The Bournemouth AC squad for the May 5 consisted of 14 finely tuned athletes who were ready for action
With both the men’s and ladies’ teams at the top of their respective divisions, the yellow and blue army made the short trip over to Canford Heath for the next fixture of the Dorset Road Race League season, the May 5, hoping to keep it that way. With no teams out for the North Dorset Village Marathon though, Wimborne AC had picked up the win in the men’s second division and they were looking like a real threat, with two wins and two 2nd place finishes thus far. Hence, it was important for the Bournemouth AC men to deliver if they wanted to maintain pole position.
Unfortunately there was a fixture clash on the day, with the Netley 10k in the Hampshire Road Race League happening on the same day. That meant they’d have to pool their resources to cover both races, with the men’s team also pushing for promotion to the top flight in the Hampshire Road League as well.
The club brought six of the best ladies to the table
Hence Ben Collins, Barry Dolman, Mike Akers, Chester Clarke and Grzegorz Kazaniecki were bound for Netley. Rich Brawn had a friend’s surprise birthday party to attend in Northolt that afternoon so couldn’t make it to Netley and back in time so he opted for the May 5. Joined by Ricky Brennan, James Hulbert, Tom Ralph and four other men, they had enough for a competitive team plus several reserves.
The Bournemouth AC ladies were also out in numbers, having won two of the four fixtures so far this season. They had Katie Gunn and Emma Caplan forming part of a formidable attack, along with Debbie Lennon, Julia Austin, Caroline Rowley and Louise Price. Only three scorers were required for the ladies’ second division.
The start of the May 5
The race was organised by Poole AC and they had brought a strong looking line up to the table, including serial race winner Jamie Grose, Luke Terry, Dave Hicks, Rob Doubleday and John Bassinder.
Twemlow Track Club also had a fairly strong side out with Chris Wood, Jez Bragg, Richard Swindleburst, Edward Crawley and Lee Dempster in the mix.
The race began with a lap around the track
As for the women, Vicki Ingham was chasing her fourth race win of the season. Hayley Martin of Poole AC and Georgina Povall of Egdon Heath Harriers were also contenders and former BAC star Gemma Bragg was also lining up for it.
Emma Caplan, Ricky Brennan and James Hulbert
The race starts and finishes with a lap around Ashdown Athletics Track. The rest of the course is on roads and pathways round the Canford Heath area, with quite a few mild undulations. Rich Brawn, Ricky Brennan and James Hulbert had all raced at the Alton 10 the previous weekend, which was Hampshire Road League fixture. It had been a roasting hot day then which had caused them all the suffer somewhat, especially since it was a tough hilly course.
Tom Ralph, David Crowther and Tim Hughes
Thankfully the conditions were better on the day of the May 5 and it was quite overcast and not particularly warm. There was a bit of a breeze but aside from that it was ideal for running.
Jud Kirk with Julia Austin and Louise Price in the background
Julia, Caroline Rowley and Louise
Caroline and Lou
Katie Gunn completes her lap around the track
David Crowther gets his race underway
Debbie Lennon gets her engine revved
Louise Price starting her race
Rich Brawn leads the charge for BAC
After performing quite poorly at the Alton 10, finishing two minutes slower than he had the previous year, Rich Brawn wasn’t overlay confident ahead of the May 5. He was hoping it might just have been due to the hot conditions but he’d felt incredibly weak that day and that worried him.
After a lap around the track, Rich gets ready to hit the road
He’d looked at this splits from the same race two years ago when he ran really well so he knew roughly what to aim for. It soon became apparent that he wouldn’t be able to match that run. Going through his first mile in 5:46, he soon found himself creeping closer to the six minute mile mark on his second split. The first half of the third mile is pretty much all on a slight incline which turns it into a bit of a grind in the end. You do get to come back down after though.
Knowing that is fourth mile was his slowest last year, Rich was prepared for it to be the same again. This time round he really struggled though and was down a 6:19 for that split which he was really disheartened by. He knew whatever happened in the last mile, he’d had a bad run. When other athletes had overtaken him, he’d had no fight in him either so just had to let them go.
Rich approaches the finish
The only thing that made him feel slightly better about it was that he’d finished only just behind Richard Swindlehurst who had run a sub 2:40 in the Manchester Marathon. Crossing the line in 17th place, Rich had recorded a time of 29:20, which was over a minute slower than his previous May 5 time.
Rich claimed 17th place
Ricky Brennan and James Hulbert are quite evenly matched so they can help keep each other on their toes during races. Ricky was marginally ahead of James at the May 5 but as they came down the finishing straight, James was only a few seconds behind Ricky.
Ricky went over the line in 29:58 which put him in 24th place and James crossed the line in exactly 30 minutes, which saw him take 26th position. Only super-vet Julian Critchlow of Purbeck Runners was between them. He wrapped up the Male 60 win in 29:59.
Ricky Brennan was the second BAC man over the line
James had ran it pretty well, with his splits being fairly even throughout the course of the run. His first mile was a 5:43 but that is the fastest, flattest one. After that it was a 5:56, a 6 minute mile, a 6:10 and then a 5:56 to finish.
