Category Archives: Race Reports

Cotswold Lakes 10K, 13th September 2025

This local race is a popular choice for runners looking for a friendly local event in scenic surroundings.  Held at Cleveland Lakes Nature Reserve and hosted by the Cotswold Lakes Trust, the 10k route takes in both public and private areas of the reserve not normally open to the public. The course is fast, flat and traffic free, making for a great morning out!

Very friendly atmosphere and a civilised start time! Great to see other RSE runners there.  Course was nothing like as muddy as I  thought it might be. A couple of the marshalls gave great encouragement.   And it didn’t rain. A nice beginning to a Saturday – which carried on at Swindon County Ground!

– Paul Beaumont

Dan DRAYTON       00:48:48

Paul BEAUMONT   00:53:01

Lee JONES             01:00:41

Angel’s 10k, 14th September 2025

This 10k road race is held in Ashleworth and offers great view of the Cotswolds, the Malvern Hills and River Severn. It’s hosted by the Angels Running Club, the only affiliated all-female running club in Gloucestershire, and is now in its 14th year.  Part of the Gloucestershire AAA Road Race Series, it’s sure to be popular, and indeed increased entries this year after selling out in 2024.  RSE were well represented by those taking part in the AAA championship.

We all did our best in the battle for County points. Undulating, but not as steep as last week! We got the choice of a medal or a tin with flower seeds in. A well organised event and lovely company.

-Zoe Markham-Lee

Pleased to be in the top half of the field and maintained Marathon pace. Weather perfect hills as always quite taxing. but lovely course overall .  Great being with our regular gang. We all did well in the rankings.

– Sharon Smith

Race 9 out of 12 of the Gloucestershire AAA road race series was run by Angels running club at Ashleworth today. Conditions were perfect – dry, cool, light wind), and the 6 RSE runners took part had really good races with Sharon, Mick and Sue grabbing first in age group Steve taking 2nd a Zoe and Gemma getting 3rd and 4th. As ever for a AAA race there were plenty of hills and undulations to wear us out.

– Steve Sandercock

Another lovely hilly county race, arriving on Steve’s shuttle bus !

– Gemma Wright

It doesn’t seem like a year since we were last here. Good to have a chance to do it again and to try to pace it better.
Thanks to what I’ve learned at the Wednesday efforts sessions I managed a bit better than last year, set off slower and overall was a couple of minutes quicker than last year.  Still needing to walk most of the hills though…

– Sue Navin

Sharon SMITH              00.47.36

Steve SANDERCOCK  00:49.28

Gemma WRIGHT         00:54.08

Zoe MARKHAM-LEE    00.55.31

Sue NAVIN                    00:55.40

Liz HULCUP                  01:02.51

Parkruns 13th September 2025

Lydiard parkrun

Jade BEAUMONT            00:26:40

Stratford-upon-Avon parkrun

Darren JENNER               00:23:36

Felicity CROTTY               00:29:31

Cirencester parkrun

Wayne HEWITT               00:21:00

Jon CAMPBELL                00:21:30

Phil HUDSON                   00:22:25

Paul BILLINGHURST        00:23:01

Mark GARRETT               00:23:28

Anne GARDINER             00:26:59

Paul ROBERTSON           00:27:36

Rachel SMITH                  00:28:32

Phil SCOBLE                    00:29:08

Phil NEWMAN                  00:29:09

Rachel WEAVER              00:36:42

Stratford Park parkrun, Stroud

Andy SWORN                  00:27:08

Carol SWORN                  00:29:48

Seven Fields parkrun

Alan POWDERHILL          00:24:49

Elliot GARDINER              00:24:50

Vicki MASON                   00:29:47

Jubilee parkrun, Bedford

Cheri EDWARDS              00:26:02

Fire Service College parkrun

Liz HULCUP                   30:41

And finally…

Some exciting news to share about the successes of one of our club members.  After running 01:48:42 at the Frome Running Festival half marathon in August, our very own Sharon Smith now holds the UK all-time record for the half marathon in the Women’s V75 category!!   In this category Sharon also currently holds the fastest time in the 1 mile this year (3rd all-time), 2nd of all-time in the 10km, and holds the 2nd fastest parkrun in 2025.  Congratulations Sharon, we’re so proud of you!

Chippenham Longest day 10K  18th June 2025

The sell-out Longest Day Chippenham 10k starts and finishes on closed roads in the town centre, winding on to the quiet country roads and trails around Chippenham in between.  Offering live music and a livelier atmosphere, it bills itself as a mini midweek festival of running, music and suitable for those who like beer… which apparently appealed to Elliot Gardiner!

