The club welcomed a great turnout with almost 500 athletes entered. Those in attendance enjoyed a fantastic atmosphere with some great performances.

Most would agree it was very windy and certainly not the warmest day we’ve had in March, with highs of around 8°C. The intermittent appearance of the sunshine in the afternoon added some cheer to faces but the athletes were less than impressed with the impact of the wind, especially the hurdlers and sprinters battling the force along the home straight. Despite this, they pushed through and produced some great performances.

Full results can be found here.

It was great to see so many Quad Kids and Junior athletes competing across a variety of track and field events and doing so well, it made us all proud.

There’s ore great photos of our athletes in action, including the Juniors, Seniors and our Masters (throwing the discus) are at the end of this report.

The athletes and officials had the benefit of digital timing and a photo finish as BAC hired Mark Delgado, a Level 4 photo finish judge. Mark is top class with experience officiating at a number of international competitions including the World Athletics Championships 2017 in London, the World Indoor Athletics Championships 2018 in Birmingham and the World champs in Oregon last summer.

Let’s not forget the excellent starters, Ben Kennard, Mark Purser and our very own Tim Hughes. Mark was the Chief Starter at Commonwealth Games last summer.

Mark Purser in action at the start of the 400m

Mark & Tim Starters

Many clubs, athletes and spectators commented on our professional setup in particular the digital timing and photo finish. People were keen to see this feature at future events and said it would definitely persuade them to return to King Park track meets.

On behalf of BAC, I would like to thank everyone involved in putting on a great event. Thanks for all the athletes, juniors through to masters and parents and friends supporting.

Also a big thank you to all the coaches involved in supporting the potential stars of the future.

And of course a massive thanks to the amazing organisers and officials who have supported us and continue to support these events. They braved the cold in woolly hats and may need to be bribed with more chocolate next time – we still don’t know where it all went, although we have our suspects.

Fabulous Time Keepers

All smiles from the brave time keepers at the finish

Issy the bell ringer & she seems to be enjoying it!

Claire Cooke doing a great job handing out numbers. Nice bobble hat!

The fabulous time keepers! Hands up if you ate all of the chocolate.

Well done everyone!! See more of the action below…

Toby Chapman ventured up to Scotland to hit the West Highland Way in the 53-mile trail ultra called the Highland Fling

Two Bournemouth AC bravehearts in the shape of Toby Chapman and Gemma Bragg took themselves up to bonnie Scotland to try their luck in the 53-mile Ultra Trail Marathon they call the Highland Fling.

And if 53 miles of trail doesn’t sound tough enough, if you throw 7,500 ft of elevation into the mix you then start to get a true reflection of the enormity of the task Toby and Gemma were faced with.

Toby likes a challenge though and has a tendency to pick races that will push him to the brink and force him to dig as deep as he possibly can to have any chance of completion. And even then, despite the months of hard training and heavy mileage to get himself into peak condition, there are no guarantees it’s going to come together on the day.

Last year Toby tested himself to the extreme in the monstrous Mont-Blanc Marathon, an 82km mountain ultra with 6,000 metres of vertical. After over 9 hours out on route and having gone 47 km in, Toby finally had to abandon the race. He’d been suffering with altitude sickness for four hours and nothing he tried seemed to cure it.

That didn’t deter him from hitting the mountains again though and for his next challenge, Toby took to the Spanish Pyrenees for the Ultra Pirineu, a 110km ultra with 6,800 metres of elevation gain. This time Toby made it all the way to the 96km point when frustratingly, he could go no further, suffering from severe dehydration.

After being unsuccessful in his two previous ultra attempts, Toby was determined to set the record straight at the Highland Fling

Whilst it was gutting for Toby to get to within 14km of the finish and not be able to see it through, rather than letting him get him down, it fuelled the fire in him to take on and conquer more tough challenges in his future endeavours. Hence it was now time for him to test his metal again in the Highland Fling.

As for Gemma, she’s taken on a massive challenge of her own last year when she became a first-time mother. That meant taking virtually the whole year out from running whilst she was either pregnant or looking after her new-born son.

This year she’s been back in action and after running the Blackmore Vale Half Marathon in February where she finished as 3^rd lady and the New Forest Running Festival 20 miler where she finished as 2^nd lady in extreme snowy conditions, she had quickly been able to re-establish her competitive edge.

Gemma Bragg had made a very good comeback but the Highland Fling would be her toughest challenge yet since becoming a mother

The Highland Fling would be her first ultra though since becoming a mother so it was always going to be a huge challenge for her but one she was certainly capable of rising to.

