On a very wet morning two HBAC athletes headed out to compete in their respective 50km ultra marathons – Tom Bampton going to the Chiltern countryside and Sarah Smith setting off for Eastbourne.

Tom – being no stranger to the ultra – had opted for the hills, all 100 of them by running the Hundred Hills 50k.

It is the first of the series of trail events organised through Centurion Running and starts at the stunning country estate of Stonor Park in Henley-on-Thames.

The route then takes the runners up into the Chiltern hills, passing through a number of neighbouring villages and ancient woodland with picturesque views of the surrounding countryside while taking in 4,000ft of climbing along the way and tackling the 100 hills on the way. 

The race comes back to Stonor Park for the finish, where each participant received the Centurion medal, and Tom completed his epic quest in 7:23.30.

By contrast, this was the first ultra marathon for Sarah.

She took part in the Endurance Life Sussex Ultra Marathon, which took runners on a glorious route through some of the seaside towns that lie between Eastbourne and Seaford, towards the eastern section of the South Downs National Park. 

The route provides runners with some spectacular views of the iconic coastal landscapes and vast areas of glistening white chalk cliffs overhead, including the famous Seven Sisters, all the while taking in plenty of climbing and testing their endurance which equated to 5,226ft of elevation. 

Undeterred by the mud, heavy rain and blustery conditions, Sarah ran a superb race to clinch fourth lady in a fabulous time of 5:50.24.

Haslemere Border athlete Steve King has a new regime to prepare for a race – it appears a beer and a curry is just the fuelling he needs to set him up.

Steve was at the start line for the Fleet half marathon, and achieved a finishing time of 1:49.19.

While Steve was running at Fleet, a team of hardy Haslemere Border runners had made it to the village of Cranleigh for the annual Cranleigh pre-marathon training race, which has the option to run seven, 14 or 21 miles.

The race has always been popular for those with a spring marathon in their sights, and for a number of the Haslemere team this was the case.

The course features a seven-mile loop – 3.5 miles on undulating rural roads and 3.5 miles on the flat Downs Link old railway line. Runners can decide on the day and during the race whether to complete seven, 14 or 21 miles.

With heavy rain in the days leading up to the race, the Downs Link part of the course had become extremely muddy and made the course more challenging. 

This did not deter the hardy team of runners and, with support from club member Dave Bateman along the route, they all set off determined to meet their targets.

First to finish were Lorraine Herring, Janet Govan and Ersillia Harris, who had all opted for the shortest distance of seven miles. Ersillia finished in a time of 1:18.39 and was fourth in her age group. Janet and Lorraine crossed the line together in a time of 1:26.39.

In the 14-mile race, Tania Corrigan continued her good run of form, finishing in an excellent time of 1:50.52 to come first in her age group. 

Next home for Haslemere was Paul Seymour in 1:58.58. Hesta Gilham finished strongly in a time of 1:59.01, Sheelagh Jones finished in 1:59.46 and was first in her age group, and Sarah Barnet finished in 2:47.21.

Chris White and Gemma Reeder opted to complete the full 21 miles. Chris finished in an impressive time of 2:58.51, while Gemma completed the 21 miles in 3:43.49.

A trio of club athletes took part in the Hampton Court half marathon. The route starts inside the grounds of Hampton Court Palace, heads out along the tow path by the side of the River Thames, enters Home Park and finishes in the beautiful gardens.

Dudley Walker, Sam Walker and Catriona Wiles had all trained hard for the race, with Catriona using it as part of her marathon training. Bringing the team home was Dudley in a personal best time of 1:46.57.

Sam finished in a personal best 2:00.42, taking off 30 minutes from her previous time. Catriona finished in 2:04.56.

A successful weekend saw the completion of the club’s Get Up And Run (GUAR) course – as the group graduated from running for just 60 seconds to running for 35 minutes continuously. 

More than 20 runners braved wind, rain, snow and sub-zero temperatures during the ten-week course, but graduated on a sunny Saturday morning. 

The group were supported by volunteers from previous GUAR courses and led by HBAC coach Annalisa Alexander. The course was full of fun and laughter, and each week finished with cake.

For anyone who would like a gentle Saturday morning run, Annalisa leads a group out at 9am from the Devil’s Punch Bowl café. It’s free to join, just turn up. HBAC will run another GUAR course in early September – email [email protected] to register your interest.

Ann Varnes and Philomel Bennett