Jamie Grose cruises in for the win
Unfortunately for the Bournemouth AC men, by the time Ricky and James had made it to the finish, Wimborne AC had already had four finishers. They had Tom Williams who was 5th in 28:09, Jack Burrows who was 9th in 28:39, Louis Verdi who came 15th in 28:58 and Mark Savage who was 20th in 29:42.
That had easily sealed a win for them in the men’s second division. Bournemouth AC needed one more man in to complete their team and secure 2nd place.
At the font of the race, Jamie Grose had proved far too strong for anyone else. He followed up on his wins in the Bournemouth Bay Run 5k and 10k, the Marnhull 12k and the Upton Summer Series with another impressive victory. His time of 26:13 which put him close to a minute and half ahead of teammate Robert Doubleday.
Robert made it to the line in 27:39 which made him 1st Male 40. Poole Runners star Rob Arkell interrupted what would have been a Poole AC one-two-three to take 3rd place in 27:46. That meant Dave Hicks had to settle for 4th with his time of 27:54 but that was enough to net him top Male 50 honours.
Emma Caplan arrives at the finish
Twemlow Track Club pair Jez Bragg and Chris Wood were 6th and 7th, recording times of 28:15 and 28:21 respectively. Luke Terry was Poole AC’s fourth man in when he arrived in 8th place in a time of 28:31.
Corey Stone was Egdon Heath Harriers’ first man in, taking 10th place in 28:45. Poole Runners pair Tom Andrews and Joe Godden claimed 11tth and 12th positions with their times of 28:50 and 28:53. Giles Heaman had the power to take 13th place in 28:55 before John Bassinder completed the race win in the Dorset League for Poole AC. He finished 14th in 28:57 and was 2nd in the Male 50 category.
Emma was 4th female and 1st in the F45 category
Leading the charge for the Bournemouth AC women was Emma Caplan and she had been 3rd placed lady until Georgina Povall picked her pocket during the lap round the track at the end. There was only a few seconds in it on gun time but on chip time, Georgina took 36th place in 30:34, with Emma having to settle for 4th female in 30:41.
It was still a good run from Emma and she was still 1st in the Female 45 category but she didn’t get a prize for that for some reason. She was a bit disappointed about getting overtaken so close to the end as well.
Katie Gunn giving her all
The next woman over the line was Emma’s Bournemouth AC teammate Katie Gunn. She’d ran the Gateshead Half Marathon in 1:27:12 a couple of weeks prior to the May 5 and had looked in brilliant form on the Tuesday night training sessions. She clocked a time of 31:06 which put her 43rd overall and her average pace was 6:14.
Vicky Ingham did indeed seal the 1st female spot once again, getting round in 29:46 which put her 21st overall. Hayley Martin was the next woman to come in, clocking a time of 30:14, which put her 29th overall.
David Crowther comes in to complete the race
Gemma Bragg was 6th placed lady and 1st in the Female 35 category with her time of 32:17 and that put her 60th overall. Julie Wargent of Egdon Heath Harriers was 7th female and 72nd overall in 33:21.
Tom Ralph and David Crowther arrived in very close proximity, with Tom crossing the line in 35:01 and David given a chip time of 35:03. On gun time there was only a second between them though and it had been a very good battle. They’d finished 96th and 97th.
Keeping to a good pace for the first 5k, Tom clocked a 6:53, a 7 and a 7:01 for his first three splits. He started to struggle a bit after that though, recording a 7:18 and then a 7:15 for his last two miles. He’d completed the scoring team for the Bournemouth AC men and ensured they took 2nd place in the second division ahead of Westbourne who weren’t far behind.
David crosses the line in 35:08
There was a great battle going on between Heather Khoshnevis of Littledown and Eleanor Rollett of Dorchester RIOT for 1st place in the Female 55 category and in the end it was Eleanor who shaded it, crossing the line in 35:51, with Heather coming in to take 111th place in 35:58. They were 12th and 13th females.
Debbie Lennon completed the scoring team for the BAC ladies
That meant Debbie Lennon had to be content with 3rd in the Female 55 category when she arrived in a time of 38:33. Debbie has been struggling for form of late and wasn’t particularly enamoured with her performance.
She hasn’t really been able to put in any consistent training recently though, due to illnesses, holidays and other distractions. Hopefully that will change soon though and she’ll rediscover he mojo. Debbie finished 134th overall and was 20th female.
That was enough to seal the win in the ladies’ second division for Bournemouth AC, with Wimborne AC taking 2nd and Purbeck Runners 3rd. It was a third win of the season for the BAC ladies and they lead the way so far, with Purbeck Runners in 2nd and Wimborne AC 3rd.
Jud Kirk reaches the finish
Making it round in 37:26, Jud Kirk finished 128th overall and was and was 5th in the 65-69 category for the league. Two of his rivals in that category finished ahead of him, with Colin Bird of Egdon Heath Harriers finishing 115th in 36:11 and Nigel Haywood of Purbeck Runners taking 124th in 36:59.
