Week Ending - 2025/02/16

TRIPLE PARKRUN SUCCESS VET TRIO

Age proved no barrier to success at the weekend as Badgers had not one but three first-place finishers at parkrun across the region, all via athletes competing in the V40 category or older. At Holbrooks Park, the hunky Adrian Payne showed the competition a clean pair of heels as he beat off all challengers to romp home in a field-leading time of 19:12, a comfortable twenty seconds clear of second. This win sits alongside his other wins at locations including Kingsbury, Bedworth and Nant-y-Pandy, Wales, a grand effort from one of the most likeable members of the club. 

Chris Horton made his debut at a misty Sence Valley Forest Park near Ibstock and battled hard to win by ten seconds in a rapid 17:02, taking over a minute off his own V50 club record set the week before at Sandwell Valley. This was the fourth time he has broken the record since turning 50 a month ago and maintains his winning record of 2025. 

New signing Susie Stringer was in action at the aforementioned Bedworth course, putting in a fine PB performance of 23:36 to win by a minute over the three-lap Miners Welfare Park circuit, with teammate Lucy Marchi taking third in 24:48. Bill Gutheridge was the first Badger back in 22:32 and there were appearances from the likes of David Jenkinson, David Earp, David Grant, Sara Hawkins, Kate Rathbone, Mick Judd, Claire Bradford, Peter Mann and Fiona Reidy. 

Elsewhere, Glyn Broadhurst and Megan Griffiths took 4th and 3rd respectively in their gender categories at Faelledparken in Copenhagen, Denmark. Key man Broadhurst ran a quality 19:17, the second-quickest non-winning time from a Badger over the weekend. That distinction fell to the speedy Sam Starkey who clocked 19:00 for ninth place at Black Rocks parkrun near Wirksworth, a good confidence booster on his London Marathon journey. 

There was a top-ten finish for Rachel Crump, who took eighth at Vicar Water Country Park in 24:20, accompanied by Suzy Farrell and Badgers Ball Game captain Colin Lees. Jill Miller made the top ten at Kingsbury, chased around by Nicki Bowman and Leesa Dennis, with Lee Millership adding to his remarkable number of parkrun appearances.

Jack Burton-Peet took tenth overall at Tamworth Castle with a fine 20:02. Clare Carter went well in 27:41 and there were further good runs for Neil Thorne, Adrian Parkes, Paul Cooper, Andrew Thompson, Matt Smith, Wayne Repton, and Martin Graham. 

Paul Restall ran at Conkers, Ivana Babicova at Long Eaton, and Jim Cottom at Chasewater. David Craig appeared at Holbrooks to see his friend Adrian Payne take the win and cross-country guru Eamon Thawley was lording it up at a muddy Market Bosworth. 

Music maestro Adam McElhone continued his comeback with a run at Daventry and Matt Green ran a nippy 20:30 in a stacked field at Chalkwell Beach, Essex. Marvellous Merv Jones was at Severn Valley and Yvonne Faulkner-Grant and Zoe Yeatman combined for their 5K fix at Peel parkrun in Salford. At Marine Parade, Holly Smith ran her fastest time for two and a half years with a top notch 26:45, husband Andy a second behind with his quickest time for over a year. 

There were two runs away from parkrun, Wayne Repton taking four minutes off his 2024 time in the Naseby 1645 race, coming home in 2:10:49. Liz Peel battled a sore ankle to notch up her 66th career half marathon with her effort at the Birmingham Running Festival consisting of four laps of Sutton Park. 

Last but not least, at Battersea, London, Newham and Essex Beagles ace and second claim Badger, Matt Scarsbrook, rubbed shoulders with many of the top athletes in the UK and returned with an exceptional 31:12 in the Top Flight 10K race, over a minute and a half quicker than Dave Hill’s club record set at Wrexham 18 months ago.