On Friday I raced the first race of four in the GWR Towpath Series organised by Great Western Runners. These are flat multi-terrain races along the towpath next to the river Avon under the Clifton Suspension Bridge. Kinisi Run Hub are excited to be sponsoring this great series.

It was a nice evening for it with mild conditions which was a welcome change from some of the very warm weather we have had. There was a fairly strong wind but because of the covering from the trees it wasn’t very noticeable.

There was a very strong turnout for this race as there usually is for the first one in the series with it being the Mob Match which sees a lot of the local running clubs sending high numbers and their best athletes to win the local bragging rights.

This race was my official Bristol & West AC debut and I was glad to play a role in the Mob Match. There was a strong turnout from Bristol & West AC, Westbury Harriers and Southville RC in particular meaning it was pretty evident the Mob Match was going to come down to these three teams.

I didn’t feel great warming up after a busy day in the shop and the final Weston Prom Series race in my legs from the night before but was looking forward to the race. It race did not start too quickly which suited me but surprised me as the Towpath is fairly narrow and I expected many runners to be fighting for position.

We soon settled into a rhythm and the kilometres ticked by. Ben Rawlins (Westbury Harriers) and Matthew Battensby (Bristol & West AC) set an early pace and I settled in a few steps behind them. After about 10 minutes my legs started to ease and I started feeling stronger.

The race does a 90 degree turn at the half way point and you come back on yourself the same way back to the finish. This means running back towards the all the runners behind you which is ok for a lot of the Towpath but between 5-6km it is a bit tight and very much single file. Unfortunately, at the halfway point Ben Rawlins started to pull away and I got a bit stuck behind the runner in second. I did manage to get around him but later than I would have liked to which meant Ben had opened up a lead.

I could tell the gap was closing slightly as we headed back towards the finish but not quickly enough to make the ground back up and be in contention for the win. I finished in second but happy enough with my performance given the amount of running and racing as well as work I have been doing the last weeks.

Ben Rawlins (Westbury Harriers) won the race in 33:01 and I followed him home in 33:08 with Will Massey (Westbury Harriers) coming through for third in 33:25. Katy Roy (Bristol & West AC) won the women’s race in 39:24 with Daisy Mummery (Southville RC) second in 39:50 and Beth Pudifoot (Bristol Trail Runners) third in 40:42. In total there were 245 finishers. Full results here.

The Mob Match was tightly contested but Bristol & West AC managed to take the win! It was great to finish second and play a role in the victory. Westbury Harriers were second and Southville RC were third.

The race HQ is a Ashton Park School and then the start/finish is a short 5-10 minute walk away which is where the presentations also take place. The Towpath remains open during the race but there are plenty of GWR marshals on the course to ensure any pedestrians and cyclists are aware of oncoming runners.

Well done to everyone who raced and thank you to Great Western Runners for organising another great Towpath race! Kinisi Run Hub are product to be supporting such a great event and I can’t wait for the next one in June!

If you are interested in taking part in the next race in the series then you can read more and sign up on the GWR event page here.