Steve up for new challenges now he’s free of injuries
Strollers Urban Ultra Marathon of 36 miles in 2017.
He finished that race 57 minutes ahead of the runner-up and also beat all of the relay teams involved in the race.
The tough of the track also has a liking for any sort of trail or mountain race requiring his stamina and mental toughness to be fully tested.
And with a good turn of speed, he feels at home in relay events, at which running the anchor leg is a permanent role for him.
Rankin said: “My first taste of athletics was with Sunderland Harriers when I was 11 years old, but I didn’t last long.
“It was when I was 27 and started doing a few parkruns that I picked it up again and Graeme Pullan suggested that I join the Strollers.
“I was with them for four years and improved greatly with the club, with much of that down to doing a lot of training with Alyson Dixon.
“I realised I needed to join a stronger group to reach my potential and I also wanted the opportunity to compete at big national relay events, which I knew I would get with the Harriers.
“I believe we have the best over-35 age group in the country at our club at present and we are capable of winning national relay gold medals with our veterans’ team.”
The 36-year-old added: “I normally train every day and sometimes twice a day, but I have had quite a few injuries over the last year or so, meaning I have had to have a lot more rest days.
“Fingers crossed I’m totally injury-free now, so I’m hoping to be training pretty much every day from now on and running my favourite trail sessions around Penshaw Monument and through the woods.”
Having his first race back since the coronavirus pandemic brought to an end competitive athletics in February 2020, Rankin made a winning return.
He won the Trail Outlaws Washington 10k by a street last month.
That race was organised as a time trial to accommodate the relevant covid-19 rules.
Previous to that, he showed good form just before the 2020 season was brought to an abrupt end by the pandemic, winning the Appleby Rotary 10k in 35.30.
Besides that, he was second in the Durham Willow Miners Run, second in the Sedgefield Run and fourth over 10k in the Wynyard Hall 10k (35.04).
Rankin’s personal best times to date stand at one mile in 4:28, 3,000m in 9:00, 5k in 15:45 and 10k in 33:09.