1,200+ runners battle the Bexhill elements

More than 1,200 runners completed the three events which made up the Poppy Races in Bexhill yesterday (Saturday).
Runners head off in the Poppy Half Marathon in Bexhill. Picture by Simon Newstead (SUS-150811-103555002)Runners head off in the Poppy Half Marathon in Bexhill. Picture by Simon Newstead (SUS-150811-103555002)
Runners head off in the Poppy Half Marathon in Bexhill. Picture by Simon Newstead (SUS-150811-103555002)

And all of them richly deserved their specially commissioned finisher’s medal after overcoming challenging conditions presented by strong south-westerly winds and intermittent rain.

The 773 finishers in the Poppy Half Marathon were headed by James Baker, of Chichester Runners & AC, in a time of 1:13.23. Baker finished nearly a minute clear of runner-up Richard Waldron (Southampton Athletic Club), with Daniel Anderson (Hastings AC) leading the local challenge in third.

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Hannah Burgan was the first lady in 1:31.59, with Liz Lumber (Hailsham Harriers) second and Emma Hollands (Paddock Wood AC) third.

Tim Lunnon (Crawley AC) was a clear winner of the Poppy 10K in a time of 34:58. Ralph Collett (Serpentine) came second, with Jack Chivers (Haywards Heath Harriers) third.

Bexhill Runners & Triathletes had two representatives in the top five in the form of Dan Marshman and Martyn Reynolds. Elizabeth Durman (Phoenix) was the leading lady, followed by Katie King (PH Tri Run) and Sonia Howat. In all there were 203 finishers.

The Poppy 5K - a Sussex Grand Prix event - was won by Kevin Rojas (Brighton & Hove AC) in 16:11. Daniel Stidder (Eastbourne Rovers) was second, followed by a trio of Lewes AC runners including David and Matt Bradford.

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Joscelin Lowden was the first lady in 18:46, with Holly Tugwell (Cirenvester AC) edging out Emma Rollings (Lewes AC) for second place. There were 228 finishers in the 5K.

All of the races started and finished on the lawns outside the De La Warr Pavilion, and followed a seafront course in between.

There were also children’s races of 500m and 1,000m just before the Poppy Half.

The races were organised by the Raising Money for Good Causes charity, and all entry fees and donations will go direct to the charity.

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In 2015 the charity is supporting the Royal British Legion, SERV Sussex (emergency blood transport service, supported totally by volunteer riders) and Royal Marines Help the Wounded, and will also be providing grants to local under-25s to promote their physical wellbeing.

The charity has its own JustGiving page and you can join the Raising Money for Good Causes community by donating or fundraising.

Leading finishers - Poppy Half Marathon: 1 James Baker (Chichester Runners & AC) 1:13.23, 2 Richard Waldron (Southampton Athletic Club) 1:14.20, 3 Daniel Anderson (Hastings AC) 1:16.07, 4 Gary Foster (Hastings AC) 1:21.53, 5 James Miles (Brighton Phoenix) 1:22.00, 6 Tobias Bremer 1:22.56, 7 Ian Peachey 1:23.43, 8 Chris Lambert (Ealing Eagles Run Club) 1:25.20, 9 Simon Mutch 1:26.19, 10 Adrian Elliott (Hailsham) 1:26.25, 11 Ibrahim Akseki (Bexley AC) 1:26.55, 12 Daniel Quinn 1:26.58, 13 Matt Edmonds (Hastings Runners) 1:27.28, 14 Peter Simpson (Bexley AC) 1:27.31, 15 Darren Bird (London Fire Brigade Tri) 1:27.46, 16 Ross Brocklehurst (Run Wednesdays) 1:28.17, 17 Luis Crane (Bexley Athletic Club) 1:28.21, 18 Tobias Baker (Lewes AC) 1:28.38, 19 Philip Handrihan (Hastings AC) 1:28.42, 20 Colin Trueman 1:28.58, 21 Richard Taylor 1:29.44, 22 Steve Dallman (Haywards Heath Harriers) 1:29.48, 23 Demos Harris-Jones 1:29.59, 24 Dan Vaughan (Arena 80 AC) 1:30.45, 25 Tim Bell (Hastings Runners) 1:31.08.

Poppy 10K: 1 Tim Lunnon (Crawley AC) 34:58, 2 Ralph Collett (Serpentine) 39:05, 3 Jack Chivers (Haywards Heath Harriers) 39:36, 4 Dan Gilkes 39:42, 5 Dan Marshman (BRT/Clapham Chasers) 41:37, 6 Martyn Reynolds (BRT) 41:55, 7 Graham Purdye (Hailsham Harriers) 42:00, 8 Edward Chrusciel 42:18, 9 Ed Plager 42:22, 10 Elizabeth Durman (Phoenix) 42:43, 11 Dave Palmer (Hastings AC) 44:35, 12 Liam Burke (Wadhurst Runners) 45:28, 13 Simon Newstead 46:02, 14 Phil Eaton 46:06, 15 Clive Scammell (Wimbledon Windmillers) 46:13, 16 Katie King (PH Tri Run) 46:18, 17 Brendon Fitzpatrick 46:24, 18 Chris Castleman (Born Ready Runners) 47:20, 19 Steve Tinson 47:26, 20 JJ Hebson 47:32, 21 Sonia Howat 48:41, 22 John Connolly (Haywards Heath Harriers) 48:48, 23 Jenny Tinson 49:10, 24 Jane Coles 49:10, 25 Nyree Thomson (Hastings Runners) 49:26.

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Poppy 5K: 1 Kevin Rojas (Brighton & Hove AC) 16:11, 2 Daniel Stidder (Eastbourne Rovers) 16:23, 3 David Bradford (Lewes AC) 16:32, 4 Matt Bradford (Lewes AC) 16:45, 5 Lewis Sida (Lewes AC) 17:09, 6 Joshua Varney (Eastbourne Rovers) 17:16, 7 Gary Judges (Hailsham Harriers) 17:34, 8 Paul Jones (Wadhurst Runners) 17:38, 9 David Ayling (Hailsham Harriers) 17:43, 10 Simon Fletcher (Seaford Striders RC) 17:50, 11 Marcus Kimmins (Haywards Heath Harriers) 17:58, 12 Paul Holdaway (PH Fitness) 18:16, 13 Bob Watts 18:18, 14 Jack Chivers (Haywards Heath Harriers) 18:18, 15 Dan Vaughan (Arena 80 AC) 18:34, 16 Mark Cage 18:38, 17 Lee Woodgate (Lewes AC) 18:40, 18 Joscelin Lowden 18:46, 19 Henry Teague-Smith (Worthing & District Harriers) 18:50, 20 Alex Jago (Arena 80 AC) 18:54, 21 Scott Newman 18:54, 22 Jim Watson (Arena 80 AC) 18:54, 23 Holly Tugwell (Cirenvester AC) 18:56, 24 Emma Rollings (Lewes AC) 19:02, 25 Nigel Herron (Brighton Phoenix) 19:11.

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