Darius Sarshar won the penultimate handicap race of 2016, while Geoff Vine bowed out in style with second place in his last SAC handicap race.
Grace Manzotti still leads the series but now by only one point from John Copping. There are three in the race for the series trophy and another three with chances for the minor placings at the final race on Boxing Day, 26th December. The details are here.
There was a huge turnout of 561 runners for the opening KFL fixture of the 2016/17 season on 30 October in Knole Park, including a large contingent of 42 from the home club. There were some excellent performances with Rob Carr and his SAC helpers once again putting on a great race.
Darrell Smith was first SAC runner home, with Katie Wills leading in the women's team. James Graham was first M60, and Sally Shewell was third W55 (with Glenda Goscomb 4th). The Sevenoaks men and women were both fifth in the team stakes, with the combined team fourth. The SAC results were:
| Ov Pos | Lg Pos | Runner | Age | Time | Club | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | 25 | Darrell Smith | 49 | 35:25 | Sevenoaks AC | 93.53 |
| 38 | 37 | Andy Ashlee | 47 | 37:51 | Sevenoaks AC | 90.30 |
| 39 | 38 | Daniel Witt | 41 | 37:52 | Sevenoaks AC | 90.03 |
| 44 | 43 | Edmond Grobel | 37 | 38:02 | Sevenoaks AC | 88.68 |
| 45 | 44 | James Graham | 63 | 38:04 | Sevenoaks AC | 88.41 |
| 48 | 47 | George Strong | 25 | 38:19 | Sevenoaks AC | 87.60 |
| 64 | 63 | Mike McCarthy | 51 | 38:49 | Sevenoaks AC | 83.29 |
| 66 | 65 | Lee Lintern | 36 | 38:52 | Sevenoaks AC | 82.75 |
| 82 | 79 | Chris Desmond | 53 | 39:06 | Sevenoaks AC | 78.98 |
| 89 | 85 | Darius Sarshar | 47 | 39:15 | Sevenoaks AC | 77.36 |
| 92 | 88 | Andrew Mead | 47 | 39:17 | Sevenoaks AC | 76.55 |
| 97 | 93 | James Baker | 51 | 39:20 | Sevenoaks AC | 75.20 |
| 104 | 96 | Andrew Milne | 34 | 39:36 | Sevenoaks AC | 74.39 |
| 111 | 102 | Shaun Mullen | 40 | 39:42 | Sevenoaks AC | 72.78 |
| 112 | 103 | Andrew Hutchinson | 37 | 39:44 | Sevenoaks AC | 72.51 |
| 152 | 140 | Nick Holmes | 40 | 40:45 | Sevenoaks AC | 62.53 |
| 161 | 13 | Katie Wills | 28 | 40:54 | Sevenoaks AC | 93.62 |
| 173 | 159 | Andy Evans | 46 | 41:20 | Sevenoaks AC | 57.41 |
| 177 | 16 | Cath Linney | 47 | 41:28 | Sevenoaks AC | 92.02 |
| 183 | 165 | David Lobley | 51 | 41:44 | Sevenoaks AC | 55.80 |
| 199 | 23 | Heather Fitzmaurice | 46 | 42:07 | Sevenoaks AC | 88.30 |
| 208 | 26 | Joanna Grobel | 33 | 42:23 | Sevenoaks AC | 86.70 |
| 229 | 31 | Pauline Dalton | 52 | 43:15 | Sevenoaks AC | 84.04 |
| 233 | 33 | Claire Edwards | 37 | 43:25 | Sevenoaks AC | 82.98 |
| 243 | 35 | Annabelle Milne | 36 | 43:47 | Sevenoaks AC | 81.91 |
| 244 | 209 | Mathew Wall | 38 | 43:49 | Sevenoaks AC | 43.94 |
| 245 | 36 | Sally Mortleman | 50 | 43:59 | Sevenoaks AC | 81.38 |
| 257 | 41 | Nicola Glover | 28 | 44:26 | Sevenoaks AC | 78.72 |
| 271 | 226 | Simon Hallpike | 63 | 44:57 | Sevenoaks AC | 39.35 |
| 273 | 47 | Sarah Shewell | 57 | 45:07 | Sevenoaks AC | 75.53 |
| 277 | 230 | Duncan Cochrane | 59 | 45:10 | Sevenoaks AC | 38.27 |
| 287 | 49 | Glenda Goscomb | 58 | 45:35 | Sevenoaks AC | 74.47 |
| 317 | 55 | Georgia Butler | 23 | 46:41 | Sevenoaks AC | 71.28 |
| 318 | 56 | Valerie Place | 55 | 46:44 | Sevenoaks AC | 70.74 |
| 359 | 286 | Geoff Kitchener | 66 | 48:27 | Sevenoaks AC | 23.18 |
| 360 | 74 | Sam Znetyniak | 41 | 48:29 | Sevenoaks AC | 61.17 |
| 361 | 75 | Becca Crolve | 55 | 48:31 | Sevenoaks AC | 60.64 |
| 364 | 76 | Donna White | 36 | 48:35 | Sevenoaks AC | 60.11 |
| 451 | 118 | Happy Fisher | 40 | 52:41 | Sevenoaks AC | 37.77 |
| 454 | 336 | James Fitzmaurice | 74 | 52:53 | Sevenoaks AC | 9.70 |
| 468 | 338 | Lyndon Collins | 66 | 53:57 | Sevenoaks AC | 9.16 |
| 509 | 353 | Peter Nuttall | 44 | 57:54 | Sevenoaks AC | 5.12 |
| 551 | 365 | Richard Pitcairn-Knowles | 83 | 1:04:44 | Sevenoaks AC | 1.89 |
The full results are here. Yon Marsh provided some great action photos which are here.
