CLWB RHEDEG MEIRIONNYDD RUNNING CLUB

Archif 2014 Archive

Summary 2014 Club position in Championships and leagues.

Welsh Athletics Run Wales Road Race Series 2014,
4th Tom Roberts, only one point behind third place.

WFRA North Wales Fell running Championship Series 2014.
3rd M50 Jeremy Randell.

North Wales 10Km Road Race Championship 2014, Caernarfon.
1st Tom Roberts.

North Wales 5km Road Race Championship 2014, Rhyl.
1st Tom Roberts.
3rd M45 Arfon Hughes.

North Wales 5mile Road Race Championship 2014, Abergele.
2nd F35 Sioned Jones.
1st M45 Arfon Hughes.

Wales 5km Road Race Championship 2014, Rhyl.
3rd M45 Arfon Hughes.

26/12/14, Devil's Chair Dash. Andrew Yates was the sole Meirionnydd runner in the race and finished in 29:37.

20/12/14, Corndon "Three Peaks" Classic. Andrew Yates ran in the Corndon "Three Peaks" Classic (9.3km/565m), Maldwyn Harriers' last race of the year. Andrew finished in 58:00. Picture from Charlie Leventon here.

20/12/14, Park run 5k.

Jeff Davies ran in the Swindon Parkrun and finished in 21:29.
And closer to home Ricky Francis ran in the Aberystwyth Parkrun finishing in 20:59.

13/12/14, Inter Regional and Master Cross Country Championship, Builth Wells.

Three Meirionnydd runners represented North Wales at Builth, Tom Roberts, Alex Lanz and Jeremy Randell.

Tom Roberts finished 3rd in the Senior race at the Inter-Regions Cross country Championship at Builth.
It was a freezing cold morning but by the time the Tom's race started the ground had thawed and the preceding races had churned up the mud. Despite this Tom maintained the pressure and kept running strong throughout the challenging 10k circuit.

Jeremy Randell ran in the Masters race finishing in 40:49 and i think team Gold as the North Wales M50 Team finished 1st.

Alex Lanz ran in the under20 and finished in 26:13 helping the North Wales team to claim Silver as second regional team.

Two other club members also ran in the Masters race. Arfon Hughes finished in 45:42 and Ricky Francis in 48:40.

Photos by Gwynfor: Sport picture Cymru, Randell Photography & The Old Rectory on the lake.

7/12/14, Aberystwyth 10k.

On a windy Sunday afternoon five Meirioinnydd runners ran the Cambrian News' Aberystwyth 10k.
First home was Jeff Davies in 45:21 1st M65. Next home was Graeme Stringer in 45:41, Keith Williams in 48:03, Kevin Owen 56:49, Elly Downing in 59:11 and Christine Owen in 1:03:54.

7/12/14, Cardington Cracker. Jeremy Ran in the Carding Cracker 14.5km and 793m ascent. Jeremy said "Blooming cold on the Stretton Hills! 200 runners turned up for the Cardington Cracker and me! Managed to pull off a 1:34 something - not my best performance as I practically crawled around the back of the course and I almost missed the final turn back through the cabbage field. Oh hum!" Picture from Plasticsrule.

29/11/13 Wrexham, North Wales Cross Country League.

Rachael Bateman was the sole ladies from Meirionnydd running in the ladies race. On her first Cross county race Rachael finished 69th.

In the men's race six club runners participated. First home was Jeremy Randell 53rd, followed by Elfyn Hughes 69th, Arfon Hughes 77th, Clive Edgington 97th, Ricky Francis 114th and Dave Seabourne 115th.

Team results: after three races:

• Men: Division 1: Bangor University 299, Eryri 517, Oswestry 629, Deeside 749, Shrewsbury 772, Tattenhall 1,163, Meirionnydd 1,486, Telford 2,298.
• Ladies: Division 2: Denbigh 195, Whitchurch 299, Bangor Uni 359, Prestatyn 383, Tattenhall 420, NWRR 437, Wrecsam Tri 472, Cybi 496, Abergele 601, West Cheshire 604, Deeside 722, Bro Dysynni 726, Shrewsbury 745, Deestriders 773, Meirionnydd 828.
  

Full results here.

25/11/14, Aztec West Fast 5K.

Jeff Davies ran in the Aztec West Fast 5K in Bristol and finished in 20:39.

22/11/14, Club La Santa. Two Meirionnydd runner flew off to sunnier climes to race in the Club la Santa series on Lanzarote. Tom Roberts finished the series in overall 3rd place & 2nd in Age category in a combined time of 2:49:23 winning himself a new pair of running shoes. Graeme Stringer finished the series in 4:07:56.

23/11/14, Conwy Half Marathon.

Five Meirionnydd Runners travelled up to Sunny Conwy to take part in the Conwy Half Marathon.
First home in 1:28:29, with a New M50 Club record, was Jeremy Randell.
Next in were Haydn Fowler 2:10:42 and Kevin Owen 2:17:11. Back from injury Elly Downing finished in 2:34:05 and completing the team Christine Owen in 2:36:28.

Photos by Mick Hall here.

23/11/14, Wrekin Wrecker. Andre Yates was our sole representative at the Wrekin Wrecker. The race is described as "A perfect antidote to the hoards of Christmas shoppers in our towns and cities, the Wrecker is a wonderful event in the heart of Shropshire. The race is about 8 miles long and involves 2400ft of climbing." Andrew finished in 1:21:44.

15/11/14, Woodbank parkrun # 272.

Jeff Davies ran in the Stockport Woodbank Parkrun and finished in 22:25 claiming 1st M65.

2014, Run Wales Series.

Congratulations to Tom Roberts on coming 4th in Welsh Athletics' Run Wales Series. The series comprises 15 races throughout the year and a runner's best five results count towards the competition. Tom's races in the series included Nick Beer, Teifi 10, Cardiff Bay half marathon, Rhyl 5k and Abergele 5.
Tom's final score was only one point behind third place.

2014 Final Standings can be found here.

8/11/14, Newbury parkrun # 149.

Jeff Davies finished in 21:36 claiming 2nd M65.

8/11/14, Rhobell Fawr.

This years Rhobell race was the final counter in both the Welsh Fell Runners Assoc's (WFRA) Welsh Open Championship and North Wales Championship. The race was won by Paul Jones of Mercia Fell Runners in a time of 51:35 and the first woman was Caitlin Rice from Glossopdale in 58:21. Three course category records were broken:

• Junior Men - Owen Huw Roberts from Eryri in 56:57.
• F40 - Melanie Price from Mercia Fell Runners in 58:39.
• F50 - Emma Collins from Denbigh Harriers in 1:10:43.

Ten Meirionnydd runners took on the first race in the clubs Winter series.
Jeremy Randell, the first home was also competing in the final race in the WFRA Championship. Jeremy finished in 1:04:02 to win 3rd M50 in the WFRA North Wales Championship.

Behind Jeremy there were two club battle from the start to the end of the race. In the first Elfyn Hughes and Ashley Charlwood and behind them were Andrew Yates and Dylan Evans.

• Elfyn pipped Ashley in the last kilometre finishing in 1:08:35 with Ashley on his tail in 1:08:53
• Andrew finished in 1:10:23 with Dylan close in 1:10:42.
• Next came Glyn Rowlands in 1:14:59
• Pete Nicholls 1:22:09
• Kevin Evans 1:24:35
• Racheal Bateman 1:26:55
• Nicola Rees 1:30:32.

Results: here.
Photos by Dan Wyre at Dan Wyre Photography.

8/11/14, Betws Trail Chalenge 10k, Betws y Coed. Tom Roberts gained his first Welsh Cap at the Betws Trail Challenge. Tom finished 9th in 40:03. Photo by Gwynfor Sport Pictures here.

2/11/14, Lakeland, Ullswater Trail race 14km.

The day after completing the Helvellyn 15k, race, Sandra Williams ran in the Ullswater 14km Trail race and finished in a time of 1:42:10.

2/11/14, Tewkesbury Guy Fawkes 5.

Jeff Davies was out in fine form again at Tewkesbury Athletics' Guy Fawkes 5 Mile race.
Jeff finished in 34:37 to claim 2nd M65.

2/11/14, Abergele 5 mile, incorporating North Wales Championship.

This year's Abergele road race turned out to be a fast 5 mile where both the Men and Women course records were broken. The overall winner was Andrew Davies (Stockport Harriers) who won in 24:56 and first woman was Georgina Outten (Birchfield Harriers) who finished in 28:41.

Running for North Wales against Cheshire and Staffordshire were club members Tom Roberts (Team captain) and Alex Lanz. Tom Led North Wales to victory finishing in 26:27 and Alex close behind in 28:40.

Also running in the race were Arfon Hughes finishing in 33:52 to claim 1st North Wales Championship in the M45 category; Graeme Stringer in 37:19; Nich Bradley (Misspelt in the results as 'Wich Bradley', must be a Halloween hangover) in 39:45 and claiming 2nd place in the F35 category in the North Wales Championship was Sioned Mair Jones finishing in 43:05.

Photo by Gareth Roberts (Cader Sports Photo)

1/11/14, Lakeland, Helvellyn Trail race 15km.

Sandra Williams ran in the Helvellyn 15km Trail race and finished in a time of 1:36:01.

26/10/14, Bridgnorth Severn 10k.

Jeremy Randell ran in the Bridgnorth Severn 10k finishing in 41:24 to claim 2nd M50 cat & a New M50 club record.
Photos by Brian Smith here.

25-26/10/14, OMM 2014, Cheviots.

Ashley Charlwood and partner ran in the OMM Short Score - Vet Handicap.

At the end of the first day they were in 7th place.
Ashley said "Tired legs and a slight error of strategy picking the right route for max points on Day 2 placed us 54th at the end of the day. 22nd overall as a combined score for both days in 8:24:51, we're pretty pleased with in tough conditions.
Loads learnt and another cracking weekend running somewhere new with a great mate and new friends."

