With race cancellations across the weekend, we were lucky the Birtley Relays went ahead.
Birtley Relays
A chilly day but perfect conditions for a cross country relay.
We fielded six teams across the three races.
Our two vet men’s teams featured in race one; Paul Taylor and John Rippon led the teams and both ran well in the condition.
On second leg and making his debut, Dave Allan ran a strong leg putting the team in a good position. Mike Russell was hot on his heals having taking over from John.
Third leg was a mixed bag, I was unable to finish due to injury but, Gary Young also on debut had a cracking run flying through the field making up several places.
Race 2 saw all three of our ladies teams grouped together. It was our Vet Ladies who crossed the line first and pick up a silver medal in their age category – huge well done to Felicity Smith, Mary Hall and Andrea Banner.
Our senior ladies team of Bella Russell, Heather Donald and Imogen King ran very well also, finishing close behind the more experienced vets team.
Our second vets team of Melissa Bateson, Lisa Allan and Lynne Michelson followed. A baptism of fire for Lisa who was also making her debut in the Elswick vest.
In the final race of the day, our senior men’s team of Joe Horner, Pete Dawson and Rich Houghton ran very well in a strong field.
Huge thanks and well done to those who took part.
Other news
A slight change to the club championships races – we’re bringing forward the start of the champs to include the Cowbell 5km.
The Cowbell 5km will replace our previously advertised internal 5km in October. The October slot will remain free and will be used if a scheduled race is cancelled or clashes with a XC.
The Cowbell 5km is scheduled for the 8th of March. Click for information
Note: if the cancelled XC’s of Driridge Bay or Prudhoe are rearranged for a date close to this fixture we’ll revert back to the October Internal 5km.
Future Fixtures:
2024 North East Harrier League:
Saturday 19/1/25 NEHL Wrekenton
Sunday 2/2/25 NEHL Sherman Cup/Davidson Shield – Temple Park
Saturday 1/3/25 Alnwick Castle
Sunday TBC – Druridge Bay
Saturday or Sunday TBC – Prudhoe
See facebook posts if you want to be registered or speak to Ben and Andrea.
Relays
Feb/March – NECAA Signals (Road)
30th March – Northern 6 & 12 Stage Relays – Redcar (Road)
18th April – Good Fridays (Road)
April – NEMAA Jarrow (Road)
April – Neptune (Mixed)
14th May – Wallsend (Road)
June – Weetslade (Road)
July/August – Gosforth (Road)
September – Farringdon (Trail)
November – Norman Woodcocks (Road)
Club Champs:
May – Pier to Pier (off road)
June – Rest
July – Pie and Peas (10km)
July – Sunderland (5km)
August – Watergate (5km)
September – Rest
October – to be used if any fixtures are cancelled
November – Heaton Memorial (10km)
November/December – Gibside Fruit Bowl (off road)
January – Rest
February – Sherman Cup/Davision Shield (off road)
We’ll look to add an internal race (probably a 5km) if any races are cancelled.
We’ve replaced the 10 mile race options which are hard to find and awkward to fit into a race schedule with ‘off road’ options – this is to encouraged XC participation.
Rules:
best x2 results from each race category (5km, 10km and off road)
Useful website for races: http://www.northeastraces.com