'Ulley Res' Trail Race5miles Weds 20th June 2018: a performance to remember!

We shouldn't put too much significance on winning times in the 5-mile Ulley Res trail race, bearing in mind the fact that the course has been altered to some extent on safety grounds and also that the route conditions are never the same two years in succession. This year the crops in the meadow area along Morthen Brook were oil-seed rape though it was well back off the running line, and the recent extreme hot weather gave a big depth of grass in the first meadow.

That said, the thirteenth edition of the race (KMR 2018 series number 4) from Whiston Cricket Club on 20th June was treated to a spectacular display of trail running by Rotherham Harrier Ben Hague, who covered the varied out and back course in 27 minutes 23 seconds. We have to look back ten years to find a comparable time; after being a minute ahead on the banks of Ulley Reservoir at the halfway mark, it saw Ben home on Doles Lane almost three minutes ahead of the field.

After winning at Scholes Coppice and a strong show at the Kimmy Kanter, Damian Worsdall (Rotherham HAC, 30:18) again showed good form and strength up the hills to take second by almost a minute from Kevin Doyle (Kimberworth, 31:05). Kevin continues however to show a likelyhood of dominating the series, especially at vet-40.

There was nothing unlucky about the thirteenth in the ladies' race either as Barnsley AC's prolific under-20 Alice Moore got the better of Rotherham's Cathy Eddison on the homeward-bound uphill to post an all-time record 32:47. Cathy held second place with 33:04 just 10 seconds ahead of Steel City Strider Jennifer Rich, who had beaten her at the Kimmy Kanter in race three.

Category prize-winners on the night:

1st Senior male Tim Abel (Unattached) ; MV40 Paul Casson (Kimberworth S); MV45 Simon Holt (Rotherham HAC); MV50 Simon Rayner (Danum Harriers RC); MV55 Gary Baker (Sheffield RC); MV60 Steve Lowndes (Kimberworth S); MV65 Thomas Charles (Rotherham HAC); MV70 Colin Bailey (Rotherham HAC)

Senior lady Rebecca Oates (Rotherham HAC); FV35 Lindsay Whittaker (Rotherham HAC); FV40 Claire Chapman (Kimberworth S); FV45 Julie King (Clowne RR); FV50 Gail Colville (Barnsley AC); FV55 Barbara Lowndes (Maltby RC); FV65 Caroline Boyd (Maltby RC)

The series is now one-third complete and moves on to the Maltby Abbey Dash, a classic short trail race on Weds July 4th (meet at Maltby Catholic Club for a 7pm start) followed on Weds 18th by Rockingham 5k on the service roads of the housing estate at Wingfield/Greasbrough (meet at Milton Arms, Church Street Greasbrough). These individual races races are open to all (as is the series itself) with on-the-night entry. More information at www.kmrseries.co.uk