November 2025 – biblical levels of rainfall, but no sign of an end to the hosepipe ban?!
First up, the final race in this year’s senior champs and a trip into Derbyshire for the BM Beast of Bamford on Saturday 15th November. The race is a fundraiser for the Bamford Recreation Ground & this year was only the 2nd year of its running, so they’re still getting the hang of things – run in conjunction with the longer Beastier of Bamford, I don’t think they expected as many people to turn up as did, which delayed the start by 20 minutes. So, on a cloudy, wet & windy day, we had 11 Harriers on the start line, with Tim Brook & Michael Sanderson needing to finish to ensure qualification for the final champs table – no pressure then! Paddy Needham continued his excellent form this year, gliding round in the mizzle to finish 5th overall in 1.09.03, which is a cracking time for the 9 mile/2165ft course. Close behind, it was a real battle, with fine margins deciding times & finishing positions. At checkpoint 6, Curtis Firth was 2nd HHAC, but he decided to follow the wrong vest coming into the hamlet of Aston & ended up taking a major detour on the road, moving him down to 6th Harrier, 22nd overall in 1.16.54! Gratefully accepting this unexpected act of generosity, we had Tim Brook (13th overall & 2nd MV40 in 1.13.58), Jamie Wood (15th overall in 1.14.47), Michael Sanderson (16th overall in 1.15.44) & Adam Sunderland (19th overall & 1st MV50 in 1.16.14) – packing them in for sure – shame there wasn’t a team prize! Sophie Cromwell had a great race, coming back 77th overall (13th lady) in 1.33.58 to bag maximum points & cement her place in the top 3 of the champs. It was then the battle of the super-vets, with Paul Fearns next back (112th in 1.46.36), followed closely by Jean Shotter (118th & 1st FV60 in 1.48.20), Rob Kersey (132nd & 2nd MV70 in 1.50.19) and Mark Henderson (149th in 1.56.03). There were 175 finishers, with the race being won by Jack Scott (the current Winter Spine record holder) in an impressive 1.00.46, whilst the ladies race was won by Catherine Williams of Sinfin RC in 1.15.58. Adam & Jean picked up their age category prizes (including an overly-large t-shirt), whilst the rest of us attempted to dry out with a pint & an excellent post-race pie!
A select few then de-camped into deepest Lancashire for Rossendale’s Lee Mill Relay on Sunday 30th November. After last year’s cancellation due to Storm Bert, the organisers will have been mightily relieved to wake up to a cold, crisp morning and the race went ahead without any problems, although there was some ice about early doors, and you still needed to pick your way through the bogs of doom on Jackson’s Moor (which some managed better than others)! The event consists of teams of 4, each running the 10.5km/340m leg solo and 87 teams started the day, with both of our teams doing really well against some tough competition. The MV40 team of Mark Wilson, Andy Shortt, Keith Baird and Adam Sunderland finished 25th overall & 4th MV40’s in an overall time of 4.14.30 (not bad for an average age of 54)! However, pride of place goes to the Mixed Team of Sophie Cromwell, Helen Haigh, Jamie Wood & Paddy Needham, who finished an impressive 13th overall & 1st Mixed team in 3.57.02, with Helen posting one of the fastest Ladies times, clocking 59.17, whilst Paddy stormed round to bring the team home in 52.26. Thanks to Jean Shotter for organising the teams & as she observed, we’ll have to go back next year, if only to return the hefty trophy!
This all means that the final Championship placings are confirmed & for the Men, it’s many congratulations to Paddy Needham, who has dominated this year’s champs, entering 11 of the 15 races available and amassing an impressive 239 points from his 7 qualifying races, as well as taking part in 4 of the fell relays and racing at another of the English Champs events. This year’s runners-up are Adam Sunderland, (who ran Paddy close, finishing on 221 points) and Michael Sanderson (178 points), so well done to them both. Honourable mentions also for last year’s champion Tim Brook (176 points), Curtis Firth (151 points) and Bob Dickinson (144 points), who all qualified, having completed the required 2 Long, 2 Medium & 2 Short races. For the Ladies, I believe we have a first, with the title being shared between Fran Whitworth (last year’s champion) and Helen Haigh, who both have 201 points from their 7 qualifying races! Close behind was Sophie Cromwell (the 2023 champion), who registered 187 points & could have sneaked the title if she hadn’t been gigging the night before the British Relays! Final table will be on the website soon.
