Blaydon Race, 9th June 2026
Mark Flynn gives an account of his first time gannin’ along the Scotswood Road:
“T’was the 9th of June, though the summers afternoon quoted in the famous song is now replaced by a summers evening in modern times. However, pre-race the evening felt far from summer as the good old British weather treated us to a bit of everything, and with 45 minutes to go before official start time, the vast turnout of Claremonters gathered at the iconic Millennium Bridge for the traditional team photo, before we scarpered for cover as one of the days many heavy showers hit. A few of our number ventured out from the shelter to warm up, all returned looking like that warm-up had taken place in the Tyne itself.
The running Gods however seemed to favour us, and as we arrived at the time to make our way to our designated starting pens, the sky began to clear. The start was delayed around 15 minutes for what I can only guess was because the lord mayor was hiding in Greggs waiting for the rain to pass, before starting the race with the traditional Blaydon Race bell.
Eventually the bell was rung and off we went, a 5000-strong hoard running their way along the quayside towards the Scotswood Road with a large contingent of Claremont Road Runners amongst the numbers, including our own super-Italian Roberto Marzo, fresh from a 4th place finish at the Priory 100km ultra (the man doesn’t rest).
For me this was my first Blaydon race and I was very glad to see the weather brighten as we set off. The Claremont contingent wasn’t only on the road putting one foot in front of another, but in the crowd cheering on every sky blue as they passed, which was a great boost to us all.
The run itself, measuring just under 10km, was just as iconic as the song and was enjoyed by all. Especially the ham and pease pudding sandwiches handed out alongside the finishers t-shirts at the end. As the results came in, a sky blue made an appearance in the top three females in their age category with our own Heather Steel continuing her streak of beating partner Paul, coming 3rd.”
Well done also to Charlotte Kerr, who ran a fantastic 5k PB of 23:29 in the Blaydon Junior Race.
| Position | Runner | Time |
| 86 | Harry Mawdsley | 33:14 |
| 168 | Mark Anderson | 34:55 |
| 316 | Roberto Marzo | 36:49 |
| 457 | Peter Noble | 38:28 |
| 467 | Till Weber | 38:36 |
| 472 | Heather Steel (3rd VW40) | 38:40 |
| 489 | Catherine Young | 38:47 |
| 559 | Laurie Johnson | 39:23 |
| 633 | Jim Crinnion | 40:07 |
| 663 | Aoife Campbell | 40:22 |
| 721 | Tom Oliphant | 40:51 |
| 854 | Paul Robinson | 41:54 |
| 869 | Harry Tracey | 42:01 |
| 974 | Aoífe Monaghan | 42:52 |
| 1020 | Mark Flynn | 43:08 |
| 1121 | Nicki O’Brien | 43:49 |
| 1228 | Antony Darne | 44:21 |
| 1280 | Rose Hawkswood | 44:42 |
| 1361 | Dean O’Brien | 45:11 |
| 1598 | Anna Round | 46:33 |
| 1630 | Howard MacLennan | 46:45 |
| 1705 | Cate Walker | 47:10 |
| 1728 | Lynne Cornell | 47:17 |
| 1971 | Ryan Thompson | 48:47 |
| 2025 | Lauren McQuillan | 49:06 |
| 2047 | Eddie Smith | 49:12 |
| 2240 | Lucy Ward | 50:09 |
| 2310 | Jenny Roberts | 50:31 |
| 2596 | Luke Woodend | 52:02 |
| 2660 | Aaron Mansell | 52:22 |
| 2775 | Zoë Jukes | 53:04 |
| 3393 | Susan Hillman | 57:05 |
| 3399 | Ailsa Ralph | 57:07 |
| 3527 | Cath Robson | 58:04 |
| 3642 | John Bell | 59:01 |
| 3696 | Max Ratcliffe | 60:55 |
| 4210 | Becky Webster | 65:28 |
| 4306 | Elizabeth O’Mahony | 67:23 |
Thanks to Tom and Alex for contributing over 100 photos between them (official photos still to come)!
