The Ilkley Moor fell race is a short fast race over 5 miles with 1250 feet of climbing and on a mild day with the ground drying the course records were there for the taking at the 23rd running of this classic race. It starts on a good track just off Wells Road, rising steadily to pass The Tarn and it then crosses Backstone Beck then up between the famous Cow and Calf Rocks. A steep climb up to the Pancake Stone then all that precious height is lost as you plunge downhill on a rough narrow path. It’s a haul back up the hill on the other side of the beck, before swooping down the Rocky Valley on a stony path.
A stiff climb up the side of the Valley to a large cairn is followed by a long stretch along the skyline above Ilkley on rough terrain.
 Some more rough terrain then leads to an easy climb on a path through the bracken followed by a fast traverse, before the final giddy plunge down to the finish!

Local runner Tom Adams of Ilkley Harriers was race winner in a blisteringly fast time but just outside the record. Tom was well clear of second placed Graham Pearce of Pudsey and Bramley Athletic Club who had a similar advantage over third placed Ben Abdelnoor of Ambleside Athletic Club.

Ladies race winner was Emma Clayton of Bingley Harriers smashing the long standing 1996 record in a time of 43.12. In second place was Jo Waites of Calder Valley Fell Runners less than 3 minutes behind. Jo is still making progress after a season of frustrating injuries and if fully fit would have given Emma a much closer race. She was still happy with her run and walked away with the first veteran prize. Third place went to Sally Morley of Ilkely Harriers.

Stile photo - Tom Rattray, Wadsworth Local Photography Group

Last week’s frozen rain threatened Saturday’s 20 mile Wadsworth Trog fell race with cancellation, but a slight rerouting of the start to avoid a farm track better suited to luging than running allowed the race to go ahead. Competitors were warned that conditions were treacherous, with every rock, stile and blade of grass on the moor coated in a thick layer of ice, however 135 starters saw the conditions as nothing more than an additional challenge on an already challenging race.

Most runners leaving Old Town proceeded to slip, slide and shuffle their way round the course, however in an incredible show of grit Calder Valley’s James Logue once again romped home in first place, seemingly unaffected by the icy conditions and a full ten minutes ahead of the second place finisher, Todmorden Harriers’ Jon Wright. Wright seemed similarly unphased by his arctic challenge, and rushed off home to start work, unlike Logue who made himself comfortable with a pint of ale while the rest of the competitors completed the race, the final finisher crossing the line more than two and a half hours after Logue.

Among the women there was hot competition, with some star runners on the starting line. Calder Valley’s Anne Johnson was beaten into third place by Bingley’s Aly Raw in second and Dark Peak’s Nicky Spinks in first. In the women’s team competition, retirements left only two teams in the race. In the event Abbey Runners were especially deserving of their first place prize with one of their runners finishing the race despite a fall which left her leggings in tatters. Unperturbed, and with a coat round her waist for modesty, Leanne Hague completed the race and helped her team to victory over local Todmorden Harriers by just one point.

In the men’s team event, Dark Peak narrowly beat Todmorden Harriers into second place, while Calder Valley’s James Logue, Steve Smithies and Simon Bourne took the Vet’s Team prize.

Sunday brought the aptly named Winter Hill fell race, the second club championship race for Calder Valley. Perhaps put off having seen conditions on the Trog the day before, only nine Calder Valley runners turned up for the race, where the course proved to be almost as icy, but with the additional discomforts of low cloud and melt water. Calder Valley’s Karl Gray came in third place overall to secure maximum points in the championship., with Bill Johnson and Graham Hill claiming second and third place championship points. Helen Fines finished only hundredths of a second behind Hill, taking the prize for first woman, with team mate Jo Buckley finishing second woman.

Night Score – 31^st  January

The Northern Lights didn’t appear but 46 runners did!  Wow, this is a fantastic turnout for what could be quite a niche event. The furthest control was only 2km from the community centre. But, enough climb ( this is the ‘international capital of gravity’ after all) and a complex path network on a clear map meant plenty of choice for all exploring the nooks and crannies of the Cragg valley.

