Have I got old news for you.... *** Yorkshire Regional Triathlon 28th September 2008 *** An unexpected journey to Yorkshire was undertaken by three Billingham Triathletes, due to circumstances beyond their control their own triathlon, which was a National Qualifier was cancelled. After negotiation with HQ all eligible athletes were offered a bye into the National Competition. So Hannah Featherstone, Brad Dixon and Lauren Richardson asked the Yorkshire Region if they could compete just for competition practice and not to interfere with the qualification process for the Yorkshire athletes. The three athletes had different challenges, Hannah the youngest had 10 shots and scored 42/100 to win best shoot, she also won her 50m swim by 4 seconds and came second in her 1km run in a time of 4m 22:17s to finish 1st overall. Lauren and Brad faced similar challenges, both had to swim 200m and shoot 20 shots, but Brad had to run 3km and Lauren 2km. Both shot well, Brad with 169/200 and Lauren 160/200, a competition personal best. Brad followed up with a good run of 11m 49.26s and swim time of 2m 04.72s to finish first in his age group. Lauren’s swim was 2m 46.81s a seasons best and she was fourth in the run with a time of 8m 07.82s to finish third overall. The club and Northern region for Modern Pentathlon are proud that these 3 athletes went looking for competition, especially as they would gain no advantage in doing this, when theirs was cancelled and equally proud of their results. *** Schools Biathlon *** For the 1st time we are to hold a Schools Biathlon in the Northern Region, previously we have amalgamated with Yorkshire. The 1st Northern Region Schools Biathlon will be held on Sunday 7th December at the Wentworth Leisure Centre in Hexham. Application forms can be downloaded from the schools section of the Pentathlon GB site www.pentathlongb.org or via the link in the entry forms section of this site. We are desperately in need of volunteers to help us to run this event - if you feel you can offer us assistance on the day, even for an hour or so then please contact Linda on 07842821854 or by e-mail at lindarichardson.southfield@virgin.net and let her know what help you can offer please. *** 30th - 31st August 2008 - National Pentathlon *** Only 3 of the Team North pentathletes made it to the National Championships at Solihull. Unfortunately due to family illness Gareth Allen of Billingham was unable to travel. This left Alistair Weymouth, Lauren Richardson and Brad Dixon flying the flag for the Northern Region with all three of them competing in different age groups it proved a little difficult to watch them compete. Alistair and Lauren competed in all 5 disciplines of running, swimming, shooting, fencing and horse-riding, while Brad did four disciplines and did not compete in the horse-ride. On the Saturday, Brad made an early start with his shoot of 148 out of 200 and made his way to the fence as Alistair and Lauren arrived for the shoot with Alistair shooting 69 out of 100 and Lauren shooting a competition PB of 153 out of 200. Brad in the meanwhile completed a good fence with 23 victories out of 30 bouts. Brad took a well earned rest whilst the rest of his competitors went to complete the horse-riding. Lauren and Alistair’s fencing was not up to their usual standard and managed only 7 victories out of 21 bouts and 7 victories out of 20 bouts respectfully. In the swim all three swam well to record good times. On the Sunday, Brad had only had one discipline to compete in, the run while Lauren and Alistair had to complete the run and the horse-riding phase. A tough course greeted them with a very long uphill phase which was very testing especially for those athletes who did 2 or 3 km so doing 2 or 3 circuits. Brad finished his 3km run in 11m 12.20 sec to finish 7th out of 8 competitors, a good performance as he was one full discipline down on his rivals. Lauren was running 2km and finished in a time of 8m 15.48 sec leaving her 16th going into the ride. Alistair had a good 1km run in a time of 3m 20.98 sec to leave him in a strong position with one of his strongest disciplines, the ride to come. Lauren finished the ride with 1088 points out of 1200 and a clear round for Alistair gave them final finishing positions of 11th out of 22 and 7th out of 20 earning Alistair a medal in his 1st National Pentathlon. All three deserve congratulating for good performances and doing the region proud. *** 3rd August 2008 *** Gareth Allen and Robert and Mitchell Young of