25/10/14, Snowdonia Marathon.

Niki Rees was the sole representative in the Snowdonia Marathon finishing in 5:00:44.

19/10/14, Ennerdale 50k. Dave Parker recently completed his first ultra the Ennerdale 50k trail race in the Lake District. Race description: Two circuits of the 25k route, an ideal long distance course all contained within the Ennerdale valley. There is a total ascent of 920' per circuit, predominantly along forest roads with a rocky section along the southern shore of Ennerdale Water. Dave finished in fourth position in a time of 4:21:43.

19/10/14, Birmingham Half Marathon.

The day after running for the club at the LLandudno cross country Ricky Francis ran in the Birmingham half marathon, finishing in 1:41:08.

18/10/13 LLandudno, North Wales Cross Country League.

In the men's race five club runners participated. They were led home by Tom Roberts who finished 3rd he was followed by Jeremy Randell, Arfon hughes, Ricky Francis, and Rob Thomas.

Team results:
Meirionnydd Men 7th: Division 1: Bangor Uni 152, Eryri 321, Shrewsbury 352, Deeside 486, Oswestry 488, Tattenhall 899, Meirionnydd 961, Telford 1,597..
Meirionnydd ladies: no team running.
Full results here.

Photo taken by Gareth Roberts Cader Sport Photos.

18/10/14, Bryn Bach 5k.

Jeff Davies ran in the Bryn Bach parkrun # 112 in a time of 20:49 and 1st M65.

The photo below was found on the Welsh Athletic facebook page, Jeff's hiding in the middle and the comment read "On Saturday Bryn Bach parkrun marked the 30-year anniversary of legendary Welsh distance runner Steve Jones breaking the world record with his time of 2:08:05. What a great tribute."

Chicago Marathon Runners world article.
Steve Jones Wiki.
Steve Jones on You tube You tube

18/10/14, Bangor 10k. Rob Thomas ran the Bangor 10k in the morning finishing in 1:06:02. Photos by Mick Hall here.

12/10/14, Twin Peaks, Aberystwyth.

Tom Roberts and Graeme Stringer ran in the Aberystwyth Athletic Club's Twin Peaks. If you haven't tried its a great race.
AAC description: "The race is run on a variety of surfaces and offers something for all runners to get their teeth into. Starting on the promenade and heading south, the route circles through the harbour before taking on the first of the hill challenges.
The climb up Pen Dinas is on a grass track and treats runners to outstanding views along the Ystwyth valley before reaching the Monument at approximately 450ft and then descending once again to the road. Retracing their steps along the promenade runner's then face the second challenge.
The rocky path climbing up Constitution Hill crosses back and forth over the cliff railway reaching just over 450ft before joining a tarmac road for the fast final descent back to the promenade and the opportunity of a sprint finish to the end."

Tom finished 1st in a time of 44:37 almost 3 minutes ahead of the second place runner.
And in what might be his last race in the 40s age bracket Graeme finished in 1:04:24.

11/10/14, Ceiriog Canter.

Jeremy Randell was our sole representative in the 6.77 miles with 1399ft fell race. Jeremy finished in 12th place in a time of 53:39, claiming 3rd M50.
After 8 Races in the WFRA North Wales Championship and Jeremy is currently 3rd in M50 only 0.41 points behind Buckley's Steve Toogood (2nd).
The final race in the series will be Meirionnydd's Rhobell Fawr on the 9th of November.

5/10/14, Jersey Marathon.

Elly said "Today I ran a marathon. I say 'ran' - I did have to walk a bit in the middle. It seemed very long. Yes, I know that's obvious but it actually felt long. I was pleased though that the 'hills' were more 'slight inclines' compared to the proper Welsh hills I train on.

Jersey is quite a small marathon, so it didn't take long for me to cross the start line and be on my way. I didn't know anyone else running, but my mum, my niece and an old friend were providing support on the way round.

We ran through St.Helier first, down King Street, the pedestrian part of town where all the shops are (visited regularly when we are over here!) and quickly out onto the road out of town. This was all pretty flat, I was keeping a good pace, but making sure I wasn't running too fast at this early stage. Lots of people were passing me, but I've learnt the hard way that it's better to stick with your own plan (not that I had a particular detailed race plan!). Before I knew it, we were turning to go up the 'hill'. Being no more than a few slight inclines, I managed to keep on pace without what I thought was too much trouble. It didn't seem overly hard at the time.

At the halfway point, indicated by a big sign with a smiley face on. I was pretty smiley myself, especially when I realised that, even though my pace had slowed a bit, I was only 5 mins slower than my half marathon PB!

Things were looking good, or so I thought. I already knew before this point that finishing in 4.30 was going to be unlikely, but my time at halfway was acceptable. I hit the 'wall' in a big way at about mile 16 or 17, I think. Everybody told me about this wall. Nobody told me it was so big, so early and so long!! Mine lasted about 3 miles. I nearly cried at the pain in my poor legs. I thought I would have to walk all the way to the finish, but managed to run about 3/4 of each mile until mile 20.

I was ok then. I came out of the other side, and thanks to some sincere words of encouragement from most of the marshals and lots of supporters, I felt so much better. They also seemed to cheer and clap louder as soon as they saw I was doing the whole thing myself. I got called 'marathon lady' so many times!

I had a little walk at about mile 22, rounded a corner and there were the army, manning a water station. I knew I'd get grief for walking and as they spotted me, I got shouts of 'dig deep', 'get running' etc in true PT style. Of course, I loved it! I nearly cried again as I ran down off the trail onto the bay. I knew I just had to get round the bay. These would have been tears of joy, but I didn't have time to cry anyway! I pretty much ran from that point. I struggled to get going again, especially as I could now see the finish and those 3 miles round the bay seemed very long.

A lovely lady was really encouraging and challenged me to run to the next lamp-post. I took up her challenge, and ran past the next lamp-post and kept on running. Running well. Back to what my pace should have been, if it wasn't for the hard bit in the middle. I passed a few marathon runners (and lots of tourists) on the way round the bay. Coming into town, I realised that if I pushed it, I might actually get a time starting with a 4. I pushed it. Passed a few more people and probably ran the last 2 or 3 miles faster than the first 2 or 3 miles. I loved it. I felt so free, but also so determined. It was a fine line, but I knew turning the last corner that I had it in the bag. Crossed the finish line in under 5 hours gun time - and although the field was a small one, I didn't cross the start line on the gun. My actual time would be a little bit quicker. I had done it. I had run a marathon. In under 5 hours. Elated!

I hobbled to collect my 'booty' bag - and got my medal around my neck as soon as I could. Also got a rain poncho (not needed today, I got a tan, it was 25 degrees), a lovely technical t-shirt, a burger voucher, Mars bar, water, keyring and drinks bottle, all in a proper little bag. Love it!
Hobbled, slowly, to meet mum a few streets away. Two nice old ladies, smiled and congratulated me, as I was hanging onto the church railings for support. I advised them never to do a marathon. They laughed.

Sat with mum for a bit, she had my flip flops, hoody, chocolate milk, snacks and nurofen. I tried to stretch but my calves hurt too much. I kept on my trainers and my compression socks to walk home. Usually takes 10 mins, took us 30. Mum kept offering to get the car but I made it. Had an ice bath (brrrr!) and a warm shower (lush) and caught up on half marathon stories from Cardiff. Then I sat and ate.

Today I ran a marathon and I feel awesome."

Elly finished in 4:59:29.

5/10/14, Cardiff Half Marathon. Two Meirionnydd runners ran in the Cardiff Half Marathon. Tom Roberts finished 38th in 1:12:11 new PB & Club record and Keith Williams in 1:48:40 only 3 min off the club record for M55. Photo by Gwynfor: Sport picture Cymru.

4/10/14, The Longmynd Hike, 50 mile Ultra.

Rachel Bateman took on the Longmynd Hike. 'The hike follows a set figure-of-eight route over the rugged countryside of South Shropshire and the Welsh Marches, with about 8,000 feet of climbing covering eight summits. The start is at 13:00 hours on the Saturday from Church Stretton and the object is to complete the course in under 24 hours.'

Rachel said "I've only just stopped my post long race bawling! I feel horrific but brilliant!
One of guys in my night-time grouping was extremely ill. I've since heard he's managed to keep some food down and is coherent again.
Let's just say that I've learned first hand a little bit about just how ultra running is more than getting to the finish and sometimes the journey requires much more from you than you ever bargained for in terms of perspicacity, endurance, care, ignoring your own pain and taking a lead.
Navigation is key and confidence in your ability is critical. I'm very proud of myself and I'm still giggling about hallucinating scarab beetles, fairies and white washed Andalusian houses! I thought hallucinations were only for 100s but clearly not!

Rachel completed the course in 13 hours and 16min.
Photo by Charlie Leventon.

4/10/14, UGTS Spain, 50 Km Ultra. John Taylor ran the 50 Km Ultra which runs through the hills adjacent to the town of Alquézar in Huesca (Spain), and the spectacular mountain roads and paths of the Canyons Natural Park and Sierra de Guara. John finished in 7:15:20 and 2nd age category.

New 4/10/14, Chipenham Parkrun 5k.

Jeff Davies ran in the Chipenham Parkrun #23 in a time of 21:17 and 1st M65.

4/10/13 Treborth, Bangor. North Wales Cross Country League.

Last nights heavy rain had cleared by the start of the race leaving the ground soft with a few puddles. Despite this it wasn't too muddy. Sioned Jones was the sole Meirionnydd in the women race, setting the ground for others to follow later in the season.
In the men's race nine club runners participated. They were led home by Alex Lanz claiming 12th place followed by Jeremy Randell (36th place), Elfyn Hughes (66), Clive Edgington (88), Arfon hughes (95), Andrew Yates (102), Ricky Francis (105), Dave Seabourne (108) and Rob Thomas (141).

