Report from Steve Feest

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A group of 20 Striders were out in force this Easter Monday for the 2nd West Sx Fun Run League (WSFRL) event of the year, the Lewes 10k.
 
The 11:00 am start means you have to arrive early to get a parking space or park a little further away and jog in for your warm up.
 
Not that a “warm up” was necessary as the temperature soared to 20 degrees at the start.
 
The course starts at the running track then goes out along tracks and trails in to the countryside, South of the A27, to Iford village and back.
 
It’s a scenic, fairly flat, course with one a few “undulations” to test the legs.
 
The usual soggy “paddy field” section is no more as the route has been changed slightly (still 10k), and now goes easier along a gravelled path.
 
Lewes AC hosted the event and did well although it’s an easier course to manage compared to some.
 
Cries for water on the course went unheard as the unusually hot weather caught many out.
 
The pre-race instructions, (worth reading), did not mention water, except at the end, and it might be worth investing in a “water belt” for such future events; I wish I’d brought mine, (thanks for the en-route swig Paul!)
 
As a Lewes AC fella said to me, at the finish, the runners would have been be crying out for “Space blankets” and heat lamps had this race been run a week earlier in the freezing Easterly wind that plagued the Brighton marathon!
 
Overall it was a lovely run/social event with plenty of well-priced cakes and tea in the sports hall after.
 
Look forward to seeing you next at the Portslade WSFRL race on Sunday 12th May.

Report by Tim Mcgrath
This was the second year this event has taken place and the course had be changed a bit from last years event for me this was an improvement avoiding a downhill start the course was of three loops of the grounds one small loop and two larger ones. The course was very uphill and down dale taking in the grounds and the beautiful chapel on the hill. Mixed terrain with grass, trail and concrete with a total of 446 feet gained on the whole course so challenging. 
​Striders where well represented with six runners Chris Lacy , Carla Tullet , Jackie Bone , Mike Osmann , Sean Carter and Tim Mcgrath. 
A very good race i would recommend it very local good parking lovely medal so excellent value for money.

Gemma Wells did the AW 20 and sent in this report 

​AW20 31st Match 2019
Adur and Worthing 20 mile run was hosted by Sussex Trail Events and it was a new road race for 2019. It is an out and back run and starts at Shoreham Beach Green,it does a loop around Shoreham Beach before heading along the seafront through Lancing and Worthing to Ferring. The 10 mile turnaround point is just beyond Sea Lane, Ferring and then you head back again toShoreham Beach. The wind was against us heading back along the seafront to Shoreham which was hard work! It is a flat course and ideally timed so it can be used as a last long run before Brighton or London marathons which was why I decided to do it and there were lots of others taking part who were also using it as part of their marathon preparation. There were 4 well stocked aid stations which provided an array of yummy snacks. We were made aware in advance but you needed to take your own cup or bottle for water as these were not provided in an effort to reduce plastic waste. Approximately 150 runners took part so it did feel like I was running on my own for a lot of the time but overall it was a good experience, well organised and definitely helped me to get my 20 mile run in!


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Race report from Carla Tullett who race with Jackie Bone

​Sunday's Mel's Miler 10k was an enjoyable run, Jackie's 2nd time and my 3rd time at the event. We started and finished the race at Christ Hospital, and ran out of the grounds, heading towards Southwater Park. With a couple of roads to cross we were in the park and starting to make our way back. This was a fairly flat race with a few undulating areas around the park. The course was well marshalled and organised. A nice medal with an orange ribbon, the best colour for us Oranges, a few jelly babies and the race was completed for 

Race report from Rebecca Kipping  who did the race with Samantha Morfee

​The Hampton Court half marathon is exactly as it sounds, starts and finishes at Hampton Court Palce itself and is held in mid March which is a nice time of year especially for those running April marathons.
I give the run 6/10.
We got up there nice and early, and, following the very thorough race instructions sent out in the race pack and via email we parked at the train station.  Parking only cost £2.50 which was a bargain!
The race village opened at 7.30 and was very good with food, sports merchandise, registration, bag drop, lots of toilets and complimentary massages. All in the shadow of the palace itself.
The race started in waves, which were well organised and all set off on time, no mean feat for about 3000 runners!
So far so good! The first 3 miles were along the Thames, which was a lovely place to run.
Then we went across a bridge to the other side of the river and it was here that things went wrong.
The next 5 miles were on the road. Not a problem, however I was expecting closed roads but I was wrong! 5 miles on narrow pavements with hundreds of others runners is not fun.
To make matters worse we obviously had to cross lots of roads, and here it really got messy. I was middle of the pack and by the time I reached some crossing points the cars were really backed up and the marshals were quite ineffective. At one roundabout there were probably 50+ cars in a queue. Drivers were understandably angry about having to wait for thousands of runners and soon horns were blaring making for a less than fun atmosphere.
At 8 miles we returned back to the river, then turned off to run the last 2 miles in the Palace grounds. Luckily it was dry as this could have been very muddy and slippery.
The reception at the finish line was great, with a big crowd cheering us on.
The medal was worth the journey and you got a t-shirt too, though it was quite cheap material, as well as some nice snack freebies and a half price voucher for a visit to the Palace.
Despite the positives, its a running event and for me its all about the run, not the facilities or the freebies, or even thr medal. For an event that cost about £40 I would not do it again. Worthing and Brighton are both about the same price yet are closed road making for a much more enjoyable race.