Following the death of former Masterchef contestant, Matt Campbell, who tragically collapsed at the 22.5 mile point at the London marathon last weekend and later died in hospital, the running community up and down the country vowed to complete Matt’s marathon in his memory.

The ‘finish for Matt’ campaign has continued to grow this week raising over £300,000 for the charity Matt was running for, the Brathay Trust. Ashford & District club member Filiz Salih, who also ran the London marathon last weekend, organised an event on Saturday morning with nearly 100 runners taking part, completing 3.7 miles around Victoria Park.

Ashford Park Run – Saturday 28th April 2018

It was another busy morning for A&D at parkrun Ashford with near perfect conditions to run in.

Jon Pearce finished 1st in 18m:39s followed by a trio of club mates with Jon Wells, Paul Moses and Richard Baker crossing the line in 19m:38s (4th), 20m:20s (5th) and 20m:28s (6th) respectively.

Chris Boyce was up next in 20m:45s (8th), Rob Barton in 21m:06s (12th) and Mark Attenborough, in his 125th parkrun, finished in 21m:07s (13th).

Rob Carpenter, fresh from his marathon efforts last week in London, finished in 21m:38s (22nd), Carl Ireland was next up in 21m:59s (23rd), James Chapman in 22m:51s (34th), Mark Carlton 22m:55s (36th), Philip Bridges 22m:58s (40th), Stuart Nunn 24m:17s (55th) and Aaron Homewood in 24m:24s (58th).

After a tough London marathon last week, Scott Lynch returned to the shorter distance finishing in 24m:42s (64th), Mark Cleworth followed in 26m:02s (86th), Mark Boorer in 26m:31s (92nd), Chloe Green set a new personal best in 26m:39s (95th), Shaun Snowwolf 26m:44s (98th), John Fidge 27m:00s (104th) and Terry Sellen returned to the shorter stuff in 27m:20s (110th).

Simon Jackson was next up in 27m:44s (121st), Shelly Blake 28m:35s (145th), Ann Fidge 28m:38s (146th), Sue Reader 31m:49s (189th), Rachel Jenkins 34m:21s (213th), Julie Foster 44m:03s (250th) and Emma Jenkins 44m:46s (251st)

Meanwhile around the country, Gill O’Connor completed the Riddlesdown parkrun in 23m:48s (34th), Christine and Nigel Costiff ran the Melton Mowbray parkrun in 22m:47s (19th) and 31m:48s (98th) respectively and Andrew Noble ran the Long Eaton parkrun in 18m:43s (8th).

Christine Costiff also picked up 1st prize for her efforts at the Hastings Half Marathon last month winning the masters national category.

By Mark Carlton

Brighton Marathon – Sunday 15th April 2018

Almost 20,000 competitors lined up to take part in the 2018 Brighton Marathon with Ashford & District RRC providing a large contingent of runners. Some participants were completing their 1st marathon, such as Jon Pearce, who came home 1st for the club in 3hrs:14m:07s.

Richard Baker was next up on his return to Brighton in a time of 3hrs:32m:33s. Rik Holden completed his 2nd marathon in a week finishing in 3hrs:37m:12s followed by Keith Haynes in his return to competitive running in 3hrs:38m:12s.

Anna-Lisa Stiffell was A&D’s 1st women home in 3hrs:58m:45s followed by Sandi Mortimer, who had battled injury during her training to finish in 4hrs:00m:43s. Hazel Turner completed a trio of female finishers on her debut at this distance, crossing the line shortly after in 4hrs:01m:33s.

Rob Barton, also competing in his 1st marathon, finished in 4hrs:01m:58s with Ricky Hickman next up in a personal best of 4hrs:13m:01s. Claire Green returned to Brighton this year and finished in 4hrs:24m:03s. Robin Butler suffered a nasty knee injury at the 17 mile mark but managed to jog to the finish and collect his medal in 4hrs:27m:53s.

Aaron Homewood set a personal best time of 4hrs:30m:02s despite struggling in the latter stages. Gill Pragnell, also struggled with knee problems but managed to finish in 4hrs:34m:08s. Sarah Homewood, on her debut at this distance and Steve Hickman, competing in his 147th marathon, made sure that all A&D runners were under the 5 hour mark finishing together in 4hrs:50m.

