Monday 9th June 2008 - Westonbirt National Arboretum 10km

Helens report: We had a lovely run at this years Westonbirt National Arboretum 10k this evening. It was a warm (hot) evening, and a large field (591 finishers) the run is just wonderful on the paths around the arboretum, with all the fantastic trees and shrubs some of which provided heady scents as we ran the race, luckily it was mostly in the shade, otherwise some of us may well have struggled a even more than we did (we all had a good sweat on at the finish!!). Certainly a race to consider for next year, even though it is quite a way to go - it is worth it. Den Evans 50.16 Helen Bown 52.18 Jackie Hobday 53.57 Dawn Hyde 58.46 Chris Ellis 1.01.43

Thursday 5th June 2008 - Pilot 4 mile Race

Helen B 32.19 Sarah Jones 32.44 Edwina 34.00 Dawn Hyde 35.28 Chris Ellis 39.33

Thursday 5th June 2008 - Hereford 5Km Road Race Series; Pilot 4 m

Dave Spackman from Gloucester Athletic Club successfully retained his title, first veteran 60 ,for the fourth successive year in the Hereford 5 KM road race series after winning his age category in each of three races. Deborah Southgate coached by Spackman, also a previous winner of the series was rewarded with first veteran 50 lady and also won her age category for each of the three races. Southgate a member of The Angels Running Club was joined in the last race by Jackie Hobday who recorded 25.02 and finished second veteran 5 and by Nicola Wong who ran a particularly strong race to improve her time considerably from the first race in the series to 24.26. On the same evening several other members of the club chose to take part in the second of the Pilot 4 mile fun runs. Helen Bown finished first Angel in 32.19, followed by Sarah Jones in 32.44. Next was club chairman Edwina Dickerson in a rare appearance as a competitor in the local road races and she did extremely well in a time of 34 minutes. Dawn Hyde in 35.28 and Chris Ellis in 39.33 made up the team. The Fairford 10km road race was a success for Helen Bown from Angels as she beat her personal best from 2004 by nearly 2 minutes to record 50.22. Denise Evans had a good time too, to finish ahead of Bown in 49.07.

Monday 26th May 2008 - Dymock Half Marathon

The Dymock half marathon took place last Sunday in torrential rain and wind. This didn t stop a team from the Angels Running Club entering on the day. For Deborah Southgate it was her second time in the race hoping to improve her time from last year which she achieved by nine minutes in 1.48.55. For Helen Bown in 1.52.39 and Louise Page in 2.04.12, it was their first time tackling the undulations of the course and they ran good times considering the weather conditions . It was a bonus to be awarded trophies for finishing first ladies team.

Sunday 17th February 2008 - Forest of Dean Trail Series Race 3

Julie Hapeshi 15km - 1:28:45, Pippa Medcalf 15km - 1:31:55, Debbie Armstrong 10km - 53:27

Sunday 20th January 2008 - May Hill Massacre & Riverbank Rollick

Two members of Angels Running Club took part in multi-terrain races last Sunday. Denise Evans chose the deep mud in the May Hill Massacre [8.5 miles] and enjoyed the experience finishing in 1.29.52; whilst Deborah Southgate opted for the Riverbank Rollick [8.7miles] at Thornbury. She battled against strong winds and rain along the River Severn to finish 2nd veteran 50 and 9th lady in 1.21.08.

Sunday 6th January 2008 - Forest of Dean Trail Race 2

Julie Hapeshi 10km - 58.05; Debbie Armstrong 10km - 54.35

Sunday 6th January 2008 - Gloucester 10 mile Road Race

Debbie Lee - 01.16.38; Deborah Southgate - 01.19.00; Den Evans - 01.24.02; Louise Page - 01.37.24

Sunday 9th December 2007 - Wyvern Christmas Cracker 2007

The morning after the Angel’s Christmas Do and in howling gales, 4 Angels ran the Christmas Cracker race in Weston this year. Dawn Hyde – 61.52, Chris Ellis – 68.14, Debbie Armstrong 57.18 and Sarah Jones – 61.00.

Sunday 25th November 2007 - Forest of Dean Trail Race 1

Debbie Lee 15km - 01.14.27; Julie Hapeshi 10km - 58.08; Debbie Armstrong 10km - 54.52

Sunday 25th March 2007 - Half Marathon Forest of Dean

Debbie Lee 1.4423 Course PB Denise Evans 1.45.08 PB Deborah Southgate 1.49.41 Cheryl Spencer 1.55.07 Nicky Ryland 2.02.39 We were first ladies team overall!! Excellent result and a team trophy. The course is quite tough as you know and there was a strong wind in places, Den was absolutely delighted with her time and the others all felt they had had a good run.