the Northern Region travelled to Salford Quays in Manchester for the National Biathle Championships This discipline is slightly different to a biathlon as it is continuous they begin by running half the designated distance straight into the swim in open water via a transition area and then immediately back to the remainder of the run. This competition was also the qualifier for the World Biathle championships in South Africa on the 1st of November .The top five automatically qualify and one wild card is up for grabs in each age group, Robert was competing in youth “A” which meant his run swim combination was (run 1500m, swim 200m and run 1500m) he completed the course in a time of 14m 38.1s and finished in a qualifying position of 4th and booked his place. Mitchell ran 2 x 500m and swam 50m in a time of 6m27.9s to finish in a very creditable 14th place Gareth competed as a Youth “B” which meant he ran 1000m either side of his 200m swim and completed it a time of 10m51.2s and finished in the 6th and possible wild card place. He returned home not knowing his fate, after an agonising wait he was put out of his misery the next day by being told he had been awarded the wild card and was on his way with Robert. All of Team North and their multisport teammates are truly proud of the three of them and wish Gareth and Robert well when they represent their country in November. *** 27th July 2008 *** Team North Pentathletes made the now familiar journey to Salt Ayre Sports at Lancaster. Hannah Featherstone, Rachel Gray, Gareth Allen, Brad Dixon, Alistair Weymouth and Lauren Richardson were competing in two competitions. Lauren, Alistair and Brad in the Tetrathlon competition, which is run, swim, shoot and fence. While Hannah, Rachel and Gareth were not fencing and were in the Triathlon competition. With high entry numbers the athletes were competing in different disciplines at the same time. Lauren and Rachel started by shooting and scored respectable 146 and 138 respectively, as Lauren moved to fencing and Gareth and Brad started shooting, Rachel waited to swim, Gareth scored 168 equalling his personal best and winning best shoot and Brad weighed in with 151 Alistair shot next with 56 out of 100. Gareth then took a breather, Brad and Alistair moved into the fencing salle. Hannah then shot a really good 58 out of 100 to start her campaign. Lauren was fencing for the first time since she tore a groin muscle 7 weeks ago and performed really well to win 16 fights out of 26 and Brad had 12 victories out of 24, both finishing 2nd in their respective groups while Alistair had 16 victories out of 24 fights Everyone then swam in age order; Hannah led the quartet with a personal best swim of 36.95 for 50metres. Alistair swam 1:11.59 for 100m Lauren again in her first competitive 200m after injury registered 2:49.31; Gareth swam the same distance in a personal best of 2:05.15, Rachel won best swim with 2:09.80 and Brad finished the swim with an impressive 2:01.68 As we moved outside we realised it was going to be really hard work running in the heat. Hannah again was first up and ran 1km in 4:09.41: Gareth was only 2 seconds over his personal best to run 6:50.50. Rachel ran 13:06.85 for 3km. Lauren, Alistair and Brad’s runs were executed in the Hungarian style which means that the points they had accrued in the previous disciplines are converted into seconds, a staggered start is arranged and the finishing place in the run was the athletes finishing position in the competition. Lauren was lying third as the run began 1minute 49 seconds behind the leader, she ran well to take 2nd place and finished only 34 seconds behind the eventual winner. Brad’s solid run helped him to a finishing position of 4th. Alistair’s run of 3:10.08 meant he came through to win the tetrathlon. All six performed really well especially in the heat which took a lot out of them and was good preparation for the National Pentathlon at the end of August for Brad, Alistair, Gareth and Lauren. Hannah does not yet compete in the Nationals as she is still a little too young. News seems thin on the ground lately. Have you been competing recently and want to share your results with everyone else? If so, e-mail your news stories to Linda at lindarichardson.southfield@virgin.net *** 6th June 2008 *** Inter Region Biathle Relay Competition Anyone interested in representing the region at this competition please contact linda by e-mail lindarichardson.southfield@virgin.net It is proposed to hold an Inter Region