From Ash Winter…
One of my highlights of the year last year was the Grassington Trail Race. Heading into the Dales on a beautiful day to race a small but well-formed trail race with a delightful atmosphere and goodie bag to match. Plus, I came 7th, which was an excellent ego massage we all need every so often. Now a Harriers Race League counter, I eagerly anticipated the 2026 edition, bringing some of my friends along to enjoy the vibes.
And vibes there were. I picked up Colm McCann and started the journey, arriving in good time to catch up with the multiple Harriers who had eschewed the Calderdale Way Relay to partake. As we lined up at the start, our own John Hayes got a birthday shout out and round of applause which set the tone for an excellent morning of racing. The five-mile course had a couple of climbs earlier on, followed by some undulations on farm tracks, with a speedy finish into Grassington. Makes use of the various trails and tracks around Grassington without straying too far from the town. A very smartly designed course.
One of the highly amusing things from last year was the rush of juniors from the start, tiring themselves out on the first climb through Grassington’s high street. Same again here, but Nick Kealey was speeding ahead too, but not likely to fade after a couple of hills. Owen Parker and John Hayes were not far behind either. Luke Watkeys gradually reeled me in on the climb from High Lane to Edge Lane and then remained slightly out of reach for the rest of the race.
The main climb out of the way, a long section of farm track along Edge Lane held a water station, then up a horrible road climb before the first part of the descent. Fast feet required on a grassy slope or two. After that, it was stile after stile, probably in double figures. It felt like one of Ali Nash’s club run routes, but while attempting to go way faster. Various drainage pipes were on the route too, which required leaping over, adding to the flavour. You hit tarmac again on Bulling Lane, ready for the dash to the finish in Grassington. I was in 10th at this point, but someone was gradually gaining and beat me at the last! Ah well.
Nick Kealey was the overall winner in 35:17, another great performance and his first overall race ‘W’, earning him a bottle of Baileys! Which he magnanimously handed over to Jean Sullivan, who after her own excellent performance, will give it a good home. Owen Parker showed further good form with 3rd in 37:24. John Hayes was 5th, Luke Watkeys 7th, I was 11th, Colm was 16th. First Harrier Lady home was Heidi Hoad, continuing the excellent form shown at the Leeds Half last week with a time of 47:11, followed a minute or so later by Alison Weston. Special mention to Geoff Howard who looked fresh despite the horrors of the Leeds Marathon the week before, crossing the line in 50:40. Daisy and Lucy Lowe ran together as they do so often, which is great to see. Finally, a shout out to Esmaeil Zadeh with a time of 50:19, rounding off an excellent day to be an Ilkley Harrier! Finally, finally, extra credit goes to Richard Joel as chief photographer and cheerleader.