Sunday 22nd September 🖤❤️

With torrential rain through the night and into the early hours, the wet conditions held off for our 37th edition of The John Faulds Hellingly 10K on Sunday 22nd September.

Over two hundred runners gathered on the start line at Station Road, Hellingly to face an undulating point to point course around Hellingly country lanes, with a fab finish location at Hellingly Cricket Pavilion, Roebuck Park 🏏

Of course no race can ever go ahead successfully without a fabulous team at the helm.  Our thanks go to our Race Director Sam Nemo 🐠 and the army of members, friends and family who all got involved on the day to make it a great atmosphere and ensure the safety of all our runners.  Without you all and your hard efforts, time and fabulous energy, our race would not and could not have gone ahead 🙏🏻

So we start the report with a huge thanks to Nemo’s Mum and Dad – Gail 🍰 and Shawn 💗, Danni Pope 💓, Charlie Pope 😍, Bette Davies 💖, Ads 🦈 , Mark Pope 🤩, Sandra 🐕‍🦺,  Els💞, Darren🚨, Lisa PH🧡, Claire Hope🌻, Helen Irvine ❣️Paul Bruton 🚴🏽‍♂️, Annette 💚, Mel Stanford 📸, Jayne Morris 🦸🏻‍♀️ , Penfold 🐭 and Diane 🧶 , Fluffy 🐌, Katy Reed’s Mum and Dad – Shirley and Paul 💕, Robin Horner 🧡, Connie and Nadine 🦇, Graham Purdye 😘, Tasha Garratt and Pip 🩵, Bartz 👨🏻‍✈️, Michelle Hollands 💝, Chris and Jo Shoult & family 💟, Ollie Chandler 🌱, Andy Moore 🏃🏻‍♂️, Maria Stanford 👧🏼, Audrey 💊& BIG Si 🥊 , Linford Crusty 🚲, Ros Daintree 💓, Cathy 🥿, Leeland 🤩, Ian Cant 🙌, Hannah DC & Oscar 👶🏼, Claire Keith 🍒 & family, Louisa 🚁, Dean Layen & The Scouts Team, Lord Norman 👑, Alice’s Mum & Dad, and finally…. the man that holds us all together, our club Chairperson – Ruffs 🖤 ❤️  (apologies if i’ve missed anyone 🫣)

Congratulations 🏆 go to race winner, Ollie Sprague, from Seaford Striders who finished with a time of 35:44, our very own Chris Doherty 👁️ enjoying a speedy season, flew home to take second place 🥈 in 37:21 and finishing 3rd saw Sky Taylor-O’Neill from Crawley Saints and Sinners 💛 🖤in 37:31.

For the ladies our wonderful Alice 🐈 ran a sensational race, one week after finishing the Glencoe Marathon 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 to finish first female 🏆 in 42:24 with Melissa Galea from Horsham Joggers 🤍 💜 second in 43:34 and Brighton and Hove AC’s Paula Blackledge ❤️🖤a strong 3rd in 43:51.

Amongst the first in age trophy winners, our ladies scooped up plenty of the awards.  Congratulations to:  Lady Frances Delves 👸🏼, Granny Erridge 👵🏻, Maria Smith 💆🏼‍♀️, Audrey 💊 and Sarah Day 🫶.

Plenty of personal bests and course personal bests were also achieved by Oli P 🔑, Jo McGowan 🙌 , Vinny 👊🏻, KT Reed 🦆, Sarah Day 🫶, Lee Williams 🪵, Andrea Gikes 💐, Chris Doherty 👁️, Maria Smith 💆🏼‍♀️, Arthur 🦔 , Audrey 💊, Lisa Phillips-Horner 🧡, DG 💂🏻‍♀️and Chris Little 🔥  (sorry again if i’ve missed anyone 😳)

Along with organising the race, which forms part of the Sussex Grand Prix, as a club we were the proud winners on the day, of the team trophy 🏆 fielding a record breaking forty-one members who ran the race.  Seaford Striders 🖤 🤍 were second and joint third saw Hastings Runners 💚🖤 and Heathfield Runners❤️

For one of our newest Harriers, Andrea 💐 the Hellingly 10K represented her debut race in Harriers colours and her first ever 10K distance🖤❤️⭐️ Super well done Andy and welcome to the Harriers 🤲

All entrants were presented with a bespoke, medal by our senior & junior members and their families under the guidance of coach Julie LC 🐝.  The medal, designed by Tinks 🧚🏻 paid homage to our 40th anniversary year with the club logo displaying our founders initials – DW, Derek Wells, and the words ‘40 years’ in the crown.

Tea, coffee ☕️ and an abundance of cake 🎂 were available to purchase at the pavilion with a percentage of takings donated to the awesome Hellingly Scouts who helped out on the day to raise funds for their 2025 camps international expedition to Cambodia 🇰🇭

We would like to say a big thank you to the following: our race sponsors – Manyo Insurance 🥭 and Brewers Decorator Centres 🎨, to Waitrose Heathfield for the bananas🍌 the 1st Hellingly Scouts, Sports Systems Timing ⏰, Elite Medical 🚑 ,  Roebuck Park Cricket 🏏 Pavilion and to everyone who made and brought in cakes 🍰

Performance times for team 🖤❤️Hailsham were;

Chris Doherty 👁️ 37:21, Men’s Captain: Bartz 👨🏻‍✈️ 40:31, DG 💂🏻‍♀️ 41:06, Gary Woolven  🏃🏽 42:20, Alice 🐈 42:24, Belly 🔔 43:07, Maria Smith 💆🏼‍♀️ 44:10, Oli P 💷 44:14, Audrey 💊44:50, Claire Keith 🍒 45:03, Graham Pundye 😂 45:16, Chris Shoult 🦵🏻 46:09, Gary Crossan 🏃🏻‍♂️ 46:14, Kevin Tyler 🚘 46:48, Chris Little 🔥 47:03, BIG Si 🥊 47:18, Mick 🚀 47:20, KT 🦆 47:26, Tina ⚽️ 47:32, Vinny 👊🏻 47:47, Granny Erridge 👵🏻 48:13, Sarah Day 🫶49:04, Jo McGowan  🌺 49:15, Tinks 🧚🏻 49:40, Fluffy 🐌 49:40, Robin 🏄🏼‍♀️ 49:52, Abi Morris 🌷 50:55, Lee Williams 🪵 53:11, Arthur  🦔 55:25, Lou Lou Williams 💕57:48, The Ledge; Pete Daws 🌟 58:27, Lady Frances Delves 👸🏼 58:34, Andrea 💐 1:02:26, Kevin 💪🏼 1:03:42, Lisa PH 🧡 1:04:01, Ros Thomson ❣️ 1:08:18, Karen Hoskin 🇮🇪 1:12:43, Els 🐐 1:16:13, Robbie Proietti 🇮🇹 1:22:04 with tail runners Lisa Little Legs 🦵🏻 and Tash  1:24:00 completing the record breaking team. (Hopefully I haven’t missed anyone 😳)

Full results can be found at www.sportsystems.co.uk.

The 38th Hellingly 10K will be back in September 2025 …… the date to be announced very 🔜 🖤❤️