Graydon Widdicombe travelled to Exmouth on the evening of Tuesday 1st February to take part in Round 5 of the Run Exe Exmouth 5-mile race series, organised by City Runs.

This race is held on a flat course, taking place on Exmouth seafront, and the route is 2x-out-and-back along the pavement. Although potentially a fast course, on Tuesday there was a strong headwind for each outward leg, and a tail wind for the return legs, making conditions challenging.
Graydon has only raced two 5-milers before with the last one being back in 2018, but managed a 2.5 min PB on the night scraping under 32mins with an official time of 00:31:59, for 27^th position. There were 54 finishers. Before the race he was hoping for a bit quicker than that, but the conditions were tough, and he has to be pleased with a PB.
The winner, well known Tom Merson from Exmouth Harriers, managed a fantastic 00:25:10 and was flying along. Meanwhile, FV55 Cathy Newman managed 00:32:38 for an incredible 95% age grading on the night. The last round of the race series takes place on Tuesday 1st March.

On Sunday 6th February, The Portland Coastal Marathon took place, alongside a Half and a 10K.

Four Trotters travelled to Dorset for the event. The weather conditions were not ideal, with 40-50 mph head winds to test not only their physical strength, but also their mental toughness.
The route followed the Portland section of the South West Coast Path.
Going by their times, they all passed the test with flying colours.
Roger Hayes and Derek Skinner were determined to add yet another Marathon to their mounting haul Roger finished in 12th place, clocking a fantastic time of 04:32:12. Roger won the 55-59 age category for his considerable efforts.
Derek, competing in his 55th Marathon, struggled with a stiff back in the last 10 miles, but fought on to post a time of 05:31:36 to place him in 29th spot. There were 51 finishers. Roger and Derek agreed that this was the windiest weather they have ever had to endure!
Karen O'Brien and Sue Tremlett decided on down scaling to the Half, which showed their wealth of experience. They ran together and ran solid races. They finished 104th and 105th respectively, a second apart, in a time of 03:10:07.

On Sunday 6th February, the 2nd Club Championship race of the season took place in Newquay, Cornwall. Four Teignbridge Trotters made the trip to the North Coast to take part in the 10K, organised by Newquay Road Runners.

This event was the 2nd in the Cornish Grand Prix Road Series, therefore attracting runners from all around the South West.
The course was billed as being a fast course, but at the end of mile there was a severe climb. 3 miles of either downhill or flat followed with one ascent at mile 6. The weather was not ideal with a strong gusty winds, which fortunately kept the rain away!
The Clubs leading runner was Ian Langler, posting a superb time of 00:41:10 to finish 87th overall. Chris Andrews put in a great performance, finishing 367th, while clocking a time of 00:54:43.
Dominique Harcourt, making her Club racing debut, produced a battling effort in tough conditions. Dominique clocked a time of 00:56:14 to take 412th place. Stephanie Ross chased her team mate home, finishing in 421st position, crossing the line in 00:56:41. There were 738 finishers.
The race was superbly organised and the marshals were hugely supportive along the route. The goodie bag was well stocked, including a NRR scarf with the Club emblem.

On a busy week for Graydon Widdicombe he travelled to Dorset on Sunday 6th February to take part in the 29th edition of Blackmore Vale Half Marathon.

The race was organised by Blackmore Vale Lions Club, and their website mentions “the infamous last mile”, which seemed ominous!

On the drive up, there was torrential rain, but the race started in the dry, although it was very windy throughout the race. The start of the event was in a field, before taking runners out on the undulating circular route on the roads near to Bishop’s Caundle, and finishing back on the field. Graydon was aware of the ‘sting in the tail’ of the race, but was relatively pleased with a time of 01:33:57 for 74^th position. There were 239 entrants.

Afterwards, there were bacon balls, coffee and cakes, which went down very well before the drive back to Devon.

Jim Donovan celebrated his birthday by clocking a superb time in Axe Valley Runners’ annual Axmouth Challenge.

The event, on Sunday 6 February, had three races: 1-mile, 5-miles and 9-miles. Never one to shy from a hilly race, Jim opted for the 9-mile distance and was the Club’s sole representative.

Superbly organised and very friendly marshals, the races started with a tough climb and the underfoot conditions were of a mixed terrain including some very muddy stretches. There were excellent views to enjoy and the races tested the mettle of the finest runners. The weather was good, although there was a 25mph headwind to contend with at times.

Jim recorded a time of 01:23.21. Runners’ efforts were rewarded with complementary hot soup, a bacon butty and cakes.