Photo – TAC women’s team at National Road Relay Championships
Tonbridge Athletic Club had men’s and women’s teams at the National Road Relay Championships, at Sutton Park, Sutton Coldfield, on Saturday. The men’s race consisted of twelve stages, alternating long and short legs of 8.66 and 5.09 kilometres. The women’s race involved teams of six, with the long lap being run on legs one and four and the short on the remainder. Despite the sun, an extremely strong wind, made conditions challenging, especially on the ‘out and back’ long legs.
Cameron Chambers came home in 27th place after the first leg, running 27.45, before UK Indoor 800m champion Jack Higgins moved up to 24th, with a 15.56 split. Tonbridge then had one of their aces on the third leg, as international James West ran 25.56 and moved the team up to 9th . West’s split ended up as the 4th fastest of the entire race.
Harry Paton, enjoying some of his best form for a while, moved the team up two further places to 7th, with 16.03, although Corey De’Ath struggled on the fifth leg, running 28.33 and slipping five places. Steve Strange had a good run, recording 15.41 and putting Tonbridge 9th, at the halfway stage.
Ben Cole, who has been in stunning form for months, ran the 10th fastest long leg of the whole race, with 26.15, moving Tonbridge to 7th, but also closer to teams ahead. Michael Ellis (16.22) and Kieran Reilly (27.33) went next, before Will Beeston’s 15.57 kept them in 9th, with two legs to go.
Tonbridge had positioned two of their fastest runners on the final legs, having hoped to be in the hunt for a high placing. James Kingston ran the 3rd fastest long leg overall, with 25.59 and showed that he had recovered well from the previous weekend’s World Cross Country Championships. This left Ben Murphy, on the anchor leg, starting alongside Aldershot and not far behind Hercules Wimbledon. Murphy had one of his best races to record the 3rd fastest overall short leg with 15.12, to grab 5th spot. Leeds, Bristol, Highgate and Cambridge finished ahead on this occasion.
The women’s team were in contention from early on in their race, as Charlotte Alexander ran 30.13, on the opening leg, to come home 5th. Noémie Thomson moved into 3rd at one point on her leg, after a fast start and came home 5th, with 18.54. Katie Goodge (19.14), Maria Heslop (33.30), Elle Ayden (20.44) and Polly Pitcairn-Knowles (20.01), all followed, as Tonbridge finished 12th.
At Bromley, on Sunday, a few Tonbridge AC veterans’ records were set, despite the windy conditions. Wilford Floyd Wilks improved the over 55 men’s marks at 100m and 200m, with 12.62 and 26.12, into the wind. Grazia Manzotti improved her own over 50 women’s, outdoor 3000 metres walk time with 16.04.57.