Team results:
Meirionnydd Men 6th: Division 1:
Bangor University 60, Eryri 133, Shrewsbury 211, Deeside 299, Oswestry 300, Meirionnydd 401, Tattenhall 507, Telford 739.

Meirionnydd ladies 12th Division 2:
Denbigh 70, Bangor University 104, Whitchurch 119, Wrecsam Tri 122, Prestatyn 156, Cybi 157, NWRR 193, Abergele 204, West Cheshire 212, Bro Dysynni 247, Shrewsbury 256, Meirionnydd 268, Deestriders 274.

Full results here.

Photo of Sioned taken by Andrew Yates and rest by Sioned Jones.
(Sorry Alex and Rob you were too fast for the lens). .

27/9/14, Parkrun 5k.

Nich Bradley ran in the Edinburgh Parkrun #256 in a time of 27:05.

27/9/14, The Wye One Way 50 mile Ultra. Sandra Williams and Ashley Charlwood ran a 50 Mile Ultra. Sandra said "We did it Ashley and I ran the Wye One Way 50 mile ultra. I have two brilliant fellas to thank for helping me to run it. Rhys was a star supporting us all the way round and never once told me I looked like hell. Ashley Charlwood, thanks mate if it hadn't been for you support I'd never have got round in under 12hrs it was great running with you. Thank you both I don't want to see a pair of trainers for a bit. The first lady home bit still hasn't quite sunk in." Write up on Ashley's Blogg here.

24/9/14, Wednesday night club run.

Last of the Summer Club run at Arthog. Next week its back to the leisure centre.

21/9/13 Essar Sutton 6 10K.

Tom Roberts and Keith Williams ran in the Essar Sutton 10K. Tom finished 3rd in 33:48 and Keith finished in 48:28.
Photos by Gareth Roberts.

20/9/13 Pen Trail Races.

Well done and thank you to everyone who helped out at today's race.
The weather was fantastic, the views were stunning.
We received some fantastic comments from those attending the race commenting on the quality of the route, how picturesque with stunning views of the estuary and surrounding hills. Also nice comments about how challenging the race is. Don't be fooled the by the flat estuary trail, there are challenges in the hills that make this race one to put on your list for next year.

Special thank you for supporting our race goes to Maldwyn Harriers who attended in numbers and included the race in their club championship.

Junior Race.
The junior race winner was Katie Charlwood finishing in 9:59. Well done.

3 Mile Short Race.
Only five runners in the short race with Meirionnydd's Clive Edgington finishing first.

Results short race: here.

1. Clive Edgington, Meirionnydd, 31:02, (no 198). Winner, 1st M50 & New race record.
2. Clive Evans, Emlyn Harriers, 36:05, (no 197).
3. Kevin Evans, Meirionnydd. 36:48 (no 196).
4. Katie Bailey, Meirionnydd. 44:11, (no 199). New Junior Women Club record.
5. Roberts Thomas, Meirionnydd. 48:25, (no 200).

9 Mile Long Race.
The Winners were Alun Williams, U/A in 0:59:00 for the men and Hannah Owen, Maldwyn Harriers 1:15:14 New race record for the women.

Results long race: here.

Men

1. Alun Williams, U/A 0:59:00, (no 20).
2. Charlie Corkrum, T.R.O.T.S 1:03:25, (no 7).
3. Jeremy Randell, Meirionnydd 1:04:09, (no 9), 3rd overall, 1st M50 & New M50 club record.

Women

1. Hannah Owen, Maldwyn Harriers 1:15:14, (no 10).
2. Rachel Butler, Maldwyn Harriers 1:25:07, (no 23).
3. Jill Hillman, Maldwyn Harriers 1:37:07, (no 22).

Full Results to follow.

Other Meirionnydd Runners in the race included:

• Arfon Hughes 1:13:32, (no 16), 3rd M40.
• Ricky Francis 1:14:23, (no 26), 3rd senior men.
• David Seabourne 1:18:31, (no 21), 2nd M60 & New M60 club record.
• Elly Downing 1:37:31, (no 6) 1st W40.

Photos by Rod Davies Photography, Dolgellau here.

20/9/13 TrailFfest Half marathon (Porthmadog).

John Taylor and Andrew Yates ran in the inaugural TrailFfest half marathon where they took a train ride on the Welsh highland railway from Porthmadog to Blaenau FFestiniog and ran the return leg. John finished 2nd M50 in 1:59:58 and Andrew in 2:19:15.

20/9/13 Ras y cob.

Tracey Hamer ran in the second Ras y Cob in Porthmadog finishing in 24:23.

17/9/14, Wednesday night club run.

Club run along the Mawddach trail, Great!

14/9/14, Vyrnwy Half Marathon. Sioned Mair Jones ran in the Lake Vyrnwy Half Marathon finishing in a time of 1:59:01. Photos by Mick Hall here.

13/9/13 Pedol Peris & Half Pedol Peris.

Dave Parker Ran in the Pedol Peris a challenging 18.5m with 8500ft ascent. Dave finished 2nd in 3.38.10.
Jeremy Randell ran in the Half Pedol Peris a tough 8.5m with 4500ft ascent finishing 4th M50 in 2.07.48.

7/9/14, Source of the Severn. Elly Dee ran in the Maldwyn Harriers' Source of the Severn, approx 9 miles race through the multi-terrain of the Hafren Forest to find the Source of the UKs longest river. Elly finished in 1:35:16.

7/9/14, WMRA/WMA Master World Mountain Running Championships.

More than 800 masters entries and 755 of them finished the race at the 14th WMRA/WMA Master Championships, held at Telfes (Austria).
26 Nations had athletes at the finish of the competition: Austria, Germany, Italy, Poland, USA, Slovakia, New Zealand, Ireland, France, Norway, Lithuania, Nederland, Slovenia, Czech, Spain, Finland, Great Britain, Russia, Hungary, Switzerland, Belgium, Sweden, Australia, Ukraine, UAE and Malaysia.

The three Meirionnydd competitors were led home by Peter Nicholls in 1:05:33 followed by Nich Bradley in 1:06:07 and Graeme Stringer in 1:43:58.

7/9/14, Stretton Skyline Fell Race.

Rachael Bateman ran the 19 miles , 4450 climb from Church Stretton, Shropshire in the Strettom Skyline Fell Race. The course is through the beautiful middle England Shropshire hills Starting in Carding mill Valley.
Rachael finished in 4:08:03.

31/8/14, Caernarfon 10Km including North Wales 10Km championship.

Tom Roberts 10km & 5km North Wales champion
Gareth Hughes North Wales Athletics blog said " Tomos Roberts (Meirionnydd), the current North Wales 5k champion, completed the "double" by winning the 10k title in Caernarfon, but had to work hard for it. In one of the most exciting finishes in the race's history he and Menai's Stefan Sayer entered the field together but Roberts edged ahead in the short climb to the finish to win by a single second."

Tom Roberts was the overall winner and North Wales 10k road champion in a time of 34:03.
Three other meirionnydd runners ran including Arfon Hughes in a time of 42:46, Graeme Stringer in 48:31 and Sioned Mair Jones finishing in 54:16.
More good news for Tom Roberts he was selected as Captain for North Wales Road Running team at the Abergele 5 mile this Autumn.

31/8/14, Headington 5, Oxford. Jeff Davies represented Meirionnydd over the border in Oxfordshire at the Headington 5 Mile Open Road Race. Jeff finished in 34:33 to claim 4 M65. Jeff is currently 16th M65 in the 5 Mile UK rankings.

24/8/14, Ellesmere 10km.

The race is a mix of road and well surfaced flat trail, very gentle undulations with just one sharp turn and a hump-back canal bridge to negotiate. Plus some stunning scenery to zoom your way through.
Two Meirionnydd runner participated Tom Roberts finished 10th in 34:18 and Keith Williams finished with a PB in 46:13.

24/8/14, Maesgwm Muddle, inc WFRA North Wales Champs, WFRA Open Welsh Champs and British Championship. Jeremy's Third outing and our only representative in the championship race. Jeremy said "What a fantastically brutal race with the cheekiness of a 2200ft climb to start with followed by running back down to valley level all within the 1st quarter of the race. From then on it's tired legs and a roller coaster route over runnable ground with amazing views." As it was the British counter the pace would have been brutal but still managed to claim 9th V50 in 1:56:44.

24/8/14, Ras y Cnicht. Second outing for the solo Meirionnydd Fell runner Jeremy Randell. Jeremy said "Fantastic short fell race. The weather was dry and during the race there was sunshine – however it tipped it down just after I finished which put paid to my dip in the pool! I managed to claim 2nd V50 (47:06) and win a fruit basket!

23/8/14, Parkrun 5k.

Nich Bradley ran in the Edinburgh Parkrun #251 in a time of 23:58 (A new pB).

17/8/14, 2 Hillforts.

Jeremy Randell was the sole Meirionnydd runner at the 2 Hillforts fell race. Jeremy said "It was dry for the second running of 2 Hillforts. 46 of set off from the Kinmel Arms (Llandyrnog) towards the heather-clad Clwydian hills. The fields quickly gave way to the long climb up to Pen y cloddiau followed by a quick descent to the steep crawl up Moel Arthur. Followed by a fast, but long, downhill back to the pub."
Jeremy managed 6th and the 3rd M50 finishing in 74:07.

16/8/14, Run to the Castle ultra.

Two meirionnydd runners took part in the "How hard can it be Run to the Castle Ultra" - Run to the Castle will take runners and walkers from the coastal village of Aberdyfi (Aberdovey) up the beautiful coastal path, taking in the seafront at Tywyn, the village of Fairbourne, the famous Fairborne bridge, Barmouth, to the castle town of Harlech which is approx 40/42 miles away.
Sandra Williams and Rachel Bateman finished in 9.02.48 & 9.02.53.