It was another impressive run from Tim Hughes
One man who has been steadily improving his running is Tim Hughes. He’s been working hard in training to run at a certain goal pace and its been working. That resulted in a PB of 48:56 at the Round the Lakes 10k. He ran 40:48 last year at the May 5 so it was going to be interesting to see how much he’d improved since then.
The answer was, quite dramatically. Crossing the line in 38:14, he’d shaved two-and-a-half minutes off that previous time. Coming away with an average pace of 7:45, Tim was over the moon with that and pleased to see the evidence that his training was paying off. That put Tim in 132nd place and 21st in the Male 50 category.
Caroline Rowley was in her first league race for many years
Julia Austin hadn’t raced since the Hampshire Cross Country League fixture at Kings Park so it was nice to have her back in the fold. She was running the May 5 for the third time, finishing in 145th place and 27th female in a time of 39:44. That put her 6th in the Female 55 category.
Another Bournemouth AC member who hasn’t been around much lately is Caroline Rowley. She’d been living in Marseilles though so that was understandable. Now she was back though and made her long awaited return at the Garmin UK Trail Running Festival where she featured in the Half Marathon.
Caroline was running without a watch
Since she’d left her watch charger on the bedside table back at her place in Marseilles, she wasn’t running with a watch so couldn’t keep an eye on her pace. Instead, she was running to feel, which is kind of nice in a way. Registering a time of 41:05, Caroline claimed 159th place and was 33rd lady over the line. She’d also finished as the 7th fastest female 45.
It was a second consecutive race weekend for Louise Price after the Collingbourne 10k the previous weekend. That was the race in which Tamzin Petersen took home the trophy for 1st female and finished 3rd overall. Luckily the BAC pair turned up at the right time after missing the start in the 2023 edition.
Louise Price heads for the line
At the May 5, Lou finished just after her former Bournemouth AC teammate Helen Ambrosen. Helen registered a time of 43:50 which put her 189th overall and she was 50th female and 3rd in the 65+ category. Lou made it to the line in a chip time of 43:58 which put her 190th overall and she was 51st female and 11th in the 55 category.
Lou made it round in 43:58
You would think when an athlete reaches a certain age they can no longer compare their times to what they produced previously when they were in their prime. Dave Parsons has found a way to still do that though. Although he’s slowed down considerably in comparison to what he was capable of before, he looks to beat the PB that he has set for double the distance. For example, in a five mile race, he would look to beat his 10 mile PB.
Managing to do that at the May 5, Dave had a really good run, clocking a time of 52:02 which put him in 223rd place overall and gave him 9th place in the Male 70+ category. That put him just ahead of Poole Runners man Geoffrey Scott who was 224th and 10th in the 70+ category in a time of 52:51. A total of 236 athletes successfully completed the course.
Dave Parsons maintains his focus all the way
Poole Runners finished 2nd in the men’s first division behind Poole AC, with Twemlow Track Club taking 3rd. That meant that champions Egdon Heath Harriers had to settle for 4th place. With three wins so far this season, Poole AC were now top of tree after five fixtures. Winning the other two fixtures, Egdon Heath Harriers were 2nd and it looks like there could have an interesting title race to play out.
Dave beat his own 10 mile PB from back in his hay-day
Poole AC also won in the ladies’ first division, getting the better of Poole Runners and Egdon Heath Harriers. That was the first time this season that Poole Runners hadn’t been the top scoring team. They still lead the way for the season so far with Egdon Heather Harriers in 2nd and Poole AC 3rd.
With three wins so far this season, Wimborne AC were now top of the second division table and they look serious challengers for that promotion spot to the top flight that the Bournemouth AC men are aiming for. It could be a very interesting tussle between the two as the season goes on.
Weymouth St Paul’s Harriers picked up their first win of the season in the men’s third division, with table toppers Dorchester RIOT taking 2nd and Dorset Doddlers in 3rd. They both have two wins apiece so far this season so again, another interesting battle for supremacy emerging.
In the ladies third division, Royal Manor of Portland were the only club to field a full team so they picked up the win for the May 5. After winning the first two races, Gillingham Trotters still lead the way for the season so far, with Westbourne in 2nd. Bournemouth Joggers could be a threat though and they currently sit 3rd.
It was a good day for the BAC squad with the ladies taking 1st in the second division and then men coming 2nd
In the ladies’ individual table, Emma Caplan is 2nd at the moment behind Vikki Ingham, with Hayley Martin now 3rd after her runner up spot at the May 5. Debbie Lennon is currently 11th for the season so far and 2nd in the 60-64 category behind Heather Khoshnevis.
The yellow and blues have a glittering array of talent lined up for the Purbeck 10k which is the next race in the Dorset League diary. Rob McTaggart, Stu Nicholas, Bryn Smith and Thomas Farwell are some of the members of a strong men’s team. Emma Caplan, Katie Gunn and Debbie Lennon are all back in action for the ladies team and will be joined by Kate Bowers, who has a fast turn of pace, and a few others.
It will be fantastic to have the Purbeck 10k back after a five year absence and the BAC camp are very much looking forward to showing what they can do this coming Friday night. They might even be some scope for a few celebratory sherbets afterwards.
* Many thanks to Ken Hewitt Photography for his top quality action shots.