This was a great start to our road championship and good to see our fell runners joining in, the challenge is now on to better this total at the next race on 20th June.

John

95 40 Mark Liptrot V50 16 LostockAc 37:17
98 32 RobertSharkey LostockAc 37:24
108 26 Mark Shuttleworth V45 21 LostockAc 38:07
111 97 MarkCheckley V45 22 LostockAc 38:26
114 162 Paul Speed V40 16 LostockAc 39:10
118 205 Kev Elliott LostockAc 39:19
131 195 Brian Halton V50 21 LostockAc 40:33
140 123 Kris Boden LostockAc 41:39
148 154 Rob Knight LostockAc 42:16
150 217 Peter Noble V50 23 LostockAc 42:31
152 157 Cath Schofield L50 2 LostockAc 42:49
163 196 Ian Johnson V50 26 LostockAc 43:45
165 188 Sally McCoy L45 6 LostockAc 43:58
182 74 Allan Jones V65 1 LostockAc 45:44
188 29 John Smith V65 2 LostockAc 46:58
193 204 David Wilcock V50 28 LostockAc 47:53
198 158 Gwen Franklin L45 9 LostockAc 48:45
206 214 Nicola Walsh L35 18 LostockAc 51:35
209 151 Fiona Salt L35 19 LostockAc 53:02
212 215 Emma Davies L 60 LostockAc 55:31

Full Results

The Race
 
Yet another sunny evening for this race and a great turn out for Lostock especially for the men 12 of us in all, and 7 Ladies
A slight change of route this year, as the route across then western dam wall is closed due to engineering works
This meant we followed Ray’s Sunday morning trail route uphill for the first half mile or so.
We had the usual pre race banter with me getting some stick about my tight blue shorts
Start time came. The race starter said something about going single file through a narrow gate, and we were away.
I started fairly slowly so I thought, but I was leading the Lostock team off. I think the others just got stuck in race start congestion
They were soon past me on the hill. My Rocket fuse wire was a slow burner tonight, then all of a sudden once at the top of the hill I exploded into the down hill as though shot from a gun soon tore passed Mark S then a little further on Rob S then just before the gate tore passed Mark L and nipped in front. However they were all soon back in front me before we see Leo + Sheila although they were all in striking distance. The status quo remained until we hit the downhill to the causeway across the res. I again soon passed Mark S all the time gaining on Mark L and Rob, and just before the corner I was back in front again Yeah!! I was leading on the first lap. Mark L + Rob were a bit disgruntled at me passing them, although I don’t why they were just ambling along having a right good old social, I heard something about a Hairy AR** erm backside and some reference to my tight shorts, So I gave them a half moon, Rob said “something about it putting him off his tea”

This fired them up again and they were back in front I said “that I would end up paying the price for my efforts on this first lap.”

And sure enough Mark S caught me on the hill. However I was back in front on the downhill but not as far, and no where near enough to catch Mark L + Rob I was hanging on now, hoping Mark S would tire before I did. Mark did’nt tire. He was in front before the end of the uphill section. I thought I could hang on to Mark until the downhill, and get passed with my superior ??? downhill speed but he just pulled away. I just could’nt go any faster. Ah well lost that battle, but I still had to keep going for I knew Paul Speedy Speed would’nt be that far behind and sure enough he was’nt just 30 sec+
Our times were slower this time although I don’t think we were slow

Checkers
 

Great to see so many Lostock runners. Never seen so many green vests.
It was a good night for a race, clear and bright but not too hot. The route change probably aided the fell runners, the uphill cobbled trail forms the start of Rays Sunday trail run so it was familiar route to Checkers, Speedy and myself, the slight incline hardly noticeable to a fell runner.
From the off the Bullet was true to his name, elbows out and off he went. I settled into ‘my’ pace and was surprised when Mark L and Rob were only just in front with Checkers floating between me and them at various points on the 1st lap, Checkers racing down the hills then gradually being hauled in on the uphill sections. The 1st lap was ok then the second was difficult along the cobbled trail the runners stretched out now and Mark L & Rob 50 yds ahead seemingly on a Sunday amble hardly breaking sweat. Checkers raced past me on the downhill to the narrow gate – unmistakeable in those extremely tight shorts – i caught him on the flat section before going downhill by the Yew Tree pub where he again shot off in his ungainly downhill style – arms everywhere.
I gradually caught him on the uphill Nickleton Brow where Leo & Sheila were shouting us on but i could hardly raise a hand in acknowlegement, Checkers was no doubt plotting a late surge. My Garmin indicated 4.75 miles as we turned into Horrobin Lane and i thought i could see the finish only to get there and find out it was 100 yards down The Street – a quick glance over my shoulder to make sure the sneaky Checkley hadn’t stalked me and then a final sprint for the line. 5.25 miles in total.
A great race with Checkers and myself swapping places all round the 2 lap race. Speedy came in right after Checkers showing how much he has improved over the last few months…..reminds me of a certain Mike Ernhill. Mark L & Rob had there own race going on further up the field – they made it look easy. Good to see Kris & Rob and the ladies all put in good times. Well done everyone.

