THORNBURY Running Club's main event of the week was their own Thornbury 10k race on 14 July.

With all hands on deck to ensure it ran smoothly, few Club members were able to take part.

Janet Gaze was one, coming 3rd in the FV65 category in 57.55minutes, while Magda Johnson, one of the newer members who started in the Beginners Group but now can claim to be Intermediate at the very least, completing her first race over the distance in one hour 10.32minutes.

The weather was ideal for the race, and the organisers very relieved when the large tractors and silage trailers completed their job in Sunday's Hill Lane shortly before the race began.

At the front of the field, Ciaran McQuade from Bristol & West AC repeated his 2015 victory but finding himself over a minute ahead of second finisher William Ganley (36.54minutes), may have taken the edge off his need for speed as his time of 35.11minutes was a few seconds slower than before. Third was Paul Murrin of Chepstow Harriers in 37.06minutes.

Winning lady was Elizabeth Sanigar of Bitton in 41.28minutes, holding off Louise Cronin (Great Western Runners, 41.36minutes) and Chepstow's Niki Morgan (41.55minutes).

The men's team prize went to North Bristol & West Team A : McQuade, Phil Lucker (previously Thornbury, now Yate AC) and Pete Clark who also won the Vet45 prize. Ladies Team winners were the Frampton Floozies: Jennifer Spencer, Jacqui Bath and Sarah Hart.

There were achievements on a grand scale at the weekend, starting with the Race to the Stones on Saturday. The 100km route follows the Ridgeway from the Chilterns to Avebury, and entrants are invited to run, jog or walk it, over one day or two.

For Dave Beard, Nancy Harding and Sarah Andrews, running the distance over one day, it was an early alarm for the drive to an 8am start.

Hopes of arriving back in time for last orders faded with the daylight, and over the last 10k the rutted track reduced them to a walk in the dark – but they finished, in sixteen hours 47.28minutes, raising at least £1700 for Brain Tumour Support charity as a result.

On Sunday the Ironman UK race took place at Bolton with three Thornbury competitors. Taryn Roberts and brother Dylan had been training hard and were rewarded with good and as usual, surprisingly similar, finish times.

Dylan's times were faster for the 2.4mile swim (one hour 9.31minutes) and the 112-mile bike section (six hours 49.06minutes) but slower over the 26.2 mile run (four hours 44.36minutes) giving a total time of twelve hours 57.02minutes against Taryn's thirteen hours 4.04minutes (one hour 12.40minute swim; six hours 57.32minute bike; four hours 37.23minute run). The time put Taryn 9th in the Female 25-29 category, with Dylan 63rd in the Male 25-29 group. Also taking part was Roger Denton, competing in the Male 50-54 category where he finished 3rd with a swim time of one hour 6.04minutes; bike five hours 49.07minutes and run in three hours 29.23minutes, the fastest in his category, to give a total time of ten hours 35.52minutes.

Dave Flemington is a Thornbury member who quietly travels from race to race; usually marathons or half marathons, without fuss or self-importance. He was running again on Sunday, at the Frome half marathon where he completed the 13.1mile course in two hours 23.56minutes.

Sole parkrunner of the week was Kevin Arnold, completing the hilly Ashton Court 5k course in 24.48minutes, though he completed the same distance on the track the day before in 21.48minutes, his best time for the distance so far this year.

Entries are now open for the next Thornbury Open race, the Power 10-miler which will be on Sunday 11 September. Full details at thornburyrunningclub.co.uk