Sam Barnes travelled West to take part in the Brighton Marathon. The race took place on Sunday 2^nd April and was Sam’s debut for the distance. A 10K race was also organised which meant that over 10,000 runners filed through the streets of this favourite seaside town.

A brand-new finish line for 2023 was set up at Hove Gardens, cheered on by huge crowds lining the 26.2-mile route.

Sam and 8447 other competitors set off at 09:45 on a glorious Spring like day from Preston Park. The marathon then followed an updated route, exploring new neighbourhoods in Withdean and Wish Park before finishing on Hove Lawns.

After the Finish, participants enjoyed the new Beach Village where they celebrated their achievement with charities and their supporters.

Sam ran a superb judged race at a distance that shouldn’t be underestimated. Sam clocked a great time of 03:23:32 to finish 795^th. The skies the limit for Sam who is showing great potential.

22-year-old Marshall Smith from Ashford AC, making his marathon debut, finished more than 12 minutes ahead of the field in a time of 2:24:07.

Annabelle Evans chose the Schneider Electric Paris Marathon for her maiden marathon.

The route took the thousands of runners past so many iconic sights such as the Champs-Elysees, Place de la Bastille, Bois de Vincennes, Bois de Boulogne, the Eiffel Tower, and the Arc de Triomphe.

The race was run chiefly on tarmac but there were stretches of cobblestones to negotiate. The elevation was mainly flat with a few hills exiting the tunnels and one close to the finish.

Annabelle performed admirably as she clocked a fantastic time of 03:37:54 to finish 13440^th. Annabelle ran a very mature race with very even 5k splits throughout. 

City Runs staged the 2^nd Power Run 5 & 10 mile multi terrain at Powderham Castle on 1^st April with a 10:30 start. The event was set in the beautiful private estate and took the runners on a tour of some of the estates gems, such as the Deer Park, Belvedere Tower, American Garden and the Old Plantation. The races start and finish were located in the castle’s courtyard.

Derek Skinner was the Trotters sole representative in the 10 mile challenge. Derek was surprised at the severity of the course but that didn’t deter him. Del clocked an impressive time of 01:29:20 to finish 31^st.

In the 5 mile race there were four Trotters on show. Stephanie Ross led the quartet home, posting a time of 00:56:28 to finish 71^st.

Sarah Blanchard ran a promising race on challenging trails. Sarah clocked a time of 01:05:26 to finish 114^th.

The other Trotters positions& times were: Claire Farrar (115, 01:05:56), Teresa Holmes (123, 01:08:06).

There were 145 finishers.

Christian Robinson jetted off to the Mediterranean to take his place at the Santa Eularia Ibiza Marathon.

The 6^th edition of this popular marathon took place on Saturday evening 1^st April. The race started at Ibiza and finished at Santa Eularia. The first half of the race was a gradual climb with a steady downhill to the finish culminating with a 6 mile loop to Es Cana. The traffic free roads were lined with DJ’s and live bands playing. The amazing atmosphere generated from the locals will live in Christians memory.

Christian had trained well for the event so therefore suffered from some pre-race nerves!

Christian ran a solid race to finish in 235^th place in a time of 04:19:11.