What a great 10K event! Samba band, live guitarist, cakes, burgers, ice cream, sunshine & beer! 🍻 what more could you want?! I tried to do this race during the pandemic but it was changed to a virtual race, so the real thing (including the amazing medal 🌞) has been on my list for a while now!
Far too hot for a PB attempt but a decent scenic & predominantly flat course, with a nice downhill finish! Quite pleased with a sub 50 for my first 10K race in nearly a year, plus still coming back from injury! 😅
Definitely recommend this one to anyone looking for a local summer 10K race with a fun atmosphere!    – Elliot

Elliot GARDINER 49:30

Cotswold Way Ultra Challenge 21-22nd June 2025

Yes that’s right, an event that spans 2 days, the “basecamp” for this long distance event is conveniently local at the Royal Agricultural University in Cirencester.  The routes however roam far enough to take in a substantial portion of the Cotswold Way, a notoriously un-flat but scenic trail that winds its way through some of the loveliest Cotswold scenery.  100km, 75km, 50km and 25km routes with an overnight option are offered to walkers, joggers and runners, the longest a full loop taking in Painswick, Wotton-under-Edge and Hawkesbury Upton before turning back to Cirencester.  Nadine Brown took on the maximum 100km challenge in a single day, not only conquering the 2250m of ascent but battling the heat of the hottest day of the year, and persisting through the night despite unforeseen delays on route.  Huge congratulations Nadine!!

This was the toughest physical and mental challenge I’ve faced. The heat was relentless, the climbs hard going, and the terrain unforgiving.
But the support from fellow runners, friends and family cheering us on and the wonderful messages from fellow RSE members kept me focused and smiling.
Loved running round the back of Westonbirt listening to the McFly gig. “It’s All About You” mid-ultra kept us going.
Really well organised event and I’ve raised over £900 for my charity, Cruse Bereavement Support, thanks to so many incredibly generous individuals.    – Nadine

Nadine BROWN  20:53:15

Parkrun 21/06/25

Gloucester Park Run

Cheri EDWARDS             00:28:51

South Shields parkrun

Naomi ALLEN                   00:30:44

Keswick parkrun

Samantha WARD           00:30:11

Fell Foot parkrun, Newby Bridge

Jon CAMPBELL                00:22:13

Tewkesbury parkrun

Darren JENNER               00:24:22

Tetbury Goods Shed parkrun

Phil HUDSON                           00:22:20

Rebecca SOUTHERINGTON   00:23:59

Paul ROBERTSON                     00:28:33

Alan POWDERHILL                   00:36:41

Seven Fields parkrun

Paul BILLINGHURST                 00:23:10

Anne-Marie DAVIES                   00:31:17

Dietenbach parkrun

Liz HULCUP                               00:26:58

This was my first European Parkrun in a huge park on the outskirts of Freiburg. As there a few English runners there, the RD spoke in both German and English so we could understand him.  – Liz

(No Cirencester parkrun this week due to the Cotswold Way Ultra Challenge)

Well done all runners, and thanks for reading! Rachel

Race Report – 01/06/2025

Stroud Beer Race

This week a total of 20 club members raced the Stroud Beer Race, a Club Championship and Gloucestershire AAA race starting and ending at the Old Lodge pub on Minchinhampton Common. The route is 3 laps, taking runners down into Amberley and up back again. The race is known for its challenging undulations, with runners rewarded for their efforts with a free beer from Stroud Brewery upon completion. In true RSE spirit the runners were well supported with many members also coming along to cheer them on.

• Nia Glover: 50:42
• Alan Powderhill: 56:19
• Sharon Smith: 57:33 – 1st V70+!
• Steve Sandercock: 59:30
• Gemma Wright: 59:57
• Liz Hulcup: 1:07:01
• Jade Beaumont: 1:07:42

Very pleased to sneak another PB for what I think is one of the toughest races we do. Wasn’t overly confident going into it, but managed to hold a reasonable pace throughout. A great day with lots of RSE runners, making for a good racing environment. – Alan

The first time I ran this race the strong wind hit us on the last mile and the hills felt tough. This year it felt easier as it was a lovely evening with a cooling breeze. Great marshalling and support. – Sharon

The Stroud Beer Race is about 7.2 miles around Minchinhampton Common. It doesn’t get any easier! 3 times up those hills is brutal. But we had great conditions for it. And I achieved my objective of running all the way, with the added bonus of taking 4 minutes off my PB for the route! – Steve

The race went better than I thought it would thanks to the amazing support. Sorry for swearing near the end but that hurt! – Gemma

Parkruns

Fire Service College Parkrun

• Liz Hulcup: 28:30

Newbury

• Cheri Edwards: 25:17

Gloucester North

• Vicki Mason: 29:31

Cirencester

• Wayne Hewitt: 21:15
• Paul Billinghurst: 22:25
• Phil Newman: 23:18
• Daniel Drayton: 23:42
• William Cobbett: 25:44
• Jon Collins: 26:41
• Elaine Chapman: 29:26
• Samantha Ward: 30:07
• Alan Powderhill: 30:43
• Kathryn Cowdall: 33:25
• Paul Robertson: 35:22

Stratford Park, Stroud

• Phil Hudson: 22:15

Mallards Pike

• Charlie Austin: 35:36

Cranbrook Country Park

• Darren Jenner: 24:24
• Felicity Crotty: 29:55

Durlston Country Park

• Sarah Page: 38:03
• Cathy Steer: 40:45