HAVE YOUR SAY ON THE FORUM

The official website for the European Walking Championships is here.

It doesn't appear to have much current information so if anyone can find a link for the results please send me an email.

I'll be out this morning watching the Northern 10 so I won't be able to publish the results until this afternoon unless I receive them before 9.45.

I hope that the above went ok despite the rather wet weather. I wouldn't have been able to make it in any event with my Saturday commitments but I was told by Graham Davies last night that we could not take pictures without a media pass.

On the way back from my Saturday job today I stopped to give John Cannell a lift.  He had just received a text message from Liz Corran to say that the entries for the Clerical Medical Parish Walk were over the 1000 mark.

More news (hopefully tomorrow).

The Young Athletes League resumes tomorrow and I'm sure I'll be able to bring you news via the Brand family tomorrow night on Monday. With the Lancashire Championships sandwiched between two rounds of this league I'm sure there will be some travel fatigue among the team. Hope they go well.

I don't have any pre race publicity for this one and I don't know a lot about athletes intentions but I understand that Bernard Cannan is running and last week's Peel to Douglas fourth placer Mike Garrett definitely is.

Peter Hughes is a regular in this Northern AC organised race but I can't confirm whether he is running. I wonder if Brian Osbourne will return after making his debut last year or whether Peel to Douglas top two Paul Clarke or Charlie Pass will run.

Ian Callister was due to run the Bob Baxter round today, a 50+ mile run around each of the Island's summits.

Training 

To be held on Bank Holiday Monday 26th May. This is a non-competitive walk of about 24 miles. Ideal for Parish Walkers to get a few hours on their feet.  Start at Ham and Egg Terrace Laxey at 8.15am 

I can give you some very 'ish' times from last nights race, I had to stop my watch from the 200m,  but they should be within a second or so.

The timing for athletes running in the Northern mens league meeting that weekend is not great however. If the demand is great from athletes not competing that weekend, perhaps it may be still worth organising one.

I agree with your comments about track races etc.

I believe we need to develop an endurance running strategy on the Isle of Man. Many have complained about times in the year with too many races others when there are none. Then there are all the different kinds of races Track, Country, Fell, Road and multi terrain. There is also a habit to label athletes as track runners etc.

I feel we need to take an overview and look at the whole picture. Then we can ensure there are enough fell races and road etc. through the year and also there is a logical plan to allow those who wish to compete in a number of disciplines or over different distances to be able to do so. In other words no discipline takes precedence. We take a clean sheet and plan a year of events for the good of the individual athletes first and then the sport as a whole second and the disciplines themselves third.

The IOM AA dev. plan may move us in this direction however until we get there I am afraid there will always be the problems as detailed on the web site because no logical plan or thought has gone into putting the whole of the fixture list together.

I am sure such an endurance initiative could extend to training, funding international teams etc. I hope we can grasp the opportunity to really take things forward.

Who said the following and when?

"We have suffered from a chronic fixture congestion and have gone for quantity rather than quality. ...What we need (is to) ....cut the fixtures to a third of the present level, get the top athletes on the Island all lining up together, get three figure entries in the main races, and insist that all club members help in at least one in three of the races that they are not participating in..... What is the point of three clubs from the Isle of Man competing in the Northern men's league....How often do we compete against other clubs on the Island? Pathetically few..... Lets go and make it work or tell me how you see the club in five years time."

Does it all sound familiar? Well the above is an extract from my speech to the AGM of Boundary Harriers calling for us to merge with the other Island clubs on 17 November 1988!!

A young athlete celebrating his 14^th Birthday caught the eye in what was a tremendous weekend for local track & field athletes, when most eyes should have been on the Island Games team members competing at the Lancashire County Championships held in Stanley Park, Blackpool.

For the last two years Ben Brand would have had written on his end of season athletic report failed to reach his true potential in major Championships, he shattered that hoodoo with two County Championship gold medals in what was an outstanding performance.

He won the Island its first gold medal of the day in the 80m hurdles with training partner Michael Haslett taking the silver, he then went over to the High Jump and took the gold in that and to round off a good first day he picked up a bronze after coming through the heats in the 100 metre’s final. On day two his birthday he came through all the heats again to make the final of the 200 metre’s and 800 metre’s but he would have to run the finals back to back, going into the final of the 800 he had a personal best of 2 minutes 18 seconds and up until the last 30 metre’s was in with a chance of a medal but just failed to hold his form to the line, but his time 2 minutes 13.7 seconds was incredible. After lying very tired and upset on the track he got up and went over to the Javelin did two throws before lining up for the 200 metre’s final where he stormed through to win the silver medal in 25.7 seconds, then ran back over to complete the Javelin competition where he won a bronze medal.

Now what about our Island Games team members well 18 year old Chris Whitlow who will be taking part in his first Games was our star performer winning gold in the Triple jump and 400 metre Hurdles he also took silver in the High jump, Long jump and 400 metre flat race. Glyn Hoosen-Owen who won the County Championship in the under 17 boys Discus last year moved up an age group to win the junior men’s title and also won a silver medal in the Shot Put. Hoosen-Owen has also appealed for some help in his preparation for the games, as he currently has no coach to advise him.

Kerree Kermode has given the games team selectors a major boost by winning the Junior ladies County Championship in Discus and taking the runner-up spot in Shot Put, this is after some athletic officials questioned her selection to the team. Hannah Riley travelled up from College to join the team and made up for her disaster in the 100 metre hurdles final on day one, where she hit the first three hurdles very hard before falling by taking bronze in 400 hurdles final. Hannah’s new coach is trying to increase her speed between hurdles, and this has unfortunately upset rhythm over the hurdles making Hannah fall in her last couple of events, so it was a case of just getting round to recover some lost confidence. The Islands top ladies sprinter Sarah Dowling was rewarded with her hard work over the winter with bronze in the 100 metre’s final, incidentally in which one competer equaled the World and British Veteran ladies record. The remaining member of our games squad competing was Holly Bass who had to cut short her week long 18^th Birthday celebrations to concentrate on these championships and she was happy with her performance taking the silver in the 200 metre’s and bronze in the 400 metre’s and Triple jump.

