MORE than 300 runners from across the North of England took part in the eighth Warrington Way Ultra Marathon, organised by Lymm Runners.
Solo male winner was Jack Antrobus who completed the 40 mile course in five hours and 20 minutes while solo woman winner, Clare Farrell, of Delamere Spartans, with a time of six hours, 26 minutes.
Conditions this year were probably the mildest and driest ever, making it ideal for personal bests as the infamous “Slurry Lane” in Stage 4 had marginally less slurry and the horse field wasn’t knee-deep in ice-cold water.
As usual, the race started and finished in Lymm and involved a circular route through some of the loveliest scenery around Warrington. Entrants not only had the option of running the whole distance solo, but can also run two 10-mile stages as a pair or a single stage as a relay of four. Race director Kieran Walshe said: “The intention of this was to offer an introduction to runners who would like to trial Ultra running so that they could build up to the bigger distances if they wished.”
In-route entertainment, encouragement and sustenance was provided, as always, by the Ooompa Loompas from Warrington Tri Club, the man serving shots of pink gin and spiced rum five miles from the finish and of course the great food and drink at the three checkpoints and at the finish.
In a statement afterwards, Chris Lees, race co-director thanked everyone involved and said: ‘A great time was had by all, and that is down to our amazing volunteers who staffed checkpoints, ran HQ, organised the food and looked after everyone’s safety.’
The race also raised £225 for local Ukrainian initiatives from selling merchandise from previous races.
The ninth event is now being planned for 11 November 2023 2023, so if anyone would like to know more, they should check out the Lymm Runners website https://lymmrunners.org.uk
Entertainment along the route