Invicta East Kent Open Meeting – Thursday 12th April 2018

Chris Boyce and Ryan Edwards took part in the Invicta East Kent Open Meeting running in the 5000m. Boyce finished 6th overall in 19m:25s and Edwards finished in 9th in 19m:37s.Ashford Park Run – Saturday 14th April 2018

Trevor Kay took the honours at this weeks parkrun finishing in 17m:50s with club mate Dan Green close behind in 18m:25s finishing 3rd. Jon Wells was next up in 18m:51s (5th) with Paul Moses in 19m:21s (7th).

Chris Boyce just finished out of the top ten in 20m:28s (11th) with Scott Lynch in 20m:36s (12th) and Mark Attenborough in 20m:58s (16th). Becky Macey was 1st women home for the club in a new personal best of 21m:23s (18th) with Elodie Paviot, fresh from a great performance at the Paris marathon finishing in 22m:39s (32nd).

James Chapman was next up in 22m:58s (35th), Mark Carlton in 23m:20s (41st), Will Whittington 25m:25s (65th) and Mark Harrison 25m:27s (66th).

Keith Lynn finished in a personal best of 26m:12s (78th) in his 50th parkrun, Mark Boorer in 26m:13s (79th), Jaclyn Kay 27m:16s (103rd), Chloe Green 27m:55s (118th), Sue Reader 28m:46s (138th), Ann & John Fidge 28m:58s (141st) and 28m:59s (142nd), Becky Hodgson 30n:41s (161st) and Emma Jenkins 36m:42s (235th).

Elsewhere around the country, Andrew Noble ran the Dulwich parkrun in 18m:20s (23rd), Terry Sellen completed the Tilgate parkrun before he embarks on the London marathon next week in 25m:09s (126th) and Anthony Brown finished the Folkestone parkrun in 21m:55s (32nd).

By Mark Carlton

Paddock Wood Half Marathon & Kent Spring Half Marathon – Sunday 8th April 2018

Ashford & District’s Carl Jones ran a superb half marathon at Paddock Wood on Sunday as he broke a club record that had previously stood for 24 years.

Jones finished 47th overall in a time of 1hr:16m:39s to take the long standing Mens Veteran (40-49) club record. Paul Moses finished next in a personal best time of 1hr:26m:45s (155th) followed by another personal best with Carl Ireland finishing in 1hr:35m:22s (331st).

Paddock Wood seemed to bring out the best as the PB’s continued to flow with Becky Macey, 1hr:39m:05s (421st), Stuart Nunn, 1hr:44m:49s (622nd), James Phillips, 1hr:46m:42s (687th) and Heather Johnston, 1hr:56m:05s (997th) all achieving best times at this distance.

Will Whittington was next to cross the line in 1hr:59m (1139th), whilst Keith Lynn also achieved a PB in 2hrs:05m:59s (1320th). Mark Boorer, who finished next in 2hrs:14m:12s (1585th), selflessly sacrificed his race to help injured Sophie Edmonds cross the line in the same time after damaging her ankle at mile 6. Shelly Blake and Ellen Willis completed A&D’s line up finishing in 2hrs:43m:44s.

Closer to Ashford, the Kent Spring Half Marathon took place on Sunday along the quiet roads of Ashford, Westwell, Charing and along a section of the Pilgrims Way with Jon Wells finishing in 1hr:45m:03s (25th) and Lucy Johnstone in 2hrs:15m:06s (83rd).

Meanwhile, in sunnier climes Trevor Kay recorded a personal best time of 1hr:21m:56s in the Pollença Half Marathon on the Balearic Island of Majorca.

Paris Marathon – Sunday 8th April 2018

The first big spring city marathon took place on Sunday with 4 A&D club members taking part in the Paris Marathon. Rik Holden finished 1st for the club in warm conditions in 3hrs:33m:07s with Elodie Paviot, in her 1st attempt at the distance, finishing in 4hrs:09m:57s on home soil. Edward Rodger was up next, crossing the line in 4hrs:36m:07s and Lucy Cresser finished in 5hrs:22m:02s.

