Weekly round-up of Serpentine performances
Ho ho ho*/Bah humbug* (* delete as applicable), here comes your last round-up of 2017! There are more days than races left this side of the holidays so we're all about quality not quantity this week, if we say so ourselves. Read on for news from Portsmouth, Clapham, San Diego, a smattering of parkruns and a Met League update.
Portsmouth Coastal Waterside Marathon
Congratulations and thanks to John Hudspith (V55) who finished in P81 overall in 3:34:11 and took the time to write this exquisite race report:
This race had its usual festive overtones, with quite a smattering of red and white and Christmas jumpers apparent. For many a runner, I am sure it has become a firm favourite in their running diary and probably marks the real start to the Christmas period, as it always seems to sell out. There was plenty of white [frost] on the ground which lasted most of the morning. Although the sun broke through at times, the temperature barely rose much above freezing, although fortunately the wind remained tranquil sparing the thousand or so runners of the usual last 1.5 mile blast direct into the wind along the Southsea promenade to the finish line.
This out and back race took us across the usual mix of every imaginable surface including pebbles and muddy beach although the return leg included a detour which added the best part of a mile to the excursion on account of the tide being too high to permit running back along the ‘beach’. Unfortunately the water stations were not dispensing gels this year, choosing to replace these with the mince pies that are usually available at the end of the race.
The out and back format afforded us the opportunity to spot the leaders as well as encourage our mates and the inclusion of a 50k ultra added a little extra interest, especially on the return leg.
Clapham Chasers 5Ks of Christmas
Congratulations to self-coached Julian Barbour who led the Serpie charge at this festive track event at the Millennium Arena in Battersea Park with a PB of 16:07.60. Other notable mentions go to Richard Purdy (16:20.20), James Gillanders (16:48.80), Angus Beaumont (17:16.50) and Darren Over (19:15.70). (Apologies if I've missed any other PBs!)
(Photo credit: Patrick Thielemans)
San Diego Holiday Half Marathon (... almost)
Signposting a race course is no child's play, don't you know. John Franklin may have crossed the finish line of the San Diego Holiday Half first in 1:07:17, but was awarded 4th place. He thinks he was actually 5th or 6th. This after the lead pack was sent the wrong way and most of the field ran a short course by ca. 200m. Still, a fast time is a fast time, so congratulations to John and see you at cross country in Blighty!
Parkrun
Izzy Clark had a storming run in Bushy (the cradle of parkrun), finishing 1st female and 7th overall in 17:46. Meanwhile, Simon Barrett bagged himself another top result, this time coming 2nd in Richmond in 16:50. Victoria Basquill was 1st female and 6th overall in Greenwich in 20:06. Romain Benvenuto was 5th in Highbury Fields in 18:12. Dulwich parkrun saw two Serpie top 10 finishes, with Simon Craddock 2nd in 17:04 and Warren Brayn 10th in 18:29. Andy Reeves took victory at Reigate Priory parkrun in 18:25 and Ben Greene was 2nd at Thurrock parkrun in 18:35.
For other great Serpie performances, please check the full consolidated Serpentine results. Can't see your result? Updating your parkrun profile with Serpentine RC as your club should do the trick.
Metropolitan Cross Country League
The next Met League race isn't until 13th January in Wormwood Scrubs, but the organisers published up-to-date individual standings after three fixtures. Special mention goes to Jonah Kramer, who is leading the U15 table thanks to three consistently strong performances so far. Serpie women are also having a strong season, with four in the top 20: Marta Bagnati (6th), Tash Sheel (10th), Alexandra Baird (13th) and Megan Roberts (20th). John Franklin (16th) and Hugh Torry (20th) are the leading Serpie men in what is a very competitive field. You can find the full standings on the Met League website. Last not least, Serpentine are currently second placed in The Howard Williams Trophy for Seniors for Combined Women & Men, behind Highgate and ahead of Heathside.
Have a break, have a mince pie
The weekly round-up is taking a festive break and will be back in early January when the race calendar ramps up again. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who shared their feedback and suggestions with me by email and in person and/or who contributed over the past few weeks. It's made writing the round-up very rewarding indeed (ok, except perhaps when I was in the throes of the Turkish flu last week!). And if you fancy sharing your seasonal running/cycling/swimming pics with your fellow Serpies in the meantime, feel free to email me.
Have a great Christmas and New Year, see you in 2018!
Eda Korkmaz
communications@serpentine.org.uk
Submitted: 18 December 2017