16/8/14, Race the Train, Tywyn.

Four Meirionnydd runners ran in the 31st Rotary Challenge 14 miles race the train- train time to beat on race day was 1h 48m 18s.

Photos by Doris OKeef here

• Alex Lanz 1:36:44 - Beat the train.
• Jamie Evans 1:49:49.
• Ricky Francis 1:52:20.
• Dylan Evans 1:57:56.

And another four ran in the Quarry challenge, 10km:

• Andrew Yates 46:59.
• Kevin Owen 1:02:10.
• Elly Dee 1:04:24.
• Christine Owen 1:14:40.
• Lucie Llewellyn 1:16:40.

13/8/14, Yeovilton 5k.

Jeff Davies ran in the Yeovilton 5k, finishing in 20:15 a New club record for M65.

5/8/14, Ponderosa fell race.

Five Meirionnydd Runners ran in the Ponderosa Fell race (6.4km/289m;4miles/950ft) first home was Ashley Charlwood 34:01 followed by Rachael Bateman on her first outing for Meirionnydd, winning 1st Senior Lady and a bottle of wine by finishing in 39:31. Next to finish was Sandra Williams 46:28; Elly Downing 50:24 and Lucie LLewellyn in 61:11.

Lucie said: "Well if there was ever a video made of 'how NOT to run your first fell race' then my efforts last night would have been perfect for it. Started off well enough, head down and going for it, then within 10 minutes, running through some bracken a bee (or wasp or some kind of angry stinging thing!) decided to hit my cap then drop down behind my sunglasses and proceeded to sting me twice. Once on the side of the nose and once close to my eye. My nose and side of my face was very painful and went numb and my eye started to stream. I had to stop with the marshalls at the top who had a look at it for me. At which point I was well in last place and could see the rest of the runners disappearing into the distance. When I decided to carry on again (even though I couldn't see properly) two amazingly lovely runners/marshalls ran it with me to the end to make sure I finished. As a result of not being able to see properly I fell over more times than Bambi on ice, ended up shoeless in the bog, twisted my knee (which today feels very sore).

2/8/14, Parkrun LLyn llech Owain.

Jeff Davies ran in the Llyn Llech Owain parkrun #73 finishing 1st M65 in 21:42.
Jeff said "The race is in Gorslas, near Cross Hands, east of Carmarthen. Pretty cut off, Very rural and scenic, if you could see through the low cloud and the rain that is. Far from an easy course."

31/7/14, Ras Hendre Wallog, Abergynolwyn.

Ricky Francis was the sole club representative at the race, finishing in a time of 21:05.

29/7/14, Poppits sands 5k.

Pete Nicholls ran in the Poppits sands 5k, finishing in a time of 24:59 .

26/7/14, Longrun Meadow parkrun #42, Taunton. Jeff Davies ran in the Longrun Meadow parkrun finishing 1st M65 in 21:10.

26/7/14, Dol 5.

On a glorious summers day 69 runners turned out for the Dolgellau 5 mile road race, the Dol 5. The hot weather made for a difficult race. The water and hose pipe fountain at the half way point were much appreciated. After the race a few runners refreshed their shattered bodies by taking a cool dip in the River Wnion.

There was a great turn out from local clubs with runners from Aberystwyth AC and Maldwyn Harriers and Bro Dysynni attending. Of note was number of runners who had travelled a long way, especially the Colchester Harriers runners from Essex. Thank you all for running with us.

Fifteen Meirionnydd runners ran with the two top spots in the men's race taken by Meirionnydd's Tom Roberts finishing 1st & New Club Dol 5 Record in 27:28 and Alex Lanz 2nd & 1st Junior Men in 29:11.
Behind them came Elfyn Hughes 34:23; Arfon Hughes 34:49; Andrew Yates 35:35; Rick Francis 35:50; Graeme Stringer 37:27; Glyn Rowlands 37:33; Niki Rees 42:34; Danny Evans 42:35 and Alison Smedley 42:47.
Sioned Jones finished in 44:23 to claim 1st F35 then Kevin Owen 44:42; Elly Downing 46:37 and 1st Junior ladies Katie Bailey in 47:55.

Photos by Simon Hide: here.
Photos by Dan Wyre here.

Full Results: here.
Age category: Prize list.

24/7/14, Caernarfon race the train.

On a sun kissed evening Tom Roberts, Graeme Stringer and Ricky Francis travelled to Caernarfon for the 5k race the train. Tom finished 2nd in 15:14 New club record, Ricky & Graeme both beat the train in 19:31 & 20:58 respectively.

24/7/14, Green Green Grass Of Home.

Jeremy Randell ran in the Green Green Grass Of Home fell race at LLangynhafal.
He said "Great little fell race around Moel Famau with a couple of tough climbs. Legs very heavy after Kentmere and I went off too fast - D'oh!"
Jeremy finished 2nd M50 in 51:46

23/7/14, Wednesday night Club run.

Diffwys above bontddu.

18/7/14, Kentmere horseshoe.

Distance: 19.8km / 12.3m & Climb: 1006m / 3300ft.

One Meirionnydd runner Jeremy Randell traveled over the border to race in the Kentmere Horseshoe fell race. Jeremy said "Discovered that I must run faster, climb better and descend faster. Other than that it was great. 28 degrees and humid on the way up and icy rain on the descent!"
Jeremy Finished in 2:10:15.

17/7/14, Snowdon International & Super Cup.

For the first time in its 39 year history, due to the threat of lightning, this years Snowdon race was shortened to turn at Clogwyn instead of the summit.

The Six Meirionnydd runners participating were led home by Alan Jones in 1:04:12; followed by Elfyn Hughes 1:08:47; Dylan Evans 1:13:45; John Taylor 1:17:47; Nicola Rees 1:26:30 and Kevin Evans 1:29:15.

In the 2nd running of the Snowdon Super Cup, an up hill race limited to a max of 50 invited runners, our representative this year was Tom Roberts who finished in 17th position in a time of 35:29. Photos by Gareth Roberts.

16/7/14, Stiperstones fell race.

Ricky Francis ran in Mercia Fell Runners' Stiperstones fell race finishing in 38:11.

12/7/14, Parkrun 5k.

Nich Bradley ran in the Edinburgh Parkrun #245 in a time of 25:44.
Jeff Davies ran in the Swindon parkrun #213 in a time of 20:42.

12/7/14, Wrekin Relay. Well done to Lucie LLewellyn, Elly Dee and Nicci Shrimpton and taking on the Relay Challenge, a 3.8 mile loop around the base of the Wrekin in teams of three. Nicci Shrimpton took the first lap in 43:12, Lucie the second in 50:36 and Elly third in 43:29 to give a combined time of 2:17:17. Lucie said "Had a fab day out in the Wrekin Relay Challenge with Elly Dee and Nicci Shrimpton! Cracking race, really good course (despite the hills) and fab marshalls. I will definitely be back again next year!

9/7/14, Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrnd robwllllantysiliogogogoch 5k. Another win for Tom at the Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndr obwllllantysiliogogogoch 5k in 16:19 and following close behind was Graeme Stringer in 22:16.

6/7/14, Didcot 5.

Jeff Davies ran in the Didcot 5 finishing in 33:49 a New M65 club record.
Photo by Barry Cornelius. here.

5/7/14, Moel Siabod, WFRA North Wales Champs.

Alan Jones was the sole Meirionnydd runner in this years Moel Siabod Race. The race was held in glorious sunshine so runners deserved a dip in the river and an ice cream on the show field. Alan finished in 1:04:02.

4/7/14, Newtown BBQ 5k.

Meirionnydd Running Club arranged a minibus to take runners to the race, Tom Roberts won the race in 16:14, followed by Graeme Stringer in 22:49, Pete Nicholls in 23:28, Kevin Evans 24:34, Jan Preston 26:30 (claim 1st F40) and Elly Downing 26:52.
On the return trip they managed to find a bar and a quantity of intoxicating liquids were consumed.

29/6/14, Rhylfest 5k, inc Welsh 5k Champs.

Four Meirionnydd runners travelled to a very Sunny Rhyl to race along the prom in the RhylFest 5k. First home was Tom Roberts in 16:05 followed by Arfon Hughes 20:33 to claim 3rd M45 Welsh Champs; Andy Yates 20:47 with a New M50 club record; and Graeme Stringer in 21:41.

22/6/14, Shrewsbury Half Marathon. Elly Dee ran in the Shrewsbury Half and managed to shave a little off her PB. Elly finished in 2:11:07.

22/6/14, Caerphilly 10K, inc Welsh Champs. Tom Roberts travelled down for the Caerphilly 10K which included the Welsh Athletics' Welsh 10km Championship. Tom claimed his North Wales Cap and finished 22 in 34:45. Tom commented "Not the best of races. Blew the gasket after 2.5 miles, course was more tough than thought and heat was a killer. But no excuses same conditions for everyone else." Photo by Gareth Roberts

20-21/6/14 Trail Marathon Wales weekend.

Trail Marathon Wales a full (26 mile / 42km) and half (13mile / 21 km) marathon race routes in the stunning trails and tracks of the world-renowned Coed y Brenin forest in the Snowdonia National Park. This unique marathon is already established as one of Wales’ finest trail marathons taking in fully marked trail single track, forest roads and paths in some of the most stunning forestry and heathland in the UK.
2014 route Half Marathon route 1st Half & 2nd Half of Marathon (Full Marathon).

