Manx Fell Runners

Service for David Young will be on Tuesday, August 31st at 10.30 am at the Crematorium.

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It has been very sad news to learn of the death of Dave Young, a very popular manx fell runner.  Dave was a leading athlete on the manx fells for many years and one of the best veteran age group competitors on the island.

He enjoyed racing and was a great supporter of the islands fell races always showing great enthusiasm, our thoughts go out to his family at this difficult time.

Tribute by Richie Stevenson

Manx Fell Running in particular and Isle of Man athletics in general have been left in a state of shock on hearing the desperately sad news that David Young has passed away.
“The Doc” as he was affectionately known was without doubt one of the most popular and respected runners ever to compete in local fell races and his passing will leave a huge void in the closely knit fell running community.

My first recollections of the Doc were back in the late 80`s.  I`m not sure what year he made his debut but he came into the sport at near veteran status. Within a short space of time he had made his mark and he proceeded to dominate the various veterans age categories up until his untimely death. Indeed he had just retained his veterans 60 category in the Manx Fell League that he was so proud to win for the first time last year.

A quick look at the Manx fell course records shows that the Doc holds every record for the over 50`s age group, a quite staggering achievement. He was also veterans over 40 and over 50 league winner on numerous occasions.

Preparation was always a strong point for the 62 years old Scotsman. He would spend hours searching for the best routes seeking out sheep tracks or short cuts that may just be a bit quicker than the established route. These routes he would carefully mark with a strategically placed stone or piece of wood so he could find them in the heat of battle. Of course this system became known to his rivals and they would also be looking out for them!

The Docs passion and enthusiasm for the hills was obvious and he took it to new heights, so to speak, in his many journeys home to his native Scotland where be became a prolific “Munro bagger”.

In the space of a few days Manx sport has lost two great and popular characters in Ian Turnbull and now the Doc. We will all miss them greatly.

Manx Fell Runners would like to pass on their sympathies to all the Docs family at this sad time.

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Lloyd Taggart dominated the 2010 Rentokil manx fell league with a win in every race he did. He finished well clear of second placed Nigel Armstrong who had an excellent season on the fells, relative fell newcomer Armstrong ended the season very strongly with victories at Laxey and North Barrule helping him secure the spot.  Third place and the vet 40 win went to Ian Gale, who has had one of his best fell seasons and for the last few years, Gale took the manx win at this years Manx Mountain Marathon and showed consistent form throughout the year, he finished just one point clear of last years league winner Simon Skillicorn.

The ladies win this year was also clear cut with the victory going to Jackie Lee, just like Lloyd she won every race she did including a victory at the Mount Mountain Marathon.  Second place went to Rachel Holden, the consistency of her results allowed her to pull clear of third place and fell newcomer Caroline Caren who had an excellent first season on the fells.

The veterens prizes went to Ian Callister in the over 50’s and Dave Young in the over 60’s, both runners, very experienced in the manx fells showed they still have what it takes to beat there younger counterparts.

Full league results are available here, keep and eye on the manxfellrunners.org for information on the presentation and AGM.

Next racing will take place in the winter hill league on the 9th October, details of which can be found here

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Race report by Richie Stevenson

Manx Harrier`s Nigel Armstrong continued his outstanding late season form when he took the honours in Saturdays Sean Craig sponsored North Barrule Fell Race, his second consecutive win following  success in the recent James Coulson event.

The race was the final round in the 2010 Rentokil Fell League and it attracted a sizeable field of 38 runners which included 3 juniors and 4 female competitors.

Conditions were just about perfect over the 3.5miles out and back course with the only problem being the brisk southerly head wind on the final ridge run to the summit.
As early as the outward crossing of the Rhowin Road a quartet had moved clear at the front consisting of Armstrong, reigning fell champion Simon Skillicorn, “Onion” Gale and Peter Bradley.  As the terrain steepened Armstrong began to ease ahead and at the summit he turned for home with a small advantage of around 15 seconds over Skillicorn.
with Bradley and Gale still close behind.
The return leg is a severe test as it requires great strength to run at pace over the steep and extremely rough terrain although the leaders were making it look relatively easy as they stormed down the hill. Back at the finish Armstrong burst into view with an extended lead that had grown to exactly one minute over runner-up Skillicorn. He in turn had been put under great pressure by third placed Bradley who without doubt recorded his best result on the fells to date. The fact that he was able to relegate “demon” descender Gale to 4th place was proof of his excellent performance.

Next to arrive was Paul Sykes who has surprised and pleased everyone, including himself no doubt, with his excellent sequence of results in his first full season on the fells. The Douglas Postman and 6th placed Steve Partington were under severe pressure from Oliver Lockley until the talented junior missed the turning into Ballure.  He ended up running a slightly extended course which ruined his chance of a top six placing but he was by no means the only competitor to slip up here. Even with his unscheduled detour he still finshed first junior in an excellent 7th overall

Top lady was Julie Cretney who just got the better of Rachel Holden with Caroline Caren next followed by Alison Corlett. Impressive stuff from the girls.

There were a number of outstanding performances further down the field. Topping the list must be juniors Shaun and Jason Moore who coped with the tough course brilliantly.
Two other runners who are creating quite an impression in their debut season are Glen Weir, who continued his good form to finish in 10th position, and Geoff Hampton who in only his 4th race was top over 50 finisher.
Final positions in the 2010 Rentokil Manx Fell League will be announced shortly.
Many thanks to sponsor Sean Craig, to all the marshalls and helpers, and to the landowners for access.

Full results here

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Take a look at the latest rentokil manx fell league positions on the results page here

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