Isabel Brinsden raced in the second wave and – although her final time is still to be officially resolved – once again showed her pure running class as she broke the club record by at least 47 seconds, registering a finish time just shy of the 17-minute mark of anything between 17:02 to 17:04 (confirmation pending).

In the earlier wave, Nick Ledwold clocked a new 5k PB of 18:26, Alex Doherty ran a PB of 19:21, Tim Elliott also ran a PB of 19:35 ,and Karlien Heyrman equaled her PB from 2016 with a time of 19:36. Tim Brock ran a PB of 21:32, while Joel Freeland finished in 20:34 and Rachel Vines in 20:40. Last but not least, Vet 75 David James smashed his 24-minute target with a time of 23:34 to go third in the UK rankings for his age category for the year to date.

In the parallel half marathon event, Sheng Peng ran well to clock 1:31:15.

Tewkesbury Half Marathon

Locally, 8 CLC Striders lined up for the re-booted Tewkesbury Half Marathon and it was to prove a great day for the club with several standout performances. First to finish was Rob Barnett in 3rd place overall and 1st in his V35 category in a superb new PB time of 1:13:08. Rob’s preparations for the London marathon continue to look spot on. Also setting a fantastic new PB half marathon time, Rich Elsworthy clocked 1:14:16 for 4th place overall. While, deep in preparation for the Newport Marathon, Will McNeile was 13th overall in a PB time of 1:20:26.

Sophie Longmore was the 3rd lady home and 2nd in her LV40 category in a strong time of 1:31:48. Niki Smith and Fiona Brady-Miller, both nearing the end of their London Marathon training blocks, ran 1:43:36 and 1:47:23 respectively, with Niki 3rd in her LV60 category. And Tim Brock ran with Eoin McQuone – on Eoin’s first race back after a long-term injury – to register 1:58:02 and 1:58:03 respectively.

Ellie Pudifoot ran in the parallel 10k event, finishing as 6th lady in a time of 43:01.

Brighton Marathon

Deborah Rees battled hard – especially in the last 10k into relentless headwinds – to finish in 4:09:15. While Pete Duffy, after making a great start, felt his hamstring tighten at 15 miles in, eventually having to withdraw at 20 miles to avoid lasting damage.

Paris Marathon

After a disciplined training block, Ashley Wilson ran a perfectly-judged and evenly-paced marathon in Paris to set a new PB time (by almost 6 minutes!) of 3:10:53 in the iconic city.

Milan Marathon

Even further from home, club newcomers Tom Jarrett and Lucy Galliers ran in the Milan Marathon, Tom earning a 20-minute marathon PB time of 3:31:37 and Lucy – debuting at the distance and hoping to go sub-4 hours – clocking 3:46:40.

Berkeley 10k

Over the shorter 10k distance, and closer to home, Helen Knight was 2nd lady overall and 1st in her LV45 category at the Berkeley 10k in a time of 41:06. And Hollie Freeland continued her strong performances this year by setting another PB time of 46:33.

Leading the charge for the club was Max Harrison-Tosatto, who crossed the line in an impressive lifetime best of 1:13:09, setting the pace for the Striders contingent. Close behind, Joe Willgoss posted a solid 1:14:47, while Geoff Milne clocked 1:17:52, securing a personal best in the process.

There was particular success in the women’s race, where Isabel Brinsden (who finished third in last year’s race) ran superbly to claim victory in the women’s race, finishing in 1:19:33 and recording a personal best on her way to the win. Brinsden was in second place at the 10-mile mark, but then pushed on in the final 5k to eventually win by over 70 seconds.

Strong performances continued throughout the squad, with the ever-improving Gavin Woods breaking the 80-minute barrier with an excellent 1:19:49 clocking. William McNeile (1:21:59), and Timothy Bridge (1:22:52) followed – both achieving personal best times. Jonathan Margetts, using the race as part of a longer marathon training run, ran 1:23:59 and Fred Reid crossed the line in a PB of 1:24:32, followed by William Pearce in 1:25:21.

Andy Richardson (1:26:27), Ashley Wilson (1:28:57), and Scarlett Bell (1:29:45) all celebrated personal bests, with Bell going under the 90-minute barrier for the first time. The club’s newest recruit, Sean Brown, was next in 1:30:28 and fellow club debutant Tom Jerrett registered 1:32:53 – personal bests for both.

The Striders charge kept rolling in as Alex Knott finished in 1:36:56, while Frank Rooke-Matthews (1:37:23) and Lucy Galliers (1:42:11) both achieved personal bests in their first race outings for the club with their determined performances.

Debutant Phil Adcock ran a well-paced 1:44:10 and Hollie Egerton (1:51:08) maintained the momentum, while Arnie Delstanche, running as inflatable dinosaur Terry Rex, brought plenty of character to the event with a 1:52:17 finish as he continues to train for a world record attempt at the London Marathon.

