The Durham summer relays were held by Durham City Harriers on 20th August in a beautiful location on Durham riverside.
We missed the deadline for entries as this is an event Saltwell don’t normally enter so myself and Ria Knox decided to try and get a few teams together after begging Durham City to let us put a late entry in. Rounding up the Hoops proved tricky being the middle of the summer holidays but we managed to find 12 keen runners to enter 4 mixed teams.
The evening was a balmy summer evening, perhaps a little warm for my liking but the location was stunning on the banks of Durham riverside. We arrived with only 7 minutes to declare the teams so there was a frantic few moments picking teams and deciding who was running which leg which I had the task of sorting! Everyone has their preferred leg of a relay – mine personally is 2nd as you don’t get carried away with the fast lads if you run first but if you run the 3rd leg you normally end up running on your own with no pace setters.
We watched the senior races and figured out the route – a 2 lap course in a figure of 8 including a lovely grassy bank – a few of us decided on a change of footwear and we were ready for battle.
Dale, Sam, Dave and Fred were first to run. Dale as always showed an effortless performance. Sam clocked his fastest mile to date which I’ve no doubt Harra will take credit for. Dave’s super run can’t have been down to his brownies he made (he left them in the car!) and Fred as always made it look easy.
All of the ladies took the 2nd legs with some fantastic efforts from all four. Speedy Kelly put in a great time and both Ria Knox and Sarah had great runs looking comfortable on the field. Ria K even stated she could have done more – something to aim for at next year’s event.
Last up were Gary, Ian S, Scott and Andrew. Gary put in the performance of the night with an amazing finish and he picked off about 10 runners on his final lap. With a bad hamstring his run is a credit to him. Both Ian and Scott showed what the Vets can do with both looking strong and finishing in very credible times. Andrews’s first outing in a Hoops vest was a great one – well done on your debut!
The results were as follows
| Leg 1 | Time | Leg 2 | Time | Leg 3 | Time | Total time | |
| A | Dale | 10.41 | Ria C | 13.1 | Gary | 11.09 | 35 |
| B | Sam H | 11.48 | Kelly | 13.11 | Scott G | 12.02 | 37.01 |
| C | Dave | 14.14 | Sarah W | 15.05 | Ian S | 12.29 | 41.48 |
| D | Fred | 13.48 | Ria K | 15.11 | Andrew S | 15.24 | 44.23 |
33 mixed teams entered the relays and team A placed 5th, B placed 9th, C placed 18th and D placed 24th.
If you haven’t ran a relay event before I can’t recommend them enough – it’s great to be out amongst other clubs and there’s a real buzz watching the fast pack come in over the line.
Ria Chaston
