St Helens Striders were out in force at the weekend with 15 members competing in the Birchwood 10k. Nicky Donovan was delighted to reap the rewards of her focused training plan smashing 49 seconds off her previous best to achieve a time of 54:14. This is one of several personal bests for Donovan this season who has had an excellent 2018 of racing.
Strider run-leader Rachel Tickle demonstrated real sportsmanship when she met a fellow runner on route who was desperate to achieve her first sub-60 10k. Tickle stayed with her throughout the race to help with pacing and as a result, the other runner achieved a t7mr of 58 minutes.
Anthony Cheers was the first Strider to finish the race in an excellent time of 41.38, he was closely followed by Anthony Ellis in 42:06. Chris Reid and Tony Horsfall finished neck and neck at 44:48. Striders Joanne Mercer, Gary Eccleston, Steve Conway and Kevin Cairns also produced stand-out performances.
In other events this week, Eric Ranson set out to complete the Fleetwood half-marathon but misty conditions amongst other factors meant that the run ended up as a 15 miler. Ranson completed the race in an incredible 1:58:36.
Main photo – Nicky Donovan celebrates her PB (personal best) with fellow Striders