21/6/14 Trail Marathon Wales.
On a hot midge infested Saturday three Meirionnydd runners took on the Marathon all finished:

1. Ashley Charlwood 4:31:52
2. Juliet Edwards 4:55:39
3. Sandra Williams 5:24:02.

Sandra Williams said "I can't tell you how much I've enjoyed running the Trail Marathon Wales today for the 3rd time. The organisation Matt was fantastic, each and every helper and marshal were brilliant.
You just can't compare the camaraderie on a trail race to a road. I spend the whole of the Edinburgh marathon without speaking to anyone, today have made so many new friends bumped into runners who I ran with last year.
What a day what a brilliant brilliant day. Simon, Fiona, Tom, Sarah and Gareth Roberts, Graeme, Arfon Ifs and Es it was so good to see you all at the feed stations today with your cheering and happy smiles. Well done to all runners today."

And race report by Ashley on his Blog here.

21/6/14 Trail Half Marathon Wales.
In the Half Marathon there were eight Meirionnydd runners:

1. Alan Jones the first back in 1:46:11
2. Dylan Evans 2:02:20
3. Niki Rees 2:22:06
4. Kevin Evans 2:27:24
5. Heidi Roden 2:31:44
6. Kevin Owen 2:41:22
7. Jacqueline Fowler 2:41:37
8. Christine Owen 3:04:18.

Christine said "Trail Marathon Wales Half - hot, brutal, midges galore and did I mention it was brutal. Don't understand how I can trot around there happily any weekend of the year until I stick a number on and then it's brutal. Still love it though"
Still looking for photos of rest....to follow....

	Photo found & requested.

20/6/14 9 bar 9 (9km).
Kicking off the TMW weekend was the 9 Bar 9km race. "The 9Bar9 ’taster’ trail race kicks-off the Trail Marathon Wales race weekend, with a challenging but achievable 9km (ish) route that follows the newly-opened Sarn Helen Long route." Strava link to route Strava.

Three club members participated:

1. Graeme Stringer 45:11
2. Keith Williams 48:56
3. Haydn Fowler 59:55

Photos by:
Through the Lens: here & Link for donations donations
RBA: here & Link for donations donations.
Dan Wyre: Marathon & Half Marathon
Sport Pictures Wales Marathon & Half Marathon

18/6/14 Deiniolen 10km.

On a HOT summer evening Graeme Stringer and Jacqueline Fowler ran the Deiniolen 10km.
Graeme finished in 51:26 and Jacqueline in 58:42.

18/6/14, Wednesday Night Club run.

Fourteen runners turned up for the evening's training session at Coed Y Brenin again. The same route as last week but in reverse.

Fingers crossed for weather like this on Saturday's Trail Marathon Wales.

14/6/14, Ras Pedol cwm pennant.

At the second running of what may be a classic fell race, 17miles with just under 6000feet of climbing, taking in the summits of Moel Hebog, Moel yr Ogof, Moel Lefn, Tal y Mignedd, Craig Cwm Silyn and Garnedd Goch. All taking place in the splendid hidden valley of Cwm Pennant.

Alan Jones and Jerwmy Randell represented Meirionnydd on a glorious summers day. After 17 miles they both finished in the same time of 3:21:43.

Jeremy commented "The pair of us were completely knackered. I got a bit lost coming up to CP8 when the cloud descended and had to resort to my compass. Alan had luck and followed a local!
The descent to Cwm Ciprwth CP9 was hell - tussocks, rocks and hidden holes - a real leg killer! Alan caught me on the way to the road and then we ran in together. Speaking for myself It was great to have Alan's company to keep me going. We were both suffering at this point each gentle rise in the road was certainly felt in the legs.

Alan said " Brilliant race, really tough, some of the climbs were insane, with some cracking decents, defo one to put in your calender next year! I managed to catch Jeremy with two miles to go, and two hard miles of tarmac, we were both cramping up big time, but we managed to motivate each other to get over the finishing line, great team effort and spirit! A tough challenging course - but we made it round!"

2014 race map.
Photo's on facebook: here.

14/6/14, Gregynog trail race.

Ricky Francis was our sole representative at the Gregynog Trail race finishing in 34:19 to claim the M35 category.

11/6/14, Wednesday Night Club run.

Fourteen runners turned up for the evening's training session at Coed Y Brenin. A great opportunity to get a taster of Trail Marathon Wales before the big day next week.

New 11/6/14, Malvern Joggers 10K.

Jacqueline Fowler ran in the Malvern Joggers 10K finishing in a seasons best of 1:03:28.

10/6/14, Up the Beast, Maeshafn Mold. The sole Meirionnydd runner taking on the Beast at Maeshafn near Mold was Jeremy Randell. Jeremy said ""Up the Beast" was run in rather wet conditions this year the heavens opened just before the start and we were treated to a rather exciting thunder and lightning show! Fortunately it stopped and the race was run over a rather damp course. The two climbs up Bryn Alyn were quite a challenge! The first Meirionnydd runner was ....er.... me and I was also the 3rd o50!" Jeremy completed the race in 18th out of 134 in a time of 41:23.

9/6/14, Blaydon Race. Tom Roberts and Graeme Stringer ran in the Blaydon Race. The Blaydon Race is a 5.9 mile athletics race from Newcastle upon Tyne to Blaydon, in England, that is steeped in local tradition. It takes place on June 9 every year starting on Collingwood Street in Newcastle, heading west along Scotswood Road and finishing in Blaydon. Tom finished 16th out of 3576 in a time of 29:56 and Graeme in 40:56.

7/6/14, Welsh 1000.

Juliet Edwards was the club's sole representative at this years Welsh 1000. Juliet took part in the category A Long fellrace incorporating 5 peaks between Abergwyngregyn and the summit of Snowdon. Juliet Finished as 1st F50 in a time of 6:35:10

Juliet said "For years I have thought that I had to have a go at the welsh1000m before I put away my muddy fell shoes for good . 20 or so miles starting at Abergwyngregyn then 3 ups till you finally reach Snowdon.Most of this week I have been fretting over worsening weather forecasts - rain,thunderstorms , a typical summer's day I guess.
Finally , finally,I completed it. Wow,what a feeling ! It is such a scarily awesome race ,wonderful marshals ,including the talking orange tent. A great day."

Category A Route: Map.

7/6/14, Big Welsh Trail 10k.

Elly Dee (Downing) and Andy Yates ran in the Big Welsh Trail at LLandegla.
Elly said "Very muddy, very hilly but very enjoyable. First trail 10k race done. Loved it!". Elly finished in 1:08:08.
Andy said "Enjoyable but wet and slippery run ... finished 19th overall, 4th age group 50-59." Andy finished in 52:51.
Photo's on Gwynfor's site: here.

5/6/14, F.A.R.T.

Tom Roberts, Graeme Stringer, Nicola Rees, Heidi Roden, Katie Sue and Pete Nicholls were all seen running at the Fairbourne Annual Race the Train (F.A.R.T).

4/6/14, Yateley 10K Series.

Jeff Davies ran in the Yateley 10K Series finishing in 43:51.
Jeff said "It was described as ‘nearly flat’ and I should have known better. In other words, pretty hilly, and thus it proved.
Then, as we milled around on this school field about 20mins before start, sky went a shade darker than coal. Was that lightning? Was that thunder? Oh yes. Is this hail? OWWWWWW! Erm, yes.
OK sort of stopped before start but on a slippery field, with, amazingly, over 1000 runners for a midweek event, I had a lousy start on the wet grass. Then the hills. I was going OK until about 8K then we went up an incline and I thought, right, I can handle this but then we turned right and there was this big hill and I sort of died. Disappointed with time but not surprised. Interesting thought – they offered free entry for over 65. Nice idea but it won’t work another time!

31/5/14, Lakeland Trails, Staveley 17km.

Sandra Willaims travelled up tho the Lake District to take part in the Staveley 17km trail race. Sandra finished in 2:03:38.

31/5/14, Abersoch 10km.

Alan Jones and Elfyn Hughes raced the Abersoch 10k. Alan was home in 38:55 followed by Elfyn in 40:17. Photos at Totally Abersoch here.

29/5/14, Queens Baton Relay 5k (Plas Menai to Caernarfon).

Tom Roberts maintained his form this evening with another win at the Commonwealth Games Queens Baton Relay 5k in Caernarfon in a time of 15:23 (new PB).
The race started at Plas Menai and followed the Lon Las - cycle track all the way to Caernarfon's Victoria Dock. At the Dock there were hundreds of spectators cheering. Not sure if they were there to see us or the BBC's One show.
Following behind Tom were Arfon Hughes 19:45; Graeme Stringer 22:08 and Keith Williams 22:15 (new PB).

Photos by Gareth Roberts Cader Sports photos: here.

25/5/14, Edinburgh Marathon And Half Marathon.

Two Meirionnydd runners travelled North over the border to Scotland to race at the 2014 Edinburgh Marathon festival.
Sandra Williams took on the Marathon finishing in a new PB 3:50:06 and Tom Roberts ran in the Half Marathon. Tom said: "Erm training run went out the window, adrenalin and my competitive side took over! Shame about the weather but great course. Got 7th overall in 1:12:49. Might train for the next half marathon!"

21/5/14, Rhyl Sun Centre 5k inc North Wales Champs.

The event was held on a glorious evening on the prom in Rhyl. Tom Roberts Won in convincing style finishing in 16:00 to claim 1st and the gold in the 5K North Wales Championship. Also running was Arfon Hughes finishing in 20:03 to claim the Bronze in 5K North Wales Championship in the M45 Category.
Photos on Prestatyn running club website: here.

18/5/14, Chester Half Marathon.

Two Meirionnydd Runners ran at the Chester Half Marathon Elly Dee (Downing in real life) finished in 2.12.12 and Christine Owen soon after in 2:35:00. Simon Hide, club 2nd claim member finished in 1:32:15.

18/5/14, Commonwealth 5, Swindon.

Jeff Davies ran in the Swindon Commonwealth 5 mile race finishing in 36:59 t claim 1st M65.

17/5/14, Ras Y Gader Fell Race.

