The weather was perfect for running today—clear skies and dry conditions, though a bit chilly to start. HRR had teams at both Colchester half marathon and Essex 20.
COLCHESTER HALF MARATHON
Halstead Road Runners delivered a strong performance at the Colchester Half Marathon, with several personal bests, consistent pacing, and determined efforts across the field.
Ray Sharman led the team home with an excellent time of 01:36:45, securing a 1-minute personal best. Perry James crossed the line in 01:37:47, achieving a 9-second personal best and improving his 2022 course time by 10 minutes. John Day put in a solid performance to finish in 01:39:30, with Danielle Cutmore following in 01:43:20 and Glynn Stone in 1:48.50. Pacing efforts played a key role in the day’s results. Tracy English successfully paced the 1:50 group, finishing just under target in 01:49:52. Michael Yeatts followed in 01:56:21, with Mandy Humm finishing in 01:57:50. Caroliena Cameron crossed the line in 01:58:35, ahead of pacers Aidan Kelly and Gavin Ripton, who completed their duties for the 2-hour group with near-identical times of 01:59:35 and 01:59:36. It was Nathan Young’s debut race in club colours and he finished in 02:10.28. Gary Wiles has been training hard for his first half marathon and aiming to finish within 02:20 he was thrilled to complete the race in 02:18.05. Laura Smith crossed the line in 02:18:54, supporting the Alzheimer’s charity alongside friends. Overall, it was a strong team effort from Halstead, with standout performances, well-executed pacing, and personal milestones achieved.
ESSEX 20
The Essex 20 saw more strong performances, with many using the race as a key training run ahead of their spring marathons. Taking place at Carver Barracks the course is 5 laps of the airfield, the bonus being the aeroplane shaped strava map. Reece Hearn was first home for Halstead in 02:07:42. Chris Lloyd followed closely in 02:08:02. Rachel Rising, wearing an Essex vest, finished in 02:11:29. She, along with Rachael Roughan, who achieved a 2-minute personal best with a time of 02:30:00, helped secure a ladies’ bronze county medal for the HRR Ladies team. Luis Betancourt Canas has been struggling with an injury the past couple of weeks, despite this he finished with a brilliant time of 02:39:21. Ross Kemble using it as a training run for his ultra later in the year, finished in 02:57:42. Sarah Waddington recorded a 5-minute personal best with a time of 03:09:00, she was HRR’s third lady making up the bronze medal team.
A special shout out to Sam Wolton for keeping Sarah focused to achieve her PB, he finished just behind in 03:09:01. Mark Darling using it as a training run for an upcoming ultra later in the year, finished in 3:23.35. Paul Gerrard also using it as a training run completed in 03:37:50.
Brilliant performances all round!!