Thanks to you all for a really upbeat evening.

Keep navigating everyone. Jon Emberton

Night Score Results 2012

In glorious sunny conditions and snow covered moors Calder Valley held their annual winter handicap. The handicap gives any member the opportunity to win this trophy. 32 club members braved the 5 and half mile run up to and around Stoodley Pike via Errindgen Moor. Given the conditions the moor was in slightly better condition underfoot than the usual mud bath. Catherine Plane, a fairly new member to the club, led the handicap from start to finish but had to dig in deep not to be caught by some of her club mates. A stunning run from Karl Gray saw him break the current handicap record to record the fastest time on the day of 36 mins & 52 seconds … a time most of us can only dream of!!! Sharon Godsman had one of her best runs on the handicap to take the fastest ladies prize in a time of 53 mins & 42 seconds. Abit of socialising with a beer and some butties in the Shoulder ended a very good club event indeed. Well done all.

For more photos click here!

In form Captain Ben

Saturday saw the smooth delivery of yet another event arranged by LDWA organiser Alan Greenwood, however as a Long Distance Walkers Association event, the Hebden Challenge is not strictly a race, but instead more of a social event combined with a personal challenge. Those undertaking the 22 mile route, or the shorter 15 mile option, round the moors above Mytholmroyd and Hebden Bridge, were rewarded with a fine array of refreshments around the route and at the finish. Comments from many participants suggest it’s the prospect of pie, peas and mulled wine that gets them round the course and back on the entry list the following year.

Not all participants found time to enjoy this fine fayre, with fell runners aiming to run the route as quickly as possible. By the first check point, Calder’s on form Ben Mounsey and last year’s first man home Gavin Mulholland had established a strong lead of 10 minutes. The pair continued to run together until mile 20 ‘to make it more social’ explained Ben. Mortals among us may wonder how anyone finds the energy to talk at such a speed, but in a role reversal to last year, it was Ben who had saved enough breath to push on ahead for the finish, with Gavin urging him on to break the 3 hour mark.

Finishing well within 3 hours in a new record time of 2 hours 53 minutes, Ben looks to have already completed his new year’s resolution to do better over long distances. With high winds and mud underfoot to contend with this is a fantastic achievement and bodes well for the fell running season ahead of him at home and internationally.

Gavin finished 2 minutes behind Ben, still a 9 minute improvement on last year’s finishing time, and Adam Breaks came in third in 3hours 11minutes, making it a Calder Valley 1, 2, 3 in the long route finishers. First woman home on the long route was Calder’s Jo Waites, continuing her return to form finishing in twelfth place overall in 3 hours 31 minutes.

On the shorter route, relative newcomers Vicky Butcher and Melanie Nicholson had a great run, finishing substantially closer to the front than the back of the field – an impressive achievement which shows that they have definitely graduated from the beginners’ group they started with just a year ago.

If you think this sounds like fun, why not do as Vicky and Melanie did and come along to Calder Valley’s next ‘have a go day’ this Saturday, 28th January. See ‘New Years Resolution’ on this home page for details.

NUMBER 1 – Have a go at Fell Running with CVFR
28th January 2012

Meet Mytholmroyd Community Centre (see map at the bottom of this page) between 10.00 and 10.15 am

Come along and dip your toe in the mud and see if this is the sport for you. We’re holding a have a go day at the same time as our club winter handicap race (where the slowest runners set off first and the fastest runners have to try and catch up with them!), so you’ll get to see club members of all abilities chase each other to Stoodley Pike and back. We will lead you on a run along the same route, but will pace it so that everyone runs at their own speed and no one gets left behind. We’ll tailor the distance on the day, so you won’t have to run all the way to Stoodley (5.5 miles there and back) if it’s too far for you, but we will push you to do the best you can!

