SEVERAL Spirit of Monmouth runners who have been taking part in the ‘5k and beyond’ group tackled their first park run at Chippenham playing fields on Saturday, reports VICKY ROBERTS.

Sarah Jones finished with a brilliant time of 30.48 while Julie Glyn Jones crossed the line in 32.45.

Pat Jones on her 13th run also had a great run enjoying it with friends and finishing in 33.50.

Alongside the club’s own Kymin Dash race, Sunday was a busy day for Spirits flying the flag, with Richard Foster, Brian Evans, Vicky Roberts and David Mather travelling to Newport for the ABP Newport Wales Marathon – one of the flattest marathon courses in the UK.

The 26.2 mile route offers iconic landmarks, like the city’s Transporter Bridge and the scenery of the Gwent Levels – with its coastal wildlife and picturesque medievil villages.

The weather conditions were perfect with some light drizzle to cool off the 1,739 participants during the race.

Rich finished in an impressive 2 hours 49mins 49secs, despite running with a fractured wrist, to place 43rd overall and sixth in his age category.

Brian crossed in 3.34.17 in his first ever marathon and felt on target for sub-3.30 until cramp kicked in at 23 miles.

Vicky finished in 3.36.13 knocking 12 minutes off her previous PB and gaining a good for age ballot entry for the 2024 London Marathon.

Vicky had a tough emotional run, but was joined by Spirit friend Lucy Macdonald who supported her by running alongside on the path for the last three miles.

David also recorded a good time of 3.49.39 as he prepares for an upcoming ultra marathon.

Also at Newport, 2,121 runners took part in the 10k, including Spirit members Julian Howe and Nick Sloper.

Julian had a great race finishing in 43.04 while running with Rougemont runners for charity, while Nick finished in 51.34.

Sarah Baker travelled to Manchester to take part in her first marathon – the Uk’s flattest and Europe’s fourth largest marathon, crossing in an impressive 3.37.50 to gain a good for age ballot place for London.

She enjoyed the atmosphere, support and entertainment on route which really helped her through the last few tough miles.

Anyone interested in running and joining a club can take a look at Spirit of Monmouth’s running club website at https://spiritofmonmouth.co.uk/

They can also contact the club at [email protected].

Spirit are a friendly and fun club – with a nice competitive edge, and a great social heart, and are affiliated to Welsh Athletics and cater for a wide range of running abilities.

So, whether you’re an experienced marathon runner, 5K lover or you prefer to just run for fun, you’re very welcome to join