Unfortunately, she’d been suffering with a leg injury in the lead up to the race though and hadn’t actually ran for three weeks. She has since received a diagnosis from a physio and it turns out she has a lateral tibial plateau stress fracture to the left knee.

Although she’s been suffering with a knee injury, Gemma was determined to give it a go

Gemma believes it may be an injury that occurred through overuse as it seemed to surface after she’d completed her final long run before the race – a 34 miler. Since then she’s been hardly able to put any weight on it. This was far from the ideal preparation and dampened her expectations somewhat but nevertheless, she felt she had to at least give it a go.

Despite the debilitating injury, Gemma still somehow managed to do 19 miles before eventually throwing the towel in. The fact she was able to do that much whilst in pain every time she put any weight on the injured leg is a testament to her character and competitive desire.

Gemma had been wanting to do the Highland Fling race for a good few years so it was gutting that she wasn’t fully fit and able to give it her best shot

For the rest of her holiday, she could only really look up at the hills as she couldn’t even walk, so she wasn’t able to do much more exploring of the area, as she and her husband Jez, who also runs for BAC of course, had planned.

She still appreciated the stunning backdrop that the route provided and has vowed to be back to do it justice another time.

Gemma hopes to return to the Highland Fling and conquer it some time in the future

As for Toby though, he had no such issues. He knew he was in form leading up to the race after taking victory in the Taunton Marathon two weeks prior in a superb time of 2 hours 41 minutes.

The Highland Fling course follows the West Highland Way, Scotland’s oldest official long-distance footpath. It runs through Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park.

Toby had been in top form in the build up to the Highland Fling so was hoping to do well

The first part of the race was relatively flat and Toby took full advantage of that, reaching the marathon point, which was effectively half way, in 3 hours 21 minutes. Then it became a bit more technical when running by the Loch which slowed his speed down somewhat.

He had to hike the last few hills as his pace fell away a bit. It didn’t matter though because he’d made it to the end. He’d conquered his first 50 miler and it pretty damn good. And not only had he completed the course, he’d also aced it, finishing in a time of 7 hours 57 minutes and 50 seconds.

Toby did tremendously well to finish in a stellar time of 7:57:50 to take 5th place in the standings

That elevated Toby to the lofty heights of 5^th position overall, a quite marvellous achievement when you consider that 673 people made it to the finish. It demonstrated well the strength of Toby’s running at the present time and also what a lot of potential he has to grow and improve even further.

It also means that Toby can lay to rest the ghosts those previous two attempts last year. He’s done it now. He’s finished a 50-mile race and that speaks volumes about his character, his grit and his iron will.

Emerging triumphant after completing the tough, hilly 53 mile trail route, Toby was pleased to complete a 50 mile race for the first time

Sam Laws was taking on her first ever marathon at the ABP Southampton

Your first marathon is always going to be a nerve wracking experience. It is the culmination of three months of hard graft. All those long, draining weekend runs and then back out there again the next day before the body has fully recovered. It’s always an arduous task to get fully prepared and get into the best possible shape before taking to the start line for the 26.2-mile adventure. Then, after all that training, the pressure is really on to perform on the big day to make all the blood, sweat and tears worthwhile.

Choosing the ABP Southampton Marathon for her first attempt at the distance, Sam Laws was going on a journey into the unknown. She’d certainly done her due diligence though, putting the high mileage in in training and getting out on those long training runs every Sunday.

Sam had undertaken most of her training with her friend Julia, who is a member for Christchurch Runners, and it was a big day for both of them, with Julia competing in the London Marathon on that very same day.

Sam had certainly done the hard work in training and now it was time to put it into practice

Also representing Bournemouth AC in the ABP Southampton Marathon that day was Billy McGreevy. After forgetting to register in time for the London Marathon, Billy turned to Southampton as a backup option.

Having trained for a sub 2:50 marathon, Billy was optimistic about performing well. There was always the weather to take into consideration though. In the days leading up to the race a mini heatwave and swept the nation, resulting in sky high temperatures for the time of year.

Under normal circumstances, that would be fantastic, but if you’re running a marathon, it could potentially be disastrous. Given the weather conditions, Billy decided to adapt his race plan accordingly, with the intention to go off a bit slower.

Once the race started though, the adrenaline kicked in and, enthused by the many onlookers and the buzzing atmosphere, Billy set off pretty quickly. Despite the heat, he reached the half way stage in 1 hour 26 minutes, which was actually ahead of schedule. He felt good though at that point so he wasn’t worried.

The course was two loops around Southampton, incorporating four trips over the Itchen Bridge and twice through St Mary’s football stadium, home to the mighty, or perhaps this season no so mighty, Southampton FC.