Bringing the total haul of medals up to 29 were some other very promising young athletic performances, Adam Bingham took the silver in the under 17 boys 100 metre hurdles final, Shaun Cregeen added another in the 3000 metre’s as did Harriet Pryke on her debut in the High Jump. Michelle Greaves won two bronze medals in Javelin and 300 metre hurdles. Jimmy Eccles had a poor championship by his standards but still gained a bronze in Discus; no doubt this will make him even more determined to bounce back next year.  Sprinter Peter Richardson who made all the finals he entered finally was rewarded by a bronze in the Shot Put, another athlete struggling at present is Josh Masterson he found it very hard in the very competitive under 17 years age group but he finally had some reward with a bronze in the Triple Jump as did Daniel Pownell in the under 17 years Long Jump.

 So ended a very successful weekend for Manx athletics what was pleasing about this trip was the fact that those who won medals shared their success with those who didn’t. I can only finish by saying I would be proud to travel with them all again they are a great credit to our Island.

Lancashire County Track & Field Championships 2003

Stanley Park, Blackpool

Local results

DAY ONE -  SATURDAY 10^th MAY

80m Hurdles

Final                 4, Michelle Greaves                    13.50

Under 15B         1, Ben Brand                             14.00                            2, Michael Haslett          14.80

100 Hurdles

Under 17 Boys   2, Adam Bingham                      16.60

JAVELIN

Under 17 Girls   3, Michelle Greaves                    25.88

Under 15 Girls   6, Helen Ring                             15.83                7, Charlotte Christian                  8.17

400m

Junior Men

Final                 2, Chris Whitlow                        54.70    Junior Women   3, Hollie Bass                63.20

Under 17 Boys   5, Josh Masterson                     57.90

300m

Heat 1               4, Michelle Greaves                    47.00    Final     8, Michelle Greaves                    49.60

DISCUS

Junior Men        1, Glyn Hoosen-Owen                39.00

Under 17 Boys   3, James Eccles                        28.49

HIGH JUMP

Junior Men        2, Chris Whitlow                        1.75

Under 15B         1, Ben Brand                             1.53                  4, Daniel Stewart-Clague            1.44

Under 17 B        4, Sam Cannell                          1.60                  5, Shaun Cregeen                      1.60

                        6, Josh Masterson                     1.55

SHOT PUT

Junior Men        2, Glynn Hoosen-Owen               11.78

Under 15B         3, Petyer Richardson                  8.60                  4, Daniel Stewart-Clague            7.41

Under 17B         4, James Eccles                        9.44

TRIPLE JUMP

Junior Men        1, Chris Whitlow                        12.16

Under 17B         3, Josh Masterson                     10.98                4, Adam Bingham                      10.97

                        6, Shaun Creegen                      9.35

100 m

Senior Women   3, Sarah Dowling                        13.00

U15 Girls

Heat 1               4, Helen Ring                             14.40     Heat 2  5, Harriet Pryke                         13.70

U15 Boys

Heat 1               2, Peter Richardson                   13.00                7, Daniel Stewart-Clague            14.00                            8, Tony Eccles                              14.20

Heat 2               3, Ben Brand                             12.90                5, Michael Haslett                      13.60

Final                 3, Ben Brand                             12.80                4, Peter Richardson                   13.00

1500 m

U13 Boys          7, Jamie Carey                          5.46.80

U15 Boys         

Heat 1               4, Andrew Newton                      4.48.00

Final                 8, Andrew Newton                      5.11.60

U15 Girls          

Heat 1               7, Katie Tinkler                          5.59.90     Heat 2   Ciara Kaneen                        5.38.00

LONG JUMP

Under 15 Girls   5, Helen Ring                             4.34                  6, Harriet Pryke                         4.12

                        7, Mary Reilly                            3.93     

DAY TWO -  SUNDAY 11^th MAY

200m

U17 Men

Heat  2              6, Josh Masterson                     26.70

U15 Girls

Heat 1               6, Mary Reilly                            30.00    Heat 2   4, Harriet Pryke                         28.90

Final                 6, Harriet Pryke                         28.70

U15 Boys

Heat 1               2, Peter Richardson                   26.80                5, Michael Haslett                      27.90                            6, Tony Eccles                              30.50   

Heat 2               1, Ben Brand                             26.40                5, Peter Richardson                   26.80

7, Daniel Stewart-Clague            29.80

Final                 2, Ben Brand                             25.90                5, Peter Richardson                   26.40

Junior Ladies                                                                 Senior Ladies

Final                 2, Hollie Bass                            27.90    Final     4, Sarah Dowling                        27.00

300m Hurdles

Final                 3, Michelle Greaves                    52.20

400m Hurdles

Senior Women                                                               Junior Men

Final                 3, Hannah Riley                         72.20    Final     1, Chris Whitlow                        61.50

800m

U17 Boys

Heat 1               5, Sam Cannell                          2.20.80  Heat 2  4, Daniel Pownell                       2.15.70

U15 Girls

Heat 1               4, Ciara Kaneen             2.39.80             6, Mary Reilly                            2.55.30

8, Katie Kaneen                         3.00.90

Final                 9, Ciara Kaneen             2.41.00

U15 Boys

Heat 1               1, Ben Brand                             2.23.80             7, Andrew Newton                      2.33.70

Final                 4, Ben Brand                             2.13.20

3000m

Under 17 Boys  3, Shaun Cregeen                       12.19.10

LONG JUMP

Junior Men        2, Chris Whitlow                        5.82

U15 Boys          5, Daniel Stewart-Clague            4.67                  7, Michael Haslett                      4.51

                        9, Tony Eccles                          4.38

U17 Boys          3, Daniel Pownall                       5.23                  4, Adam Bingham                      5.09

SHOT PUT

U15 Girls           4, Kate Rivers                            8.50                  9, Charlotte Christian                  7.00

                        11, Helen Ring                           6.67

Junior Women   2, Kirree Kermode                      8.08

JAVELIN

U15Boys           3, Ben Brand                             33.75                6, Andrew Newton                      25.21

                        7, Tony Eccles                          22.82                8, Ryan Fairclough                     19.13

U17Boys           4, Shaun Cregeen                      22.36                6, James Eccles                        11.09

DISCUS

Junior Women   1, Kirree Kermode                      26.84

U15 Girls           4, Kate Rivers                            18.53                5, Helen Ring                             16.95

                        9, Charlotte Christian                  13.62              

HIGH JUMP

U15 Girls           2, Harriet Pryke                         1.36

TRIPLE JUMP

Junior Women   3, Hollie Bass                            9.83

Finished my final training session. 4x1kms at a reasonably steady pace (aiming at around 47min pace 10km) felt good, but a bit hard on the lungs - due to the cut grass.