Sunday 25th March 2007 - Half Marathon Bath

Julie Hapeshi 2.10 Pippa Medcalf 2.30 The Bath Half was the first half for Julie, she was delighted with her time

Saturday 24th March 2007 - County 4K Plock Court

Rachel Labdon 18.43 - 1st LV35 Gold medal

Wednesday 1st November 2006 - 2006 Cross Country League

Second race in the 2006 Gloucestershire Cross Country League at Cheltenham Jenny Hawkins 30.18, Debbie Lee 30.42, Sharon Nash 30.49, Deborah Southgate 31.18. Angels were 9th vets team County Road Race Series 2006 All races in the above series have now been run and we have had a good series. Members of Angels RC have won three individual medals and were well positioned in the team categories. The presentation is on Thursday 7 December at the Town Hall Gloucester. Ladies Vet 40, Denise Evans 2nd place, Julia James 3rd place Ladies Vet 50, Jackie Hobday 3rd place Angels were third in the team event and 2nd in the team vet event. Several other Angels were in 4th and 5th positions so with a little more encouragement to take part in more races we could improve in 2007.

Tuesday 31st October 2006 - Chocolate Biscuit 4.1 m

Jenny Hawkins Debbie Lee Deborah Southgate 1st ladies vets team

Tuesday 31st October 2006 - Tewkesbury 5 Mile

Jo Walters 36 min 55 sec Den Evans 38 min 28 sec Deborah Southgate 40 min 8 sec Julia James 40 min 44 sec Helen Bown 41 min 14 sec Sarah Hughes 46 min 12 sec Dawn Hyde 47 min 42 sec Chris Ellis 51 min 45 sec

Sunday 22nd October 2006 - Stroud Half Marathon

35/39 age group (103 finished) 35 Sarah Jones 1.54.52 45 Jane McGill 1.58.40 (first half marathon) 50 Anne Marie Vickery 1.58.43 52 Louise page 2.00.20 40/44 age group ( 79 finished) 29 Den Evans 1.51.58 45/49 age group (59 finished) 14 Jo Walters 1.47.35 50/54 age group (22 finished) 2 Cheryl Spencer 1.51.05 8 Helen Bown 1.56.47 16 Linda Olijnyk 2.18.31 (pb by 6 minutes!) 18 Lily Hamer 2.21.59 (first half marathon

Sunday 15th October 2006 - Cardiff Marathon

35/39 age group 17 Debbie Lee 3 hours 50 min 48 sec 40 Nicky Wong 4 hours 15 min 22 sec 41 Sharon Harris 4 hours 15 min 22 sec First marathon for all three (1246 finishers

Sunday 15th October 2006 - Blenheim 10K

204 Den Evans (V40) 50.46 287 Sarah Jones(V35) 54.43 377 Linda Olijnyk (V50) 60.13 (477 finishers)

Saturday 14th October 2006 - Glos Cross Country League Blackbridge

55 Joanne Carter (V45) 36.57 57 Sharon Nash (V40) 37.13 66 Deborah Southgate (V50) 38.18 9th lady vets team

Sunday 1st October 2006 - Loch Ness Marathon

1233 finishers 674 Denise Evans 4 hours 8 min 38 sec 675 Kim McCafferty 4 hours 8 min 38 sec

Sunday 1st October 2006 - Great North Run (half marathon)

50000 competitors! 13,317 Helen Bown (V50) 2.05.08 ? Nicky Ryland (V40) 2.14.03

Thursday 31st August 2006 - 2 mile Cross Country Relay

A-Team – Won county team gold in the Vet 35 Debbie Lee 13 min 43 sec Sharon Nash 13 min 40 sec Deborah Southgate 14 min 40 sec Jenny Hawkins 13 min 57 sec B-Team – Won county team silver in Vet 35 Jo Walters 14 min 00 sec Jane McGill 14 min 11 sec Julia James 14 min 53 sec Nicky Wong 14 min 47 sec

Sunday 23rd April 2006 - LONDON MARATHON

Submitted by Inger Baud Two members of Angels Running Club took part in the London Marathon with some excellent results. Denise Evans smashed her previous best marathon time by a massive 8 minutes 47 seconds to record 3 hours 47 min 54 seconds. After the race she said "What an amazing experience. I loved every minute of it. I am so fortunate to have had the opportunity to take part. Thank you to the club for letting me have a club entry. I am already planning my next marathon, Dublin Marathon 30.10.2006, which will be my 4th marathon". Submitted by Inger Baud Stephanie Fox, who only joined Angels fairly recently, took part in her first marathon in London and achieved her target of a sub 5 hour race with minutes to spare. She recorded 4 hours 57 minutes (it was actually 4 hours 51 min with a pit stop!). She was overjoyed and said after the race "The best experience in the world. Fantastic and I loved every minute of it".

