Self Transcendence 2 Mile Race Tuesday July 4th 2006

Eastville Park, Bristol (held under permit from MCAA)

"When we transcend ourselves we do not compete with others but with ourselves. And each time we surpass our previous achievements we get joy."

Sri Chinmoy

	Time	no.	Name	Club	cat.	pts.
1	11.11	228	Gavin Watkins	GWR	m	7
2	11.53	235	Tim Fletcher	GWR	m	6
3	11.59	210	Michael Dunkley	GWR(?)	m	5
4	12.06	205	Steven James		m	4
5	12.21	226	Emlyn Williams		m	3
6	12.25	231	Sian Monahan	Bristol & West AC	f	7
7	13.01	239	M.	Rolleau	m	2
8	13.06	225	Steve Charlwood		m	1
9	13.08	207	Mark Adams		m
10	13.13	216	Mark Unsworth	San Domenico RC	m
11	13.18	230	Richard White		m
12	13.28	227	Helen Sinclair		f	6
13	13.52	202	Matt Hawkins		m
14	13.53	204	Matt Washburn	Weston AC	m
15	14.02	217	Darren Ladd		m
16	14.18	212	Alisdair Fyfe		m
17	14.28	221	Andy Kempson		m
18	14.44	224	James de Teissier		m
19	14.48	232	Bruno Laasna		m
20	14.54	219	Mike Nutt		m50-59	3
21	14.58	223	Simon Parish		m
22	15.03	215	Sharon Andrews		f	5
23	15.07	237	Dave Broadbent	Poole AC	m
24	15.25	229	Roxy Watt		f	4
25	15.35	218	Ian Haynes		m
26	15.43	222	Roger Haynes		m60-69	2
27	16.21	213	David Thorpe		m
28	16.27	214	Francesca Andrews	Yate AC	f	3
29	16.37	241	Valeria Germini		f	2
30	16.47	240	Lorraine Thorn		f	1
31	16.51	201	Moya Church	GWR	f50-59	3
32	16.56	234	Claire Harris		f
33	18.35	233	Naomi Johnson		f
34	18.59	238	Ingrid Megarademy		f
35	19.11	203	Alex Towers		m
36	20.45	220	Ben Buttigieg		m
37	20.46	236	Felicity Beal		f
38	26.20	208	Rachal Reid		f
39	26.44	209	Karen Lillywhite		f
40	dnf	211	Ron Denney	Sevenoaks AC	m70+

(Pictures of some of the medal winners are in our race photo gallery)

With the mini heatwave in full swing many of the runners in our two mile race opted to warm up by chatting in the sun at the startline rather than the usual jog around the course. Despite the relaxed atmosphere, there were some big efforts made in the race and the wet sponges proved popular among overheated competitors at the finish.

Among the men, GWR claimed a 1,2,3 in the shape of Gavin Watkins, Tim Fletcher and Michael Dunkley, all of whom were in sub-12 minute form. Elsewhere in the field there were lots of improvers who beat their times from the 2-miler earlier in the season, and their time are listed below.

Sian Monahan always brings an injection of pace to the event and she took first place among the ladies, also finishing sixth overall.

Rachal Reid and Karen Lillywhite planned to take part as walkers, but their brisk finishing times (just over 26 minutes) suggest they are either very athletic walkers or got inspired to run at least part of the undulating course.

Agegroup medals went to Moya Church, Mike Nutt and Roger Haynes. Ron Denney suffered a very unfortunate fate in his first race since moving up into the 70+ agegroup. An out-of-control dog disturbing runners on the first bend led to a few collisions and to Ron getting tripped, landing with some force on his elbow. Several other runners stopped to check that Ron was ok and to inform the organisers - we didn't note all their names but we're very grateful that they showed such a kind and positive attitude when it mattered. Ron, meanwhile, impressed everyone present with his fortitude in the face of acute pain, shock and disappointment and when it was suggested that he should be awarded a 70+ medal for his efforts, spontaneous applause proved that all the other runners heartily agreed. We wish Ron a speedy recovery and his medal is on its way to him.

Runners who improved their two-mile performances:

Runner	July	May	Improvement
Andy Kempson	14.28	14.29	1 sec
Mark Adams	13.08	13.24	16 sec
Matt Hawkins	13.52	14.12	20 sec
Lorraine Thorn	16.47	17.16	29 sec
Bruno Laasna	14.48	15.48	60 sec
Matt Washburn	13.53	15.48	1 min 55 sec

And now, the prizes! These are all to be given out at the final race of the season, the 3 x 1 relay on July 18th.