Testway Ultra – Saturday 7th April 2018

Steve Hickman took on the 44 mile Testway Ultra. The trail course runs from the Northern Hampshire border to Southampton. The extremely muddy conditions made the final 14 miles very tough, but Hickman finished in 10hrs:05m.

Salisbury 10 Mile – Sunday 8th April 2018

Verity Dunbar completed the Salisbury 10 mile road race which follows a scenic route north of Salisbury in 1hr:28m:24s.

Chatham 10k – Sunday 8th April 2018

Adrian Moody and Lisa Jones were A&D representatives at the Chatham 10k, Moody finished 24th in 42m:22s and Jones in 1hr:00m:59s (234th).

Ashford Park Run – Saturday 7th April 2018

A&D’s Jon Pearce won the latest parkrun event in a personal best time of 17m:13s on Saturday. Dan Green followed in 18m:35s (4th) with Mark Attenborough in 21m:13s (14th).

Scott Lynch completed a century of parkruns in a time of 21m:54s (17th) and James Chapman finished in 23m:09s (29th). Will Whittington and Terry Sellen were next up in 25m:06s (47th) and 25m:09s (48th) respectively. Claire Green was 1st lady home in 25m:23s (50th) and Chloe Green finished in 27m:40s (76th).

Lucy Johnstone crossed the line in 27m:45s (79th), Simon Jackson in 27m:50s (81st),  Emma Jenkins 34m:57s (146th) and Becky Hodgson in 35m:16 (149th).

Meanwhile Jon Wells completed the Maidstone parkrun in 18m:53s (5th) and Andrew Noble ran the Rutland parkrun in 18m:47s (12th)

By Mark Carlton

Folkestone 10 – Friday 30^th March 2018

A rather soggy Hythe greeted a large contingent of Ashford & District runners for the 35^th Folkestone 10 miler on Good Friday. The runners were open to the elements with no respite along the route which runs along the exposed Hythe to Folkestone shore line.

Robin Butler came home 1^st for the club in 1hr:06m:17s (72^nd) with Mark Attenborough just a couple of minutes behind in 1hr:08m:18s (93^rd) and just shy of a personal best.

Christine Costiff was 1^st lady home for the club as well as 1^st in age category in 1hr:13m:50s (156^th) whilst Becky Macey and Brad Bunk recorded personal bests of 1hr:15m:16s (170^th) and 1hr:16m:10s (185^th) respectively.

Gill O’Connor was next up in 1hr:16m:26s (190^th) followed by Neil Woodham in 1hr:16m:35s (193^rd), Stu Nunn in 1hr:18m:08s (220^th) and Mark Carlton in a personal best of 1hr:18m:44s (227^th).

Next up was Sophie Edmonds, in her 1^st 10 mile race, finishing in 1hr:21m:34s (271^st) followed by Frances Hunt in 1hr:26m:27s (327^th), Heather Johnston in a PB of 1hr:26m:34s (332^nd) and John Fidge, who also PB’d in 1hr:33m:12s (441^st).

Keith Lynn crossed the line in 1hr:35m:29s (476^th), Sarah Homewood in a personal best of 1hr:34m:14s (489^th), Sue Reader in 1hr:37m:46s (496^th), Filiz Salih 1hr:37m:19s (500^th), Helen Weeden 1m:hr:38m (506^th), Ann Fidge in a pb of 1hr:38m:28s (507^th), Emma Jenkins in her 1^st 10 mile race in 2hrs:08m:23s (663^rd) and Becky Hodgson in 2hrs:08m:25s (664^th).

Ashford Park Run – Saturday 31^st March 2018

Trevor Kay finished 3^rd in the latest Ashford Parkrun with a time of 17m:42s and was followed by Carl Jones in 4^th in 17m:57s. Dan Green took 7^th place in 18m:42s and Jon Wells 9^th in 19m:13s.

