The Harriers had teams out competing at the prestigious South of England Road Relays on Sunday whilst closer to home there was off-road racing to be done at the Uphill to Wells race,on the Saturday, and the Mells Scenic 7, on the Sunday. The best effort of the weekend came from the talented u15 boys & girl squad who made the trip to the road relays, and in so doing flew the flag for Somerset and the South-west!

Wells City Harriers made the long journey to the Crystal Palace athletics stadium on Sunday to once again compete in the South of England Road Relays. The Harriers were the only Club from Somerset to contest these prestigious regional Championships and had 4 teams of various ages taking part.

Best performance on the day was by the u15 boys A team who each covered approximately 3km of road on a circuit around the Stadium. The A team of Nick Hobbs, Matthew Quarterman, Daniel Maydew, & James White finished 12^th out of the 53 teams; whilst the B team of Bernard Mealing; Toby Watson; Leo Stockman finished 32^nd. For the u15 girls the trio of Holly Bigger, Olivia Earthy and Lizzie Ingram also had an excellent run, finishing in 20^th place out of the 78 teams competing.

For the senior women there was an excellent blend of youth and experience in the team with Zoe Kurle, Emily Smith, Caitlin Carnegie and Katrina Prior making up the team running over an approximately 4km circuit to finish 37^th out of 81 teams. The Harrier senior men’s team put up a good effort too, despite being short of a few of the faster runners due to none availability. The final team position is to be confirmed, but is thought to be around 27th – and the team consisted of Tom Dukes, Dylan Dukes, Jon James, Ollie Dickinson, Sam Somerville, and Phil Bridge.  The Clubs thanks to the team managers on the day , Simon Prior assisted by Jon James.

Closer to home, on the same day, there were a number of senior Harriers competing at race 15 in the Somerset Race Series held at the Mells Scenic 7 multi-terrain race. Andrew Piper led the team home in 26^th place in 58.22, with Mike Bosley 32^nd, 59.11; Clare Prosser 35^th, 60.16; Simon Carr 38^th, 60.51; Paul Chadwick 44^th, 62.45; Craig Foley 49^th, 63.48; and Karen Shears, 113^th 78.08.

Clare had also raced the day before at the Uphill to Wells Race covering the 29 mile West Mendip Way relay as a solo runner. Other Harrier members had good runs there too as reported by Pete Clothier:

"Fine weather greeted the Uphill to Wells relay race on Saturday 23rd September. The race, which is organised by Mendip Hash House Harriers, starts on the beach at Uphill near Weston Super Mare and finishes at the Cathedral Green in Wells.

The relay is broken into 6 stages, although some tackle it solo, and totals 29 miles along the West Mendip Way.

Harrier Clare Prosser was once again first solo finisher across the line in a time of 4hrs 20 mins. The Wells Harrier's men's team was 3rd overall in 3hrs 49 mins, with Weston AC taking 2nd in 3hrs 40 mins this year after the Slim and Shady team took first position in a blistering 3hrs 26 mins.The Harriers Men's team of Oli Frost, Damien Pick, Nathan Young and  Peter Clothier were joined by Jonathan Davies and Julian Mills.

Runners and supporters were treated to delicious cakes and tea on the Cathedral Green as always, sold in aid of Prostate Cancer UK. Many thanks to the Mendip Hash House Harriers for organising a superb event."

Elsewhere, Chris Kelsey competed in another of the English Fell Running Championship races, finishing in 184th place in 44.17 over the 4miles and 1558ft of ascent course at Great Whernside in Wharfdale. Whilst Catherine and Graham Goldsmid were racing at the Robin Hood Half Marathon in Nottingham and were home in 1.54 and 1.29 respectively.

The autumn training groups are now starting to take shape - Runners of all ages are invited to come and join the Harrier training groups that are again in full swing:

Monday evening at Millfield track for juniors aged 8-15; (all athletic disciplines but emphasis on Cross-country over winter)

Tuesday evening at Millfield track for 14-64 year olds; (emphasis on cross-country and road running)

and Wednesday evening from Wells Rugby Club for seniors. (social runs for all abilities; emphasis on off-road as long as possible then road)

Full details for any new members, or those looking to join on the tab above. Any changes from the usual training formats/programmes are listed on the calendar, with the Tuesday schedules listed on the Tuesday dates.

WESSEX XC LEAGUE - first fixture this Sunday. Neil Biss will have sent you details if you registered for this fixture. Neil is on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  - look for the Harrier flag!

SOMERSET RACE SERIES - latest standings after 15 races (4 to go!)