Blaydon Race, 9th June 2025

Twas the ninth of Joon, and therefore it must have been time for the 43^rd annual Blaydon Race. There was some trepidation about the pre-race gathering, as the last baggage bus departed at 6:20pm, leaving runners with over an hour to stand about in less than ideal conditions. As it turned out, despite the dreariness, the rain didn’t fall too heavily, it wasn’t really that cold, and those that were more concerned about freezing up before the run chose to adorn themselves with an array of sartorially elegant bin bags.

It was the 4^th year of the post-Covid, Quayside-based start, which some traditionalists would tell you isn’t as good as when the route began in town, partly because they don’t find the early stages as enjoyable, but also because it skews away from the lyrics of the titular 163 year old song!

It made little difference to me, as I only debuted in 2022, this being my 4^th consecutive year gannin’ along the Scotswood Road. After the now traditional group photo on the Millennium Bridge, we shuffled our way into the pen, to stand shoulder-to-shoulder for the best part of half an hour. The air swirled with music, chatter, and the musty smell of deep-heat and warm bodies. Just before half-past seven, we were encouraged to sing along to ‘The Blaydon Races’ (which always surprises me with just how many verses there are), before the big bell rang, and we were off.

The initial part of the race was the usual funnelling along toward Skinnerburn Road, adjacent to the Tyne, everyone trying to find pace and rhythm as runners tried not to jostle too much in the crowded space. Once through the business park and up the first, and longest hill, we were onto Scotswood Road, which eventually turns into an extended downward incline, allowing people to pick up a bit of speed/recover from the hill. A luminous Alex loomed in a lay-by on the left, taking photos and calling out encouragement.

As expected, the conditions actually proved quite favourable for running, as the rain wasn’t too oppressive, and was preferable to some previous years where the ‘beautiful’ sunshine left everyone a little too scorched by the time we reached Scotswood Bridge. As promised, Gill had made it from the club to shout support from the middle of the bridge. By this point, I had been fighting a familiar stitch since the early part of Scotswood Road, so the cheering provided a welcome injection of spirit. I was also made aware that Sarah and Tom were practically on my shoulder, which added some inter-club motivation to not drop off too much!

The bridge often feels like a milestone on the course, before you realise that there’s still a bit further to go than you’d think… an out-and-back, plus a couple more unwelcome inclines to slog up, before a final bowl downhill, exiting the highway into the urban ‘metropolis’ of Blaydon. The final stretch sees the road lined with roaring crowds, as you try to summon up one final burst. For the first time in my personal experience, the course hadn’t been tweaked from the previous year, so there was a familiar dash through a brief wooded section, with good ankle-rolling potential, before emerging onto the grassy field, the finish line in sight.

Damp and breathless, I took the proffered t-shirt, goody bag, ham & pease pudding stottie and beer, the bag this year a snazzy canvas tote. 2 minutes slower than last year seemed about right, about commensurate with last month’s Pier to Pier run. A gaggle of us headed off toward the buses back to town, for a belated celebratory pizza. Unfortunately, people finishing further down the field were caught in a spell of heavier rain while waiting a frustrating age for buses; not the happiest end to their day at the races.

There were many excellent Claremont performances, with a few course PB’s. Harry Mawdsley predictably headed up our contingent with a 44^th place finish on his Blaydon debut, out of a nearly 5000 strong field! Mungai Wairia is revelling in his seventies, notching up his 4^th consecutive age category victory in just over a month. Tom Tinsley joined him on top of the podium, while Mark Anderson was agonisingly beaten into silver by 2 seconds on chip time, despite crossing the line 11 seconds ahead of his nearest rival.

The Blaydon Race doesn’t offer the prettiest, or easiest route, but it is obviously iconic, and delivers on atmosphere. This will no doubt see it thriving into its 44^th year and beyond!

Position	Runner	Time
44	Harry Mawdsley	32:18
89	Mark Anderson (2nd V50)	33:26
178	Roberto Marzo	35:22
284	Alex Taylor	36:56
383	Peter Noble	38:05
462	Sarah Kerr	38:56
470	Jim Crinnion	38:58
491	Laurie Johnson	39:08
515	Tom Tinsley (1st V65)	39:24
552	Paul Robinson	39:39
596	Catherine Young	40:01
718	Heather Steel	40:59
941	Holly Porter	42:38
1038	David Lydall	43:20
1039	Nicki O’Brien	43:20
1044	Aoife Monaghan	43:23
1069	Mungai Wairia (1st V70)	43:35
1112	Julie Cross	43:52
1529	Lynne Cornell	46:38
1660	Lucy Ward	47:29
1666	Howard MacLennan	47:32
1699	Lucy Keating	47:43
1716	Tara Hipwood	47:46
1754	Anna Round	48:02
????	Ana Prodan	48:19
1866	Aaron Mansell	48:38
1949	Luke Woodend	49:09
1966	Jenny Roberts	49:15
2179	Niamh Garratt	50:34
2216	Eddie Smith	50:45
2387	Rose Hawkswood	51:53
2450	Liz Denyer	52:13
3641	Becky Webster	60:11
3742	Shilpa Iyanna	61:10
3937	Ann Smith	63:28