Runners claim a big win
A North Canterbury Athletic team convincingly won the senior womens grade of the iconic Takahe to Akaroa road relay on Saturday.
The annual race has teams of eight runners complete legs of varying distances, between 6.8km and 10.7km, to make up the total 76.3 km route. For the 76th running of the annual event North Canterbury had only one team entered this year, competing in the senior womens’ grade.
The team won convincingly in a time of 5 hours, 58 minutes, finishing over 35 minutes ahead of their nearest rivals, winning the the Lorna Overend Trophy in a superb finish to the clubs winter season.
The team, in running order, was Lucy Oliver, Annabelle White, Navajo Prentice, Kim Wilcox, Adrienne Smith, Becks McLean, Belinda Lancaster and Natasha Mitchell.
The North Canterbury Athletic Club has dedicated the victory to club member Nigel Cox who passed away the day before the race.
A week earlier the club had five runners in the Governors Bay to Lyttelton 10km handicap road race. Smith ran 45.42m and was second in masters women on handicap, with the fourth fastest time. Mitchell ran 41.26 and was third in masters women on handicap and fastest overall time in the class.
Prentice finished in 39.56 to be third in the senior womens on handicap and second fastest. John Marshall was seventh in masters mens handicap with the eighth fastest with a time of 37.16 while Dave Collie was 38th on handicap and 13th fastest with a time of 38.46.
Club member Ruth Croft has also been impressing overseas, finishing Scotland’s Salomon Glencoe Skyline, 55km with 4,700m elevation, in fourth in a time of 9 hrs 10.33 mins and finished third overall in the World Skyrunning Extreme Series.