Spring had truly sprung for the 213 runners who descended on Dolgellau for one of the highlights of the Welsh fell running calendar, Ras Y Gader. The race was held in bright sunshine with a hint of a cooling wind on the ascent which had disappeared by the descent. This years winner was Felipe Jones from Aberystwyth AC who finished in 1:25:52.

The first of the 10 Meirionnydd contingent was Alan Jones, 36th in 1:47:52 and close behind, on his first outing in Meirionnydd colours, was Jeremy Randell claiming 42nd place in 1:50:06. Next came Dave Whittey in a time of 2:01:11; Graeme Stringer 2:09:57 and Dylan Evans 2:10:37. Our first lady back was Juliet Edwards in 2:11:14 followed by another new recruit, Andy Yates who finished in 2:14:06.

Ras y Gader 2014 saw a welcome return to the fell for Peter Nicholls who finished in 2:26:30. Chasing him to the line were Alison Smedley 2:30:12 and Nicola Rees 2:34:47.

Full Results: here.

Photos by Ifan Richards ClicClic here
Photos by Dan Wyre here.
Photos by Gareth Roberts Cader Sports photos Start & Junior Race. / Finish Part 1. / Part 2. / Part 3. / Part 4.
Photos by Arfon Hughes here.

11/5/14, Market Drayton 10k.

Congratulations to Tom Roberts on winning today's Market Drayton 10k in 32:31 New PB.

Tom said "Was never expecting to win the Market Drayton 10k, now I know why it's been voted UK's best 10k.
Amazing atmosphere brilliant course, apart from the strong winds at times!! But didn't stop me from smashing my pb, 32:31.
Had £100 flowers, watch, trophy, t-shirt, 16 muller yoghurts, pork pies, and best of all 36 bottles of beer!"

Also running today at Market Drayton was Lucie llewellyn who finished in an 1:09:32. Lucie said "Well for a race that I very nearly pulled out of this morning due to a sore calf and worrying if I was going to be able to run at all I didn't do too bad. Standing on the start line with my calf support and compression socks on, having had no breakfast and having forgotten to take my inhaler its fair to say I have never felt so unprepared for a race in my life! I ended up putting my head down and digging deep and managed to run the whole of Market Drayton 10K (even the hills!) without walking at all and I think I have ended up with a PB to boot! My previous 10K best of 1:09:58 so am feeling happy!" Photos by Mick Hall here.

11/5/14, Port sunlight 10K.

Keith Williams ran in the Port Sunlight 10k. Keith said "Port Sunlight 10K in 48:25 after 4 hours sleep and in the wind, although the rain stopped just before start time. Missed a new PB by 40 seconds but happy with my run. Home now for some sleep."

10/5/14, Excalibur marathon.

Simon Hide said "Excalibur marathon done, 26.2 on the fells of the Clwydian Range, tough! I love the Clwydian range but fair play it kicked my a#se today! Just goes to show you can't get a pb in London then 4 weeks later expect that to translate to the fells, totally different training required. All good though, my 3rd marathon in the bag, and 101 miles for the month!." Simon's time was 5:12:12.

5/5/14, Cardiff Bay 5 miles. Tom Roberts ran in the Cardiff Bay 5 miles finishing in 26:19 a New Club record. Tom said "Got another PB at Cardiff 5, on a fast and bendy course! Won £30 for finishing 7th overall. Happy days!" Photos by Gareth Roberts.

5/5/14, Shinfield 10K.

Jeff Davies took on the Shinfield 10K near Reading. Jeff finished second M65 in a time of 43:44

Jeff said "I went a step too far today and did a 10K in Shinfield. I did 43.44 which I was a bit disappointed with but at my age [I’m 66 now!] it’s to be expected I guess. 10m, 5K and a 10K in 17 days is asking a bit much of the old legs!"

4/5/14, Newtown 10K.

Ricky Francis and Elly Downing raced at Maldwyn Harrier's Newtown 10k. Ricky finished in 43:16 to claim 1st M35 age category prize and Elly finished in 54:13.

3/5/14, Red kite Challenge 10k & Trail Half marathon inc Welsh Championship.

Four Meirionnydd runners Travelled South to Devil's Bridge. Three ran the Red Kite Challenge 10K. Andrea Vaughan was the first home to claim 2nd Woman and 1st F40, finishing in 48:43. Next came Graeme Stringer and Nich Bradley in 51:14 & 54:19. Glyn Rowlands was our sole representative in the Devil's Half Marathon which included the Welsh Trail Championship. Glyn finished in 2:09:32.

Photos by Gareth Roberts, Cader Sport photos here.

29/4/14, Pomphrey Sports 5K Summer Series.

Jeff Davies ran in the Pomphrey Sports 5K Summer Series down in Bristol finishing 2nd in age class in 20:42.

29/4/14, Moel Y Gest.

On what looked like a lovely evening Elfyn Hughes ran at Moel Y Gest in the 5th race of the Joe Brown Tuesday Night series. Elfyn Finished in 40:26
Photos by Math Roberts here.

20/4/14, Teifi 10 (inc Welsh champs). Tom Roberts ran in the Teifi 10 finishing in 54:57 to claim 5th place, a new PB and a New Club record. Photos by Gareth Roberts here.

19/4/14, Ras y Moelwyn.

Three Meirionnydd runners took on Ras y Moelwyn, the second counter in the WFRA North Wales Championship. Alan Jones finished in 1:36:59, Elfyn Hughes 1:45:00 and Juliet Edwards 1:59:22.

You tube Video 2014 race.
Photos by Gareth Roberts here.

18/4/14, Newtown Chocoholics 5K.

Three Meirionnydd runners took on the Newtown Chocoholics 5K. First home was Ricky Francis in 20:43, next Graeme Stringer in 22:06 and Elly Downing in her first race for Meirionnydd finishing in 27:02.

Sorry Elly, I couldn't find a photo.

18/4/14, Maidenhead easter 10. Jeff Davies ran in the Maidenhead Easter 10 Mile race finishing in an excellent 1:10:36 a M65 New Club record. Photos on Prosportphoto.com.

13/4/14, London Marathon.

Congratulations to Simon Hide (New second claim runner) and Lucie Lewellyn on completing the London Marathon. Simon finished in 3:26:26 and Lucie in 6:04:08.

Lucie said "Well, that’s it, I HAVE DONE IT! London Marathon completed!

My race didn't quite go to plan after getting calf trouble right from mile 2! The aim of the game from that point on was to take it nice and steady and make sure I finished the race. Not finishing because of a torn calf muscle was NOT an option. But I have to say that I absolutely LOVED every single second of it!! Hi fiving the kids, dancing along route and interacting with the crowds!!! Felt like a superstar!! Got starstruck on seeing Chris Robshaw and Alex Oxlaide Chamberlain at mile 22!! Not sure they knew what hit them when I arrived!! Most people round me were straggling and walking and looking like they were about to pass out and then along comes me, running up to them and behaving like an excited teenage girl!!! Got a Lucozade Sport from Alex and patted him on the back (he’s very shy!) and a high five from Chris Robshaw!

Didn't feel tired or fatigued all race because I was going so slow!! Ha ha!! Never reached a point where I thought I would not finish! Stu was waiting for me at mile 18 with some words of encouragement which was fab!

Massively picked up the pace from mile 25 for a strong finish because I knew at that point I would make it whatever happened!! Put in a sprint finish to finish strong!! Felt so amazing and so emotional crossing that line in a slower than I wanted time of 6:04 but so proud of myself for finishing and for raising the money I have raised for Tommys!

Thank you to each and every one of you who supported me and who has helped raise money and has sponsored me for doing this! I really am grateful! I think Stu is fed up of me talking about it and recapping the highlights but it really was an amazing experience and I loved every single step! Thank You MRC for enabling me to do this and to have one of the most amazing experiences I have ever had!

12/4/14, 6th Trail Race, Portmeirion.

A team of three Meirionnydd runners took on the inaugural 6th Trail race at Portmeirion. A 6km trail race through the wild landscape of Portmeirion's "Y Gwyllt" (the wilds).
First home was Sharon Lewis, completing her first race for Meirionnydd, in 45:43 then Jacqueline Fowler in 47:46 and Dorothy Elen in 1:02:32.

For Photos visits Gwynfor's Sports Pictures here

12/4/14, Aberystwyth parkrun # 85 .

Alison Smedley ran in the 5k Aberystwyth Parkrun # 85 finishing in 25:07 a new Parkrun PB.

6-12/4/14, Marathon des Sables .

Good Luck to Ashley Charlwood who's running in the MdS.

Ashley said:

So what is MdS? MdS (Marathon des Sables) is 250km (ish) in 6 days across the Sahara, carrying everything you need. Water is rationed to 9 litres a day and can be collected occasionally. The stages are 29km, 35.5km, 40km, 82km, 42.2km and 21km.

Why I’m doing it? That’s a bit harder, I always wanted to do a stage race in the desert, and MdS has always been a “I want to do that” race. Then on 5th January 2012 my buddy Pete Bursnall died of Melanoma. Pete was a great outdoorsman, he wrote the original mountain bike guide to North Wales in the 90’s and before flying his paraglider, quite hard, into the Glyders was a keen Mountain Marathoner.

I was lucky enough to spend a lot of time with Pete whilst he was ill, we rode loads of the old routes and new routes researching the second edition of his guidebook. His death had a big impact on me, and the more I learnt about Melanoma the more I wanted to raise some money. Pete and his family were supported by Myfanwy Townsend Melanoma Research Fund, and after I spoke with Harry, the founder (who has walked the length of New Zealand with a wheelbarrow) he agreed to support me getting a place in MdS to raise money for the charity. That was the 13th January 2012.

