Teignbridge Trotters Running Club
Newton Abbot, Devon
Established 1982
Born to Run

David Taylor travelled to Gloucestershire to take part in the Cheltenham 10K.

This was David’s first race for two years and it proved to be a highly successful reappearance.

The race started and finished at Cheltenham racecourse. The runners ran along traffic free roads passing Regency buildings along the way.

The weather conditions were perfect, with dry, sunny and no wind to contend with.

David ran a great race, to clock a fantastic time of 00:52:23. This time is now a new Club Record for the over 75 age category, beating the previous record by 34 seconds, held by Graeme Baker back in 2017.

Three Teignbridge Trotters travelled to Somerset on Sunday 5th September to take part in the Bridgewater Half Marathon. Weather conditions were bright and sunny, but with a stiff breeze to contend with.

The fast, flat route took the runners through the picturesque Somerset countryside, passing through Chedzoy and Stawell. The start and finish was held at Morganians RFC. The weather conditions were perfect on what was a well organised event.

Julian ran superbly to set a new personal best for the distance. His time of 01:25:37 was nearly two minutes quicker than his previous best. Julian finished 24th overall and 3rd in the MV50 age category out of 42.

Robert Faulkner also ran well, clocking a time of 01:50:56 to finish 133rd. Andy Distin back in race action finished 268th crossing the line in 02:30:32.

There were 289 entrants.

webp.net-resizeimage (38).jpg Robert and Julian ready for action at Bridgewater Half
andy distin proudly shows off his plymouth half medal.jpg Andy holds aloft his hard earned medal

Britain’s Ocean City Plymouth Half Marathon also took place on Sunday. A challenging but scenic route tested the runners, and the enthusiastic support along the route helped.

Five Trotters took their chance, with Bon Rymel setting the pace. Bon posted a great time of 01:46:07 to finish 352nd. He improved his previous best for this race by nearly 9 minutes set back in 2018.

The other positions and times: Scott Knight (1575, 02:21:06), Laura Law (1576, 02:21:10), Hollie Chown (1744, 02:27:03), Neil Dawkins (2155, 02:57:42).

There were 2235 finishers.

bon rymel after plymouth half.jpeg Bon on Plymouth Hoe after his new course Plymouth Half PB
scott knight and half a laura law at plymouth half.jpg Scott Knight and half a Laura Law running side by side

Gary Smart, Alan Kember and Neil Rutley travelled to South Devon to compete in the Hard Rock Coast Half Marathon organised by Wild Running on Sunday 5th September. There were four race distances on offer: 5K,10K, and Ultra.

The start and finish was at South Milton Sands and the half marathon route took the runners to Hope Cove and Bolt Head via the South West coast path.

The weather conditions were just about perfect on what was a tough undulating course with over 2000 feet of elevation. The cut off time was 5 hours.

Gary Smart won the race in a terrific time of 01:45:17 and won the MV 50 age category. Alan Kember ran superbly to finish in 8th place, posting a time of 02:09:53. Alan also won the MV60 award.Neil also finished well upthe rankings in 15th place,clocking a time of 02:32:40.

celebration caper grouppic.jpg Trotters line up at Celebration Caper

The Celebration Caper took place on September 4th, organised by Jolly Running. It was great to see Tracey back organising the type of event which is chiefly about having fun.

This event was an 8 hour timed event set in the stunning gardens of the Double Locks Pub in the Riverside Valley Park in Exeter.

The feedback was very positive post-race. Great organisation and very supportive marshals were among the many positive comments.

Six of our Jolly Trotters took part, all running various distances. Kris Ward, back from injury, competed 12 laps totalling 39.6 miles in a great time of 06:47:15, to finish in 5th place. Well done Kris.

Other positions, laps, distance & times: Paul Sharples (16, 8, 26.4, 05:48:48), Sharon Sharples (17, 8, 26.4, 05:49:33), Darren Petch (38, 5, 16.5, 03:58:11), Richard Keatley (44, 4, 13.2, 02:48:14), Yasemin Jeffrey (78, 2, 6.6, 01:10:57).