Castle's Relay 2009. Photo Album

Sarn Helen Running Club members took part in the 27th year of the Welsh Castle Relay on the 13th  and 14th June 2009.

Fifty nine clubs competed in the event from Wales England and Canada, and one thousand one hundred and eighty runners took part in the two day event. The race started at Caernarfon Castle on Saturday morning and ended in Cardiff Castle on Sunday afternoon. There are 20 stages ranging in distance from eight to fourteen miles passing many welsh castles and tough mountain stages, each team has twenty runners who each run one stage over the course of two days, with ten stages Saturday and ten on Sunday.  One thousand one hundred and eighty runners took part in the two day event.

Glyn Price had an excellent race on the mountain stage from Builth Wells to Drovers Arms  top of Epynt Mountain.    Price finished the 11 mile stage in 1 hour 10 minutes and 15 seconds, and finished 7th overall  and 4th vet 45.
  
Lyn Rees  started  the first stage from Caernarfon to Penygroes  in a time of 1 hour 31 minutes,2nd stage to  Criccieth Castle  Carwyn Thomas  finished in 3rd position in 1hr 3m 11 sec, mountain stage to  Maentwrog  34th Haydn Lloyd 1hr 25min 31sec, Harlech Castle – 5th  Ifron Thomas 59 min 56sec,  Barmouth – 39th Caryl Davies 1hr 17min 18 sec, Dolgellau - 26th Dylan Davies 1 hr 16m 27s, mountain stage Dinas Mawddwy  - 43rd  Murray Kisbee 1 hr 14 min 53 sec, Foel  – 43rd Calvin Williams 1hr 23 min 20 sec, Llanfair Careinion – 43rd Jan Jones 1hr 10 min 18sec, and the final mountain stage for day one  to Newtown in 36th position Mark Dunscombe 1hr 30 min26 sec.

Newtown was the overnight stop for the runners,  and Jamie Thomas ran the early morning mountain stage of 12.3 miles to Llanbadarn Fynydd in 27th position 1 hr 30 min 8sec, Crossgates – 52nd Huw Rowcliffe 1hr 33min 55sec, Builth Wells – 39th Andrew  Edgell 1hr 21min 40sec, Drovers Arms – 7th Glyn Price 1hr 10min 15sec, Brecon –36th  Peter Davies 1hr 36min 55 sec, mountain stage to Beacons Reservoir – 10th Michael Davies 55 min 10 sec, Cyfarthfa Castle – 44th  Gareth Jones  1hr 10min 42sec, Abercynnon  - 27th Dawn Kenwright 1hr 5min 33sec, Caerphilly Castle –23rd  Richard Marks 1hr 17min 46sec.  Gethin Jenkins finished in the 48th position in the last stage of 10.4 miles from Caerphilly Castle to Cardiff Castle in the time of 1hr 21min 38sec.  

The club did extremely well and finished the 211 miles in 32nd position in the time of 25hours 57minutes and 6 seconds, and was in twentieth position in the Kings of the mountain stages.