Blyth Links 10K, 30th August 2022

The Blyth Links 10K is a beautiful run at the coast, courtesy of Blyth Running Club. It is also the first event in the North Shields Poly Grand Prix, where Claremont have two teams of 8 entered. In the past, Blyth used to very kindly share this 10K, timed training run with a number of other clubs, including Claremont. Unfortunately as things have grown, they now have to limit it to their own members and all who have entered the Grand Prix series organised by the Poly.

So the run was open to 16 of our members, and there was an excellent turnout of 13 of us.

It was a lovely evening for a trip to the seaside, and we set off on the path through the sand dunes in brilliant sunshine. There seemed to be a reluctance for runners to get to the front, so I started at the head of the field alongside Paul Robinson. It was a fast start and Paul soon opened up a gap on me, before we settled into a steadier pace as we headed south to Seaton Sluice. I was feeling pretty good as we went around the clifftop path towards St Mary’s Island and up the hill back to the main road, so I started to think of a good finish time. However as we went back onto the path through the dunes, I understood why. We were now running into a fairly brisk headwind that I hadn’t realised had been helping us along on the way out! It also seemed that there were now more ups than downs on the undulating path! So I slowed a bit and gave up all thought of catching the runners ahead of me.

The final section past the beach huts and around the bandstand is always further than you think, and I never have a sprint finish, but I got there in the end. I stopped my watch on 41:04, which was one of those annoying times – faster than I had expected, but leaving me to think that I should have been able to find another 5 seconds somewhere!

There were some good runs from the Claremont contingent – Tara Hipwood claimed a 10K PB – but unfortunately Jacob Easton had to pull out before the end.

There are two sets of results below. The first shows the times and positions in the race itself, and the second shows the Grand Prix positions after the handicaps have been applied.

Race Results
PositionRunnerTime
26Paul Robinson39:49
32Tom Tinsley41:04
38Laurie Johnson42:09
59Nicki O’Brien44:31
62Maria Duenas44:46
68Ben Hardy45:17
74Dave Roberts45:31
104Nina Jensen49:24
137Tara Hipwood53:20
142Luke Woodend54:12
197Lena Lou67:23
198Rose Hawkswood67:45
Grand Prix Results
PositionRunnerTeam
2Tara HipwoodThe Full Claremonty
9Dave RobertsThe Full Claremonty
22Maria DuenasRock’s Stars
45Tom TinsleyThe Full Claremonty
53Nicki O’BrienThe Full Claremonty
56Laurie JohnsonThe Full Claremonty
76Nina JensenThe Full Claremonty
99Paul RobinsonRock’s Stars
147Ben HardyThe Full Claremonty
155Lena LouRock’s Stars
156Rose HawkswoodRock’s Stars
Tom Tinsley -
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