We will arrive into London Heathrow airport hotel about 18:00 and most of the team will meet up then.

Nervous - Biggest race of my life! reminds me of how I felt the first time I raced in the AAA's but even more nerve racking.

It goes without saying that everyone from the Isle of Man will be behind Neil Bates when he makes his Great Britain debut on Sunday morning - 7 am GMT (6 AM BST?).

Its a huge honour for him and something that never happens by accident. Its the product of a lot of hard work and skill.

To see how many walkers have entered from each country per event click here. Fairly small file.

Physio on Monday and Wednesday showed some improvement but it's still not ready to do anything too strenuous.

The typical 'down time' is two weeks and as of today it's been 10 days (Wed).

I should be OK to do a gym session on Thursday (with some work on the cross-trainer) and maybe go for a jog on Saturday but I can't see myself on the track for at least another week and even then the work will be focused on the 800 until the muscle is fully recovered and able to cope with speedwork.

I think I'll just end up running the 800 at the Games but maybe if I do so we've got a chance of putting a 4x400 team out because dropping the 400 solo would ease my fixture congestion.

This time back in 2001 I lost a full week with a calf injury (also missing the Lancashires) and I also lost a week with a recurrence of the injury two weeks before the Games began. Not that I'm clutching at straws or anything like that!

Thanks to Andy Fox for organising last night's 5000 metres on behalf of Manx Harriers. There was a great three way battle at the front of the field (see front page) then Nick Percival took 4th ahead of Chris Shimmin.

After campaigning to see more middle distance racing on the track and I didn't actually see it. Instead I thought I had better support the cause and enjoyed a good dice with comeback man Dave Newton.

Could anyone supply the result please? Steve Partington had a good view of the race from the Sports Council meeting!

We must now bring back the 10,000 metres championships and the veterans mile.

Why have track leagues become associated just with children?

It would be great to see a full field of sprinters in a few meetings per year - we used to have heats and finals before we had a proper track.

As for the middle distance we all know that there are too many counter attractions on other racing surfaces. But surely we can manage a handful of good 800 and 1500 metres, maybe 2 5000 metres and one 10,000 metres per year.

Or what about an endurance event sometime?

Well you've only had three months or so to return your entry forms but the number of hits on the website have reached record levels with just a few days to go.

POST THEM TODAY OR ELSE!

They must be with Elizabeth Corran by Saturday 17 May.

50 or so would be entrants were turned away last year. Do you intend to miss out? Well do something now!

Just a reminder that Manx Harriers are organising a 5km walk on the TT access road tonight. All are welcome. There is not even an entry fee.

ISLE OF MAN FIXTURES

Well that ends another update that started at 5.30 this morning. There won't be quite as much tomorrow but keep the news coming.  I can't believe the fixture list. We now have the Dave Phillips memorial road races on Friday night and the Mann Link Travel Northern 10 miles on Sunday. The top young athletes are off the Island in the Young Athletes League on Sunday, the Manx Youth Games features athletics at the NSC and the Inter Schools Championships resume today at the NSC.

ADDITIONAL STATS BY PAUL JACKSON:

As someone who has not been competing for very long himself (he gets a chance tomorrow in the Buchanan & Pitts Carraghan Fell Race) Paul Jackson, who organised the Isle of Man Bank Peel to Douglas Road Run on behalf of Manx Harriers, feels strongly that there are a many other potential recruits to the sport in the Isle of Man.

He shares very similar views to mine that publicity and awareness that the sport is open to all regardless of age, ability or previous experience is vital to opening the doors to a floodgate of potential athletes.

And Paul proved it yet again with an excellently publicised event. The reward? This is what Paul said to me last night: "I was delighted with the newcomers entry. There was an astonishing 18 unattached runners, and a good show from the ladies. I was aiming for newcomers in the publicity and it certainly paid off."

Paul also paid tribute to Chris Corkill from the Isle of Man Bank. "He was there at 9am, officially 'started' the race and followed it to the finish. He was there at the Imperial till 12.30 after presenting the prizes. He showed a real interest in the event."

What a change in the weather for this event compared to last year. The main purpose of this event of course is to raise money for cancer charity and so if you haven't already made a contribution to the cause you only have to look at the pictures to identify someone you know who will be pleased to receive your contributions.

The spin off of the fund raising activities is that a lot of women have identified with a healthy lifestyle and exercising is a part of that. There can't be any easier way to maintain fitness than walking, jogging or running.  These pursuits can easily be done on your own or with a group of friends but training and competing with others can also be a lot of fun and if anyone who took part in the Race for Life yesterday is reading this, we hope to see you at Manx athletics events regularly throughout the year. You will receive a warm welcome and there are a host of contacts on this site.

ISLE OF MAN FIXTURES 

One of my complaints about there being too many events in the Isle of Man is that we don't get the chance to savour the outstanding performances. By the end of one week there may have been a further five events on the Isle of Man and each event is history very quickly.

Its therefore very difficult to do justice on this site to the many fine performances at the Lancashire Championships.

Although Lancashire no longer includes the large conurbations of Merseyside and Greater Manchester, it does include many large towns such as Blackpool, Preston, Chorley, Blackburn, Burnley and Accrington.

It is therefore a credit to the coaches, the people of the Isle of Man who provide us with such great facilities and, most of all, the athletes themselves, that we manage to win so many medals each year.

Well done to all concerned.

Tuesdays race looks like another eyeballs out effort for the top boys on the new course that will, I feel sure, prove a real classic. I`ve had a few looks over it and the more I see the more I like. As I reported last week the route is much more runner friendly than any other way we have used in this race previously. Unlike the three other routes we have taken in the past, it is possible to miss the heathery sections completely and stay on grass or sheep tracks all the way. The ascent, though, is tough and will be a stern test for everyone especially after the plantation section where the course rises very steeply. The descent will be rapid to say the least and the winner could be whoever has the most bottle. It could also get very interesting if the mist is down as it is easy to miss the correct line back to the plantation track if visibility is poor, especially when you are going at pace. A bonus for those of us who will be pottering along at the rear will be the fantastic scenery to enjoy overlooking the Baldwin Reservoir, absolutely stunning.