Biathle Relay Competition at Weymouth on Saturday 6 September as a celebration of run/swim Biathle and you are invited to send teams. The swim will be in the sea, off Brunswick Terrace and the run will be on the esplanade with a transition across a short shingle beach. The age groups for the Inter Region Relays will be 12 & under (youths E & D), 14 & under (youths C), 16 & under (youths B), Open (youths A, Junior & Senior) and Vets 35 & over (All ages as at 31st December 2008). The teams will consist of 3 athletes, with boys & girls in each age group. If necessary, to make up teams, athletes can compete in older age groups as well as their own age group. The events and races in age groups, boys and girls, team of 3 will be as follows: Event 1 Each Competitor does a Run/Swim continuous in relay Event 2 Swim Relay Event 3 Each Competitor does a Swim/Run continuous in relay Event 4 Cannon Relay 1 boy & girl from each age group does a swim and one boy & girl from each age group does a run. Points will be awarded for each event this will be decided by the number of regions taking part in the event, i.e. 6 regions taking part then 6pts down to one. The region with the most points at the end of the competition will be the Regional Biathle relay champions. Regions will be able to enter as many teams as they wish in each age group with their best team counting for points. Any other teams from their region in the same age group will not be able to gain points or take points away from other regions if they beat them. There will also be organised a fun day on the Sunday after the event. This will give the athletes who have to travel to the Dorset coast an extra event. This will involve Biathle training, a swim (sea swim) and run race. Please let us have an indication of your attendance by returning the attached form and further details will be sent out later. There will be a nominal charge per team to defray expenses. Regards Howard Jones Biathle Manager Mick Flaherty Biathle Chief Coach Proposed Inter Region Biathle Relay Competition Programme Race Age Group Distance Run/Swim 1 Youths E & D 500m Run/50m Swim 2 Youths C 500m Run/50m Swim 3 Youths B 1000m Run/100m Swim 4 A, Junior & Senior 1000m Run/100m Swim 5 35 & Over 1000m Run/100m Swim Swim 1 Youths E & D 50m Swim 2 Youths C 50m Swim 3 Youths B 100m Swim 4 A, Junior & Senior 100m Swim 5 35 & Over 100m Swim Swim/Run 1 Youths E & D 50m Swim/500m Run 2 Youths C 50mSwim /500m Run 3 Youths B 100m Swim/1000m Run 4 A, Junior & Senior 100m Swim/1000m Run 5 35 & Over 100m Swim/1000m Run Cannon Relay 1 All 50m Swim/500m Run Boys and girl races will compete at the same time in each age group. *** 17th May 2008 *** Gareth Allen is the latest of the Billingham Pentathletes to represent his country at Triathlon. He qualified by virtue of his performance earlier in the year at Lancaster. He traveled to the Czech republic on the Wednesday before the competition, from Heathrow. The competition began on the Friday with the swim, swimming 2:12.20 slightly below his best but it earned him 10th place out of 65 competitors. His shoot of 162 was a really good performance in a strange environment where concentration is a must, after these 2 evens he was lying in 18th place with only the run to come. A really tough 2k cross country course saw Gareth run 7:13.05 only 13 seconds over his track time gave him an overall placing of 34th out of 65 and 7th in the team competition. A great performance in his first international with hopefully more to come. *** 27th April 2008 *** A trip to 3 picturesque venues in North Yorkshire for 2 Northern Region pentathletes and 1 triathlete to compete in the first pentathlon of the season. The shoot and horse ride were held at Sinnington. This was the first full pentathlon for Brad Dixon as he had not ridden competitively before, he had a good debut incurring 1 refusal and time penalties. Lauren Richardson’s ride was eventful, despite working hard with an uncooperative horse she got her campaign off to a slow start. Brad won his age group shoot with 168/200 and Lauren was 7th with 139. Hannah Featherstone started her Triathlon competition with a score of 38 out of 100. The competition bandwagon then moved to the picturesque Ampleforth College near Helmsley. Brad continued his good start with a swim of just over 2 minutes to win the swim, Lauren came 4th with a 3 second improvement on the previous week. Hannah weighed in with a near PB swim to win her age group. Next day the athletes moved to the Mount