In total, we had over 90 Harriers taking part throughout the year, either at races or at the fell relays, with 29 racing at least 3 times. We averaged 14 runners per race, with the biggest turnouts being at Ian Roberts (28), closely followed by 27 at the wonderful weekend away in May for the Fairfield Horseshoe! Where will it be next year? Watch this space! Finally, special mentions for Paddy Needham, Adam Sunderland, Mark Wilson and Andy Shortt, who took part in all 4 of the fell relays that were held this year – many thanks for making my job a little easier!
It was a month off for the juniors, so that just leaves The Stoop Rat Runs on Sunday 21st December to finish off this year’s champs. And in terms of the championships, Alice Parry (U17G) has already qualified, having completed the required 5 qualifying races, whilst Arthur and Florence Gibbs just need to finish at The Stoop to win their categories as well.
I’ve started planning next year’s Fell Champs & as with last year, the Section Secretaries/Captains are liaising to try & avoid too many clashes throughout the year. First up for the seniors, in a change to recent years, will be Lamb’s Longer Leg in January, followed by a return to the Mickleden Straddle in February. Entry to both of these races has just opened, and as there won’t be any entry on the day, please get your entries in early – check the Fellrunner website for more details. For the juniors, the Stanbury Splash Rat Runs in January beckon once more, followed by Hoppits Hill in February, which this year will be hosting the Yorkshire Junior Champs.
Good to see a few out & about, including Richard Anderson, Tim Brook & Annie Garside at Soyland Moor, (which Richard won outright by over 3 minutes, Tim was 1st MV40 & Annie was 3rd lady), Tom Heap, Keith Baird & Nick Helm at Shepherd’s Skyline, Paul Sammonds at the TFG Cheese & Crackers Trail (which he won), Alex Robinson at the Lakeland Trails Helvellyn 10k (which he won outright by over 2 minutes), Gill Greaves (one of this year’s Zero to Hero runners) at the Lakeland Trails Helvellyn 15k, Annie Garside at Dunnerdale (where she was 9th lady), Katie Walshaw at Harriers vs Cyclists, (where she was 3rd lady & 2nd FV40), Jim Durrans at the Coldwell 10 Trail, Amy Sanderson and Sophie Cromwell at Leg It Round Lathkil, (where Amy was 8th lady), Tim Brook at the Peak Raid Mountain Marathon (Alstonefield), where he placed 3rd overall, Adam Sunderland, Julian Rank, Andy Shortt & Jim Durrans at Too Cool For Pule, (where Adam was 10th overall & 3rd MV50 and Julian was 16th overall & 1st MV60) and Tim Brook & Stef Dickinson at the Stanza Stones 50 mile Ultra (Winter edition), where Tim was 2nd overall and Stef was 10th overall & 3rd lady.
Coming up in December, it’s the Mytholmroyd race on Sunday 7th, which is once again hosting the YVAA Fell Champs. We had nearly 30 runners there last year, so it would be great if we could get close to that number this time. And don’t forget it’s the Tinker Cup on Saturday 20th December. This is our oldest & most prestigious club race, so get yourselves entered! As it’s a handicap race, anyone can win & it’s a great atmosphere, whatever the weather. If you’re not able to run, then they still need plenty of marshals & helpers, so please let Diane Lee or Helena Croft know & they’ll find a job for you!
Finally, some local(ish) races over the next few weeks:
Gravy Pud (BS) – Tintwistle – Sunday 7th December
The Stoop (BS) – Haworth – Sunday 21st December
Bilberry Fields (AS) – Todmorden – Monday 29th December
Wormstones (AS) – Glossop – Wednesday 31st December
Auld Lang Syne (BM) – Haworth – Wednesday 31st December
Giant’s Tooth (BS) – Ogden, nr. Illingworth – Thursday 1st January
See you on a hill sometime!
Cheers,
Phil
