By Paul Dalton
As is often the case, many members started their weekend with a parkrun on Saturday morning, and we saw the club represented at the Darlington South Park, Hackworth, Jubilee, Sedgefield, South Shields, Town Moor and York events.
At Darlington South Park parkrun, Shelley McCormack celebrated her 50th parkrun by running a Personal Best (PB) for the event (26:25).
At Hackworth parkrun, Gareth Kyle registered a new best time for that course, finishing in 18:23, while at Sedgefield parkrun, Sandrine Hewitt was also setting a new PB of 29:08.
Later that Saturday, three members attended the Charles Stuart Open Graded Track Meeting at Middlesbrough Sports Village.
The meeting was hosted by Middlesbrough AC (Mandale) and offered the opportunity to race over a range of distances.
Our runners all opted for the 1500m race, with John Surtees finishing in 4:28.97; John Firby crossed the line in 4:38.62; and Richard Campbell coming home in 4:54.59 (PB).
On Saturday evening, the first of the Sunderland City Races took place, with Stuart Joyce taking part in the Sunderland City 5K. Stuart had a strong run, finishing in 19:29 (PB).
Sunday morning saw the remaining Sunderland City Races, with members taking part in both the 10K race and the Half Marathon.
In the 10K race, Peter Smith was first home for the club, crossing the line in 51:45.
Peter was followed by David Stothard, who completed the race in 55:20. Richard Tonge finished the race in 1:01.43, with Ian Stothard coming home in 1:11.00.
In the Half Marathon, Simon Turner was first home for the club, finishing in 1:52.50, with Brett Lambert not too far behind in 1:56.39.
Kirsty Cameron was our final runner home, crossing the line in 2:17.50 (PB).
Preferring the option of an off-road run, and the lure of a free slice of pizza, two members headed to the Pizza 8K Trail Race, which took place in Errington Woods, Marske, and was hosted by Muddy Roads.
Paul Dalton was first home for the club, and finished in first place overall, completing the undulating race in 31:26.
Clare Stradling had a strong run, improving on her time from last year, finishing in 45:49.
If you have any queries about the activities of Aycliffe Running Club, or are interested in joining the club, visit ayclifferunningclub.org.uk, or contact the club’s secretary, Donna, at [email protected].
