Martin Howards’s 1st U23 at the English champs

Kate Burge ‘Sea to Summit’ English Championships Fell Race

CVFR Youth and Experience triumph in the ‘Sea to Summit’

Martin Howard continued his winning spree on Saturday to finish 1st under 23 in the Isle of Man’s Kate Burge ‘Sea to Summit’ English Championship Race (32nd overall). The race’s strapline is “It will be hard…. good…. that means it’s worthwhile.”

CVFR’s Mark O’Connor, Martin and Bob Howard relaxing after ‘sea to summit’.

Martin was part of a dedicated Calder Valley contingent (which included his dad, Bob) to take on the 14k Manx challenge, with 1200m ascent, 6 control points, an obligatory dip in the sea and culminating in a summit finish at 2036ft.

270 runners took part in the ‘Sea to Summit’ which is held in memory of a keen and accomplished local fell runner, Kate Burge, who was tragically killed in 2014, while cycling home from work in the Isle of Man.

CVFR’s Mathew Roberts put in a great performance to finish 6th overall in a time of 1 hour 20 mins.

Karl Gray led the CVFR vets, with 1st Vet 45 (12th overall, 1:21h), followed by Shaun Godsman (2nd Vet 45, 18th overall). Mark Taylor and Stephen Edwards ensured Calder Valley took 4 of the 5 top places in the over 45s.

CVFR enjoying fellfest after Sea_to_Summit

Tim Ellis and Mark O’Connor finished 19th and 46th overall respectively. Stephen Morran was 3rd Vet 60 (83rd overall) and Bob Howard (perhaps the only father and son running?) finished 19th Vet 55 (174th overall).

Keswick AC had a good day in the Isle of Man with top two finishes for the men, Carl Bell (1:15h) and James Appleton (1:17h) and first woman, Hannah Horsburgh (1:31h).

Wasdale ‘Horseshoe’ Fell Race

Helen Buchan does more than her bit on Wasdale

CVFR’s Helen Buchan put in a storming run in the heat of the Lakes to finish 1st Ladies Vet 40 in the mighty Wasdale ‘Horseshoe’ Fell Race.

Helen Buchan 1st LV 40 at Wasdale

This 21.1 mile, category AL race, with over 9000ft of climbing (that’s 430ft per mile!) is not for the faint hearted, but pays dividends for those who make it through the 8 checkpoints including Great Gable, with the last climb being Scaffell Pike!

Helen described it as “THE best race in the calendar…what else can you ask for in a fell race?” In blistering heat, the Wasdale runners were told to carry their own water due to lack of rainfall in recent months. Helen said “we all set off with at least 1.5 litres, making one of the toughest races in the calendar even tougher!

If this wasn’t hard enough, a condition of getting a finishing time this year was dependent on picking up an item of litter. This was to make amends for the litter concerns last year (when Wasdale was part of English champs) which had placed the race in jeopardy this year. Helen went above and beyond, picking up an empty tin of Mackerel. Who has a tin of mackerel up a fell on a boiling hot day?!

CVFR’s John Allan ran the Wasdale race too, an incredible achievement only five weeks after completing his Bob Graham round.

BOFRA – Alva Games, The British Championship Hill Race

It was a busy Saturday with two CVFR runners also venturing up to Stirlingshire in Scotland to race in the Alva Games, British Championship Hill Race. With 1200 feet of climb in just 1.6 miles this race is charmingly described as “a hill that gets steeper and steeper as the summit is neared, with the addition of thorny gorse and a muddy gully as obstacles.”

Ben Mounsey finished fourth and reflected on “A VERY tough day at the office! I had to settle for 4th place at the famous Alva Games in Scotland this afternoon. Struggled on the climb and never got going from the start – you win some, you lose some! Alva is such a good race though and worth it for this photo. Huge thanks to both the BOFRA and Alva games organisers and congrats to deserved winners Josh Boyle and @kirst_hall #alvagames #BOFRA #inov8 #getagrip #gseries #fellrunning.”

Ben Mounsey BOFRA Alva Game Scotland

Congratulations to Stephen Smithies, who put in a great run at Alva Games to take 1st Vet 50 (13th overall).

Stephen Smithies 1st Vet50 Alva Games Scotland

– Calder Valley News Reporter: Eileen McDonach