Series Winners:

Moya church, GWR and Gary Hughes, City of Bath AC - each will receive a pair of running shoes kindly donated by Mizuno.

Agegroup Winners:

Mike Nutt (50-59), Martin Church, GWR (60-69), Audrey Butler, GWR (60-69) - each will receive a runner's CD-walkman also donated by Mizuno.

Improvers: We also wanted to recognise improved performances as well as winning times, so the six runners listed above will each receive a small prize donated by Mizuno, Sugoi or Run and Become (Cardiff's specialist running shop).

And finally, every runner who took part in all 4 races will receive a goody bag containing a few items from Mizuno, Run and Become, Isostar and Stinger. We have a few spare goody bags so the rest will be given out to those who did three events and maybe others if there are enough to go round. We should point out that there would also have been a few goody bag items donated by Tesco, but the voucher they gave us was lost when the race director had his wallet snatched in a Paris metro station :)

See you at the relay,

Roger Chamberlain, Sri Chinmoy AC

Race Photos

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SELF TRANSCENDENCE 5k RACE

JUNE 6th 2006 EASTVILLE PARK, BRISTOL

"The great athlete in us seeks excellence. The good athlete in us seeks transcendence. Excellence quite often arrives at a dead end. Transcendence always reaches an ever-new beginning and an ever-new dawn. "

Sri Chinmoy

Only a handful of pics this time in the GALLERY but you may see yourself in the start pictures.

	Ladies
	Name	Club	Time
1	Camilla Briggs	Thames Valley	19.41
2	Sharon Andrews		23.37
3	Roxy Watt		24.23
4	Shaaron Cheesman		24.54
5	Sandra Brown	Severn AC	25.47
6	Moya Church	GWR	26.27	1st 50-59
7	Lorraine Thorn		27.43
8	Valeria Gezmini		27.58
9	Felicity Beale		28.10
10	Ingrid Megarademy		28.21
11	Anne Thorpe		29.08
12	Pauline Thorn	GWR	29.14	2nd 50-59
13	Sue Myers	GWR	29.40	3rd 50-59
14	Vanessa Anderton	Severn AC	31.12	4th 50-59
15	Audrey Butler	GWR	32.28	1st 60-69
16	Chris Jones		33.19
17	Francesca Andrews	Yate & District	dnf.
18	Karen Cooper		dnf.
	Men
	Name	Club	Time
1	Gary Hughes	City of Bath AC	17.23
2	Jon Goodland	GWR	18.01
3	Peter Kennedy	TACH	18.50
4	Tim Fletcher	GWR	18.56
5	Simon Young	Thornbury RC	19.02
6	Steven James		19.33
7	Matt Burns		19.40
8	Carl Williams	Chepstow Harriers	19.51
9	Andrew Brown	Severn AC	19.55
10	Ian Kennedy		21.02
11	Scott Griffiths	GWR	21.28
12	Andrew Nava		21.55
13	Mark Adams		21.59
14	Richard Roullard		22.09
15	Bruno Laasna		22.12
16	Matt Hawkins		22.19
17	Darren Ladd		22.25
18	Richard White		22.28
19	Thomas Bourland		22.42
20	Martin Church	GWR	22.44	1st 60-69
21	Alistair Fife		22.55
22	Mike Nutt		23.08	1st 50-59
23	David Broadbent	Poole AC	23.20
24	Cliff Spargo		23.38
25	Matt Washburn	Weston AC	24.04
26	Roger Haynes		24.41	2nd 60-69
27	Paul Therridge		25.06
28	Adam Lynch		25.20
29	Duncan Nisbett		25.20
30	Richard Forbes		25.57
31	R Haynes		27.04
32	Alex Towers		27.30
33	Mike Anderton	Severn AC	28.52	2nd 50-59
34	Christian Lillywhite		29.29
35	Mike Richards		?

Near perfect conditions this time for the race and a 50+ turnout too. If any names are wrong in the results please call me at Run and Become on 02920 232346 - we had trouble deciphering the handwritten entry sheets!

The points table after two races is as follows (clear leaders emerging among both men and ladies but it's not over yet):

Moya Church 13
Vik Baldwin 7 Camilla Briggs 7
Liz Baldwin 6 Sharon Andrews 6
Audrey Butler 6
Lorraine Thorn 5 Roxy Watt 5
Shaaron Cheesman 4
Ingrid Megarademy 3 Sandra Brown 3
Pauline Thorn 2
Rachel Styles 1 Sue Myers 1

Gary Hughes 11
Rob Smyth 7
Alistair McColl 6 Martin Church 6
Jon Goodland 6
Emlyn Williams 5 Peter Kennedy 5
Mike Nutt 4 Tim Fletcher 4
Mark Adams 3 Simon Young 3
Alisdair Fyfe 2 Steven James 2
Andy Wright 1 Ronald Denney 1
Matt Burns 1 Roger Haynes 1 Mike Anderton 1

Race Photos

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SELF TRANSCENDENCE 2 MILE RACE

MAY 23rd 2006 EASTVILLE PARK, BRISTOL

"Everybody wants to be happy. There are many ways to be happy, but many people have discovered that running is a most effective way to bring about happiness."

