Warm autumnal sunshine greeted the record field of 568 runners who took part in Sunday’s Newquay 10K road race, the 13th and penultimate round of the 2016 Cornwall Grand Prix Series, sponsored by Cornwall Glass and Glazing.

The popular race, being run in October for the last time due to the busy traffic at this time of year in Newquay, before switching to the first Sunday in February in 2017, was sponsored by Flounders Fish and Chips but the runners were certainly not floundering, setting off in ideal conditions from the Newquay Sports Centre, heading towards the boating lake on the opening fast first mile.

Pre-race favourite Peter Le Grice (Mounts Bay Harriers) was joined in the early stages by Tavistock Athletic Club’s Jim Cole, a visitor to many of the county’s Grand Prix races and Godolphin Schools recently appointed Assistant Head Colin Snook (Cornwall AC).

After avoiding bolting horses by the turn to the zoo and fending off a dog as the leaders passed a farm as they turned off the main road, the race settled down and by half way Le Grice had opened a forty metre gap ahead of the 2008 winner Cole, with Snook a further forty metres back.

An uneventful second half of the race saw the Mounts Bay Harrier gradually extend his lead to the finish, winning this race for the first time by almost one minute, with Cole holding off Snook for the runner’s up prize by the closer margin of eight seconds.

Justin Thomas (Cornwall AC), perhaps feeling a little tired after a good run in the Bristol Half Marathon one week ago, came home in fourth place, with Hayle runner Jordan Morant fifth, six seconds clear of the leading holiday runner Mark Dawson from North Derbyshire Running Club.

Helston’s Paul Whear (Cornwall AC) claimed another top ten finish in eighth position, also winning the Veteran’s 45-49 category and finishing two places ahead of the first Falmouth Road Runner across the line, Tom Carthy.

A slightly below par Emma Stepto (Cornwall AC) did enough to win her first Newquay 10K since 2010 and despite not being at her best, finished just over a minute clear of the Truro Half Marathon winner Emma Paull (Hayle Runners), with another Tavistock athlete, Tess Masselink, also making the podium in third place.

Eighteen year old Masselink, the silver medallist in the 1500 metres steeplechase at this years English Schools Championships, was a clear winner in the Under 20 competition, ahead of two up and coming Cornwall AC youngsters, Helston’s Katie Hughes (2nd) and Imogen Wood (3rd).

The Men’s Under 20 competition had a real local flavour about it.

The ninth placed overall finisher Falmouth University student Jordan Clay (Cornwall AC) beat his Falmouth team mate Tom Slattery by one minute, with the younger Penryn College youngster Floyd Ratcliffe (Hayle Runners) in third place. The Newquay race also decided the overall standings in this age group for 2016 and what a close finish this proved to be. Slattery took the title with a score of 298 points in his best three races, with Ratcliffe (297 points) second and another

Cornwall AC young athlete from Falmouth and Penryn College, Sam Goodchild (296 points), in third position.

Cornwall AC dominated the Men’s and Ladies team competitions, with the ‘A’ teams six scoring runners, by coincidence, finishing in the top twelve positions in both categories.

The winning Ladies team totalled 41 points, well ahead of the runners up Hayle Runners 122 points, with the host club, Newquay Road Runners, narrowly failing to match the Hayle score, totalling 128 points.

Cornwall’s winning Men’s ‘A’ team scored 47 points and once again it was the Men from Hayle (129 points) who took the runner’s up position, with Cornwall AC’s ‘B’ team (180 points) in third place, twenty four points in front of fourth placed Newquay Road Runners.

The Falmouth men, despite not being at full strength, achieved one of their best Grand Prix team placings in fifth position ahead of Truro Running Club and Mount’s Bay Harriers.

KEY FOR CLUBS

CAC Cornwall AC, CR Carn Runners, ECH East Cornwall Harriers, FRR Falmouth Road Runners, HR Hayle Runners, LP Looe Pioneers, LRR Launceston Road Runners, MBH Mounts Bay Harriers, NDRC North Derbyshire Running Club, NRR Newquay Road Runners, STA St Austell Running Club, TAV Tavistock AC, TRC Truro Running Club, U Unattached.

