The long and short of it.

Adam Evans with Bryce after his Ultra. Adam's that is, not Bryce's ? Well maybe the rain brings out the best in you. It has certainly been a busy week. This week we have reports on distances from 100 metres to 50k plus some cycling, swimming and jumping. We have an actual real live marathon, with 4 members competing on the Isle of Wight, in what is apparently the longest running marathon in the UK. Who knew ? Several of you braved appalling conditions to compete in the virtual London marathon, many of who have sent fabulous reports of their exploits. While running they were also raising thousands of pounds for various charities. For three members, 26.2 miles just isn't long enough, so we have reports on a couple of extremely challenging Ultras. Also, for many of you, it's not enough just to run, you have to swim and cycle as well. Sally Bliss has provided a report on the Stratford upon Avon Triathlon and Warwickshire Triathlon. There is also a report on the End of Season T&F Open competition at the Pingles Stadium in Nuneaton and finally we have the results of last month's Magic Mile. Enjoy the rest of your week. Take care Best Wishes David Jones Annie Threadgill with her medal Cara Reynolds and Emily Adams. View this email in your browser Isle of Wight Marathon. Host club Ryde Harriers first staged the IOW Marathon in 1957, 24 years before the London Marathon came on the scene, making it the longest running marathon in the UK and the 25th oldest in the world. This year they were keen to keep the unbroken sequence intact but with COVID 19 guidelines strictly adhered to. With all of the Covid-19 restrictions in place it was a very different race this year with the start having to be socially distanced. Having jumped through a variety of health and safety hoops to make it happen, organisers of the 64th Isle of Wight Marathon were delighted it went ahead as planned, with a new course record to show for it, despite the appalling weather. Four of our members were among the 172 finishers. Cara Reynolds and Emily Adams ran together with both recording a time of 3:51.41, finishing in 56th and 57th place respectively. They were the 8th and 9th females to finish and 3rd and 4th in their age category. Karl Harris finished in a time of 4:37.14 and was placed 134th and 14th in his age category, while Annie Threadgill recorded a time of 5:34.13, finishing in 164th place and 10th in her age category. The race was won by Ross Skelton in 2:28.30 and the first female finisher, in 13th place overall, was Sarah Hill with a time of 3:10.26. Below are Annie and Emily's thoughts on the race Annie's Race : Myself and friend Kate decided to do the marathon back in January, a challenge that I had been training for 4 years. I got up to 18 mile…