Record breaking Tom does it again

It has been a slow start to the New Year for the Teignbridge Trotters, due to ice and snow problems. However Sunday 17th January saw a trio attending the inaugural Storm Force 10 in a pleasantly sunny Camborne. The 10 mile replacement for the Blaythorne 10 was organised, as in the past, by Carn Runners of Holmans and attracted 397 competitors.

The partly circular course contained several challenging hills, but these failed to hinder Tom Burmans progress as he led the Royal Blues home, crossing the line 33rd overall, in an excellent time of 1:04:26. This smashed his previous club Junior Male record for the distance, set at the 2009 Teignbridge 10, by 1:37! Mark Wotton was next to finish in 1:16:12, followed by Graham Penn (1:28:31).

The Brooks Westward League cross country at Bideford, scheduled for the same day, was cancelled due to the inclement weather, with the overall series standings to be based on the best four results from five rounds.

Last Sunday twelve Trotters flew the flag at the Braunton 10 mile road race, boosting the club attendance from the 2009 figure by four and achieving several personal best, or improved times. The event is hosted by the North Devon Road Runners and held in memory of former club President Albert Tythcott.

The course, described as undulating, passes through villages with the geographically confusing names of Whitehall and Ashford, before rewarding the competitor with stunning views of the Bristol Channel, and a distant Lundy Island.

The conditions were almost idyllic for the field of 265 runners, with a light cooling breeze. Dave Tomlin certainly `breezed` home in 7th position, with an outstanding time of 1:01:20. Tom Burman, still fresh, despite his exertions of the previous week, arrived 29th in 1:04:53, with 3rd Trotter Ian Langler crossing the line 38th overall, in 1:06:57.

Remaining runners were: Daryl Milford (1:07:33), Eyvoll Aston (1:13:04), Mark Wotton (1:16:25), shaving 5:28 off his 2009 time and Nigel Penwarden, powering back to his previous form after injury, with a time of 1:20:13. Husband and wife team of Nathan and Tracy Elphick posted a joint 1:21:03, which was a personal best time over 10 miles for Nathan. They were followed by a determined Sharon Bowman, with a well deserved 1:25:14, Graham Penn (1:25:45) with a 3:17 improvement on 2009 and Stephen Wallace in 1:29:42 (2009: 1:29:59).

Photo: after the Braunton 10

(L to R) Graham Penn, Ian Langler, Dave Tomlin, Daryl Milford, Tracy Elphick, Nathan Elphick, Eyvoll Aston, Stephen Wallace and Sharon Bowman (front)