Spring is in the air and we have been celebrating with a lot of running during March! It’s been great seeing members go to events and it was also lovely to see a good number of attendees at the AGM this week. Please do keep getting involved!
News and Notices
Club Kit
The way you can purchase club kit has changed. Kit is now available to order online through Red Hot Source.
Many thanks to Barbara and Lou for setting this up. And I think I speak for all of us in extending more thanks to Barbara for all of her hard work over the years stocking the kit and ensuring people get what they need.
The link to order kit is on our website here: https://gbrc.org.uk/about/gbrckit/
Parkrun Socials
A merry group went off to Basildon last week and as the weather improves I expect even more of us will be at the parkrun socials. The next one is on 18th April at Raphaels parkrun. Get the date in your diary!
Mickey Edwards Series
Want to improve your 5k time? Want to enjoy running with friends? Want to do some endurance training? Whatever your aims, running 5k can be a useful tool and doing it as part of the Mickey Edwards series can be really fun.
The first race of this series is on 6th May and we look forward to seeing loads of members on the night. If you don’t fancy running, but want to join in then please also consider volunteering on the night and helping keep our runners safe as they speed along the lanes.
Information about the series can be found here: https://gbrc.org.uk/our-races/micky-edwards-series/
And remember, you don’t have to run them all! Just come along when you can.
Great Bentley Trail Runs
Rodger has been out planning the routes for this year and information will be available on the website in due course. In the meantime if you wished to practice navigating a trail before this year’s series begins, the directions for Round 4 from 2025 can still be found here: https://gbrc.org.uk/our-races/great-bentley-trail-runs/
Friday 5
The Friday 5 series is open for entries here: https://friday5series.com/ with GBRC hosting the final race in the series on 3rd July.
Please remember that GBRC members should not enter the GBRC race. Instead, we will be asking that members (if available) volunteer to help put the race on and if we have enough volunteers we will be holding the usual ballot to select those from GBRC to run.
More information will be available closer to the race but for now please hold the date in your diaries as we really need as many volunteers as possible to make sure the race runs smoothly.
Ipswich Ekiden Relays
Ekiden relays will be on 5th July and we hope to have a massive club turnout this year. Save the date and we will be contacting members about signing up closer to the time.
What have we been up to?
The Bentley Gentlemen
Thanks to Men’s Vice Captain Jon for providing a roundup of what the men have done
Another busy month of racing has passed us by and below is some of the great stuff the Bentley men have been doing and, as well the all important ‘Runner of the month’
The Colchester half (the second best local half marathon) saw several Bentley men put in some great effort. Paul Smith and Stephan Hogan-Steele smashed their PBs. Malcolm Statham had a far better race than expected and I had a great time pacing the race, something I hope to do again.
Then down on the Jurassic coast the appeal of a near 20 mile course of sand, mud, hills, ditches, blood, sweat and possibly tears lured a few of our grizzly chaps, who did extremely well at this beast of a race.
Back in Essex we had a windy 20 mile race round a disused airbase where five Bentley men flew round in phenomenal style, with more PBs being clocked up. Mark Harris also ran the 10k race the same day and was more than pleased with his time.
Chris Warren went to Wymondham not for a wander but for a race and put in a great time for this rural 20 mile course.
Keeping things rural and this time more local we have the Dave Wright 7.5 and 15 mile race where Tim Clifton, Tomasz Komorowski and Malcolm Statham were there representing Great Bentley.
Dam Palmer ran his socks off at the Rome marathon and obliterated his previous marathon pb.
Essex road relays we managed to field three men’s teams who performed extremely well.
Well done everyone that has run and raced this month. It really seems as though Great Bentley is going from strength to strength.
Runner of the month
For the March Runner of the Month, Charlie and I decided upon a very familiar face of the club.
This runner shows up to most weekly sessions come rain, wind or shine. He is there, zipping up and down hills on a Tuesday, giving it his all at intervals on a Thursday, then back out for the early Friday social run and does the same again on a Sunday. He also gets involved with many of the club’s group activities such as Ekiden, Mickey Edwards, road relay races to name a few and that is why Minesh Patel you are March Runner of the Month. Congratulations and keep up the good work!
The Bentley Ladies
It’s been a hugely positive and inspiring period for the club’s women, with members racing across a wide range of distances, achieving first‑ever milestones, personal bests and podium places, and showing fantastic support for one another.
Half‑marathon season was particularly busy, with strong female representation at Chelmsford, Great Yarmouth, Colchester, Battersea and Malaga.
A number of members completed their first ever half marathon, including Katie Collin, Daniella Harris and Holly Colsell, each showing determination and resilience to get round and enjoy the achievement. Holly’s first half marathon came overseas at Malaga, where she narrowly missed club standard but finished strongly, while Anthea Colsell also completed the distance on the same course.
There were also several standout performances and significant PBs. Magdalena Komorowska enjoyed an excellent period, achieving a podium finish (3rd in age category) at Great Yarmouth Half, setting a PB at Battersea Half, and returning to Colchester Half in a meaningful charity run that marked how far her running journey has come. Sarah Blewden recorded a course PB at Colchester, taking an impressive 10 minutes off her time from last year, while Bev Shortley secured 2nd place in her age category at the same event.
At the longer end of endurance racing, Larina Marsh delivered a superb run at the Essex 20, knocking 10 minutes off her previous best and finishing 6th out of 149 in her age category. Lisa Briggs also reached a major milestone, completing her first ever 20‑mile distance at the Brett Lydd 20.
There were plenty of strong results over shorter distances too. Jacki Stansfeld tackled tough conditions at the London Winter 10k, while Leoni Harvey exceeded expectations at the Stowmarket 10k, finishing well under her adjusted target despite recent health challenges.
The Essex Relays and Essex & Suffolk Road Relay saw some impressively fast running, with Donna Harris surprising herself with just how quick she could move, and the club once again well represented across team events.
Parkrun continued to play a big role, with Andrea James taking a Parkrun first-finish at Highwoods, and Marion Simmons finishing 2nd in her age group at Marks Hall. Members also continued to explore new venues and keep consistency high.
A good contingent went to the Grizzly this year including from our ladies’ squad Sarah Evans, Vicky Law (a Grizzly regular!) and in their Cub debuts: Marion Simmons, Lex Carlisle and Sue Sorrell. Taking on the Big Bear were Rosie Youngs and Fiona Gosling.
Runner of the month
This month we are celebrating a lady who has tackled her first half marathon as well as challenging herself at the Essex Road relays. She has been getting involved in a lot since she joined the club and is a great addition. So without further ado: Katie Collin, congratulations, you are our ladies’ Runner of the Month!
Great Bentley Running Club 