Colin Upton (1:57:24) came in under the two-hour mark, and Britt Waylett (2:04:16), Deborah Cartlidge (2:04:59), and Hifsa O’Kelly (2:13:52) rounded off a successful day for the club with resilient efforts.

In total, CLC Striders celebrated a remarkable number of personal bests, underlining the strength and depth of the squad. With a race win, multiple PBs, and a strong team spirit on display, the Gloucester Half Marathon proved to be a memorable outing for the club.

Pete Duffy was first home in a brilliant time of 2:04:06 and 8th place overall, bagging himself maximum points in the County Road Race Series in the process. Next to finish was the irrepressible Tom Fletcher, recording yet another PB time of 2:13:37. Gavin Woods continued his strong form, surprising himself with a time of 2:14:33, with Richard Gill also running strongly to finish just 1 second behind him in 2:14:34. Lee Omerod showed his grit over the distance with a time of 2:15:23, making it 5 club finishers inside the top 50.

Helen Knight registered a time of 2:22:48 to finish 1st in her VF45 age category, setting a new club record, and earning maximum points in the Gloucestershire Road Race Series, too. She was followed home by Sophie Longmore in 2:24:53, winning her VF40 age category on the day. Ash Wilson clocked 2:25:44 and Jamie Hartnoll finished in 2:28:07, while Nikki Smith bagged a new club FV60 record in 2:58:52 and Fiona Brady-Miller registered a new VF50 record in 2:58:57.

Meanwhile, competing in the Half Marathon distance on the day, Louis Jones finished 10th in a time of 1:23:16 and Tim Brock clocked 1:36:42.

Building back from a 16-month long injury rehab, Joel Freeland clocked 20:20 in wave one; a confidence booster for a sub-20-minute summer to come. In first first ever official 5k race, Tom Burgess committed to staying with the leading pack early on the second wave, digging in and holding on for a solid 16:43 – a great benchmark for the year to come.

In wave three, Rob Barnett also made his official 5k debut, running a perfectly judged, very disciplined, even pace which saw him move through the field in the closing stages to clock a brilliant time of 15:38, ranking him 3rd in the club’s all-time fastest 5k times.

Following a week of relatively dry weather, the ground had firmed up after the wettest of winters and so navigating the course, with its sharp ascents and descents around the beautiful Elizabethan Hall, was pacey work.

In her first year competing for Gloucestershire after her move from Surrey, CLC Striders’ Isabel Brinsden continued to show her electric form, finishing first for the county in 25th place overall and 2 minutes ahead of the next county finishers – Alice Tredgett and Grace Knapp.

Patricia Dendy registered as 4th county finisher, just ahead of CLC Striders’ Helen Knight, who was 149th overall, scoring for the county’s A-team for the 8th campionships in a row – a tribute to her incredible consistency. Jane Fairburn was the 6th team scorer, with CLC Striders’ Rachel Vines providing key back-up to the scoring six. The 8th finisher for the county on the day was Milly Foster.

Overall, Gloucestershire were the 12th team out of 32 counties competing, with the three CLC Striders ladies playing a key role in the team’s standing and success.

CLC Striders turned out strong teams for the ladies and men’s races, with some wonderful individual and team results registered. First it was the turn of the ladies…

First home, completing a perfect performance score for the season, was the impressive Isabel Brinsden, in 7th place overall but as the first woman in the field on the day, bagging herself the senior gold medal for the season in the process. Isabel was followed home by Kate Telford, concluding a strong cross-country season with 1st place in her W35 category and earning herself the gold medal for that category for her season’s efforts. Just one place behind was Helen Knight who won her L45 category on the day and also the gold medal for that category for the whole season.

Just two places behind Helen, Sophie Longmore was 3rd in her W40 category, with Karlien Heyrman one place behind for 2ndd place in her W35 category. Ellie Pudifoot lost one of her spikes part-way through (for her second week of shoe-related drama) but was only just behind Sophie and Karlien, earning herself a silver medal for senior category to boot (pardon the pun).

Rachael Cary and Rachel Vines finished in close order, with Amelia Mullins next as the 4th finisher in her W50 category. Also completing the race for the club were Nicola Weager, Emma Abbey, Hannah Weager and Sam Templeton – with Jill Harsent 5th in her W65 category.

In terms of the team standings for the season, the CLC Striders Masters team (of Kate Telford, Helen Knight, Liza Bradshaw, Amelia Mullins, Karlien Heyrman and Sophie Longmore) took team gold, with the Senior team (of Isabel Brinsden, Kate Telford, Helen Knight, Ellie Pudifoot and Liza Bradshaw) earning team silver medals.

Running with the women as part of their race, two Striders super-vets did well on the day, with Ed Collier 5th in his M65 category and David James, 1st in his rarefied M75 category.