You should have a reasonable level of fitness – we will be walking briskly up hill (we might try an run a little bit!) and then running along the flatter sections – but you don’t need to be a runner to come along. Lots of our members started out as mountain bikers, cyclists, or just keen long distance walkers.

You don’t need any fancy kit, but do come dressed for the weather. It will be colder and windier on top of the moor than it is in the valley, so please bring a windproof (and ideally waterproof) top, hat, gloves, and trainers that you are prepared to get muddy. It is also a good idea to wear leggings rather than tracksuit bottoms, as tracksuits can get very heavy when wet. Fell or trail shoes will give you more grip than road shoes, but are not essential.

You might also want to bring some warm dry clothes to put on afterwards so you can join us in the pub to celebrate your efforts.

Any questions, please call Hannah on 07531 240 966.

Fell running: Possibly the cheapest sport there is.
Definitely the most fun you can have in a bog.

Hot Toddy photos courtesy of Keith Parkinson

Some of Calder Valley Fell Runners hit the hard tarmac at the local ‘Hot Toddy’ road race hosted by Todmorden Harriers on Tuesday 27th December. The off road club showed that they can certainly hold their own against some of the fast roadies with a fine results from Alex Whittem placing a fine 5th. The run of the day came from Calder’s young stalwart Max Wharton who pushed Whittem all the way. He lost ground to his older team mate as the pace and effort of the race caused him to slow up with some slight stomach discomfort and this allowed Whittem to beat him by 6 seconds to take 5th place. Steve Smithies continues to show improvement and certainly won’t have put on any pounds over the Christmas period with his impressive racing record with racing 3 times in 7 days. Sally Newman running in her road club colours also ran well to take the 1st lady vet 50s prize. It was a fine performance by Jo Waites at the Boxing Day Otley Chevin Trail race to take second lady and first lady vet 40 only 18 seconds behind Rachael Bamford of the host club Otley. This race was won by Triathlon star Jonnie Brownlee but it nearly had an upsetting end as one of the marshals was too busy taking Brownlee’s photo and forgot to stop a passing car as Brownlee crossed the road. Thanks goodness the car did miss the Olympic hopeful.

With snow covering the fells Christmas Wishes came true for some of the members of Calder Valley Fell Runners at The Stoop race on Sunday. The sun shone but with it was a chilly day for the 256 starters on this 8k fell race. Conditions underfoot varied from an ice rink to deep frozen, energy sapping bogs. Race winner young Sam Tosh of Rossendale Harriers found his fair share of the bogs and mud but managed to slip slide his way to take a great victory from fell legend Ian Holmes, past race winner on countless occasions. An improving Alex Whittem was the best placed runner from the local club taking a great 3rd place and just 30 seconds behind Holmes. Calder’s Steve Smithies is getting back to race fitness with a top 20 place and 4th V40 overall. The ladies race was dominated by the Calder ladies with Helen Fines taking the honours as first lady home. After a frustrating year due to injury this will be a good year end confidence booster for the Calder ladies captain. Anne Johnson was hot on her heels in 3rd place and also took the top lady vet 40s prize. Team mate Jo Buckley, who has had a very busy successful running year took time to enjoy the race and placed 4th lady and in doing so helped her club mates to a team victory.

Recent Junior Success

Calder Valley juniors rounded the year of the way they have run all year with two excellent performances. After an invite from the race organiser of the Hurst Green Turkey Trot that he found impossible to ignore Max Wharton raced through the cold wet conditions to finish second. Max could have no complaints about not winning as on the day the only other runner able to beat him was non other than International marathoner Andi Jones.

Meanwhile closer to home Edan Whitelaw decided to round of his U14 career with a tilt at Max’s course record for the quarry runs over at Haworth. Despite icy conditions and finding himself with no one able to give him a race Edan managed to record the 4th fastest time over the race route just 17secs outside of Max’s record. Had the conditions been better under foot then who knows whether he would have got it. Non the less a great effort and showing that he is also running extremely well at the moment.