13 year old Manx Harriers race walker Emma Latham has been selected for the England team for the Dublin Grand Prix of Race Walking. The event will be held at Phoenix Park on 13th July 2003. The team are hoping to retain the Nihill Shield won recently at Leamington Spa. A delighted Emma who has only been race walking for 18 months confirmed her availability today with Peter Cassidy, Honorary General Secretary of the Race Walking Association, although she is still unsure which race she will be competing in as the age groups are different to the English ones.  

Chris was off work for two days with a virus at the end of the week and cannot see how he will be recovered in time to run in the Isle of Man Peel to Douglas.

He is really disappointed about this as he had been gearing my training to this race for about the last 10 weeks.

Chris says: "My longer term aim is the Island Games, so my immediate aim is to recover from this setback and ease back into the training."

Back to physio this morning, Fri 9th. Despite the fact that the discomfort in 'normal' activities has all but gone, the session revealed that the injury still needs more time to heal properly. The last thing I need is to lose another two weeks (which would mean I would not go to Guernsey) so it's better to delay my return for an extra couple of days and err on the side of caution - the very earliest I'll be back running is next Wednesday.

Ever more, my preparation looks like it is going to be like that for Gotland, when I was called up with six weeks to go after Gianni pulled out. At the moment I'm resigned to going for medals rather than wins and possibly (maybe depending on whether the schedule is changed), I may just do one event.

Amongst the thirty odd athletes travelling to Stanley Park in Blackpool this weekend for the Lancashire County Track and Field Championships, will be seven young athletes recently selected to represent the Isle of Man in the Island Games in Guernsey.

Glyn Hoosen-Owen the current Lancashire Champion in the under 17 boys discus will be hoping that his ankle injury sustained playing Rugby during the winter will not stop him taking part in the Junior Men’s event and showing the selectors that their faith in him is well founded. Keith Gerrard was only able to compete in one of the three events over the Easter weekend after recovering from flu, and he will be hoping to improve on last years bronze medal in the under 17’s. Sarah Dowling who dominates the ladies sprinting on the Island would love to bring home a medal along with up and coming hurdler Chris Whitlow but they will find it very hard amongst some very talented athletes.

Another athlete hoping to prove the selectors faith in her is Kerry Kermode her selection was deemed very controversial in some athletic circles, so a good showing would certainly take some of the pressure off. Pre-selected Games athlete Holly Bass is most certainly a hot favorite to bring back a medal from Guernsey and will be determined to show some early season form in Blackpool.

With Hannah Riley, Martin Aram and Phil Riley all at College or university in England its not known if they will be contesting the Championships, if they do they are most certainly in with a chance of a medal.

Nine athletes will be competing in the under 17’s of those James Eccles, Adam Bingham, Daniel Pownall and Michelle Greaves are all in with a shout of a medal. Ryan Fairclough and Peter Richardson both from Ramsey will find it very tough in the Under 15 boys events having both just moved up from under 13’s. Of the 15 Manx athletes entered in the under 15’s Mary Reilly, Ben Brand and Helen Ring have the best chance of a medal, debutante Harriet Pryke will be the dark horse depending on the opposition. Along with the traveling athletes will be five local track officials hoping to gain valuable experience working in a major Championship.

Ironman Neville Jewell is competing for Great Britain in the World long course age-group triathlon championships in Ibiza this weekend.

The event consists of a 4km swim, 120km bike, 30km run.

Also competing will be the star of the Flora London Marathon (from a Manx point of view) Jessica Draskau-Petersson.

It amazes me to even think of doing those three events back to back but the two athletes above are obviously extremely committed to the cause and let's hope all goes well.

Hard working official Bridget Kaneen took the trouble to email the results to everyone in the media last night little more than two hours after the event finished - that is a great example in itself.

But if you didn't guess that she was competing herself, then look at the results and you'll see that she actually competed in the event winning a tough battle with Marie Latham. Anyone who has competed 25 laps flat out around the NSC roadway will know that you normally want to crash out afterwards so thanks again to Bridget. She has been one of the most consistent and helpful contributors to the site since it started.

Peter Kaneen's performance must not go unnoticed either. The trouble with local races sometimes is that we get too familiar with the positions that we expect people to finish and don't always stop to think of all the work and preparation that goes into competing so successfully. Referring to those 25 laps again, its the easiest thing in the world just to throw in the towel walking around there and keeping going at a fast pace is as hard, if not harder, than going at a more sedate pace no matter how fit you are.  A veterans record (if sanctioned) will be a just reward to Peter.

Bridget and Peter's daughter Bronwen won the 1 mile junior walk against some tough competition to make it a hatrick.

I hope that someone else may have time to write a full report on the race but the Kaneen family deserve a special mention just as I single out others for praise at other times.

Is there anywhere on the Isle of Man where you can hire bikes, the pedal variety or what we always used to call pushbikes? They are not for me but for a family visiting the Isle of Man. If you know of anyone could you email me at murray@manxathletics.com please. Thanks.

Paul Jackson recorded his first ever radio interview yesterday when Tim Glover asked questions about Sunday's Isle of Man Bank sponsored Peel to Douglas Run. Check out Manx Radio sport today.

The race takes place this Sunday afternoon 11/5 at the NSC. Manx Harriers help with the marshals at the finish and round the NSC area. If you are willing to help please contact Andy Fox on 626415 as all money raised does go to a worthy cause.

Not long ago Murray mentioned the fact there were few track races for seniors down the NSC, no middle distance challenge etc. Well, we have a chance to do something about it. If you would like a run in a 5km or a mile why not come along on the dates listed below. There are a number of individuals who have stated an interest in running in the 5km already and it would be good to have a large field out to show the organisers that there is a demand for distance races on the track on the IOM. I will publish a list of those who will probably run next Monday.

Wed. 14/5/03    5000m  Start - 8.45pm.

Wed. 11/6/03    Steve Jacobs' Memorial Mile (handicap) Start - 6.30pm.

There are a number of other distance events planned after TT and the Island Games namely a Steeplechase and some 1500/800ms. So if anyone fancies a run out over a different distance as an experiment get in touch wih me on 626415. As a Steeplechaser I am aware that this event may seem daunting, however, if anyone would like to try it I am willing to give advice and help with technique and we can amend the distance to give beginners a chance to try it out!!!