Scott Lynch was next up in 22m:31s (26^th), James Chapman in 23m:23s (37^th) and A&D junior Liam Woodham in 23m:35s (41^st). Terry Sellen crossed the line in 25m:05s (59^th), Will Whittington in 25m:16s (63^rd), Gill Pragnell 25m:48s (79^th), Lisa Jones 29m:19s (143^rd) and  Chloe & Claire Green in 30m:31s (158^th).

Meanwhile, around the country, Andrew Noble completed the aptly named Nobles Parkrun in 24m:22s (27^th), Dave Hunt competed in the Castle Park run finishing in 27m:37s (102^nd) and Andrew Taylor finished 17^th in the Melksham park run in 24m:52s.

By Mark Carlton

Hole Park Dualthlon & Hole Park 10k – Sunday 25th March 2018

Club Chairman, Paul Moses took 1st prize in the Hole Park Sprint Duathlon on Sunday, putting in a particularly strong performance on the bike. Moses completed the 1st 5k run in 25m:12s followed by 20k on the bike in 39m:38s and a final 5k dash in 26m:19s to finish over 2 minutes ahead of the rest of the field in 1hr:31m:11s.

Meanwhile, Mark Boorer took on the Hole Park 10k trail run and finished 8th overall in 56m:37s.

London Landmarks Half Marathon– Sunday 25th March 2018

Sunday saw the 1st running of the London Landmarks Half Marathon. The race took 10,000 competitors on a tour of the major city attractions, starting in Pall Mall and finishing near Downing Street.

Becky Macey finished 1st for the club in a personal best time of 1hr:40m:33s with Rob Barton, in preparation for the Brighton Marathon finishing in 1hr:42m:06s. Filiz Salih also completed the course in 1hr:59m40s.

SVN Charity Challenge – Sunday 25th March 2018

Anthony Brown and Rhian Shrimplin, completed 20 miles of the Saxon, Viking and Norman Charity Challenge at Betteshanger Park, Deal. Both finished in 3hrs:04m as Shrimplin continued her build-up to the London Marathon next month.

National Schools Cross Country Final – Saturday 24th March 2018

A&D junior Tom Green represented Kent at the National Schools Cross Country Finals at Prestwold Hall, Loughborough. Tom came an impressive 50th in the 2k event out of 265 competitors and as a scoring team member, helped Kent pick up the bronze national team prize.

Ashford Park Run – Saturday 24th March 2018

Chris Boyce lead A&D home in the latest parkrun event. Boyce finished in 20m:18s to finish 8th with 4 club mates chasing him down. Dean Bracken finished in 20m:46s (10th), Mark Attenborough 20m:54s (11th), Paul Moses 21m:05s (12th) and Scott Lynch 21m:10s (13th).

Carl Ireland was next up in 21m:35s (18th) with Neil Woodham in 21m:56s (21st). Elodie Paviot continued her great form with a new personal best of 22m:08s (23rd) and finishing as 1st female overall.

Stu Nunn crossed the line in 23m:32s (36th), John Fidge in 25m:47s (66th), Lucy Johnstone in a PB of 26m:56s (85th), Keith Lynn 26m:57s (87th) Shelly Blake 29m:18s (116th), Ann Fidge 29m:50s (129th) and Emma Jenkins 37m:09s (188th).

By Mark Carlton

Hastings Half-Marathon – Sunday 18th March 2018

Despite the wintry weather forcing organisers to cancel races up and down the country, many in the south-east went ahead as planned, including the Hastings Half-Marathon.

With a sharp, stinging easterly wind , the notorious climbs around the coastal course proved to be more a challenge this year, but Ashford & District RRC performed well with some impressive times with all club members managing to finish in sub 2 hours.

Robert Latala stormed home in 1hr:13m:13s finishing a highly respectable 5th place overall and Scott Lynch battled the cold to finish in 1hr:33m:13s (189th). Christine Costiff was A&D’s 1st lady home and also 1st in category in 1hr:38m:52s (339th), with Hazel Turner, returning from injury, finishing in 1hr:45m:11s (558th).