The 5th of April is race start day. The major thing on the race is the heat; I have spent long sessions in the Sauna in Dolgellau Leisure Centre to help my body deal with the extremes. I mentally rehearsed as much of the race as I can in my mind. Worked on final food menus for the 2000kcal a day compulsory carry and finding a venom pump. Packed, unpacked and repacked my rucksack hoping to get the pack weight to around 8kg.

If you'd like to help me raise money for Myfanwy Townsend Melanoma Research Fund.

This can be done through my JustGiving page or by texting MTRF74 £3 to 70070 (the £3 can be changed to £1, £2,£4,£5 or £10).

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Race page here.

6/4/14 Stage n°1 - Ouest Erg Chebbi / Erg Znaigui, 34 Km completed in 5:57:29, 260th out of 1029.
A grandiose setting in the Merzouga dunes for the first stage, one of the hardest in the history of the event.

Ash said "Yesterday technical checks all good. 6 tent mates so a bit of extra space. Today very hard 18km in Morocco biggest dunes and very hot. A few aches and pains, and the running was very tiring. Will see how I recover overnight. No serious blisters yet at all. Felt today that I should stop chasing a time/position. It really was a tough 33km took just under 6 hours and I was hoping for 4.5ish. But we're all in the same conditions. Tomorrow is 1km short of a full marathon, but the road book shows less big dunes. One foot in front of the other! Amazing organisation - the logistics are immense. Just love being back in the Sahara, motorbikes and camels today, but lots of amazing views all round, even took pictures whilst shuffling along, nice way to get the heart rate down in the heat. Didn't run out of water today, but tomorrow will be much tighter. It's 1700 now and time to get some dehydrated food down me, some stretches and some sleep."

7/4/14 Stage n°2 - Erg Znaigui / Oued Moungarf - 41 km completed in 6:27:12, 304th out of 1002.
Temperature at 1300 hours: 36.4°.

Ash said "Recovered well overnight - yummy sweet and sour chicken last night. After that I got my emails, A great pick me up. I didn't sleep too well, one tent mate was up sewing until 2am and with yesterday being the hardest first day ever there was a lot of commotion in the bivouac. Today was hot again but a wind that helped cool water poured over my head. I found a better way to carry 3l of water so that worked better. I struggled with food today so was pretty beaten for the last couple of hours. Got in and ate recovery powder and legs up for golden hour. Feel better now. First trip to Doc Trotters today. I kicked a stone yesterday and had a blood blister right under a toenail. I'll lose the nail, it's been drained and the iodine is making it throb right now. Tomorrow is going to be hard with lots of soft sand. We're all holding back for the "big one". All in all feeling pretty good at the moment, just worried about nutrition for 80km."

8/4/14 Stage n°3 - Oued Moungarf / Ba Hallou - 37,5 km completed in 6:25:04, 297th out of 978.
In intense heat, the 978 runners at the start of the 3rd stage have traversed several wadis and had to negotiate a number of dunes once again.
At 1230 GMT.- Temperature: 35.8°.

Ash said "today started well, a really nice run into some dunettes. First reasonable running so far. A fantastic 300m climb up rock was stunning. Felt pretty good until cp2 then my wheels came off big time. A big dried lake. Really really hot - 52c. I couldn't find a rhythm even though everything should have been easy. I struggled to get food in for an hour and a half and really felt it. Walked to the finish and have planned to walk the big day tomorrow....80km is going to be about managing my body. I think 20hrs would be a real achievement, so finishing about 3am. No emails tomorrow. Had a toenail drilled this evening - iodine burns under the nail bed. Going to have double the calories tonight and try to enjoy tomorrow. The rest of the tent are doing well. Tent #96 is still all intact though Artur's feet are mashed. Phil is about 120th, Dave is coming in strongly and Andrew is flying round. Linda and Rachel are doing really well, though Rachel suffered nosebleeds today."

9/4/14 Stage 4 (Wednesday): Ba Hallou – Rich Merzoug, 81.5km completed in 8:15:02.
Whilst the front runners were lucky enough to complete the 81.5km long leg in the early evening, a lot of people explored the magic of a Saharan night to finish the race, even if it took over 30 hours at times. At 1200 GMT: Temperature: 35°C

Ash said "Ash said "Long day done. It was epic. I rolled my ankle at CP2, so have a very sore walk this morning after 60km on it. It also means I have a lot of blisters. I didn't manage to finish the same day, but it was close! Amazing seeing top UK runner, Danny Kendal, fly by between CP3&4. Bivouac today is full of walking wounded, people still coming in until 7pm tonight. More people retired on the first two days than in most years. We're all hoping everyone comes in. All my tent mates made it in. Just one more racing day - the marathon stage, then the charity day. I think its going to be tough with my aches and pains. I'm off to Doc Trotters tonight to have an abscess in my thigh drained and packed and my ankle strapped. Amazing service. Today is all about recovery, tomorrow is about finishing and getting our medals. The final stage isn't timed so we'll walk it as a tent, Ddraig Goch will be flying both tomorrow and Saturday. Looking forward to some cold welsh water!"

10/4/14 Day off - Recovery.

11/4/14 Stage 5 (Friday): Rich Merzoug – Igadoun Tarhbalt, 42.2km completed in 6:38:05 to give a race total of 40:56:53 and 308 place out of 926.
Today’s leg: 926 competitors set off this morning on this 5th and final leg. To hunt down their finisher’s medal, a marathon distance had to be covered in the lunar landscapes. 12:30 GMT.- Temperature: 34.5°.

Ash said "DONE IT. Got the medal after another really tough day. Turns out a full marathon after 200km in 5 days before is really hard on your body...Got it done though, no special time, don't know my classification yet. But whilst I want to know, it doesn't matter as much as getting it done. There should be webcam of me crossing the line with the Ddraig Goch. I've just had an hour and a quarter with Doc Trotters sorting my feet out (ish) for tomorrows 7.7km amble. We're taking it real slow. Then a 4 hour bus journey... to a shower, and shave, and something to drink that isn't tepid water... I want Fanta, cold Fanta. Thank you to everyone who has supported me along the way and sent messages. We're all really amazed and emotional about how many people this race touches"

12/4/14 Stage 6 (Saturday): 7.7km, Igadoun Tarhbalt – Aït Ichchou (Unicef solidarity stage, non-timed)

6/4/14, Manchester Marathon. Christine Owen joined another 7,000 runners to take part in the ASICS Greater Manchester Marathon and finished in 5:21:43.

6/4/14, Snowdonia Half Marathon. Sandra Williams ran in the Snowdonia Half Marathon finishing in 2:16:41. Sandra said "Ran the Snowdonia half today no idea what my time was forgot my watch and club vest on the dinning room table it was really nice just to run it without keeping an eye on the clock. Did managed to get my 2nd medal for not walking the 1:7 hill at mile 3. I'm pleased to say I ran the lot."

6/4/14, Great Wrexham Road Runner 10k. Ricky Francis ran in the Wrexham 10k today finishing 39th out of 315 in 44:33.

5/4/14, Mawddach Goldrush Trail race.

Three Meirionnydd Runners were in action in Coed Y brenin.
In the 8.5 mile Goldrush Trail race Alan Jones was our first runner back claiming 6th palace in a time of 1:05:24. Followed by Nichola Rees in 1:30:54 who claimed 1st place in the W40 category.
In the 'dog assisted' CaniCross race Jaqueline Fowler finished in 1:43:00 to claim 2nd place in the W50 category.
Photos on Dan Wyre's Photography site : here.

30/3/14, Donard Challenge. Alan Jones joined 250 other runners in Northern Ireland to take part in the Donard Challenge (10 km, 900 metres climb) the first round of the British Fell Running Championship on the slopes of Slieve Donard. Alan came out of the mist to finished 142nd in 1:40:04. Alan said "Awfull weather, the worst I've experienced. Visibility was around 10ft, loads of runners running around like lost sheep, and as there was no clear path at all up or down it was pure chaos, it took me 1 hour 10 min to reach the summit, which was only 3 miles! Very lucky to cling on to some local runners on the way down or I could still been there now." Full Report on the race on the NIMRA website: here.

30/3/14, Cheshire 10K, Arley Hall. Keith Williams ran in the Cheshire 10K at Arley Hall. He said "Goal was around 47 minutes on a relatively flat course managed 47:53. First time with a big field so my first km was a bit slower than I'd have liked. Dropped into my pace and felt quite happy @4.45/km but felt very bloated after a week off and suffered a bit over the last 3-4k. Still happy with a PB and an improvement of almost 2 minutes on my last flat race at Aber in December. Weather was nice and sunny and quite warm for March

30/3/14, Helena Tipping 10k .

Ricky Francis ran in the Helena Tipping 10k finishing in 44:55.

22/3/14, Swindon parkrun # 198 .

Jeff Davies ran in the 5k Swindon Parkrun # 198 finishing in 21:01, 1st M65.

22/3/14, Aran Organic Lamb - Ras Yr Aran race.

Where did last weekends sunshine go to? Strong winds and snow once again returned to create a challenging race for both organisers and runners. The morning was spent considering the options. The race organiser Nich Bradley, Marshals, National park wardens and mountain rescue looked at the conditions on the hill and deliberated on the options available. As a consequence of the severe wind and snow conditions the race was curtailed slightly to take out the flat section between Aran Benllyn and Mawddwy. The decision maintained the altitude gain and gave runners a taste of the conditions on the plateau between the two peaks.
81 runners took part in the challenging conditions. The lower section was snow free where runners contended with freezing pools and deep peat bog. On the higher ground the snow gradually increased to 8 inches at the turn around at LLyn Aran Benllyn.
The feedback from runners were overwhelming, very positive another great race by Meirionnydd runners. Thank you to all the organisers, volunteers, SNPA wardens, mountain rescue and of course the brave the Marshals who suffered the conditions and deserved their hot baths and drink to warm up.

