Bourton mile - Friday 8 May 2026
The Bourton Mile was hosted by Bourton Road Runners on the evening of Friday, 8th May. Serving also as the Gloucestershire County Championship, the flat, point-to-point course on Rissington Road has enjoyed perfect late spring conditions in recent years but this year a heavy downpour soaked the runners as they warmed up and made their way to the start.
Splashing their way back into the village, the CLC Striders charge was led by Pete Duffy, who put in a powerhouse performance to secure a top-ten finish, crossing the line in 4:48 to take 7th place overall. Next over the line was Gavin Woods, who dipped under the five-minute barrier with a fantastic 4:57.
The women’s race was won by Isabel Brinsden who backed up her win at the Bourton 10k with another victory in the Cotswold village, clocking in at 5:01 and winning the County Championship in the process. The great club performances kept flowing, as Ashley Wilson stormed to a PB of 5:35, followed closely by Tim Elliott in 5:41 and Adam Greenwood in 5:42, both of whom also secured new personal bests.
The Striders ladies took home a large haul of County medals, with Karlien Heyrman securing County bronze for LV35 with a time of 5:47, while Helen Knight produced a LV45 club record performance of 5:52. With the race using 10-year age category prizes, Helen would claim the LV40 race win and, of course, County gold for LV45 . Phil Adcock followed the trend of the evening, dipping under the six-minute mark in 5:59 for another PB.
As the finishers continued to pour in, Rachel Vines demonstrated her strength by taking County gold for LV40 in 6:03, followed by Tim Brock in 6:05. Hollie Freeland completed the ladies medal haul by claiming County bronze for LV40 with a PB of 6:08.
Rounding out a soggy but stellar night of racing were Colin Upton in 6:39, Arnie Delstanche in 6:43 – once again in a full inflatable dinosaur costume! – and Lientjie Colahan in 7:25. Finally, David James rocketed to the top of the MV75 UK Rankings with a time of 7:31 to establish a new MV75 club record.