Reaching the half way stage of the race in 1:26, Billy was going well at that point despite the heat

By the time he’d climbed the Itchen Bridge for the third time though, at around 16 miles, he knew a sub 2:50 wasn’t on the cards. Then at 22 miles, he blew up. His legs began to cramp up and he was really struggling with the heat.

He soldiered on though and managed to make it to the finish, crossing the line a time of 3 hours 4 minutes and 41 seconds. Although it wasn’t the time he had targeted and trained for, given the outrageously hot weather, it was still a very good effort.

That put Billy in 23^rd place overall in a field of 1,103 people. That’s not a bad return by any stretch. It’s always disappointing as a runner when you don’t hit your targets of course but sometimes the conditions just don’t allow you to reach your full potential. That was certainly the case for Billy. It was still a decent effort though and one he should be fairly proud of when he looks back on it.

Billy encountered some issues around mile 22 when his legs began to cramp up but he persevered and made it to the line in 3:04:41

As for Sam, given that it was her first marathon, she was understandably feeling very nervous and emotional on the morning of the race. She kept to a steady pace in the early stages, fully aware of the enormity of the task that lay ahead.

Clutching her bottle of Lucozade, she carefully negotiated her way through the course, eating jelly beans every 45 minutes to keep her energy levels up and regularly dousing herself with bottles of water to try to keep cool. This was much needed on such an unusually hot day for the time of year.

Although she was nervous to being in with, Sam soon settled down and found her rhythm once the race had started

The crowds were fantastic and buoyed her on with their cheers of encouragement. Sam was particularly pleased to see the familiar face of her friend Claire as she crossed the Itchen Bridge for the third and fourth times which gave her a much-needed boost.

After crossing the bridge for the fourth and final time, Sam was now 19 miles. She’d kept in mind the pre-event advice of making sure she fuels herself well in the first half of the race and don’t go too hard until after mile 18 as that will feel like the half way point. It’s always so much tougher in the latter stages of a marathon.

Following the advice she was given beforehand, Sam took it quite steady for the first 18 miles

After passing the 22-mile marker, Sam was now into completely new territory. She’d been up to 22 miles in training but never any further. By this point her legs had started to burn and ache. She was hurting and her legs were beginning to stiffen up.

She changed her running gait to extend the legs a little further in an attempt to try and free them up. This seemed to help a little so she kept it up. Soon she found herself passing through Riverside Park toward the 25-mile point where she spotted her partner and fellow BAC compatriot Ian White.

Sam gives a wave as she notices the ever dependable Ian White on the sidelines

Ian gave her a bottle of water, which she primarily used to throw over herself. In return she hurled a half empty bottle of Lucozade at him. Just in case he needed a refreshment as well. This gave her the final push and she knew she was nearing the end. With less than a parkrun left to go, she knew she could do it.

Managing to keep her pace, she passed the 26-mile mark and the finish was almost in sight. As she turned around the last corner, the very welcome sight of the finish flags came into view. The noise began to build as she approached the finish line. The clock showed a time of 4:24:39, which meant she had achieved her goal of a sub 4-hour 30-minute finish.

Ian White complained of having more blisters than Sam did after rushing round to be there to cheer her on at any point he could

In tears as she crossed the line, Sam stopped her watch and made her way through the finish tunnel. She received her medal, bag and t-shirt and went to meet up with Ian, at which point more tears arrived. She felt amazed that she had completed the distance and very proud to have achieved her target.

Sam’s official time was even more impressive at 4:21:20. That put her in 500^th placed overall and made her 70^th lady. She was also placed 25^th in the V40 category. All-in-all, a very pleasing result for Sam and thoroughly well deserved after all the hard work she’d put in.

Later on, she discovered that Ian had more blisters than her, having covered over 10 miles in flip-flops whilst out supporting her. He was promptly told to man up though as this was Sam’s day. She had done it. She had completed a marathon!

A bit thumbs up for Sam for smashing her target of 4 hours 30 by coming in at 4:21:20

Ian Graham (left) and Dave Parsons (right) made their annual trip over for Guernsey Easter Running Festival

BAC ‘supervets’ (explanation later) Ian Graham and Dave Parsons made the trip to Guernsey this Easter for the Running Festival which comprises four races in four days. It is fair to say that they are stalwarts of this event with Dave competing for his 20^th successive year and Ian for his eleventh time in the last 12 years.

With Easter being so early this year, they were a little concerned about the likely weather (the forecast was pretty awful) and both were travelling with no great expectations as Ian had only just returned from a walking holiday in Yorkshire which had hampered his preparation and Dave had done very little training following a recurring calf injury which restricted his ambitions to merely getting through all four events without injury.

