MEMBERS of Bere Alston Trekkers were busy both home and away this weekend, competing in races on Dartmoor, the Jurassic Coast, and at the Victory 5 in Portsmouth.

Not far from home, BATs Derek Hicks, Andrew Bowden and Fran Morgan made the short trip to Burrator reservoir on Saturday to take part in The Burrator Noir 10 mile and 10K races, staged by Wildnightrunning.

Now in its second year, the tough 10 mile off-road night race on the open moor, starts at race HQ at the Burrator Visitor Centre. It includes a tough climb followed by an exhilarating descent from Guttor Tor down before fording the River Meavy where participants could either brave the water or take the long way around over the bridge and sacrifice precious time.

The Burrator 10K is a fast, flat route which is almost all on Tarmac, and perfect for a night- time personal best. Both races attracted a good field of competitors, and conditions were testing with a stiff and very cold wind. Derek Hicks and Fran Morgan (pictured) ran the 10 mile race in times of 2 hrs 08 mins 11 secs and 2.14.00 respectively whilst Andrew Bowden ran the 10K race finishing in 45mins 03secs.

In Portsmouth, Matthew Head took on the Victory 5. This race forms part of the Hampshire Road Race League, and as such attracts a high quality field. Conditions were very chilly, with an air temperature of 3°C, and the wind chill factor bringing it down to 0°C — thankfully the sun was shining. Matthew finished 40th in a field of nearly 700, with a time of 28.19.0 and a personal best for Matthew of almost a minute.

Lone BAT Marcia Macey took part in the Dorset Coastal race staged by Endurancelife and part of their Coastal Trail Series, starting at Lulworth Cove. Given World Heritage status in 2001, the Jurassic Coast Path through Dorset is unique; this is the only location on the planet, say the race organisers, where in a few short hours of trail running, participants travel through a few million years of earth time — all with the ocean as a glorious backdrop, along with numerous challenging hills giving this trail race the rating of ‘extreme’ by the event organisers. Marcia ran the half marathon race option, finishing in 3.08.50.