Hartlepool Burn Road Harriers compete at Raby Castle Race, Hartlepool Trail Race and Daisy Chain 5K

The 5k and 10k Raby Castle Races, hosted by Teesdale Athletics, both use a 5k lap which is a challenging mix of hills and flat.

There is a very long steep uphill 713 metre climb at the beginning of the 5k lap and a long drag at the end.

Runners have to make up for their lack of pace in a fast middle section which has a good downhill run then a good open flat run towards the end of the lap which takes them into the wooded area which they climb out of to start the second lap.

Marie Taylor competed in the 5k one lap race. This race was dominated by good quality juniors and after a lot of trouble with injuries recently, Marie was happy to finish in 30th place in 28:39.

The 10k race was run in warm conditions but a light breeze and some thin cloud meant it wasn’t too hot.

Graham Jones was the first Burn Road Harrier home with a great run to finish in 42:19 (22nd place).

Nigel Shaw had a good run, finally clear of last year’s injuries, finishing in 49:54 (71st).

Neil Harker, a relative newcomer to the club, but with a lot of running experience under his belt, was next in 51:45 (87th).

Derek Snowdon was not far behind in 52:10 (95th). A great run considering Derek had just achieved a personal best in Hartlepool parkrun the day before.

Darren Smith, in training for an Ironman in June, came in in 52:53 (98th).

Sean Sant continued the regular flow of Harriers to finish in 54:27 (111th). Sean had also run a 5k best time at Hartlepool parkrun the previous day.

Peter Johnson was close behind in 55:00 (114th) to complete a good set of results for the yellow and green team.

Some members of the Harriers competed in the Run Fit Hartlepool 5k Trail Race at Hart Village.

It was another very warm day with little breeze but that didn’t deter Steve Morrison from the task in hand. Steve had a great run and took first place in 23:16.

Burn Road’s Lee Kitching was third in 23:29 and Marie Taylor finished in 33:09.

In midweek, the Harriers taking on another 5k.

The Daisy Chain 5k, organised by Muddy Roads, is a mainly flat and fast trail race, but there is one challenging climb mid run.

The event raises funds for the Daisy Chain charity for families affected by autism.

The results have not yet been published, but Lee Kitching had another stunning run to take second place, with Victor Brudenell third.

Gemma Harcombe-Moore was the second female with Derek Snowdon, Luke Allan, Carl Marchant, Shaun Sant and Ian Donnelly all competing and racing well.