Several Sevenoaks runners also ran in the Kent League XC at Somerhill the previous day. James Graham was first M60 and the men's team had enough runners once again to register a score. They stand 12th out of 20 clubs to have scored after two matches. The SAC results were:
| Pos. | Gun Time | Name | Club | Gender | Cat | Race No. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 78 | 00:41:06 | ANDREW MEAD | S'oaks AC | M | V45 | 770 |
| 83 | 00:41:28 | DAN WITT | S'oaks AC | M | V40 | 774 |
| 88 | 00:41:48 | JAMES GRAHAM | S'oaks AC | M | V60 | 773 |
| 96 | 00:42:13 | CHRIS DESMOND | S'oaks AC | M | V50 | 775 |
| 194 | 00:54:37 | FRANK MASON | S'oaks AC | M | V55 | 771 |
| V70 Race | ||||||
| 5 | 00:39:21 | RICHARD PITCAIRN-KNOWLES | S'oaks AC | M | V80 | 772 |
The full results are here.
Alastair Moffatt was fourth overall and first M40 at the Tonbridge 10k at Hildenborough on Sunday 23rd October. Other Sevenoaks runners also did well in their categories, with Anna Humphrey-Taylor third W45, Nick Humphrey-Taylor third M40, Tony Horlock fifth M50 and Simon Hallpike second M60. Despite the proximity to Sevenoaks, a beautiful autumn morning and an excellent scenic course with a great finish, these were the only SAC runners at the event. The SAC results were:
| Pos- ition |
Bib- No. |
Finish Time |
Name | Gen- der |
Cat- egory |
Club or Team | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 105 | 00:38:09 | ALASTAIR MOFFATT | M | MV40 | Sevenoaks AC | 1 |
| 12 | 72 | 00:39:04 | NICK HUMPHREY-TAYLOR | M | MV40 | Sevenoaks AC | 2 |
| 29 | 69 | 00:43:03 | TONY HORLOCK | M | MV50 | Sevenoaks AC | 3 |
| 43 | 56 | 00:45:49 | SIMON HALLPIKE | M | MV60 | Sevenoaks AC | 4 |
| 66 | 71 | 00:50:25 | ANNA HUMPHREY-TAYLOR | F | FV45 | Sevenoaks AC | 5 |
The full result is here.
Eight Sevenoaks AC athletes contested the first Cross Country race of the season: the Kent League match at Stanhill Farm, Wilmington on Saturday 15th October. Andrew Mead led home a complete men's team which finished 12th on the day and in which James Graham finished first M60 in a strong field:
78 00:39:16 ANDREW MEAD S'oaks AC M V45 770
91 00:39:54 DAN WITT S'oaks AC M V40 774
96 00:40:04 JAMES GRAHAM S'oaks AC M V60 773
147 00:43:02 CHRIS DESMOND S'oaks AC M V50 775
223 00:56:22 FRANK MASON S'oaks AC M V55 771
SAC also had two representatives in the senior women's race, with Jacqui O'Reilly our first in and Sally Shewell finishing second W55:
27 00:22:20 JACQUELINE O'REILLY S'oaks AC F Senior 779
62 00:24:42 SALLY SHEWELL S'oaks AC F V55 778
And we also fielded the only M80 competing on the day, as Richard Pitcairn-Knowles finished 5th in the M70 race:
5 00:35:06 RICHARD PITCAIRN-KNOWLES S'oaks AC M V80 772
The full results are here.