Sri Chinmoy

Race photos will be online (a day or two after the race) in our GALLERY.

	Ladies

1	Vik Baldwin	Nailsea	14.42
2	Liz Baldwin	Nailsea	16.03
3	Moya Church	GWR	16.40	vet 50-59
4	Lorraine Thorn		17.16
5	Ingrid Megarademy		18.31
6	Audrey Butler	GWR	19.09	vet 60-69
7	Rachel Styles		19.56
8	Lucy Heald		21.46
9	Hayley Coyne		22.42
10	Clare Summenu		30.22

	Men

1	Rob Smyth	Bristol University	10.25
2	Alistair McColl	Bristol University	11.01
3	Emlyn Williams		12.19
4	Gary Hughes	City of Bath AC	12.55
5	Mark Adams		13.24
6	Alisdair Fyfe		13.48
7	Andy Wright		13.52
8	Dave Broadbent	Poole AC	13.59
9	James DeTeissier		14.03
10	Martin Church	GWR	14.07	vet 60-69
11	Matt Hawkins		14.12
12	Mike Nutt		14.19	vet 50-59
13	Andy Kempson		14.29
14	James Almond		14.35
15	Matt Washburn	Weston AC	15.48
16	Bruno Laasna		15.48
17	Ronald Denney	Sevenoaks AC	16.26	vet 60-69
18	Alex Towers		16.48
19	Joe Gibson		18.09

Timekeepers R Chamberlain, U Hansford

Referee S. M. Payne

A week of wintry weather leading up to the race did not bode well, but on the night a window of clear (if chilly) conditions appeared just in time. Twenty nine runners braved the cold winds to take part in our first two mile race of the year. Vik and Liz Baldwin from Nailsea took the honours in the ladies event, and GWR's Moya Church ran well to claim third place and the first vet 50-59 medal.Moya's clubmate Audrey Butler also did a double with the vet 60-69 medal and sixth place overall. Medals also went to Lorraine Thorn, Ingrid Megarademy and Rachel Styles, despite a little confusion over the results from the race officials - sorry to all concerned and thanks to those who noticed the omission - fortunately it was all resolved and everyone went home with the right gong.

Among the men, Rob Smyth set a blistering pace coming through the one mile mark in under 5 minutes. Of course, that second lap is a tough challenge, especially when you are out in front on your own, but Rob still managed an excellent 10.25 ahead of fellow Bristol University runner Alastair McColl who was second with 11.01. Emlyn Williams looked very relaxed in third place (12.19) while former winner of these races (on a regular basis), Gary Hughes from City of Bath AC, made his comeback with 12.55. Mark Adams, Alisdair Fyfe and Andy Wright completed the seven medal positions. Agegroup awards went to three veterans Martin Church (1st vet 60-69) from GWR, Ronald Denney (2nd vet 60-69) of Sevenoaks AC and Mike Nutt (1st vet 50-59). Youngster Joe Gibson made a great debut, finishing strongly on a challenging course.

The series prizes this year have been donated by Mizuno - a pair of shoes worth up to 75 pounds to the male and female series winners. For those not familiar with the system, medal winners get points in each race and the highest number of points wins the series. In the event of a tie, the runner with the shortest cumulative time from the three events takes the prize. Points so far are as follows (note that winners of a vet medal get points for that in addition to the points for their overall position, hence Moya Church being ahead after race 1).

Moya Church 8 Vik Baldwin 7 Liz Baldwin 6 Lorraine Thorn 4 Audrey Butler 4 Ingrid Megarademy 3 Rachel Styles 1

Rob Smyth 7 Alistair McColl 6 Emlyn Williams 5 Gary Hughes 4 Mark Adams 3 Martin Church 3 Alisdair Fyfe 2 Mike Nutt 2 Andy Wright 1 Ronald Denney 1

In addition, there will be goody bags presented to everyone who takes part in all the races in the series, and a few mystery prizes (all to be given out at the relay in July).

Thanks to all who took part and to the marshals who shivered even more than the runners! Our next race is 5kms on June 6th.