Mark S

Rivington Upper Barn, nr. Bolton GR SD634145

Cat BS fell race, approx 6 miles, 800ft of ascent. Marshalled and partially marked – some local knowledge may assist.
No training on route prior to race.

Also Junior Fell Race at 7.00pm, 1.8 miles, approx 200ft of ascent. £1 on the night only

2011 entry fees: £3.00 - collect numbers on night only (pay “Lostock AC”)

Contact:   Adrian Hope

All senior prizes are kindly donated by Walsh, Sockshop and Summit Physio and junior prizes by Sweatshop Chorley.

Great race yesterday, 3 Lostock men and 2 women turned out for this local short fell race, good conditions this year on a bright but windy day.

Met Mike and Lostocks Narrowest man Rob ‘The Dude’ Sharkey at race registration where we mulled over the race, Mike was as keen as ever to get going, and Rob as cool as ever taking it all in his stride also met Jason and his 2 dogs on our way back to the car. At the warmup Sally and Gill turned up yes 2 women fell runners!!!!

From the off Mike was up near the front of the pack as we headed off down the road with Rob and myself in midpack. As soon as we turned off the tarmac we were into the ascent up to Winter Hill this is a tough climb with bits of it runnable, the main track is ok but if you stray from it the ground is full of tussocks/long grass making it even harder to climb. At the top of Winter Hill you pick up a single track making overtaking quite difficult, the wind was also in our faces at this point. The direct route to Noon Hill is via the swamp and there is no way of staying clean you are going to get very muddy, no messing around, just plough straight thru it. At this point i was catching Rob up and as we ran along Georges Lane i managed to draw level but he did seem to be ambling along almost as if he was out for a Sunday morning jog. After the bridge i got stuck behind 2 runners while Rob seemed to pull away, and after the last climb he was 50 yds ahead. I managed to gain a bit on him on the desent but couldn’t get near him on the run in and with no-one catching me i had an easy run in.

At the prize giving we (Lostock) had 2 mugs to collect, Sally again winning a mug for her V40 category and Gill for coming 2nd in the V50 category.

A good race with some good times from Lostock, Mike coming in at 25th!!! and Sally knocking 10 minutes off last years time.

25 Mike Ernhill 41.37
31 Robert Sharkey 43.00
34 Mark Shuttleworth 43.25
67 Sally McCoy 48.39
99 Gillian caldwell 58.42

Full Results

I had a fantstic day running the London Marathon, really enjoyed it,great atmosphere and experience. Happy with my time of 3hrs 55mins. Any offers for next years marathon?

Back home now with all my stiff achy muscles. Special thanks to John Smith and all thre Lostock A C members and my sister janice and her boyfriend john for all their support and sponsership for the British Heart Foundation which has raised £1500 and is still rising!

Got to go cows are waiting to be milked.

Many thanks Brian number 1 Farmer.

Wednesday night started off with John doing the warm ups which was funny because John forgot which stretches to do. We started running down Ramsbottom Rd to Chorley New Rd turning left to Travis Perkins. Then we took the path going down side Of Travis Perkins. At the bottom the path changed to a pond so we went round it. At this point we started a route for a new trail race, we took the path towards Horwich Loco Works until path turned left near St Catherine’s School sports field following the old railway line. We then turned left off the railway line on to a field which was full of mad horses running backwards and forwards. After going under the motorway and crossing the railway bridge we entered Dave’s farm land, which he picked up the pace and was keen to get us over the motorway bridge off his land. The next point of interest is the footpath in between the running track to the entrance to the disused tip which Sue and Fiona started screaming about the muddy path and attacked me with their muddy shoes. From here we headed back along the path to Travis Perkins and on to Horwch leisure centre.

Yours in running

Mark Smith

I’d been dreading this race, and really looking forward to it at the same time. The last couple of months saw me getting up at 6am on Sundays to go and pound out the long training runs whilst most people slept. Oh how I have changed! It all came down to this day and my first crack at a full marathon and to be perfectly honest, I was really nervous. So at 6.30 am, my wife Bev and I set off on the drive to Deansgate Locks where we had booked a hotel for Sunday night after the race. We left the car at the hotel and got the tram to Stretford to the start. We got the first taste of the conditions that awaited us whilst standing on the Metrolink platform. Strong winds and rain swirled around the station as it filled with runners eager to get to the start.

I was going to text Ray and some other friends that were running before the race to meet up for a natter, but time was against me and I didn’t get chance due to a couple of problems with the organisation. This is a new event so I expected the odd teething problem but the lack of toilets and woefully undermanned baggage drop procedure was worrying. I managed to get in to a portaloo with 20 mins to go after queueing for nearly 30 minutes, by this time the bag drop queue had hundreds of people trying to drop their bags, without the line appearing to move, runners where understandably getting worried when eventually an official told everyone to place the bags in a pile against the tent and they would sort it all out during the race, far from ideal! Cue a mad dash to the start which was at least 10 minutes from the race village where the runners congregated for the start.

