Brighton & Hove City qualified for a place in the National Twelve Stage Road Relay in May when they were the only Sussex team to line up for the Southern Championship at Milton Keynes on Sunday.
This race is split between alternate long and short legs and team managed Howard Bristow got the team off to a fine start when finishing 12th on the opening leg in 24:55 a pretty good effort as all teams always put one of their strongest athletes on this opening stage.
Ironically after many ups and downs the team eventually finished an excellent 12th place despite being without star performer Kevin Rojas who has his eyes set on a fast time in the London
Marathon next month. His presence may well have given them a Top Ten placing.
Louis Taub dropped to 18th on the second leg, the first of the short stages in 17:44 and this was to be the lowest the team dropped. Max Dumbrell lifted the team to 15th on third lap in 25:37 before Dave Boyce slipped one place to 16th in 17:31 on lap four.
Lap five saw the best run of the day when Stephen Ferroni, who has just finished a cross-country season in the Under 17 age group, made up five places to hand over in 11th place in 24:55 to equal Bristow’s time which proved to the fastest team time of the race.
Ian Crowe-Wright, another of Brighton’s promising youngsters held his position on lap six and his 16:16 was to be the fastest short lap for the team before Ashley Humphries slipped to 12th on lap seven.
Niall Robinson ran 17:41 for 11th while Dave Benton dropped to 13th in 28:59, Tim Lunnon finished 12th in 17:06, Graeme Godden 12th in 26:54 and Zared Hale completed the team in 12th in 17:12.
Brighton & Hove also kept the Sussex flag flying in the Women’s six-stage race when after Nicola Silsby had finished 34th on lap one in 21:55 they eventually rose to finish 21st.
Rachel Titheradge dropped to 35th in 21:21 while veteran Judith Carder held her place in 23:14 on the third leg.
Following her victory in the Eastleigh 10km the previous weekend Helena Tobin ran a sparkling fourth leg lifting the team no less than eighth place to 27th in 17:55 which was the fastest time on her lap and ninth fastest overall.
Jeanette Kenneally moved up to 23rd in 21:12 and over the final leg Lieben Dickens made up another four places to finish 21st in 19:52.