Stanley Park, Blackpool saw the Kenmac sponsored Harriers men’s team return to the top flight of Northern League athletics for the first time since 1998. The team that travelled out on Saturday was considered a little weak due to the fact that a few regulars were missing. As such, a number of youngsters made their debuts in the first team, four to be precise, and all did the club proud. In the end the team finished fifth, the second highest position the club has achieved in this division. The best result was fourth at Gateshead International Stadium back in 1997. Of course the story could have been even better with one of the Manx team’s star performers being badly injured early on in the match when the Harriers were actually lying in 3rd. place!!!

In the Sprints a number of excellent efforts were made by athletes who do not normally compete in these events. The 100m saw a 6th and 5th in the A&B events from Keiron Murray and Trevor Christian respectively. In the 200m Phil Riley and Glenn Butterworth ran well coming home in seventh and eighth places. In the B 400m young Chris Quinn ran very well coming home in 8th. place but hot on the heels of a couple of very experienced runners. This was the event that saw a hamstring injury for Keiron Murray. Keiron seemed to be coming into shape at the right time and this will be a major blow to his aims for the Island games. It is to be hoped that he will recover quickly and the injury will prove not to be as serious as at first thought. Of course this did effect the team for the rest of the afternoon, however, the lads rallied to the cause. All send their best wishes to Key for a speedy recovery.

In the hurdles events Chris Whitlow carried the fight ably supported by Phil Riley and youngster Daniel Pownall. In the 400m Chris came 4th. in the A race in 63 seconds with Daniel finishing third in the B race in 64.7 seconds, a personal best performance. In the sprint event Phil came 5th. in the A race and Chris won the B. Considering all the club’s usual hurdlers were unavailable for this match this was an excellent effort indeed.

In the throws Trevor Christian and Glynn Hoosen-Owen performed excellently. Trevor came fourth in the A Hammer and first in the B Shot and Discus. Glynn in turn came 7th. in the A Discus, 5th. in the A Shot and 5th. in the B Hammer. The Javelin event was covered by Tom Davies and under 17 athlete Sam Cannell. Throwing is certainly a strength for the Harriers now and even without certain highly ranked throwers the lads did more than hold their own.

In the jumping events some fine performances were recorded by Phil Riley and Chris Whitlow. Phil Gained three fourths in the A Long, Triple and High jump competitions. Chris came second in the B Long and 4th. in the B High jump. Young Andy Lean completed the B triple jump in a pleasing third place for the Harriers. In the Pole Vault Tom Davies scored valuable points as his training for this new event begins to pay off.

The distance events were quite tough and the locals ran well. Keith Gerrard was seventh in a very classy A 1500m while Chris Shimmin ran very well in the B race to finish in a PB of 4mins 27 seconds coming home in third place. Over 800m Glenn Butterworth came 8th in the A race. The B race was completed by Tom Davies who did the same in the Steeplechase B event to gain valuable points for the team. Andy Fox finished 4th. in the A Chase. Over 5000m Chris Quine ran on strongly to come home in 5th. place in the A race while Andy finished as 6th. B competitor.

In the 4x100m relay the team ran very well to come home in 5th. place. The squad was made up by Phil Riley and Chris Whitlow who covered so many events on the day. Glenn Butterworth also ran a good leg as did Chris Quinn. In the 4x400m Glenn ran again with Andy Lean, Sam Cannell and Chris Shimmin. The boys fought hard all the way finishing in seventh position.

Overall the team scores were :-

                        1. Liverpool Pembroke and Sefton        361 points.

                        2. Derby & County                               329

                        3. Leeds City                                   296

                        4. Blackpool and Fylde                  258

                        5. Manx Harriers                                232

                        6. Rotherham                            220.5

                        7. Kingston Upon Hull                   213.5

                        8. Gateshead Harriers                   186

The result as a whole gives the Manx team hope that they can stay in this division and with the Island Games coming up the matches at Gateshead and Leeds in June and July will be vitally important for the club. Indeed they will also have a major impact on the preparations of the Manx team for Guernsey. It will be interesting to see how it all works out. The Manx Independent will carry the full story of this action packed season. It has to be said that the results and performances are provisional as the  final results have not yet been received.

Make no mistake about it, road racing on open roads will be increasingly under threat in years to come and its continuation will be dependent upon a realistic number of races capable of being relatively safely marshaled and people giving up their time to marshal.

But I do hope that the Peel to Douglas will be one of the events that survives in some form as it really is the Manx classic. It was only in the in the 1980s that most of our road races started whereas the Peel to Douglas goes back a century earlier.

For many years (and Peter McElroy continued to call it such long after the status was changed) it was the Manx Road Racing Championship. The Championship was replaced by a league of races and more recently by championships over 10km, 10 miles, half marathon and marathon.

Traditionally the run was held on Sunday afternoon but it switched to Wednesday evening in the early 1980s, then (I think) to Bank Holiday Monday evening, then Sunday evening and then finally Sunday morning. I ran an April fool story that it was going to start at 6 am this year and I was surprised how many people said they thought it was a good idea!

When the event peaked under Chris Quine's organisation in the mid 1980s more than 100 people took part but you only have to look at the list of the all time fastest runners to see that it was the peak period for quality performances as well. All but 2 of the 14 sub one hour performances came in an 8 year period between 1979 and 1987.

Why? Well the focus of road running was certainly diluted when so many other races started and ended up as opposition. The Peel to Douglas now forms an option rather than being "the race". The opening of the track in 1991 and Manx clubs entering UK track leagues meant that much of the talent concentrated on other events.  But talking of talent and road racing skills, then the Steve Kelly/Dave Newton/Dave Lockley/Graham Clarke era may never be repeated. Certainly Steve Kelly's high level consistency in this race is legendry.

It was only when I re-published my  PEEL TO DOUGLAS RUN  DATABASE last night that I realised just how many entries I had to type in. It certainly brought back memories of sitting in front of the desk where I am this morning with newspaper cuttings and Peter McElroy's little black book in front of me. I'm not sure I'll have to time to update it this year given the number of other events I hope to cover on the site (and have a life!).

For memories of those fast times, enjoy this little selection.

Entries on the day have a drawback when it comes to previewing races as nobody actually knows who is taking part until the day. Nor do we know how many will line up.

Last year's finishing number of 45 was the best since 1994 and, despite the clash with the Race for Life in the afternoon, I think this may well be bettered on Sunday. The event has been well promoted by Paul Jackson but the continuation of races like the Peel to Douglas will be dependent not only on the number of entries but on safety issues. Therefore, if you can spare a short time on Sunday morning to marshal, please call on 611179 / 497048 , or you can contact Ron Ronan on 822004.

