Chester Marathon
The Evison family were in Chester this week. Vicky took part in some park run tourism, enjoying their local route whilst Paul was signed up for the multi award-winning Chester Marathon. As the 6th largest marathon in the UK and 3x time winner of the UK’s Best Marathon, it is also the only marathon in the UK that spans across both England and Wales: it is for this reason that the organisers like to call it an international event! The route takes in the beautiful surrounding landscapes and villages that both countries have to offer. Paul says he was “cracking along very nicely until around 22 miles.” Paul was ahead of the 3.45 pacers but then got a warning of impending cramp. Just after that, Paul experienced “a complete lock-up” in both hamstrings simultaneously which was very unpleasant. Paul tried to run normally to complete the course but to no avail. Paul said the best he could do to avoid walking the rest of the way was to take short strides with as straight a leg as possible. Paul’s finishing time was 4 hours, 2 minutes and 55 seconds. Despite his difficulties, Paul took 2nd MV70 out of 18 competitors, which was a surprise to Paul and left him wondering what he could have achieved had he not have experienced cramp.
Paul’s inspirational dedication has also seen him achieve yet another club record for the marathon V70. Congratulations, Paul.
Sibelco Templer Ten
Matt Grint, Lou Duffield and Lu Walsh took part in the Sibelco Templer Ten. A multi-terrain ten mile course starting and finishing in the grounds of Stover School, Newton Abbot, the course is 90% off road and runners have the pleasure of running through the picturesque Stove Country Park as well as the fields at Teigngrace. Matt really enjoyed it, finishing in 1.23.04 with Lou Duffield (1.29.04) and Lu Walsh (1.29.49) closely behind. Some fantastic achievements: well done, ORCs.

