Great running from three Exmouth Harriers at the Ivybridge 3 Tops Fell Race on Wednesday included a 10km fell run with 450m of climb taking in Western & Ugborough Beacons. 

Sam Kelly finished first overall in an amazing time of 42.58; Hugh Marsden was the next Harrier to finish in 61.35 and he was the 2nd M60 to finish, followed by Dawn Teed in 96.03 and she was the 2nd W60 to finish.

Cathy Newman and Ellis Bown raced in the Yeovilton 5km on a fast and slightly undulating course through country lanes around the Royal Naval Air Station. 

Cathy produced another superb performance finishing in 35th position overall (and 2nd Lady finisher) in 19.03. Ellis just missed his target of a sub 20-minute finishing time in 20.13 and he was the 2nd Junior finisher.

Last but not least, there were a couple of outstanding Harriers performances from Hannah Bown and Adrian Vanstone over the weekend August 12 and 13 in the Gloucester 24 Track Race at the Blackbridge Athletics Track in Gloucester. 

Not only did they take on the monumental challenge of a 24-hour track race but they had to endure an eight-hour car journey from Exmouth to Gloucester on Friday after the M5 was closed for a number of hours due to a road traffic accident.

Hannah and Adrian were among 60 runners who started the race at 10am on Saturday and lapped the 400 metre loop on the all-weather running track for the next 24 hours (changing direction every 4 hours to reduce the wear & tear on the ankles, knees & hips). They were supported by family members and there was an aid station available with snacks, coffee, tea and soup to keep their spirits and energy reserves going throughout the 24 hours.

Both started well and kept a steady pace going for the first 12 hours, unfortunately Adrian had stomach cramps during the race and Hannah got really cold as the weather was horrendous overnight. 

They were both really pleased with their marvellous achievements with Hannah the 2nd female finisher after completing 324 laps and Adrian was 15th male finisher completing 326 laps - both completed 85 miles.

Hannah said afterwards “I’m going to stick to shorter stuff like marathons for a while now.”