Lakeland Trails Marathon
Locals reign as temperatures soar at the 2013 Lakeland Trails Marathon
On Sunday 7th July, Coniston was host to the third Lakeland Trails Marathon and Half Marathon events. With athletes travelling from around the globe to take part, it was local names that dominated the marathon podium places, on what was the hottest weekend of 2013 so far.
The men’s marathon was won by Howgill Harrier Marcus Scotney in 2:54:21, less than 1 minute outside the course record held by Ambleside’s Ben Abdlenoor. Burton AC’s Gordy Smith came in second in 03:13:40, followed by Darren King from Clowne Road Runners in 03:20:57.
Scotney, who led from the start and ran the majority of the course alone, said, “I ran most of it solo and as I got closer to the finish I knew I was close to the record; it was a shame there was no-one there to push me, it just felt like a fast training run. The open section after Grizedale Forest was just beautiful though and from there it just rolled.”
In her third year of competing in the event, Ambleside AC’s Rebecca Sheffield took the women’s marathon title in 3:37:53, finishing 19th overall. Sheffield was followed by Jillian Gordon, from Kinross Road Runners, in 03:56:54 and Tyndale Harriers’ Rachel Chinnery in 04:07:32.
In the half marathon, the men’s event was won by Glaxo Hoad Hill Harriers athlete Steve Brennan in 01:34:26, with Edinburgh’s Katharine Brownlee winning the women’s race in 1:44:25 and coming 5th overall.
Event director, Graham Patten, said “It’s been a tremendous day here in Coniston and once again, the Lake District has showcased what a spectacular location it is for world class events like the Lakeland Trails Marathon. It’s great to stage the event village at Coniston Hall Landing Point too, which is a truly stunning venue. Given the scorching temperatures today, many of the runners have relished taking a dip in Coniston Water to help them cool down.”
The races started and finished from Coniston Hall Landing Point with the 42.2km marathon taking in a complete circuit of Coniston Water, passing Tarn Hows and Beacon Tarn. The half marathon took in the first 17km section of the marathon course as far as Tarn Hows, before heading back to Coniston.
Over 1,200 runners entered the event with competitors travelling from as far as Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Ethiopia, Japan, South Africa, USA, Canada, Holland, France, Germany and Belgium.
The event was be marshalled by friends of Coniston Mountain Rescue, as well as 14 members of Kendal Ladies Hockey Club, all of whom received donations for their support on the day. Both distances were chip timed and all finishers were rewarded with a medal, technical t-shirt, Cartmel Sticky Toffee Pudding and Lakeland Trails’ goody bag.
Lakeland trails have produced video from the event, which can be viewed at
Complete results, event photos and more information can be found at:
http://www.lakelandtrails.org/marathon/index.php and https://www.facebook.com/lakelandtrails.