Hey, hey, it’s May, well it was and here we are at the start of June nearly halfway through the year. There’s a big summer of sport ahead and I’m not referring to the Euro’s or the Olympics but all of the summer running events we have going on at GBRC! So, without further ado let’s have a look at what’s going on and of course what you guys have been up to as well.

Micky Edwards
Our 5k handicap series is well underway with the baseline run done and two of the heats already completed. There has been a good turnout so far this year and with two more races to go it would be nice to see this continue. The dates for the remaining two races are 12th and 26th of June. So, if you’ve still got it all to play for or just want to have a crack at 5k time on Wednesday evening it would be great to see you there. Below is a link to the Micky Edwards page on the website where you can check out the current results.
https://gbrc.org.uk/our-races/micky-edwards-series/
Charlie is always on the lookout for willing volunteers to help stage these races so if you’re free on either, or both of the remaining dates then please drop him a message on Facebook or email him – I know he will be more than pleased to hear from you.

Friday 5 at Great Bentley
The Friday 5 series has just begun and for those of you that don’t know these are a series of 5-mile races that, surprise, surprise, take place around Suffolk and Essex on a Friday evening. Below is a list of all the races and as you can see, we host the last (and best) race of the series, there is also a link to the website so you can go and find out more about it.
31st May 2024 Sudbury
7th June 2024 Framlingham
14th June 2024 Kirton
21st June 2024 Bury
28th June 2024 Stowmarket
5th July 2024 Great Bentley
https://friday5series.com/
If you wish to run in our race you will need to volunteer to help out first and then your name will be put into a ballot for a chance to run. Friday 5 race director Matt will putting an email out soon asking for volunteers.

Geoff Day memorial 5K
If running 5 miles isn’t your thing and you fancy something shorter and quicker then next up is the Geoff Day memorial 5k race, this will be taking place on Wednesday 10th July.
This is an annual race put on in memory of Great Bentley club member Geoff Day and details of his life and running achievements can be found here:
https://gbrc.org.uk/our-races/geoff-day-memorial-5k/
It’s a sociable event and a great chance to have a crack at a 5k pb and consume vast quantities of cake afterwards whilst celebrating the winners of the race*
*Only first claim members will be eligible for the trophies.

Ekiden relay event
Meera and Lisa have been busy compiling all the Teams for this years Ekiden event and its looking like we could still squeeze in a couple more runners. So if you are still interested in taking part in this event can you please email Lisa by the close of play Thursday.
lisabriggs416@gmail.com

Rodgers trail runs
Trail run season is here and Rodger has been tirelessly plotting four new routes for us to tackle. Like snowflakes and fingerprints no two trail runs have ever been the same.
Starting in June each one will be available to download off the website for one month at a time, if you complete all four then you will be able to claim a free “I trailed them all” T-shirt. To be eligible to get your hands on one of these shirts then you must text Rodger at the beginning and end of each run with your time taken and the answers to the questions he sets for each route. These trail runs aren’t just for Bentley members either so if you have friends or family who aren’t Bentley members (and if not why not) then get them involved as well. They too can claim a T-shirt on completion of all four runs in the same way but there will be a charge for theirs.
If you wish to add a competitive edge to these runs, then there is a trophy and champions t-shirt up for grabs for the fastest time achieved over all four courses. More details can be found with the link below.
https://gbrc.org.uk/our-races/great-bentley-trail-runs/

The parkrun socials
We had the first of our parkrun socials at Great Notley country park and Charlie and I think it went rather well with the only two issues being a massive hill to get up on the second lap and the speed the coffee was being served in the cafe’ afterwards, but no one was in a hurry so this was less of a bother. We based the destinations of these parkruns solely on the initials of the club so with ‘G’ out the way we are on to ‘B’ and this will be at Brentwood Parkrun on Saturday 29th June, the website describes it as a single lap course of undulating trail which sounds interesting and yes there is coffee shop onsite. Based on my last experience I may order my coffee before the race starts to ensure I’m home before the start of July. The other two planned dates so far are,
Rendlesham Forest parkrun: Saturday 27th July

Clare Castle parkrun: Saturday 31st August

Although I am writing about this in the men’s newsletter Charlie, and I think that the more the merrier is better at these socials, so ladies please come along and get involved as well.

Please note that in the evening of the Rendlesham parkrun we will be having our annual cross county meal out and XC runner of the year of the year award. Charlie has asked me to remind you that if you haven’t yet could you please cast your vote and let him know if you are coming to the parkrun, the meal or both, ASAP using the link below:

Who’s done what where
Starting at the beginning of May and hopefully I have this in order Tim Clifton took on the Spring VXV race, a local race hosted by Hare and Tortoise running. You could run 5,10 or 15 miles on the looped course which Tim described as beautiful, naturally Tim went for the 15 mile option!
Colchester 10k historically has always been warm and this year was no exception, in fact I believe this year was the hottest to date. That didn’t stop a staggering 18 of you taking on this rather tricky, and this year sticky course. We had a single male representative at the Halsted marathon this year in the shape of Malcom Statham who put in a sterling effort given the heat and hills.
Steve Bullen and myself went to the Ford test track centre in Dunton for a 10 mile race. The course was surprisingly undulating with high banks at either end of the track, it was a tougher course than both Steve and I were expecting but one I would recommend doing.
Justin Hayhoe headed to Hatfield Broad Oak for a 10 mile race but this one was across the Essex countryside and put in a great performance coming in 10th overall.
Paul Carlisle and Rodger Alexander headed to the Yorkshire dales for the CRO Ingleborough trail marathon. They found out at the last minute that narrative instructions for the route would not be available, but the ever prepared Rodger had already plotted the route on a map which was double handy as GPS signal was non-existent.
Hopefully that covers most things people have been up to, I do apologies if I have missed someone off and I will continue to improve my sleuthing skills as I write more of these.

Drum roll…………..
It’s time for runner of the month and once again Charlie and I have put our heads together to decide runner of the month and it, once again, came down to two candidates. First up is Frank Gardiner who’s has not been back running long, but decided to go in for the Micky Edwards series and has had three fantastic results so far – improving his time in every single race and currently topping the overall leader board. All things considered Frank’s times and improvements have been second to none, so well done Frank.

Running an Ultra is a daunting enough challenge in itself and certainly one that most of us wouldn’t even consider undertaking. So how about running one on what is considered to be ‘the toughest long distance trail in the UK’! One that that on average takes back packers 20 days to complete, but you only have 8. One that runs a staggering 400k up the western side of Scotland from Fort William to Cape Wrath. Well Adam Toyne did, and in a Facebook post described it as going on his holidays, a hint of sarcasm me thinks. Adam started off going great guns and was well on his way until injury halted his chances on day 6. Injuries are unavoidable at times and can strike without warning, especially when you are taking on such an immense challenge, which is why for us Adam Toyne has to be runner of the month. Well done Adam, I understand you are already contemplating a return next year!?