Congratulations to the overall winners: 1st Man Felipe Jones Aberystwyth AC 1:06:46 & 1st Woman Katie Beecher Les Croupiers 1:24:06.

Meirionnydd runners were Nichola Rees 1:52:03, Alex Lanz 1:25:24 and Arfon Hughes 1:28:31.

Winter race series results winners were Huw Brassington U/A 2:55:54 and sole woman to complete the three races was Nichola Rees Meirionnydd 4:20:49.

1. Huw Brassington, U/A 2:55:54
2. Arfon Hughes, Meirionnydd RC 3:23:27
3. Nichola Rees, Meirionnydd RC 4:20:49
4. Richard Vroom, Bro Dysynni AC 5:16:24

Full results: here.
Winter race series full results: here.
Picture of race day from Ashley Charlwood: here.

A big thank you for the support and the delicious burgers to Aran organic lamb.

16/3/14, Lisbon Half Marathon . Not content with 50mph winds at Rhyl, Jeff Davies contends with the Sun and heat in Lisbon, Portugal. Jeff said "Wow – what an experience!! Supposedly 35,000 runners but I can only find about 10,000 in the results. This is probably because 25,000 had more sense. Held at the start for an hour and a quarter – stationary in a hot sun. No chance of any warm up, 18 degrees at the start, 24 at the end. The jostling in the first mile was like being in the ring with Ali – I’ve probably got bruises under the sunburn. But apart from the chaotic start, it was a well organised race and at the end, not just a Madeira banana but a white chockie Magnum!! Free transport within Lisbon if wearing race number – sounds great but think Oxford Circus in the rush hour and you’d only begin to get an idea. A few more bruises there as well. That said, it was a great trip overall – a 65th birthday present from my son [who also ran]. So, for the record, I did 1.45.51, was 50th M60 but 1st UK 60!

15/3/14, LLantysilio Fell race.

Five Meirionnydd runners travelled to Rhewl near LLangollen for the First Race in the WFRA's North Wales Fell running Championship, the 9.9km/640m or 6.2miles/2100ft llantysilio fell race. Starting from The Sun Inn in Rhewl and straight up the hill on to join the ridge line than a circuit round finishing at Foel Gamelin and a fast sprint back down to the start. Spring had really arrived and the race was held in glorious weather. The five club runners, their finish time and championship position: Alan Jones 1:02:10; Arfon Hughes 1:08:12; Graeme Stringer 1:13:31; Juliet Edwards 1:14:40, 3rd F50 and Nich Bradley 1:17:44.

2013-14 Overall report Grand Prix Express North Wales Cross Country League.

Congratulations to Alex Lanz on coming 3rd in the U20 men for the season. Confirmed that we stay up in Division 1 this year.
Full report: here.

8/3/14, British Athletics Inter Counties Cross Country Championships.

Congratulations to Alex Lanz on achieving another North Wales Cap at the British Athletics Inter Counties Cross Country Championships held in Birmingham. In the Men under 20, 8,000m race, Alex finished in 29.49.

8/3/14, Rhayader 20 mile Road race.

Heidi Roden and Nicola Rees took on the Rhayader 20 mile Road race with Heidi finishing in 3:20:19 and Nichola close behind in 3:23:43.
Photos on CAC Photography here.

2/3/14, Reading Half Marathon.

Jacqueline Fowler completed the race in 2:05:07

2/3/14, Island Race Anglesey Half Marathon . Jude Evans ran in the Island Race Anglesey Half Marathon finishing in 2:13:05. For Photos visits Gwynfor's Sports Pictures here

1/3/14, Pipe dream.

Graeme Stringer and Nich Bradley Travelled to Dolgarrog for the 9th Pipe Dream race.
Graeme finished in 53:25 and Nich in 58:35.
Graeme commented "A couple of falls at speed on the muddy descent at today's fell made life interesting, ace fun."
Details of the day here.

23/2/14, Rhyl 10 mile.

Two Meirionnydd runners took on the Rhyl 10 mile race. Tom Roberts was first in commenting "Strong winds and getting sand blasted made it furious!" Tom finished in 5th place in 58:40 New club record. And Jeff Davies commented "I have NEVER run in wind like that! Reckoned to be up to 50 mph. When I came home, sand was still in my teeth never mind a ton everywhere else. took 2nd V65, finishing in 1:16:29.
Photo's By Gareth Roberts.

22/2/14, Moel Y ci Fell race. Four Meirionnydd runners ran the 5 mile/950ft ascent race from the Moel Y Ci centre. A big welcome back from a period of injury to Alan Jones. Alan was the first Meirionnydd runner to finish in 44:51 followed by Graeme Stringer 54:01, Juliet Edwards 55:11 and Nick Bradley in 58:15. For Photos visits Gwynfor's Sports Pictures here and Simon Murray's Photos here.

20/02/14. AGM, Dolgellau Rugby Club.

Confirmed Committee details are:.

• Chair: Nich Bradley
• Vice Chair: Sue Nicholls
• Secretary: Pete Nicholls
• Treasurer & Women's captain: Juliet Edwards
• Membership: Gareth Roberts
• Welfare: Lucie LLewellyn
• Men's captain: Clive Edgington
• Course director: Kevin Evans
• Social secretary: Sarah Roberts
• Website: Arfon Hughes

Trophies were awarded as follows:-

• Billy goat trophy for male runner of the year - Glyn Griffin.
• Nanny goat trophy for female runner of the year - Juliet Edwards.
• Goatherd trophy for volunteer of the year - Sarah Roberts.
• Sheilah Vaughan trophy for best new runner - Lucie LLewellyn.
• Runners runner trophy - Sandra Williams.
• Kid Goat Traphy for Junior Runner of the year - Alex Lanz.
• Lanzarote Slug - Tom Roberts.

Many thanks to the Rugby Club for the use of their room and Sarah for providing refreshments.

MRC 2013 Trophies were awarded to the following:
Billy Goat.	Nanny Goat.	Goat Herder.
Sheilah Vaughan Trophy.	Runners runner.	Kid Goat.
Lanzarote Slug .

9/2/14, Ras Cors Caron Half Marathon. Our sole representative at Ras Cors Caron Half Marathon was Sandra Williams finishing in 2:02:11. Photos by MWH Photos on Facebook here.

9/2/14, Nick Beer 10k.

Three Meirionnydd runners travelled up to LLandudno to race in the North Wales Road Runners Nick Beer 10k. The rain stayed away, but strong winds made it tough running round the Great Orme. 608 took part in the race. First home was Tom Roberts in 7th position overall in 35:22 a New Club Record followed by Elfyn Hughes 66th in 42:17 and Keith Williams 234th in 49:29 a new PB.
Photos by Gareth Roberts.

8/2/14, Oswestry North Wales Cross country League.

Due to Injury and illness Meirionnydd didn't manage to field a full team to Oswestry this weekend. Ricky Francis of Talyllyn was the sole representative from the club, completing his race in 108th in a time of 53.52. Well done Ricky.
End of season results were: Division 1: Deeside 573, Shrewsbury 996, Telford 1,142, Eryri 1,436, Tattenhall 1,649, Oswestry 1,898, Meirionnydd 2,282, Wrexham 2,971.
Looks like we narrowly avoided relegation.
Division 2: Bangor University 748, Buckley 1,493, Colwyn Bay 1,800, Denbigh 2,130, Prestatyn 2,376, Wrecsam Tri 3,124, West Cheshire 3,172, Cybi 3,316, Abergele 3,330, Menai 3,477, Whitchurch 3,545, Deestriders 3,609, North Wales RR 3,668, Maldwyn 4,238, Bridgnorth 4,271, Aberystwyth 4,295, Vale Royal 4,382.

1/2/14, Tarren hendre.

Seven Meirionnydd Runners took on the Second Race of the Meirionnydd Running Club's Winter Race series Tarran hendre. Due to strong winds the race was shortened on Safety advice from Mountain Rescue and ran on an alternative route which cut out the very top ridge section of the race.
This alternative route was slightly shorter but made up in being a slightly faster race. We still had most of the really muddy section on the way down to contend with and luckily, as we were in the lee of the hill, the wind didn't hinder and the rain/sleet/hail held off for most of the race.

The Meirionnydd runners were led home by Ifan Richards 41:42 (running for Cread) followed by Alex Lanz 42:10, Arfon Hughes 48:03, Adam Preston 51:33, Dylan Evans 52:40, Glyn Rowland 53:04 and Nicola Rees 1:01:04.
Photos in the pub afterwards: here.
Photos by Esyllt below and here.

26/1/14, Lliswerry 8. Jeff Davies ran in the Lliswerry 8 mile road race around the lanes of Goldcliff and Nash villages on the edge of Newport, the 'flattest on the planet!' Jeff finished as 1st M65 in 58:35.

19/1/14, Not the Roman 9 10k.

Jacqueline Fowler completed the race in 1:05:28.

18/1/14, North Wales Cross Country League, Telford.

Only three runners turned up for the Telford Race in the North Wales Cross Country League. The course was muddy and very wet, Alex Lanz managed to finish in 36th, Arfon Hughes 79th and an injured Clive Edington in 84th.
Meirionnydd drop from 4th to 6th: Division 1: Deeside 495, Shrewsbury 838, Telford 900, Eryri 1,327, Tattenhall 1,449, Meirionnydd 1,549, Oswestry 1,627, Wrexham 2,281.

11/1/14, Twin piers 10k.

Following sickness and injury, Meirionnydd's pride was dependent on Graeme & Alison to get 2014 off to a good start.
Then Graeme said "and then there were none.......total wipeout on the Meirionnydd running club's trip to Colwyn Bay's Twin piers 10km race.......bongo head gasket gone in Dolwyddelan..........fate for some reason has done its best to whittle us down from 5 to 0...........karma, don't fight it."
I believe it was Tony Blair who once said "Things can only get better!"

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