RUNNERS TACKLE MILE, 10K, 13 MILES, 35 MILES... AND 135-MILE RING O’FIRE
RUNNERS on Anglesey had a huge range of distances to choose from as racing returned to full flow over the weekend, from the onemile junior Dragon’s Dash through the Anglesey 10k and Half-Marathon to the ultra-running Firelighter 35 mile and Ring O’Fire 135mile events around the Anglesey Coastal Path.
ANGLESEY HALF
Martin Green won the prestigious Anglesey half-marathon race last Sunday morning following a fierce battle with several keen rivals.
The North Wales Road Runner, who is hard in training for the forthcoming London Marathon, finally finished more than 30 seconds ahead of second placed local runner Steffan Sayer from the Menai Track and Field club, to win in 1 hour 13 minutes and 44 seconds, with 3rd place going to local athlete Anna Bracegirdle, who also set a new all-time female best time NWRAC record of 76.07, by over a minute, which had stood since 2015.
The race attracted 342 finishers for this scenic event, which started on the Menai Suspension Bridge before flowing downhill through Menai Bridge town centre and along winding and partially closed roads to Beaumaris.
The course also passed Beaumaris Castle then heading up towards Llanfaes, to complete a small loop, before returning back towards the finish at Menai Bridge.
*Link to provisional results: https://www.tdleventservices.co.uk/eventresults/events?event=3553
ANGLESEY 10K RACE. The Anglesey 10k race run last Sunday was run in conjunction with the halfmarathon race and attracted 271 quality athletes.
The 10k race was won by popular local athlete Steve Forsyth in a superb time of 33.04 as the 1st MV40 cat winner, with 2nd Callum Jones in 35.02, and Jonathan Tyler 3rd in 35.57.
(10k and half-marathon reports by Don Hale).
FIRELIGHTER & RING OF FIRE ULTRAS
THE highly challenging Ring of Fire – Firelighter race – involved tackling a 35.7-mile course (57.2kms) with a 2880ft elevation (877m): it also made up the first of three days of the
Ring of Fire 135-mile ultra around the island.
The Firelighter was won by Owen Humphreys with a new course record of 5hrs 16 min. Tracey Entwistle was first woman in 6hrs 37min, with teenage North Wales Road Runner Troy Kettle the youngest finisher in a highly creditable 9th place overall in the run from the Breakwater Country Park at Holyhead to Amlwch Leisure Centre.
The overall Ring of Fire glory went to Joe Baker, who completed the circuit at Holyhead to set a new course record in 20hrs 26 min, almost two hours inside the existing record, which was also beaten by second-place finisher Gareth Warburton (21hrs 47min). First lady was Hayley White, in 29 hours 0 mins. There were 40 finishers from 92 starters.