on Sunday 22nd January, this time on the road and over the longer distance of 13.1 miles in the ever-popular Brass Monkey Half Marathon. The event is organised by Knavesmire Harriers and is a superbly flat, fast course, starting and finishing at York Racecourse. It was a cool morning and ideal conditions for running, as the 980 competitors got underway at 10am prompt. Using the race to test her potential for the upcoming London Marathon in April, Sarah was delighted to improve on her previous best time by over 2 minutes. Official records show a position of 304th and time of 1.35.00, but having taken 11 seconds to cross the line at the start, she clocked a time on her own watch of 1.34.49. Following another 12 weeks of training, Sarah now hopes to be close to her target of 3.30 in London.