The number of finishers since 1995 per year are listed below:

Richard Jamieson was away over the Bank holiday weekend running in the British Championships again. The Stuc A Chroin race was in Scotland at a place called Strathyre and was a 15 miler. Richard was again in the points finishing, he thinks, in 41st position. This was another great effort as the competition in these races is fierce and you have to fight for every position. As well as being a British championship race it included a round of the Scotish championships as well resulting in a top class entry. The race was won by British champion Ian Holmes. 

If anyone can help out on Sunday as a marshal for the Peel to Douglas road race  please give me a call on 611179 / 497048 , or you can contact Ron Ronan on 822004.

Just a quick update as to the second half of my frenetic weekend of athletics, as after the Northern Mens meet i 'competed' in the BUSA Uni champs in bedford.

Left blackpool at about 5.15pm and went via manchester pic, stafford, milton keynes and finally arrived in Bedford shortly before midnight!

Woke up next morning stiff but able to compete, so was reasonably confident of putting in a good performance in the Long Jump. Was made to wait around for ages but eventually the comp started around 2pm. First round jump was good but  was about 50cm behind board so ended up with 5.85. In the second round however i pulled up in agony on the approach with what i initially feared was a torn calf muscle. Luckily i've 'only' pulled several fibres in my calf and most of the pain i felt was down to severe cramping around the muscle as my body was trying to prevent the muscle from being damaged further. Should be out for around a week if physio goes well but maybe longer.

The reaction of the officials to my injury however was nothing short of abysmal. Five minutes after i hadn't moved from my position on the ground an official finally came over. His question? "its not a matter of life and death is it mate?" which really annoyed me. No less than five different spectators then approached the officials to ask them to go and get first aid but they REFUSED on the grounds that the competition was running late as it was and so they couldn't stop what they were doing even if i was injured. I was still in quite a bit of pain by this stage.

TWENTY FIVE MINUTES LATER the field referee came over as he'd noticed i hadn't got up since the injury and went to get first aid straight away. The long jump officials by this time were sat on their backsides trying to work out who had qualified and who hadn't and it was only when they saw St John's approach me that they came to see how i was. How i managed to restrain my language i'll never know but i made my feelings clear and will be making an official complaint to UKAthletics.

Other than that the weekend was ok! Hopefully be up and running again next week but only if i'm 100%, i don't want to risk any more damage with the island games so close.

I'd just like to finally say a big well done to the other athletes from the Northern Mens team, who all put in fantastic performances and everyone contributed to the team exceeding our initial expectations!

 Rosie Morrison advises that the two events listed below (Junior Harbour Road Races  & Peel Festival -  Open track & field meeting) will not be staged this year.

I'll update the list. I'm advised that the IOMAA were advised previously.

Although there has been some discussion about the excess of fixtures next week, noby has even mentioned that there are three fixtures on the IOMAA fixture list this week (in addition to the track leagues.

Such is the clutter, that it was only as I removed the events that have taken place in the past few days that I even noticed the following:

Thu       8th      20km Road Walking Champs

Fri        9th      Junior Harbour Road Races    

ISLE OF MAN FIXTURES

I often look at the births section of the Manx newspapers and am staggered to find that "so and so" had a baby several weeks ago and I've only just realised. There is such a time delay before some of the announcements reach the newspapers.

Steve & Miranda obviously used modern technology to announce their twins as the birth of their twins was in the first paper to be published after their arrival.

Thanks to Caroline Brand for taking the pictures yesterday and to Anthony (who says he is getting worse than me for working on his computer late at night) for sending them to me.

It was a good day for the Brand family on the track as well. Ben won the u15 400m in 57.5s and the u15 javelin and Matty won the u13 shot put.

Other top class performances include Andrew Newton winning the u15 3000m. 

More details later.

After studying the unofficial results from Friday night's Park Races in Ramsey and seeing Stan Hall's pictures of them both (I'll publish them shortly), I've chosen to comment on two of the runners in particular.

Mike Garrett finished 4th after a very sensible start, a good battle with Paul Curphey and closing down well on Mark Preston at the finish.  Mike trained with Paul and I back in 1996 but after a few months of rapid progress broke down with a back injury. I've always felt a little guilty about one session I organised at Nobles Park when the ground was very hard which seemed to be a factor with the timing of the injury.

Whenever I met Mike after he stopped training he always talked so positively about eventually making a comeback. I'm not talking about weeks or even months. It was 6 years before he started any sort of regular training again. Even then he suffered several more setbacks. Although he will probably always be restricted as to the number of sessions to can do in a week, his form is good at the moment and if he is finally getting some payback for his years of patience then he certainly deserves it.

Mike plans to run the Isle of Man Bank Peel to Douglas next Sunday and would love to eventually run a marathon (he had to give up his plans to run London this year) although I'm always trying to suggest he would be better running shorter distances.  He hopes to compete once or twice in the Northern Men's League and this might persuade him.

The other person I'm pleased to see running so well for his age is Alan Poslethwaite. You've only got to look at the records for the veterans age groups to see what a mark Alan has made over the years but perhaps in recent years he has not been as competitive as in the past, mainly due to problems with his achilles.  Phil Crowe tipped him to go well on Friday and he was not wrong. I'm not quite sure how old Alan is but he is certainly a lot closer to 60 than 50. After all he was teaching me when I was only 13 and I'm 46!

Its great to see Alan running better than for some time and like Dave Corrin, Dave Young, Martin Bell etc, he certainly inspires me to keep going a bit longer. The only problem is that when he is 70 he'll probably be still running and I'll be thinking I can't give up before Possie does.

The pictures from the Park Runs have been moved here.

Although I don't know the final head count from Friday's runs in Ramsey, I'm fairly certain there were record numbers. The quality was also significantly up on previous years.

My time of around 23.42 would have placed me 3rd in 2001, 5th last year but I was only 9th this year. Although conditions were generally good this year, the slippery surface on the footbridge may have stolen a few seconds from our overall times.

Last year Brian Osbourne won the scratch race in 22.07 but this year he was inside 21.30. He was certainly in good form.

