ATHLETES from Dudley Kingswinford Running Club were spoilt for choice last weekend with plenty of opportunities to get out and race over various distances.

Helen Tromans was first out of the blocks tackling the Newport Carnival 10k, a race run mainly on quiet roads and paths but with the weather making it slippery underfoot conditions were certainly not conducive to fast times. Despite the conditions, DK's top female marathon runner still claimed 65th overall and first in her age group recording a time of 44.04.

Further afield a group of six runners, making up two relay teams, travelled to Llanwrytyd Wells in mid-Wales to compete in the annual Man v Horse event, a 22 mile race cooked up in the pub more than 35 years ago as a bet to see if a man could beat a horse.

This year’s field of individual runners, relay teams and horses, which totalled over 900 entrants, showed it’s still going strong.

The DK A team of Dave Norman, Andy Sprague and James Wright claimed 5th place in a total time of 2.47.50 and the B team of Richard Bate, Stuart Tromans and Mick Quane were only a place behind in 2.53.28.

Twenty four hours later, a group travelled north to Stoke for the Potters Arf, a half marathon taking in many of the surrounding potteries towns and finishing in Hanley.

Matt Biggs was first back in ninth place in 1.20.29, Darran Bishop claimed 37th place in 1.25.42, Mark Judge finished in 1.35.11 in 144th place, Graham Wildgoose was 192nd in 1.37.34, Andy Fraser was 798th in 2.00.38 and Andy Morrison came home in 2.03.09 in 1488th. There was also a strong presence of blue hoops in Liverpool for another half marathon with Darren Judge clocking 1.52.50, Steve Rubery finishing in 1.56.13, Lisa Kendrick in 1.58.40, Suzi Geraghty in 2.02.28 and Charlotte Tonks in 2.17.36.