School in the middle of York. Hannah was first up with a 1 km run in a time of 4:31.36. Lauren took up the mantle and ran 2km with a 1m.01 sec PB over cross country to finish in a time of 8:08.2 finishing 3rd overall in her age group. Brad stepped up to complete 2km in a time of 7:02.21. The fence completed proceedings with Lauren finishing with 9 victories and 13 defeats, Brad with 15 victories and 7 defeats. Brad and Hannah won their respective age groups and Lauren finished 7th overall just out of the medals. A good weekend for the three with some good performances to take forward to the next competition. *** 20th April 2008 *** On Sunday 20th of April athletes from all corners of the Northern Region gathered at Maiden Castle sports ground and Aykley Heads swimming pool to compete in the Northern Region Biathlon which was also the qualifier for the National Biathlon at Macclesfield on the 20th May. Young and old alike were in competition ranging in ages from as old as 9 up to as young as 70. We had a total of 30 qualifiers, unfortunately the yungest of our regional champions, Hannah Featherstone of Billingham is too young to qualify as competitors must be 10 (watch out world next year!!) Our oldest champion at 70 is also affiliated to Billingham, Arthur Puckrin qualifies in the Masters category and is a shining example to show that the sport is not a preserve of the young. We also had 3 teams qualify: B Girls, the Billingham trio of Lauren Richardson, Amy Roberts and Alice Sharp. Brad Dixon, Chris Wilkinson and Anthony Brown in the A Boys and representing Stanwix School, Jordan Hull, Michael Reid and Alistair Campbell in the D boys. We now look forward to Macclesfield in a months time and hope for continued success. Congratulations to all champions and qualifiers. Results can be found in the results section on the site. a special thanks goes to all volunteers without whom the competition would not have happened. *** 6th April 2008 *** Three hopeful Triathletes travelled to Lancaster in the North West for the Youth B Trials with the possibility of representing their country in Czechoslovakia this May. Gareth Allen, Roberta Jenkinson and Lauren Richardson went with the hope of qualification; they started with the run at Salt Ayre Leisure Centre track. Roberta and Lauren ran 1st at 2km and ran a new personal best of 7:25.65 earning her 7th place, despite her laces coming loose part way round. Roberta finished just ahead in 5th place with a time of 7:23.66. The boys heat followed with Gareths run again at the 2km distance; Gareth ran this for his first time under seven minutes with a personal best of 6:59.57 to lie 15th. They moved almost immediately to the shooting hall. Lauren and Roberta again competing first with Lauren shooting a slightly below par 145 which dropped her to 12th place and Roberta shooting a very respectable 170. Gareth continued his form with 19 shots out of 20 in the black to earn him 168 which catapulted im to 2nd place with only the swim to come. In the pool Lauren and Gareth both achieved personal bests in the 200m 2:42.16 and 2:06.77 respectfully, with Roberta again just ahead of Lauren with a time of 2:40.20. After a long wait for the results, which seemed to last forever Lauren finally finished 14th with a strong performance. Roberta finished 5th just outside the automatic qualification places but may go to Czechoslovakia as she was so close to the 4th place points, watch this space. Gareth held onto his 2nd place, a qualification place for Czechoslovakia was assured. A deserved reward for his hard work and determination, a performance to be proud of, a day he and his proud mam will never forget. ***1st March 2008 *** A big thank you to those people who turned out to help at Bishop Auckland Gun Club last Saturday, 1st March. The Gun Club had identified a space that could be turned into a 10m pistol shooting range, the space however was full, and I mean full of all sorts of machinery, materials and general rubbish!! In one morning the space was cleared, ceiling was put up and we had a space to set up in for shooting practice. Since then we also have lighting installed so that we can see without the aid of the halogen lights. What a difference and all thanks to volunteers from the region and from the Gun Club itself. A big well done to everyone and a special mention to: Gareth and Sue Allen; Rachel and Liz Gray; Lauren, John and Linda Richardson for their help on the day. All went home thoroughly dusty but proud of their efforts.