 Matthew Briggs was Morpeth's first man home at the Quayside 5k Temperatures in the mid twenties were not the only challenge to be overcome by runners taking part in the Quayside 3k and 5k races on 10 August, with the balmy weather bringing out hundreds to wine, dine and wander by the River Tyne but in the process creating something of an obstacle course which added to the existing benches and bollards along the northern banks of the river.
The event continues to grow its reputation as the fastest 5k race in the North East, with this year a number of runners from Leeds City making the journey up the A1 to take part while the race also incorporated this year the NECAA 5k Championships. The evening’s preliminary race, a 3k event for runners below the age of 17, saw Gateshead Harrier Josh Blevins 1st finisher in 8 minutes 57 seconds with Morpeth’s Millie Breese, whose efforts over the Summer have been very much focussed on the Triathlon, coming home in 10m 25s as 1st female finisher in 12th place overall. The first of the evening’s 5k races, an elite event for those able to run sub 20 minutes, saw a leading group featuring 2022 Blaydon Race winner Gateshead’s Calum Johnson quickly establish itself with Leeds City’s Graham Rush, 2nd to Johnson at Blaydon, also prominent. There was to be no catching Johnson as he raced away from the rest of the field to finish in 14:11, only an agonising one second off his own course record. Over 35 Rush was 2nd in 14:24 with NSP Harrier Dave Green 3rd in 14:46. Matthew Briggs was Morpeth’s first finisher, coming home in 15:21 in 7th place with new signing from Jarrow and Hebburn AC, Peter Smallcombe, next back in 15:38 in 12th place. Smallcombe was also 2nd U/20, with fellow U/20 Joe Armstrong 18th and 4th O/20 in 15:56. Andy Lawrence was 34th and 9th O/35 in 16:27, John Butters 45th in 16:47, and Mark Snowball 46th in 16:50. Butters, whose efforts over the Summer have been focussed on much longer and much hillier terrain was also 1st in the O/45 category. Anthony Liddle was 95th in 17:49 while O/65 Dave Nicholson was another category winner in 20:17. The women’s field was headed home by another Leeds City athlete, Georgia Malir, who finished in 17:10, with Sunderland Stroller’s Olympian marathon runner Aly Dixon 2nd in 17:45. Morpeth’s Cat Macdonald was 3rd woman home in 17:57 on a night that was very much a Macdonald family affair, with father Alistair finishing in 19:35 (174th and 4th O/55) just ahead of daughters, Lorna, 185th in 19:59, and Lindsey, 207th in 20:24. Margaret Macdonald had a fine run in the busier B race, finishing in 29:00. Gary Hall came 36th with a time of 20:33. Comments are closed.
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