A few minutes later and the muffled sound of a gun and we all shuffled our way on mass towards the start to begin the 26.2 miles, and 8000 runners were finally on their way! I said all along that I would be more than pleased with a sub 4 hour time and had set my garmin up accordingly, I also planned to stay around the 4 hour pace group until the second half of the race and then see if I could stay ahead of it, The snag was that i didn’t know where the 4 hour pace group was, so I found a decent rythmn and tried to get on with it, after the first mile or so, I found myself bearing down on the 4hrs 15mins pace group, I soon passed them but was then passed by Bob Hope from Emmerdale! he was quick, so I didn’t try to stay with him and carried on, I caught up with the 4 hour pace group after 3 miles and I intended to stick with them, unfortunately that was also a lot of other peoples plan and I couldn’t settle with the increase in human traffic, I didnt feel comfortable slowing to their pace after running quicker beforehand, so I kicked on and left them (TMI Alert!) and its a very good job I did because around mile 6, I started to experience stomach cramps. During the rush and uncertainty before the race, I didn’t relax and make full use of the portaloos and this was worryingly coming back to haunt me. At the next water station there were two cubicles, I managed to dive into one and do my business, before I did, I checked my garmin which I’d set the virtual partner to a 3:59:00 race, I was 2 minutes ahead. I managed to get underway again just as the 4:15 pace group passed by! I quickly settled back into my rhythmn and cruised away from them.

The crowds along the route were top notch, especially as it was tipping down for the duration of the race, they were loud and encouraging, especially when I reached Altrincham when a wall of noise hit me as I ran through to town centre, at this point I noticed Bev on the sidelines, I ran over gave her a kiss and carried on barely giving her time to realise I was there! Then on to Dunham Park and the route changed from roads to exposed rural, waterlogged country lanes, howling winds and sideways hail and rain. Many runners did not expect this and struggled. Many did not dress for the conditions and wore just shorts and a vest and were visably struggling with the cold, more people were walking by now. I wore a smock and a buff on my head, and although not waterproof, they really made a difference. What also undoubtably helped me is a winter of fell running in all conditions because as bad as it was at this point, I’ve been on top of Winter Hill in worse, in the dark, with a headtorch!

The country roads gradually became proper roads again as the industrial estates of Partington came and went, the crowd got bigger on the sidelines as the miles went by, before I knew it I’d gone beneath the M60 at the 24 mile mark, now I was feeling it. My legs were like lead but the spectators were brilliant, bringing out jelly babies and wine gums and really encouraging us along, back into Stretford and through a subway(!) before the final mile. I managed to find a bit extra and quickened up for the run into Longford park and the finish line which I managed to (almost) sprint to, crossing the line to record a chip time of 3:50:48. Almost TEN minutes quicker than what I planned to be! Without my toilet stop and in better conditions maybe I could have got a 3:45:00. At least it gives me a target for next time, and there will be a next time because I have now got the marathon bug!

What followed was nothing short of disgraceful. on finishing runners were directed to the bag reclaim which had been abandoned. Bags had just been left unattended, in unsorted piles, in no particular order, in tents that were not fit for purpose, or outside in the rain and mud. Cold, wet, knackered runners were having to rake through piles of bags in the hope of finding their warm, dry clothes. I stumbled across my bag after searching for half an hour, I was one of the lucky ones. I heard the police had to come and sort out the mess left by the organisers and that some people didn’t get there bags back at all. In my opinion this is woefully negligent. Unless massive changes are made and proper procedures are put in place, I won’t run this race again, however I have signed up to do the Chester marathon on the 7th October!

First name Last name       Club                     Race#      Gender      Finish status     Age category     Gun time     Chip time

JANE COUNSELL             LOSTOCK AC    2723        Female      Finished            SEN                     03:40:35     03:39:46

RAYMOND MCGLOIN     LOSTOCK AC    2776        Male          Finished            V50                      03:43:10     03:42:17

MARK LIPTROT                St Helens Sutton AC 1310 Male        Finished             V50                      03:49:47     03:47:37

PAUL SPEED                      LOSTOCK AC     7691        Male        Finished             V40                      03:53:29     03:50:48

MAGGIE SLAMIN            LOSTOCK AC      4586       Female     Finished            V40                      04:33:02    04:30:08

The usual warm-up then up Factory Hill, Wilderswood to the water tank on a very blustery night. Mark Sa had the idea of running round the quarry to shelter from the wind then it was down to the woods at Burnt Edge following our packleader Albert along the track at the side of the woods to Scout Rd which we followed up to Old Colliers Row where we swung left and followed the track to a field of pigs…

Uphill into the wind we headed Mike and Albert in full Ironman mode till we reached the lake then headed for the Shooting Hut and the long uphill section towards the mast. Luckily Albert suggested cutting across to 2 Lads on ‘his’ path and in the fading light we made it to the dog hotel, down thru the fields to Ormstons farm where we swung right then thru fileds to the Cotswold estate and dog poo alley and finally the Bridge.

8.62 miles covered in 1 hr 50 mins on a very blowy night. Where did spring goto?

Mark S.