A small contingent from Newburgh made the journey to Cowpe for this great little race. A good one to kick off the summer season.

Well done to Jamie for a solid performance and taking Newburgh Nomads first place. Wally commences the season right on par with last year's average handicap.

Three keen competitors attended Nicky Nook. A first race of the year for Anil, Dave keen to be racing again, and Wally kept up his high age grade score and was first Nomad to finish. Good to see support from Ollie and John on the hill.

On a grey wet evening and with the farmer's field yet to be mown, the course was tougher than usual and difficult to overtake, which showed in the winners finish time and in the tired legs at the finish line. That didn't hold back Chris Banks (running in Wesham vest) who stormed to 9th place and a clear V40 win. Jim returned to racing and landed first V70 spot. Wally also had another strong run. George Charnley racing in the hotly contested U23 category did very well too, being second of the gang back and first "Nomad" on the results sheet. Great to have a good representation from Newburgh at the 25th anniversary of this great race.

A good turnout for this moorland bash. A gradual climb that needed stamina and persistence to race through a mix of tracks, farmland and open moor. Not everyobody's cup o' tea, but for those who did well, it was an enjoyable and runnable route. Well done to Jamie Munro and an inaugral and promising appearance from Phil Davies! Also great to see George Charnley back for more fells.

It looks as though Stanhill was good for points!

One for the purists. Meet at the end of the road to nowhere, hang around in a cold wind for 30 mins, charge up a steep road and grass slope until almost at the highest point in the landsacpe, race for 2 miles across ankle testing moorland, race through bogs and rocks to the trig point, then charge directly back the way you came (via a killer climb in the last half mile) and plummet off the side of a cliff to finish. That's classic mid-week fell racing!

Calves stil burning, lungs remembering how to breathe again. I can safely say that was a blast!

Great runs from Chris Banks (1st MV40) and Jamie Munro who worked hard in a packed MV55 category. Jim Maxfield was also awarded a prize for 1st MV75. Nine runners out tonight. Dave Ralphs ticked off his 5th summer midweek race of the season to protect his first place in the league. Jamie, Wally and Nicki are all on four races so far, with Jamie being ahead of the others on age grading and Wally still flying high on handicap points since Stanhill. Similarly, Jim now matches Fred on appearances but is surpassed by Fred on handicap! The big story being that Jamie has a higher age graded score than Jim. That's the first time anyone has nudged ahead of Jim in many years. Go Jamie!

A moody evening following a day of thoroughly wet North West weather meant a damp and potentially slippery run. This posed no problem for most of our runners, with Jim, Chris U and Ollie gaining more points from the outing than they had done previously.

Local team Horwich RMI turned out in force and dominated the results. However, Tony Jackson (V65) and Jim Maxfield (V75) both won their age categories for Newburgh. Though looking at the slightly suspect official results, Jim allegedly ran for Horwich, and Jamie (first Newburgh finisher) allegedly represented the opposite sex for the evening! We'll have to keep an eye on these two age category speed demons who'll try anything to get a prize 😇

Dave Ralphs competed in his sixth race of the series. Congratulations on being first to the top of the leaderboard!

Seven Nomads made the long journey to Whitworth for this short and punchy race. If points on the leaderboard were all that mattered, we needn't have bothered - the winner knocked over a minute off the previous course record, which had the effect of denting scores.

The route is a little gem, with two long runnable but leg busting ascents, three hands-on-knees climbs, two technical trail sections and a long runnable downhill finish for those with energy left. All packed into a little over 3 miles. Newburgh Nomads made up about 1/5 of the field, and race organisers were pleased to have our support on a night when many stayed at home to watch England in the football world cup.

Jamie Munro was first placed MV55 and therefore took home the John Agg Memorial Shield. Great running Jamie, especially after racing at Moleside the day before. In doing so, Jamie ran his 6th race this season and jumped to the top of the leaderboard. Strong runs from Wally Coppelov who overtook Kathy Sutton in a close run Newburgh tussle. Giving Kathy her dues, a Bob Graham round 10 days prior and a hilly 9 miler the night before might not have helped. Kathy logs her first race in this season's challenge.

Everyone survived the ditch jump, some found the deepest bit of the notorious bog (Jim), and those who went to the pub afterwards served as a tasty treat for the local midges, despite Ollie's repellant foam of dubious vintage! The night was a winner for England, and a winner for Newburgh.

A good showing from Newburgh at this short and pacey fell race. Dave Ralphs clocked up his eighth race and is the only ever-present competitor so far this season.

Well done to Phil Davies who was 8th placed overall and first Nomad home, which is no mean feat with George Charnley on his heels - 10th placed overall and 1st in the MU18 category. They were both closely followed by Kathy Sutton as 2nd female overall and winner of the FV40 category. Wally Coppelov (MV60) and Jim Maxfield (MV70) both winning their categories too. More prizes for the Nomads!

Unfortunately for participants scores in the fell challenge, relative scores were low tonight due to Billy Cartwright's excellent winning time - a new course record!

Well done to all for once again prioritising fell running over an England world cup match 👍

A true Widdop evening by all accounts. Warm, long grass, baked dry ground, and head-high bracken. A tough one for all involved. Well done to Phil Davies for being first Nomad home. Jim overtakes Jamie at the top of the scoreboard as he cancels out an earlier low scoring race. Wally consolidates his 3rd place in the table. Kathy had a very good race too - 10 points higher than her previous best this season. There are several runners on 3 races all within a sprint finish of each other.

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