Although I hope to "do a Possie" and regain my form eventually I was caught out by my lack of training on the hills and its pretty depressing to read that my opening performances in the last 3 years in Ramsey have been 21.41, 22.32 and now 23.42 or whatever. In contrast, Paul Curphey's times have been a model of consistency opening with 22.32, 22.39 and (by his watch) 22.37.

There were 22 in the opening 4 mile of 2001, 28 last year and certainly more this year.

As I often say on these virtual pages, I can only comment on what I know and I welcome stories about other athletes but you obviously know your own family best of all.

My elder son Robbie used to be a useful cross country runner but has not been able to do much sport in recent years. He enjoys the friendship of the sport however and often talks about taking part. As he is 17 he doesn't think he should do the short races in Peel and Ramsey anymore although they would be a more sensible challenge . He ran the first Peel race but didn't enjoy it so he missed the second one. He changed his mind continually about Ramsey but decided to give it a go on the day.

Although he was a long way behind the other runners and struggled to keep running at times, with the end in sight he produced a great sprint finish and an enormous sporting cheer from everyone still assembled at the Mooragh Park cafe. I'll never forget that and it really was one of those great moments to see how much he enjoyed having overcome his own challenge of beating 40 minutes. I couldn't stop him talking in the car going back to Douglas and he mentioned at least six times that Nick Percival had told him that he (Robbie) had finished faster than Nick!

Caroline Brand will hopefully be taking pictures. I say hopefully because she has apparently never used it before.

I'm hoping to provide some of the leading results on the site tomorrow thanks to the Brand family.

Caroline Brand cbrand@manx.net

They had problems with their old emails and so if you have sent them something recently and didn't get a reply, you had better send your email again.

Luckily the race in Leamington didn't take too much out of me, so I was able to train well this week. Still not doing really what I would have planned to do, as I am still trying to overcome a long standing back problem, but still doing some quality sessions and a lot of recoveries. 

GEORGE W. BUSH

We don't really care why the chicken crossed the road. We just want to know if the chicken is on our side of the road or not. The chicken is either with us or it is against us. There is no middle ground here.

AL GORE

I invented the chicken. I invented the road. Therefore, the chicken crossing the road represented the application of these two different functions of government in a new, reinvented way designed to bring greater services to the American people.

BILL CLINTON

I did not cross the road with THAT chicken. What do you mean by chicken? Could you define chicken, please?

COLIN POWELL

Now at the left of the screen, you clearly see the satellite image of the chicken crossing the road.

HANZ BLIX

We have reason to believe there is a chicken, but we have not yet been allowed access to the other side of the road.

MOHAMMED ALDOURI (Iraq ambassador)

The chicken did not cross the road. This is a complete fabrication. We don't even have a chicken.

SADDAM HUSSEIN

This was an unprovoked act of rebellion and we were quite justified in dropping 50 tons of nerve gas on it.

DR. SEUSS

Did the chicken cross the road? Did he cross it with a toad? Yes, The chicken crossed the road, But why it crossed, I've not been told!

ERNEST HEMINGWAY

To die. In the rain. Alone.

MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

I envision a world where all chickens will be free to cross roads without having their motives called into question.

GRANDPA

In my day, we didn't ask why the chicken crossed the road. Someone told us that the chicken crossed the road, and that was good enough for us.

JOHN LENNON

Imagine all the chickens crossing roads in peace.

ARISTOTLE

It is the nature of chickens to cross the road.

KARL MARX

It was an historical inevitability.

VOLTAIRE

I may not agree with what the chicken did, but I will defend to the death its right to do it.

RONALD REAGAN

What chicken?

CAPTAIN KIRK

To boldly go where no chicken has gone before.

FOX MULDER

You saw it cross the road with your own eyes! How many more chickens have to cross before you believe it?

SIGMUND FREUD

The fact that you are at all concerned that the chicken crossed the road reveals your underlying sexual insecurity.

BILL GATES

I have just released e-Chicken 2003, which will not only cross roads, but will lay eggs, file your important documents, and balance your checkbook and Internet Explorer is an inextricable part of e-Chicken.

ALBERT EINSTEIN

Did the chicken really cross the road or did the road move beneath the chicken?

COLONEL SANDERS

I missed one?

The Kenmac sponsored local club begin their Northern Men’s athletic league series for 2003 with a trip to Blackpool this Saturday 3rd. May. Division one will be a major task but one the Harriers will hopefully rise to. The opposition on the day is made up of Blackpool, Derby, Gateshead, Hull, Leeds, Liverpool Pembroke and Rotherham. Six of these clubs have competed in the British League in the last decade and some like Blackpool were only just been relegated from the national League last year.

Some top athletes will be on show, however, it is doubtful that Jonathan Edwards will make it to the match representing Gateshead. The Harriers have the usual story for the first match in a league campaign with a number of injuries to top athletes but a good mix of youth and experience turning out. Injuries or other commitments mean Chris Stobart, Gianni Epifani, Paul Clarke and Darren Gray are unable to make it this time among others. However, Phil Riley, Trevor Christian, Keiron Murray and Keith Gerrard will all make this first match as part of a party of around 20.

The aim will be to avoid finishing last in this first match. A position of 6th. or 7th. is a realistic aim and will keep the club in touch with the rest of the division if it can be achieved. Hopefully, a stronger team in June and July around the Island Games will finish highly and so help to ensure survival in this very competitive division. It has to be remembered that most clubs promoted from division 2 tend to last one year in the top flight. Indeed the last time Manx Harriers were there in 1997 the fact they stayed up and enjoyed the 1998 season in the Premier Division was quite unusual.

Those going on the trip are :-

Chris Quine, Glenn Butterworth, Keith Gerrard, Andy Fox, Keiron Murray, Chris and John Whitlow (official), Colin Halsall (official), Trevor Christian, Phil Riley, Glynn Hoosen-Owen & Tom Davies. The B trip has been cancelled due to lack of a team manager or seniors to lead them so the following Under 17s will travel with the A team - some to compete and some for the experience - Chris Quinn, Andy Lean, Daniel Pownall, Sam Cannell & Chris Shimmin.

I still find it hard to believe that the fixture list is so cluttered as from Sunday 11th. On this day we have the Race for Life and the Peel to Douglas run, how on earth have they been scheduled on the same day? Two days later on the 13th we have the Caraghan Fell Race, three days after that the Dave Phillips race and on the 18th the Northern 10. I just cannot see the logic in this sorry state of affairs that is doing nothing but damage to athletics in general.

