On Sunday 7th September, 84 runners took part in Chepstow Harriers' inaugural Wentwood Woodlark race. The challenging eight mile course has superb views of Wentwood forest and Gray Hill. The race attracted British triathlete and four time World Ironman Champion, Chrissie Wellington. She smashed the course in an awe-inspiring time of 58 minutes, 56 seconds, and was easily the female winner. Her partner Tom Lowe won the race overall in 53 minutes, 52 seconds. The conditions for the race were perfect, both for runners, marshals and spectators, with clear blue sky and very little wind. Many competitors commented that it was an exceptionally varied and interesting course, with single track paths, a river crossing, boggy sections, forest tracks, technical descents, fields, steep ascents, and some easy runnable sections. All competitors were rewarded for their strenuous efforts with free tea and a vast array of home-made cakes at the finish. Second after Tom Lowe was Chepstow's Paul Murrin, with Stephen Andrew in third place. Paul Murrin was also the first Male Vet 40. Chepstow's Stuart Penny was first Male Vet 50, and Paul Dursley from Lliswerry was first Male Vet 60. In the women's race, Niki Morgan was second after Chrissie Wellington, with Fiona Wilson in third place. Yvonne Brown from Port Talbot was first Female Vet 50. The Wentwood Woodlark was also part of the East Wales Trails' Championship. Chepstow Harriers men had a clean sweep of the podium positions for this, with Paul Murrin taking the gold medal, James Blore taking silver, and Stuart Penny taking bronze. Niki Morgan from Chepstow Harriers won the gold medal, with Angela Jones from Fairwater taking silver, and Sammi Toop from Pontypool taking bronze. Race directors Judith Austerberry and Vanessa Lawson were pleased that the race was such a success. Vanessa said: "The race has taken months of planning. Judith and I were really happy with the route. We wanted to design a course which would showcase the best of what Wentwood Forest has to offer, and give a lot of variety of terrain to challenge the runners. We think we've achieved that, judging by the positive comments from many of the runners. "We are very thankful to all the competitors who ran, the many Chepstow Harriers who marshalled and helped, and our very generous sponsor, Coates Physiotherapy. Also, it has been an enormous privilege to have athletes of the calibre of Tom Lowe and Chrissie Wellington supporting the event."