Back row, from left to right: Jill Harsent, Emma Abbey, Hannah Weager, Carline Heyrman, Isabel Brinsden, Rachel Vines, Helen Knight, Ellie Pudifoot, Amelia Mullins (and David James) Front row, from left to right: Nicola Weager, Kate Telford, Sophie Longmore and Sam Templeton

The last race of the day, with the ground well and truly churned up, saw the men’s turn. The club were led home by the always-gutsy Rob Green, in 9th place overall and 1st in his MV40 category, earning himself a gold medal for the season for his M40 category with a perfect performance score for the season.

The remaining A-team scorers on the day were Tom Burgess in 24th, Gavin Woods in 28th, Will McNeile in 35th, even with a fall at the stream crossing, Tom Fletcher in 37th (narrowly missing out on a M35 medal for the season) and James Mogridge in 42nd, making his club debut.

Also racing well on the day were Louis Jones for 44th, Fred Reid for 45th, James Endicott for 47th, Oliver Wright Jones for 50th, Andy Richardson for 72nd, Timothy Elliott for 73rd, Jon Pearce for 81st, Nigel Bailey for 94th, Pete Mitchener for 101st, Tim Brock for 105th, Gary Farquharson for 120th and Colin Upton 125th.

As well as Rob Green’s gold, the other medal winners for the season were Max Harrison-Tosatto with bronze in the Senior Men’s category and David James with bronze in his M75 category.

From left to right: Oliver Wright Jones, Nigel Bailey, Tim Brock, Tom Burgess, Rob Green, Tom Fletcher, Max Harrison-Tosatto, James Endicott, Fred Reid, Andy Richardson, Louis Jones, Jon Pearce, Timothy Elliott, Gavin Woods, Colin Upton (just visible!), Gary Farquharson, Will McNeile and James Mogridge

After Race Day 3 of their respective leagues were cancelled due to bad weather back in January, the ladies and men’s CLC Striders Teams had one job to do on what became the final and deciding fixture in their regional leagues: deliver team performances good enough to take them up into Division One.

The incredibly wet start to 2026 meant that the ground was muddy at best, water-logged and even flooded at worst. Proper cross-country conditions for the big day. The ladies were first to decide their fate, travelling up to Coombe Abbey, near Coventry for a fixture hosted by Sphinx RC. With an unusual start time of 10am, four faithful runners lined up on the start line, ready to give their all. The ladies’ season has been characterised by a small number of core runners turning out, but always producing incredible performances. Race Day 3 was to prove no exception.

First home, for a top 10 finish in 7th place overall and as 3rd in the Masters was Kate Telford, concluding her best cross-country season for the club. Kate was followed in by the ever- reliable team captain Helen Knight in12 th overall and as 7th in the Masters. Perhaps performance of the day came from Ellie Pudifoot who finished 17th overall despite having to run most of the race with the sole of one of her spikes missing! And Rachel Vines registered 24th overall and 12th in the Masters to wrap up a great season for her.

On the day the ladies were 2nd in the senior team competition and 1st Masters team, ensuring their promotion from Division 2 back to Division 1 with a 4th placing overall in the league across the 3 fixtures and 2nd overall for the season in the Masters category.

As the day moved on, attention turned to the men, racing in the afternoon over at Plock Court, Gloucester, in a fixture hosted by Severn AC. Could they emulate the ladies’ promotion feats? With all the clubs turning out all their very best and biggest squads, determined to finish the season as strongly as possible, competition was incredibly hot.

Whereas the ladies season was marked by a small, but faithful cohort of competitors turning out for each fixture, the men’s season was one which showed what strength in depth CLC Striders now has in its ranks, with the club having no less that 11 different A-team scorers across the season, and large turnouts meaning every runner played a part. The team spirit was epitomised by Tom Burgess who turned out to run despite an injured knee, meaning he didn’t finish but demonstrating everything about the Striders’ men’s approach to their cross-country season.

Splashing their way through the standing water of Plock Court, the club was led home by the resilient Rich Elsworthy in 20th place, only a fortnight after his top 10 finish in the gruelling Arc of Attrition Ultra. Pete Duffy was 33rd , after nursing a calf niggle for a month or so. Will McNeile returned from holiday to run the race of his life for 53rd overall, Tom Fletcher (another Arc of Attrition finisher) was 56th , James Endicott was 59th and Fred Reid, in his first season with the club, completed the A-team scorers in 85th place.

The B-Team scorers on the day were John Comer in 87th , Gavin Woods in 93rd , Jon Margetts in 95th , Louis Jones in 102nd , Jamie Hartnoll in 116th and Adam Greenwood in 123rd . Also running well and pushing other team runners back in the placings were Tim Elliott, Luke Hunter, Gary Farquharson, Tim Brock and Colin Upton.

On the day the CLC Striders men finished as the 9th A Team and 2nd B Team, but across the season, they were 3rd placed team overall, booking their promotion spot back up to Division 1.

Pete Duffy deserves special mention for his 2nd place in the season’s Masters rankings, playing a key role in securing the team 1st place in the team Masters standings for the season. All-in-all, it was a wonderful day for a small, local club and CLC Striders look forward to competing at the very top level in their regional cross-country leagues next season.