Apart from anything else how do we publicise each race to the full, for instance on this site, when we are all competing for the same space. It must make it very difficult for Murray as we all think our race is the most important and deserves most coverage.

I totally agree with everything that RIchie says above. In addition to the events he describes there are also three track and field meetings and of course most of the top track and field athletes will be recovering from the Northern League meetings.

I've praised the development plan but also stated that the lack of a logical and structured fixture list is the area that needs to be tackled.

I know I keep going on about the opportunities provided for recruitment by the Race for Life, and I know that Manx Harriers are distributing leaflets on some of their events.  But what is really needed when we talk to some of the first time runners is to be able to offer then a sensible series of events. Imagine if one of us is asked "are there any other races coming up that I can enter".  The questioner would be overwhelmed.

It would be easy to blame the IOMAA for allowing the fixture congestion and, yes, they could be a little be forceful to suggest that there are too many races.  But who are the IOMAA? The clubs of course and herein lies the problem.  The clubs have to talk to one another and say "is it really in our club's interest to promote an event on a certain date if another club is promoting an event that caters well for our members in the same week".

This is not a new problem. Its been there for the best part of 20 years. Its all the more surprising therefore that we don't all pull together to do something about it.

On the positive side, at least people are talking about it.

In further support of Richie, I don't think the fell runners are to blame for the congestion although they too must always be open to suggestion of change.  The race walking programme seems to broadly meet the needs of the athletes also. The root of the problem is with road racing.

Have a look at the feature I did on long distance running alone. We have more races of 10 miles or more than would be organised in a large county in England during a year. And that is only the start!

Accreditation benefits are as follows:

Free Souvenir Programme

Free Separate Daily Programme of Events

Free Venues Map

Free Map of Guernsey

Free waterproof poncho

Free Games Bookmark

Free Tourist Information Pack from the Guernsey Tourist Board

Free Bus timetables

Free use of the Games transport system and the local Bus Service.

Free entry to the following Guernsey attractions: Guernsey Museum, Fort Grey and Castle Cornet

Please visit www.guernsey2003.com for further details.

Available only to Non Residents of Guernsey

A new route has been found for this years race that is sponsored by Buchanan & Pitts.  The start will be at the gateway entrance at the northern end of the Baldwin Reservoir and will then follow the track round to the plantation. From here its a sharp turn to the right on to a path that goes through the plantation coming out on the fells, then carry on up to the summit and return the same way. We will flag the course at the bottom to get everyone on the correct route and then it is up to them which way they go.    

We would like to thank the Department of Agriculture, Forestries and Fisheries and the Water Board for access.

I will be going over the course at 9.00am on Sunday 4th.  If anyone wants to have a look around meet at the car park opposite the reservoir. 

Lauren, Fay and Kirsty all set personal bests in the 1km race. Kirsty broke 6.00 for the first time ever whilst Lauren's time is a new age group best.

Bronwen set a new age group best in the 2km. Emma, Ciara and Callum all smashed their personal bests in the 3km.

Allan, Bridget and Marie all set age group bests in the Veteran 3km race.

Neil can't handle more than six tequila's.

All Manx best performances are subject to ratification, except for Neil's.

I have just noticed that 17 year old Karrissa Hawitt, who was streets ahead in the Easter Festival ladies event, finished over two and a half minutes clear in the U18 Women's class at the Knock Dhuu International. Clearly, she has benefited tremendously from the experience of running alongside me on the prom... Also spotted in this week's AW fell results was Any Hauser, who a week after his tough Mountain Marathon finish, finished 10th in the 24 mile Three Peaks Race.

My name is Ann Hartley I am the Club Buyer for the Southern Isle of Man Swimming Club, some weeks ago I was asked to Design and source a Bath Towel for the Island Swimming Squad for the Island Games, so fantastic as the towel turned out to be that we are offering it to all sports for the Island Games. The Towel will be on view at the NSC hopefully by the first week in June when we take our first delivery, We will be offering the Towels to registered Sport Clubs and Island Squads first so that they can buy at a discount and make a small profit for there own club/squad funds. The Towel is Red it as the Three legs of Man in the centre with the Wording ISLE OF MAN in large bold lettering on each end of the towel, the legs and wording are of course in yellow. This towel is the copyright of the SIOMASA and not available through any other outlet. If you wish to contact me I am available at the above 'e' no but my home no is 01624 837770. The towel is also being advertised on the IOMSA site http://www.iomsa.org.co.

annhartley@manx.net

Ayre United footballers took up running at a time when Graham Davies (IOMAA secretary) became fitness coach for the club. I myself travelled to Andreas, initially to continue to train under Graham's guidance but then signed on for Ayre. I played regularly for the Combination team and was once called up to the first team as substitute but never got on to the field. I was lined up to play the following week but a certain Paul Curphey recovered from illness/injury and that was the end of my first team experience. The Ayre United coach at the time was Allan Cowley who was also advising Steve Kelly on his running. Allan has been in attendance at some of our race walks over the last couple of years in the company of Alan Kinvig. I believe that Mick Hannay and his brother Paul were the first players not from the north of the Island to play for Ayre as initially only people from Andreas could play for the team.

One thing that never ceases to amaze me is that a number of people somewhere are displaying trophies in their homes that they were entitled to retain for one year and never returned after their year of honour.

OK, the organising club should keep decent records and they should know who the culprits are but if its YOU, or you know someone who has a trophy who shouldn't have, return it soon.

I thought about this at the Easter Festival when organiser Colin Halsall made reference to the declining number of trophies and it has rattled me for 20 years or so after my family donated a trophy in memory if my late father to be awarded to the women's winner at the TT walking festival at the end of August and within 3 or 4 years it was lost.

My camera has had a week's rest. Although I popped into the Manx Harriers Track & Field meeting a couple of times last night, Anthony Brand is doing a great job in providing coverage of this meeting.

And Stan Hall will be the official photographer at the Ramsey Park Runs on Friday night.

I aim to be at three meetings in three days the week after however (isn't it still crazy that there are so many however?).

I aim to provide photos from the Isle of Man Bank Peel to Douglas, the Tesco Race for Life and the Buchanan & Pitts Carraghan Fell Race.

As always, the fact that I am taking pictures doesn't prevent anyone else from doing their own thing and I welcome additional photographs. It really did help in the Easter Festival Road Race for example where I was able to provide detailed coverage of the race by merging my own photos with Anthony's.