Saturday 12th November 2005 - Chocolate Biscuit Race

This race took place at Plock Court with Angels taking the ladies team title. Deborah Southgate (LV45) lead the team home in 3rd place in 28 min 30 sec. Debbie Lee finished in 4th just over one minute adrift with a fine run by Jenny Hawkins (LV45) finishing 5th lady 20 seconds behind Lee in 30 min 2 sec. This was an excellent race especially for Jenny who has only been running for 18 months.

Sunday 30th October 2005 - Candleford Canter

This ladies only event was part of the "away weekend" 8 Angels took part in this 10k around the lovely Oxfordshire countryside. The weather was not kind and the skies emptied quite early on leaving everyone soaked to the skin, luckily it was fairly warm, although the wind was against us on the homeward stretch. First Angel back was Debbie Lee in a time 46:43, this placed her 8th. A fantastic position. Second Angel with a PB was Jenny Hawkins, who was 13th with a time of 47.56. She was also 3rd in the Vet 45 category. Next was Joanne Carter with a time of 49:40 she was 19th and 3rd Vet 35. Helen Bown ran a time of 51:59 amd was 28th overall. 31st was Sally Hawkins with a PB of 53:10 (40 second improvement) Sarah Jones came in 34th with a time of 53:28. Linda Olijnyk was 56th with a time of 61:45 which was 2 minutes faster than her time in the same race last year. Darylle Stewart was number 69 and came 69th with a time of 71.49. A very well organised race which we would recommend to all women

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Saturday 15th October 2005 - Glos Cross Country

The first race in the 2005 Gloucestershire Cross Country race held at Gloucester saw just three members of Angels Running Club turn out. Both Deborah Southgate (LV45) and Debbie Lee had recovered reasonably well from the previous weeks excellent runs in the Cardiff Marathon. The third member of the club, Jane Tull (LV35) had hoped to run but after doing the warm-up an old injury flared up. As she is currently in training for the Luton Marathon in December, she did the wise thing and withdrew. Unfortunately that meant that the Angels didn’t have a full team, but it was far more important not to run on an injury. The senior and veteran women had to compete over 5.9km and it was a very large field of 73 ladies completing the course. Deborah was pleased with her 42nd place and 3rd lady vet 45 in a time of 25 min 21 sec. Debbie, still not quite over a bad cold, also raced well with a fantastic sprint finish for 49th place in 26 min 38 sec. Submitted by: Inger Baud

