ON Saturday, December 23, 19 Tavistock Athletic Club members went to Gulworthy to take part in the Parkrun – the weekly 5k timed run around the woods at the Tamar Trails.

The course was reasonably muddy to slow everyone down prior to the crawl up the last daunting hill to the finish. Some of the Tavistock juniors were using the event as part of their training over the Christmas period prior to the South West Cross-Country championships on the January 7 in Yeovil.

The Tavistock AC runners faired particularly well amongst the 141 finishers with six of them setting personal bests (fastest time for the course); and four of the club were first timers to the course. The club took first, third, fourth and fifth in the men’s category and first, second, fourth, fifth and sixth in the women’s category. Parkrun is an excellent free run open to all abilities run entirely by volunteers.

Individual places: Oliver Smart, first male (17 minutes 21seconds, new course record); Bradley Stevens third male (18.24), Edward Smart fourth male (18.35), Martin Exley-Deane fifth male (19.13), Alice Rogers first female (19.27), Heather Fell second female (20.53), Clarissa Nicholls third female (21.32), Tilly McDowell fourth female (22.22), Caroline Steven fifth female (22.32), David Twine 23rd male (23.17), Helen Orme sixth female (23.33), James Crossey 27th male (24.11), Andy Houghton 30th male (25.07), Katherine Steer 12th female (25.51), Anthony Shearer 38th male (26.02), Hannah Walker 14th female (26.25), Charlotte Walker 19th female (28.19), Hazel Walker 21st female (29.25), Shelia Houghton 28th female (31.00), Richard Nettleship 61st male (31.00).