Aaron Homewood crossed the line just behind in 1hr:46m:57s (624th) with Ingvild Drake and Ricky Hickman hot on his heels in 1hr:47m:11s and 1hr:47m:19s respectively. James Philips was next up in a personal best of 1hr:51m:13s,Rhian Shrimplin finished in 1hr:51m:57s (833rd), Edward Rodger in 1hr:52m:14s (868th), Dave Hunt 1hr:54m:36s (956th) and Mark Cleworth 1hr:55m:47s (1013th)

Canterbury Riverside 10k– Sunday 18th March 2018

Similarly, the easterly wind made the Canterbury Riverside 10k troublesome, running the 1st 5k into the wind. The runners had to contend with snow covered grass, icy patches and large muddy puddles throughout the course which runs alongside the River Stour.

Paul Moses came home 1st for the club and 1st in category in a time of 40m:26s (10th) with Adrian Moody in 43m:32s (28th). Neil Woodham finished in a personal best time of 45m:49s (38th), Mark Carlton in 49m:58s (67th) and Sophie Edmonds in a personal best of 50m:23s (72nd).

Windsor & Eton 20 miler – Saturday 17th March 2018

Gill O’Connor completed the Windsor & Eton 20 mile race which took place at Dorney Lake Rowing Centre at Eton College. The exposed, looped course gave no protection from the relentless wind and snow but O’Connor battled through to finish in 2hrs:42m:15s.

Ashford Park Run – Saturday 17th March 2018

Ashford & District RRC dominated the top of the leader board at the latest parkrun on Saturday. Jon Pearce finished 1st in 17m:33s with Dan Green 2nd  in 18m:57s. Jon Wells finished 5th in 19m:42s with Dean Bracken completing his 100th park run in 20m:19s (6th). Paul Moses crossed the line in 20m:55s (8th) and Chris Boyce in 21m:12s (9th).

Mark Attenborough was next up in 21m:35s (11th), Neil Woodham and Carl Ireland finished in a dead heat in 21m:49s (14th), Stuart Nunn in 23m:43s (27th), James Chapman 23m:50s (29th), Will Whittington 25m:31s (51st), John Fidge 26m:36s (63rd), Simon Jackson 27m:28s (77th), Terry Sellen and Keith Lynn in 27m:43s (78th) and 27m:44s (79th) respectively, Filiz Salih 27m:57s (82nd), Chloe and Claire Green both in 30m:40s (116th), Becky Hodgson 33m:12s (140th), Jeremy Chambers 37m:26s (163rd) and Shelly Blake 38m:42s (166th).

Meanwhile Andrew Noble travelled to the Rosliston parkrun completing the 5k course in 19m:49s and finishing 3rd overall.

By Mark Carlton

Steyning Stinger – Sunday 4th March 2018

Steve Hickman and Dave Hunt travelled to the small town of Steyning in Sussex for the 17th running of the Steyning Stinger.

With the cold conditions easing the big thaw posed a greater problem as the runners  faced the hilly off-road marathon course. Dave Hunt battled through the mud to finish in 4hrs:59m:10s in 104th position whilst Steve Hickman, running the event for the 16th time, finished in 5hrs:24m:44s in 140th.

SVN – Sunday 4th March 2018

Unfortunately the thaw didn’t quite reach Kings Wood in Challock as Anthony Brown and Rhian Shrimplin competed in the Saxon, Vikings and Normans Mega Challenge. Similar to other SVN events, the race takes the form of multiple laps measured to 4.37 miles and competitors complete as many loops as they wish within the 6 hour time limit.

The thick snow coupled with an undulating course made this a tricky event with Anthony Brown completing 17.5 miles in 3hrs:01m:43s and Rhian Shrimplin finishing just behind in 3hrs:07m:19s.

Saucony Cambridge  Half Marathon – Sunday 4th March 2018

A large field of 9000 runners competed in the Saucony Cambridge Half Marathon on Sunday despite the recent bad weather. Ashford & District’s Jon Wells completed the course in a time of 1hr:31m:34s in 549th place.

The Vitality Big Half – Sunday 4th March 2018

The 1st Vitality Big Half, organised by the same team who run the London Marathon, took place on Sunday. The half marathon, which was won by Sir Mo Farah started at Tower Bridge and finished in Greenwich. A&D’s sole representative was Ingvild Drake who completed the course in 1hr:47m:18s.

By Mark Carlton