Sunday 9th October 2005 - Cardiff Marathon & Half

The Cardiff Marathon and supporting Half Marathon were hugely successful for the seven members of Angels Running Club, who traveled to Wales. They were rewarded with some fine placings and three personal best times as well as second and third category places. The finish in the Millenium Stadium was an occasion to treasure. The Angels were well supported on the sidelines by other club members. The three members took part in the marathon in a field of 1337 runners. First timer Kim McCafferty joined her more experienced team members and training partners Jackie Hobday (LV50) and Denise Evans (LV40) on the starting line. Kim’s goal was to complete the race in a respectable time whilst Jackie was aiming to reduce her 2005 London Marathon time of 3 hours 56 minute. Den, who set her previous best in Stratford in 2005 in 4 hours 5 minutes, had her sights on a sub 4 hour marathon. Training had gone well without illness and injury and the weather on the day was perfect for racing. They set out together and remained in fairly close contact for most of the race. The course was over two identical laps incorporating a section through the grounds of Cardiff Castle. Going through the halfway mark in well under two hours looked promising for their individual goals. However, passing the 20 mile mark the going got tough. Although struggling, Kim managed to pull away from the other two. Jackie was not far behind, but Den was suffering. These positions remained as they entered the Millenium Stadium for a final lap around the pitch to the cheering of the huge crowd of supporters. By the time Kim had reached about halfway around the stadium, Jackie entered the ground. On seeing her friend just up ahead of her, she managed to rally and go past her. As they crossed the line just 7 seconds split them. Jackie finished in 605th position in 3 hours 52 min 17 seconds. This was a personal best time by over 4 minutes and good enough for the third lady over 50 prize. Jackie said after the race that everything had gone to pre-race plan and she was very pleased but also very tired. She is now looking forward to a well earned holiday before starting to plan for the 2006 London Marathon. Marathon novice Kim had an excellent first marathon to finish in 608th position in 3 hours 52 minutes 24 seconds. She hit the wall at 20 miles and never really recovered but kept her focus to keep going and was relieved to see the Stadium entrance. The lap around the pitch seemed never ending and when Jackie came past she could not respond. She said “I’m really happy to have completed my first marathon in a good time even though it was very hard”. Den went through a bad patch around the 20 miles too. It was mind over matter but she won through and was delighted to slice nearly 10 minutes off her previous best time to cross the line in 649th position in 3 hours 56 minutes 1 seconds. She was very happy with her performance but said that the last six miles had been agony. Although the course was good and fairly flat, it was probably her hardest marathon to date. There was more success in the Half Marathon. This was just one lap and had a total of 4254 finishers. Deborah Southgate (LV 45) led the team home in an excellent 401st position in 1 hour 37 min 55 sec. This was good enough for the runner-up spot in the Ladies over 45 category. A fine performance from Debbie Lee was rewarded with a personal best of nearly half a minute. She posted a time of 1 hour 43 min 27 sec for 685th place. This was the second time in this race for Helen Bown (LV50). Although slightly slower than last year, she ran well for 1737th place in 1 hour 54 min 53 sec. Concluding the team entry, Cheryl Spencer (LV50) was not sure if she would be able to compete. She has been carrying an injury for a while and it was touch and go if she would be on the starting line. However, the opportunity to finish inside the Millenium Stadium was too tempting so she decided to have a go. She paced herself well and managed to keep going the distance. Although her time was considerably slower than normally, 2 hours 3 min 9 sec in 2402nd place, she said it was well worth the pain to finish in such a magnificent setting. Submitted by: Inger Baud

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Saturday 24th September 2005 - Dublin ½ Marathon

Debbie Armstrong of Angels Running Club competed in her first marathon in Dublin. She said it was a fantastic race with plenty of crowd support along the way. Having only recently joined Angels, she had done most of her training on her own and was delighted to finish well up the field in a solid time of 4 hours 21 minutes. She was particularly pleased to have beaten her boyfriend by 20 minutes!!

Sunday 24th July 2005 - Gloucester ½ Marathon

This event saw another fine turnout by members of Angels RC despite the wet conditions with seven taking part and two recording personal best times. Deborah had another solid performance to lead the team home in one hour 39 minutes 53 seconds. Despite the adverse conditions, testing course and three races in one week, Debbie was delighted to smash her previous best by over two minutes for 1 hour 43 minutes 50 seconds. The trio of Denise, Kim McCafferty and Jackie ran the race together. They are currently in training for the Cardiff Marathon in October and this run was very encouraging for all three. Jackie is looking to improve on her sub 4 hour time in London in April, Denise wants to reduce her Stratford Marathon time of 4 hours 5 minutes to a time under four hours and Kim is looking forward to her first marathon. They finished together in just outside one hour 51 minutes. Helen was pleased with her run, which she completed in one hour 54 minutes 58 seconds. Nicola Wong (LV35) achieved a personal best time finishing in two hours 8 minutes and she was delighted to see her training with the club paying off

Thursday 21st July 2005 - Globe 5K

In the Globe 5k race there was more success for the club. Deborah recorded a fine 21 min 45 seconds with Debbie on her heels again in 22 min 17 seconds. Just a few days after her 50th birthday, team captain Jackie Hobday proved that she is now over her recent injury. She had a fine run to record 23 min 26 seconds, which was in fact slightly faster than last year, and winning the prize for first lady over 50.

Saturday 16th July 2005 - Bourton 1mile

There was gold success for Deborah and Debbie in the Bourton Mile County Championship Race. It was nip and tuck all the way for the two Angels and with a final push for the line Debbie beat her training partner by just one second in 6 minutes 26 seconds. Their performances were rewarded with Gold for Debbie in the Senior Ladies category and Gold for Deborah in the Lady vet 45.

