The 2016 Duchy Athletic Network (DAN) Summer Track Series, sponsored by Personal Best (PB) Running, enjoyed a very successful start to the new season, with 50 runners attracted to Carn Brea last week for an evening of 3000 metre races, which featured the Cornwall 3000 metre Championship event, the first race on the programme.

This popular distance appeals as much to the 1500 metre specialist as the 5000m/10000 metre runners, so not unexpectedly a strong field of 30 runners toed the start line.

Pre race favourite Callum Jones (Cornwall AC), now relaxing at home in Helston after completing his degree course at Bristol University, shot off from the gun, building a clear lead ahead of team mate Colin Snook, who in turn was well ahead of the chasing pack comprising about twelve runners. Barring accidents, the top two finishing places looked assured, with both the winner Jones and runner up Snook running strongly and maintaining comfortable gaps over each other and the rest of the field.

The question was who would emerge from the chasing pack and claim the third podium position? After three of the seven and a half laps, the Newquay Road Runner Tony Wright was the first to make a move, soon followed by Jordan Morant but the Hayle Runner was soon again gobbled up by the pack.

Wright looked safe in third place with a few laps to go but Justin Thomas (Cornwall AC) had other ideas, gradually closing a forty metre gap and moving into third place on the penultimate lap and then holding off a fast finishing Wright in the home straight, finishing third by just seven tenths of a second.

With Emma Stepto (Cornwall AC), finishing second in the Ladies race and slowly making her way back from a foot stress fracture injury, the stage was set for fifteen year old Grace Brock (Cornwall AC) to make a real impact against Senior opposition and the Mounts Bay Academy youngster certainly took her chance, finishing eighteen seconds ahead of Stepto, clocking 10.05.1 and improving her personal best by over three seconds, well inside the qualifying time for the English Schools Championships, one of her main target races in July.

One of Cornwall AC’s top road runners, Helston’s Paul Whear, finished sixth with his Falmouth team mate Paul Smith struggling a little for speed over this shorter distance, coming home in 12th position, just one place and seven tenths of a second ahead of the Penryn College youngster Floyd Ratfliffe (Hayle Runners). Another up and coming name for the future, 15 year old Sam Goodchild, who also attends Penryn College, finished 16th beating many senior runners. Disappointingly there were no runners turning out from the Mile High Club in Penryn or from Falmouth Road Runners.

Simon Knowles (Hayle Runners), John Sole (Bodmin Road Runners) and James Manning (Hayle Runners) led the way in the second race of the evening, before Knowles applied the pressure mid race to win by fourteen seconds from Sole, who finished a further eight seconds clear of Manning. The up and coming Laura Rogers (Cornwall AC) continues to show further improvement, winning the Ladies section of this race by almost one minute and finishing fifth overall

In the evening’s final race, another Stepto took the honours but this time it was Emma’s husband Brett, who paced his race to perfection, speeding up in the closing stages to win by a comfortable margin ahead of Truro Running Club’s supervet Tony Berry, who runs in the 70+ age category. Laura Millward (Carn Runners) finished third and was the first lady across the line.

KEY FOR CLUBS

BRR Bodmin Road Runners, CAC Cornwall AC, CR Carn Runners, HR Hayle Runners, NP Newquay & Par AC, NRR Newquay Road Runners, TL Tri Logic, TRC Truro Running Club, U Unattached.

RESULTS

Race 1 Cornwall 3000m Championships: 1 Callum Jones CAC 8.54.7, 2 Colin Snook CAC 9.00.5, 3 Justin Thomas CAC 9.33.1, 4 Tony Wright NRR 9.33.8, 5 Jo Argall CAC 9.39.0, 6 Paul Whear CAC 9.40.9, 7 Kristof Climek CAC (U17) 9.40.9, 8 Jordan Morant HR 9.42.2, 9 Craig Salamone CAC 9.43.2, 10 Alex Daniels NRR 9.44.7, 11 Abu Gupta CAC (U17) 9.46.5, 12 Paul Smith CAC 9.49.4, 13 Floyd Ratcliffe HR 9.50.1, 14 Robert Watts HR 9.50.4, 15 Mark Webster CAC 9.56.9, 16 Sam Goodchild CAC (U17) 9.56.9, 17 Grace Brock CAC (1st Lady U17) 10.05.1, 18 James Taylor CAC 10.08.2, 19 Matt Yates CAC 10.09.8, 20 Kieran Murrant HR 10.18.1, 21 Clive Ramsden 10.20.0, 22 Scott Abraham HR 10.20.8, 23 Emma Stepto CAC (2nd Lady) 10.23.2, 24 Paul Sawford CR 10.23.4, 25 Neil Cookson HR 10.38.2, 26 Craig Hall CR 10.46.3, 27 Lee Channon CAC 11.01.7, 28 Elowen Penfold NP (3rd Lady U17) 11.04.1, 29 Donna Raggett CAC 11.07.0, 30 Barrie Cardew CR 11.21.0.

Race 2: 1 Simon Knowles HR 10.24.4, 2 John Sole BRR 10.38.2, 3 James Manning HR 10.46.7, 4 Nigel Trevena CAC 11.37.7, 5 Laura Rogers CAC (1st Lady) 11.57.8, 6 Peter Allen NRR 11.58.9, 7 Paul Wright NRR 12.16.8, 8 John Horton NP 12.21.3, 9 Ian Leedham NRR 12.33.7, 10 Debbie Nugent CR (2nd Lady) 12.48.2, 11 Caroline Chesterfield CAC (3rd Lady) 13.19.0, 12 Anna Pascoe CR (4th Lady) 13.45.8, 13 John Lillis NRR 13.50.4, 14 Tony Rowell TL 14.43.6.

Race 3: 1 Brett Stepto U 14.00.4, 2 Tony Berry TRC 15.17.3, 3 Laura Millward CR (1st Lady) 15.22.0, 4 Lorna Martin CAC (2nd Lady) 15.24.6, 5 Diane Boardman TRC (3rd Lady) 15.46.9, 6 Robert James U 16.10.0.