Despite it being a very hot week of competing for the runners of PRC there were some brilliant achievements.

On Wednesday 5th, Dave Smith took part in the Dockray Hartside Fell Race. The 10k route had nearly 2,000 feet of climb and as with so many tough fell races in the Lake District, local knowledge and navigation skills are required as this event had no marked paths. Despite all this, Dave Smith finished in an excellent 1 hour 8 minutes.

Sally Brown and Shirley Tyrrell ventured to even hotter climes to take part in a triathlon training camp culminating in the Lanzarote Sailfish Open Water swim. The strong tide, big swell and choppy waves meant everyone swam further than the 1.9k required distance making it the longest sea swim Sally and Shirley had ever done. Safety crews were kept busy but thankfully not by PRC. Shirley finished in 1 hour 4 minutes and Sally in 1 hour 10 minutes.

The Leeds Marathon took place on Sunday with over 5,000 runners taking part. The great atmosphere along the route helped the PRC runners achieve some great results. First back for Pickering was Ryan Gaughan in an excellent time of 3 hours 5 minutes, placing him 106th out of over 5,000 runners. Chris Croft wasn’t far behind in 3 hours 10 minutes followed by Mike Richmond in 3 hours 14 minutes. Paul Simpson achieved his marathon personal best with a time of 3 hours 55 minutes, 3 minutes quicker than last year, and Shawn Imeson crossed the finish line in 4 hours 42 minutes.

Sunday also saw the Hardmoors White Horse races taking place with conditions unusually dry underfoot.
Michael Todd completed the Marathon, a tough option with 3,200 feet of climb over 29.2 miles. Michael aced it with a time of 4 hours 16 minutes. It was an exciting finish with the first 3 crossing the line within 2 minutes of each other. Michael won the trophies for 3rd overall out of 98 finishers and 1st M50. Alison Hyde and Darren Smith tackled the half marathon option, 16.6 miles with nearly 2,000 feet of climb. Darren Smith was 3rd overall out of 140 finishers with his speedy time of 2 hours 15 seconds. Alison enjoyed the challenge coming in at 3 hours 31 minutes. Graham Robinson did the 10k course, which was just over 7 miles. His time of 2 hours 2 minutes earned him the trophy for 1st M70.

The Fox and Hounds Fell Race, part of the Summer Fell Race Series, also took place on Sunday. The 9.7 mile route near Botton had nearly 2,000 feet of climb. Despite his fell race earlier in the week,
Dave Smith was first back for PRC in a time of 1 hour 29 minutes, placing him 2nd M55 and 6th overall out of 85 finishers. Next came Russ Grayson in 1 hour 53 minutes followed by Kirsty Brown who was 7th female with her time of 1 hour 57 minutes. Lucy Saggers was 3rd F50 crossing the finish line in 2 hours exactly. Rachael Morley’s time of 2 hours 10 minutes placed her 3rd F45. Then came Alice Hayter in 2 hours 12 minutes, Lynn Humpleby in 2 hours 14 minutes and Nicola Thorpe in 2 hours 15 minutes.