Monday 11th July 2005 - Frampton 10k

On a very hot evening nine club members took part in the Frampton 10km race in the company of 569 runners. Deborah Southgate (LV45) recorded the club’s fastest time in 47 min 2 sec followed by a tired Debbie Lee in 50 min 32 sec. In full training for the Cardiff Marathon in October, Denise Evans (LV40) ran well for 52 min 23 seconds with Sarah Jones some two and a half minutes adrift. Lady Vet 50, Helen Bown paced herself well coming in well under the hour with nearly three minutes to spare. Many suffered in the heat of the evening, which was reflected in the slower than normal times. Linda Olijnyk (LV45) and Pam Selwyn (LV50) stayed in contact over the distance and were split by just 3 seconds in Linda’s favour. Ann Lloyd (LV40) was 8th scorer home for the club in 1 hour 9 min 21 seconds and Darylle Stewart (LV40) rounded off the team entry.

Monday 20th June 2005 - Westonbirt 10k

Linda & I enjoyed this 10K through beautiful scenery. The weather was very warm and our times were slower than usual. Linda Olijnyk 66mins Darylle Stewart 74mins. We heartily recommend this race, it was marshalled fantastically and hope that more Angels enter next year, though early entry is essential: -Darylle

Friday 3rd June 2005 - Stockholm Marathon

Stockholm Marathon June 2005 On the returned from Sweden after taking part in her first ever Marathon at the age of 48, Bridget Bennett of Angels Running Club was in her own words “ecstatic”. She had a superb debut in the Stockholm Marathon in a field of 23422 finishers as she finished in 664th position. The two lap course was scenic and fairly flat and the weather ideal for running at around 14 degrees with a light wind. Bridget covered the first 10km in 58 min 38 sec. Even pacing saw her through the half marathon distance in 2 hours 2 min 18 seconds and 30 km in 2 hours 52 min 27 sec. She slowed a fraction towards the end on the incline leading up to the last half mile before the finish in the Stockholm Olympic Stadium. There were 345 competitors in her age group, Lady Vet 45. Bridget was absolutely delighted as she finished 92nd in 4 hours 5 minutes 25 seconds. After the race she said “It was a fantastic experience. I can honestly say that I enjoyed every step. The course and organisation were excellent and the crowds were very supportive. I was over the moon with my time and position. I will be sensible now and have a few days off to recover and I look forward to getting back to training again”.

Thursday 1st January 1970 - Bourton 10K

The Bourton 10 km Road Race was well attended by members of Angels Running Club. Despite the snowy conditions when the race was due to start, by the time they reached 7 km the sun came out and provided some nice weather for the rest of the race. In a field of 448 finishers Deborah Southgate had a solid run to finish in 171st place and third in the Lady Vet 45 category in 42 min 14 sec. This was Deborah’s first 10k for some years and she was delighted to be back on form and turning 50 in February has been no obstacle to recording a very good performance with more to come. Another member of Angels who also reached 50 recently was delighted to record a personal best time by one and a half minute. Jackie Hobday, who is in full training for the London Marathon, said after the race “I was thrilled with my personal best time of 45 min 40 sec. It has taken me three years to improve on my 10k time, but all the hard training is now paying off on the shorter distances too”. She was 241st overall. Jackie was recently awarded the President’s Annual Trophy for her services to the club coupled with her determination to get back from injury and produce some excellent running success whilst being a great inspiration for many of her fellow club members. Debbie Lee (LV35) was below par on the day but still rallied for a creditable time of 47 min 17 sec for 278th place. Linda Olijnyk (LV45) also celebrated a personal best by breaking the 60 minute barrier for the first time. Work commitments have meant that training has been a bit sporadic, but she is back in to it again and finished in 59 min 33 sec in 427th position. Darylle Stewart (LV35) rounded off the Angels quintet. She was really pleased with her efforts finishing in 446th spot in a time of 70 min 35 sec.

Thursday 1st January 1970 - Globe 5km

Members of Angels Running Club turned out in force at the Gloucestershire 5km Championships at Sandhurst, Gloucester and celebrated great successes with three county medals and a personal best performance. A fine run by Deborah Southgate in 21 min 15 seconds secured Gold in the LV45 age group. Debbie Lee was delighted with her personal best time of 21 min 58 sec. Denise Evans, in heavy training for the Cardiff Marathon in October, proved that you can do well over the shorter distances whilst turning out the miles. She was rewarded with Bronze in the LV35 group in 23 min 4 sec. Den’s marathon training partner Jackie Hobday has gone from strength to strength in her new age group LV50. She was just 18 seconds adrift of Den in 23 min 22 sec, which was good enough for a county Silver medal. Although Helen Bown (LV50) has raced over many distances, this was the first time she actually took part in a race over 5km. She ran strongly and was exactly 2 minutes behind Jackie. LV45 Sarah Bamford is getting back to form and completed the Angels’ race entry in 30 min 39 sec. Submitted by Inger Baud August 30, 2005