Farringdon Cross-Country Relays, 14th September 2025

Yay, it’s cross-country time again … and the Farringdon Relays got the 2025-26 season got off to a great start this weekend. Now the traditional season opener, the 1.8 mile course provides a bit of everything to whet the appetite for the longer, probably muddier, challenges to come. Mainly on grass, there is a nice trail woodland section, enough up and down to keep it interesting and the infamous ditch / stream to add a bit of excitement. Despite the recent rain the ground was hard, and many runners chose to run in road shoes rather than trails or spikes.

We had two teams of ladies and one of men – with 3 per team this year, where it had previously been 4 runners for the men. As well as the adult relays, there are individual junior races and Charlotte Kerr was representing Claremont in the under-13s. As well as being a step-up in age category, Charlotte also had to compete against the boys as it was a mixed field. She ran very well, starting steadily and progressing through the field in the second half of the race.

Then it was the turn of the ladies, who were led off by Sarah Williamson and Lena Lou. Sarah, making her competitive debut in a Claremont vest, put in a very strong performance to hand over to Hazel Juggins in a good position. Continuing her latest superb form, Lena knocked a full 5 minutes off her previous best time on this course, before Jenny Roberts took over. I was watching the first 2 legs next to the aforementioned ditch, and it was amazing to see the various different techniques – from the leap across without breaking stride, to the very cautious stop, then slowly descend and climb out – but it was Jenny’s graceful leap that earned praise from the attendant marshal! Zoe Jukes and Cagla Erdas brought the teams home.

First leg for the men was Laurie Johnson who, showing every sign of getting back to his best after all of his injury woes, knocked 3 seconds off his last outing at this event 2 years ago. Laurie handed over to another Claremont debutant in Mark Flynn. Mark is proving himself to be a real competitor who gives everything when he races, and it was just the same here. Waiting in the pen ready to take over, I could see the determined look on his face as he approached the line!

Running the final leg can sometimes be a lonely experience, but that was not the case this time. I started just behind a runner from the Poly and overtook him before the first bend, and could see that I was gradually closing on the next 2 runners as we headed down towards the woodland trail section. The path is quite narrow here and I had to bide my time to overtake, but I did manage to squeeze past both before being back on the grassy path. As we approached the ditch, the next runner ahead of me virtually stopped, obviously unsure of how to cross, so I was at his back as we climbed out the other side, but had to wait for a straight bit to get past. It was a far more straightforward affair to gain another, and my final, place, as the Tyne Bridge Harrier ahead of me pulled up and started to walk! As I climbed the biggest hill on the course, I knew that nobody else was catchable, so it was a case of trying to maintain a decent pace and not be caught by any fast finishers. This I did, and finished very tired but happy, knowing that I had given all that I could. I was even happier when I found out that I had run 1 second faster than last year.

The cakes from the Claremont bakery were well appreciated – it wouldn’t be a club race without them! Next up, the real thing at Thornley Hall Farm – can’t wait!

U13 Girls
Position	Runner	Time
30 (13th female)	Charlotte Kerr	13:42

Women
Position	Runners	Time
30	Sarah Williamson Hazel Juggins Zoe Jukes Team Time	12:58 14:51 15:26 43:15
32	Lena Lou Jenny Roberts Cagla Erdas Team Time	14:45 14:38 15:00 44:23

Men
Position	Runner	Time
43	Laurie Johnson Mark Flynn Tom Tinsley Team Time	11:03 14:21 11:57 37:21