Good Friday dawned cool and wet although, for once, there was very little wind so the conditions were a lot better than expected. For the first race (5k road), the rain was quite light and Ian ran strongly to finish in 138^th place (238 finishers) in 23:35. Dave found himself running quicker than expected and was going quite well until he was sick just before the 4k mark! Nevertheless, after a brief stop, he continued and was satisfied with his 174^th place finish in 25:46.

Both were competing in the ‘super vet’ category which comprises all those over 60 and is based on ‘Age Graded’ performance. Ian was 3^rd male with 74.06% and Dave 6^th with 66.36%.

Ian striding towards the finish of the 5k

Dave finishing a little while later

 The second race of the series was held on Easter Saturday over the ‘full course’ cross country course on L’Ancresse Common and is the only race which has remained the same every year of the Festival. Although very windy, the rain held off for the majority of the time.

Ian, knowing that he was now in with a chance in the ‘super vet’ category went off very purposefully and with the underfoot conditions much better than anticipated, ran a highly respectable time of 38:32 and finished in 69^th place (125 finishers).

Guernsey Island Athletic Club have produced their very own ‘age graded’ table for this event (no idea how they have done this) and Ian was a clear winner of the Mens Super Vet category with 74.35%. Dave’s plan for the race was to start off steadily and see what happened. Unsurprisingly this resulted in an extremely steady time of 45:54 for 108^th place and 7^th male ‘super vet’.

Ian looking far too cheerful at the finish

Dave making sure he didn’t get too cold!

After the first two races, Ian was now equal first in the Male ‘Super Vet’ category with Dave 6^th, just behind old rival Brian Holden from Guernsey.

Easter Sunday’s event was the 4 x 1 mile cross country relay race on the far part of L’Ancresse Common and is part of the ‘Stonecrusher’ course. The good news is that this is not part of the overall series and so is really just an opportunity to mix with the younger (and unfortunately much quicker) athletes who seem to skip around the quite tough course with two short but steep hills.

Ian and Dave submitted a team sheet with just the two of them on it and the organisers of the festival found them two other athletes who were not part of any full team either. The second good bit of news was that the first of these runners was another Easter Festival regular, Richard Batchelor from AFD. Our final runner was to be a newcomer (an 80 plus year old) who had come last in the first two races and by some considerable distance at that!

This was fine in that there was absolutely no pressure on Ian and Dave. Ian ran the first leg in 7:14 (very similar to last year) and came in 35^th of the record entry of 50 teams. Dave set off as hard as he dared on the very uneven rabbit hole ridden course and ran 8:23 and we had dropped to 41^st team. Richard flew round in 5:22 and we were now up to 30^th! As expected, Peter was by far the slowest of the day, however, he did manage to hold on to 49^th place so we weren’t last!!

Ian at the top of the first steep ascent

Dave handing over to Richard Batchelor

Ian and Dave ’relaxing’ after their legs! 

So now for the last race, the 10k road race on Easter Monday on the point to point course from Grand Rocks to St Sampsons. The early morning weather was atrocious with torrential rain and strong winds. Dave took the hire car to the finish and caught the second of the runners’ busses thankfully provided by the organisers. However, he arrived at the start with over an hour to go.

Meanwhile, Ian had opted to jog to the start from the nearby hotel. There was a baggage vehicle provided which left five minutes before the start. Dave managed to take off numerous layers of clothing that were needed to keep warm and dry and made the decision to keep wearing his leggings for the race to keep his legs warm and protect his calf. (He later confirmed that he just couldn’t be bothered to try to take off the leggings). Ian with the overall super vet title at stake, went off in very determined fashion.

For most of the race, the wind was favourable until turning towards the finish with 2k left when it became a strong headwind. Ian seemed to take this in his stride and finished in a time of 47:29 and 97^th place (212 finishers) and was a very deserving winner of his category with 76.13% and thus the overall winner.

Dave was very happy to get round with his calf intact and although it was his slowest ever 10k race by some considerable margin, he was happy with 54:30 and 153^rd place (64.95%) and with Brian Holden about one minute behind, Dave was 5^th male in the category overall.

Ian storming to overall category win

Dave looking splendid in his leggings!

 It was back to the hotel to shower and change for the Presentation in the afternoon where there was the usual opportunity to relive the weekend and chat to old friends. There was even the chance to reflect on a much better performance in the Quiz which was held on the Saturday night, swapping last year’s rather inglorious wooden spoon success with a mid-table performance finishing 9^th of 17 teams.

Ian and ladies Super Vet winner Jenny Morgan collect their ‘winnings’

After another terrific year they now have the 2019 festival to look forward to. And just 12 months to get fit for it!