Liss Runners entered three teams in this year’s South Downs Way Relay.

Running along the length of the South Downs Way, from Beachy Head to Winchester, the relay has 18 legs, with teams of six runners transporting the baton for 100 miles supported by a driver/team manager getting runners to the right place on time for the baton changeover.

This year’s race was postponed because of thunderstorms and was rearranged to June 28. Thirty-five teams entered the event.

The start of the race saw high winds and low visibility with a sea fret enveloping the tops of the Downs. The first two miles of the race runs along the edge of the Seven Sisters cliffs, and conditions meant racing was suspended with all runners sticking together for safety. Once down to the Birling Gap, the racing began.

Teams were set off with starting times according to their predicted finishing times – the target is for teams to arrive at Chilcomb by 8pm.

For the Liss teams this meant the mixed team started at 6am, the ladies’ team at 6.30am and the men’s team at 7.30am.

There was intra-club competition to be the first Liss team to reach the end, with the men catching the mixed team on the final leg.

The men’s team of Steve Armstrong, Tom Bennie, Andy Brown, Paul Stokoe, Ben Sykes and Joe Sykes, driven by James Yeardley and managed by Stuie Lavalette, finished in 12 hours, 15 minutes.

The ladies’ team of Cari Brown, Alex Coomber, Sandra Hunter, Kate Parker, Gemma Sills and Anna Wemyss, driven and managed by Laura Armstrong, finished in 13 hours, 43 minutes.

The mixed team of Dave Brown, Aido Albury, Ed Rolls, Paul Turner, Rosie Watkins and James White, driven by Robin Greenfield and managed by Catherine Seager, finished in 13 hours, 46 minutes.