A day to cover all eventualities with fierce hail, subtle snow showers and a surprise visit from the sun could only mean one thing, that morning had dawned for the annual Ras Cors Caron Half Marathon! Held on Sunday February 11th from the old market town of Tregaron the event drew a great turn out of 131 runners ready to brave the elements; this said, special mention must go to those involved with the local rubgy club whom not only provide heart warming cowl but brave the icy cold for hours to marshell the event, and superbly i might add!

The cold and dark winter months can make training hard for even the most dedicated athletes but there seems to be no stopping the Sarn Helen Running team as they have trained hard, raced well and as a result have clocked some brilliant positions and times.

There is no bigger honour than representing you country and for our two legendary veterans, Dawn Kenwright and Richard Marks that accolade is one they have repeated time and again. This years’ British Cross Country Championships took place is the beautiful surroundings of Derry in Ireland on Saturday 18th Nov.

A proud and significant 25th Birthday for this years’ Ras Y Mast was held on Novemeber 26th with great thanks and much appreciation going to Bleanwern Holiday Centre, currently run by Mark Lamport and family. The centre willingly hosts and supports the event, year after year, despite the mud and inconvenience the event must cause; Over the past quarter century Sarn Helen has raised over £3500 for the centre which is used for respite and holidays for organisations and charities nationwide.

A large crowd of over 250 runners took to the scenic and sloping grounds of the National Botanic Gardens on October the 15th at a new event, The Royal Welsh Run. On the day there were two main events, a 5k and 10k, as well as numerous fun runs and children’s activities, raising money and awareness for the famous Builth Wells summer show. A spectacular performance and time, 20:23, from one of our juniors, Dafydd Lloyd, saw him place 6th overall in the 5km run and a massive 3 minutes in front of his father, long standing Sarn member Haydn Lloyd, who finished in 23:55.

‘Sarn Helen On Tour’ over the weekend of Saturday 28th October took in the usual spectacular sights, twisty roads and changeable weather that has come to be expected of the glorious event ‘Brooks Snowdonia Marathon’ or ‘Marathon Eryri’.

After the birth of child number three Sarn Helen member Martin Darby decided to take on a big, two day challenge pushing him to his limits over two disciplines as he completed a 70 mile bike ride one day and a furiously fast 10k race the next. Saturday 2nd of September Darby travelled to Warwick to take part in the Wiggle Tempest Sportive, where he covered the massive distance in 4 hours 21 minutes. The following day, back over the border, he completed the Cardiff Kidney Wales 10k in 51:56.

22/09/16

Pumsaint trail half marathon race report