RESULTS

Men: 1 Peter Le Grice MBH 32.34, 2 Jim Cole TAV 33.21, 3 Colin Snook CAC 33.29, 4 Justin Thomas CAC 34.27, 5 Martin Dawson NDRC 34.34, 6 Jordan Morant HR 34.40, 7 Tony Wright NRR 34.44, 8 Paul Whear CAC 34.49,9 Jordan Clay CAC 34.50, 10 Tom Carthey FRR 35.19. Age Categories: Under 20: 1 Jordan Clay, 2 Tom Slattery CAC 35.52, 3 Floyd Ratcliffe HR 36.28. Under 35: 1 Peter Le Grice, 2 Jim Cole, 3 Jordan Morant. 35-39: 1 Doug Stacey ECH 36.23, 2 Alex Marples TRC 37.12, 3 Wayne Sara TRC 38.04. 40-44: 1 Colin Snook, 2 Justin Thomas, 3 Martin Dawson. 45-49: 1 Paul Whear, 2 Peter Sowerby TRC 37.07, 3 John Wisner U 38.10. 50-54: 1 Tony Wright, 2 Tony Dunn CAC 35.42, 3 Steve Wherry CAC 36.47. 55-59: 1 Gordon Adie TRC 42.59, 2 Michael Wilson TRC 45.25, 3 Peter Allen NRR 48.26. 60-64: 1 Simon Webber ECH 42.31, 2 Malcolm Roberts STA 43.07, 3 Peter Chapman CR 46.33. 65-69: 1 Geoff Letchford MBH 42.47, 2 John Gossan LP 46.53, 3 Pat Lockett NRR 47.25. 70-74: 1 Brian Wiles LRR 43.57, 2 Stewart Townend HR 49.06, 3 Clive Hibbert NRR 52.03. 75+: 1 Tony Berry TRC 56.57, 2 Norris Kington CAC 74.11. Teams: 1 Cornwall AC ‘A’ 47 points, 2 Hayle Runners 129 points, 3 Cornwall AC ‘B’ 180 points, 4 Newquay Road Runners 204 points, 5 Falmouth Road Runners 222 points, 6 Truro Running Club 285 points.

Ladies: 1 Emma Stepto CAC 37.13, 2 Emma Paull HR 38.24, 3 Jess Masselink TAV 39.08, 4 Zelah Morrall CAC 39.13, 5 Heidi Tregenza CAC 40.34, 6 Jeanette Johnson LRR 40.44, 7 Jo Herd NRR 41.16, 8 Katie Hughes CAC 41.17, 9 Jessica Buscombe STA 41.48, 10 Emma Murray STA 42.10. Age Categories: Under 20: 1 Tess Masselink, 2 Katie Hughes, 3 Imogen Wood CAC 44.13. Under 35: 1 Emma Paull, 2 Heidi Tregenza, 3 Jessica Buscombe. 35-39: 1 Colette Clements NRR 44.15, 2 Louise Gore NRR 44.41, 3 Kirsty Medlock HR 47.20. 40-44: 1 Jo Herd, 2 Charlotte Bennett HR 43.43, 3 Faye Savage HR 44.09. 45-49: 1 Emma Stepto, 2 Zelah Morrall, 3 Donna Raggett CAC 42.16. 50-54: 1 Jeanette Johnson, 2 Emma Murray, 3 Revis Crowle ECH 42.26. 55-59: 1 Jeanette Duncan NRR 49.33, 2 Cheryl Broas LP 50.50, 3 Fran Long HR 54.04. 60-64: 1 Sue Taylor MBH 51.01, 2 Eleanor Ellison NRR 52.20, 3 Diane Warren HR 52.31. 65-69: 1 Lynn Harvey NRR 59.10, 2 Jackie Jenkin CAC 61.24, 3 Kathran Dormer FRR 65.06. Teams: 1 Cornwall AC ‘A’ 41 points, 2 Hayle Runners 122 points, 3 Newquay Road Runners 128 points, 4 Mounts Bay Harriers 284 points, 5 Carn Runners 284 points, 6 Cornwall AC ‘B’ 291 points.