Week Ending - 2025/09/14

BADGER BESTIES BOSS LOCAL PARKRUN SCENE

It was very much a case of parkrun or bust, as they say, for long-time Badger buddies Dave Jackson and Glyn Broadhurst, as they conspired to take the spoils at two of the parkruns closest to the club’s North Warwickshire base this weekend. An audacious double was planned whereby one would tackle the tricky terrain of Kingsbury Water Park while the other would attempt to become King of the Castle at Tamworth. Pint-sized ladies' man Jackson packed his pistons of doom into his Fiat Panda and headed to Kingsbury, where he proceeded to give a masterclass in 5K racing, speeding back comfortably in first place with a time of 19:04, the fastest parkrun of the weekend. In addition, it gave the fun-loving lethargio his 12th triumph at the Water Park, one of the highest totals in the event’s 540 run history. 

Meanwhile, up the road at neighbouring Tamworth Castle, long-serving Broadhurst arrived, surprising numerous people as his parkrun travels have taken him to far further flung destinations than Tamworth lately. Regular runners took one look at the sight of the one time V40 club marathon record holder and resigned themselves to defeat as Broadhurst piled on the pace to storm home in a dominant 19:34. The result means he has been first to finish at 16 different venues now, an incredible feat of fastness, not to mention dedication to staying fit and challenging for honours in his late forties. His total of 353 parkruns is bettered only by three Badgers, all of whom are much older than the Manchester United follower, an impressive record.

These two fine fellows weren’t the only ones making their mark on Saturday morning as Matt Green continued his season to remember with a 10th-place finish at Kingsbury. Youngster Dan Ash weighed in with a new personal best time with a terrific run of 21:28. At Tamworth, Megan Griffiths got to the giddy heights of third place with her rapid 23:35, and at Battlestead Croft, Burton on Trent, Rachael Browne and Sharon Jackson took 4th and 7th places respectively. 

Bedworth saw Lilly Wilson record yet another PB as her year goes from strength to strength. The 13-year-old sped back in a superb 25:07 for 5th-placed lady over the recently re-routed four-lap course. Nick Miles cashed in on his Great North Run fitness boost with a season’s best run at the Eden Project in 25:45, and there was satisfaction in the Cox household after dad Mark and daughter Mia both made the top ten before tucking into one of their favourite breakfasts. Over at Oaklands, Sam Starkey ran a swift 19:46 to end up 5th overall.

There was some race action on the Sunday at the Lichfield 10K, a tricky and very undulating course starting and ending in Beacon Park. Almost 800 runners made the event a sell-out operation, and five Badgers toed the line at 10:30 in the morning. Chris Horton was first back in fourth place overall, winning a voucher for being the first V50 athlete to finish, his time a tidy 35:35. Neil Rose battled hard to a superb new personal best time of 44:05, over a minute quicker than his old record, and Bill Gutheridge was pleased with his efforts which rewarded him with a time of 45:34, good enough for a spot in the top 100. Lee Talbot and Mark Cordiner-Barton both went well, finishing a second either side of 57:22.

At the Worcester 10K, Maggi Savin-Baden helped herself to a gold standard time with an excellent run of 59:12. In the half marathon distance there, daughter Anna ran a creditable 2:38:26 following a knee injury sustained during the ski season and in-form Dave Purvis ran a huge six minute PB with his rapid run of 1:40:46. Also tackling the half marathon distance, but this time in Stratford upon Avon, Carl Ford ran 2:22:04, his first half for fourteen years.