With races now being held most weekends, Haslemere Border Athletic Club members have been out in force and very busy, taking part in events and with fantastic results - and personal-best performances from many runners.

The Vitality Big Half was the scene for Peter Varnes, Sarah Barnett and Ann Varnes, who had all entered in 2020, with their places carried forward until 2021.

On what was a perfect day for running, all three performed well, with Peter Varnes first home in a time of 2:03:57 and a PB, Ann Varnes in 2:23 and Sarah Barnett 2:38:42.

To celebrate their success, the trio rewarded themselves with a visit to a nearby ice-cream parlour - well, they had burnt up a lot of calories!

The Bournemouth half- marathon normally attracts a strong contingent from HBAC runners, but with races being deferred from 2020 and with the Great South Run just a week away, Andy Wise was the sole club representative.

The start was at the spectacular Hengistbury Head, before heading up to the top of the cliff path and the wonderful views.

Not that Andy stopped to admire the views, as with great pacing throughout, he finished in an excellent time of 2:03:53 - even more impressive considering he was recovering after knee surgery.

Despite not being able to take part in this year’s event because of injury, Steve King volunteered to marshal at the race and was able to cheer on Andy.

The popular Richmond Runfest, held over two days, saw club members take part in the Kew Gardens 10k and the Richmond half-marathon.

The Richmond half-marathon takes participants on a scenic tour of Richmond, starting in the botanical gardens of Kew, along the Thames path to Ham House and finishing in Old Deer Park.

Karen Sinclair represented HBAC and completed the course in a time of 2:29:09.

The Kew Gardens 10k, set in the spectacular gardens, saw Susan Payne finish in an excellent time of 46:39 and seventh in her age category, with Peter Varnes clocking 55:33 and Ann Varnes 1:05:07.

Club member Dave Jarrett continued his impressive form when taking part in the Egham and Thorpe half-marathon, as part of his London Marathon training.

Dave claimed fifth place in the race in a time of 1:13:23, smashing his previous PB. His hard work and dedication to training is certainly paying off.

With the popular park runs now back, club members can be seen most weekends either running or marshalling.

With the added attraction of parkrun tourism returning as travel restrictions ease, the new Broadwater Park run has seen many members try out the new course.

Others have taken to Southsea on the fast, flat out-and-back course - and for some, the attraction of having a cool- down dip in the sea afterwards is an added reward.

For Dave Jarrett and Jon Fairs, the reward for them was finishing first and second respectively, with Dave breaking the 16-minute barrier, completing the 5k in 15:57, and Jon coming home in 16:01.

Further afield in Pennsylvania, Andrew Steele took part in the Peace Valley Park run and on his first outing at the event, finished in first place.

A group of five club runners took part in The Hampton Court Half-Marathon, the flat course which starts and finishes inside Hampton Court Palace.

Susan Payne finished in 1:45:15, Peter Varnes 2:03:30, Dave Bateman 2:19:22, Lorraine Herring 2:44:49 and Ann Varnes 2:44:49.

Brighton marathon weekend saw club members taking part in a number of the events.

First up was Dave Jarrett in the 10k and setting yet another PB, as he continues a very successful year, finishing in a time of 32:48.

Helen Spandley, and her guide Issy Peters both ran the marathon, and Helen - who is partially sighted - defied the elements and progressed to the finish line in a very rewarding time of 5.25 with the full distance being 26.75 miles.

On September 20, Philomel Bennett took part in her much-anticipated CW50 Ultra - the third race in the Centurion Grand Slam Series - after it was postponed because of Covid.

The route started and finished in the pretty Oxfordshire village of Goring-on-Thames, and took runners out into the Chiltern Hills and along the Ridgeway, tackling some of the most challenging - but stunning - climbs with a maximum elevation of 5,600ft.

The weather was dry with plenty of sunshine which made for a lovely day out, but at times was a gruelling effort.

But Philomel persevered and to her astonishment and ultimate delight she came in second lady with an impressive time of 9:15hrs and was also first lady in her age group. Not bad for her first 50!

The following week was the Windsor 10k, where one of our recent Get Up and Run graduates and newest members of the club, Tanya McCormack, ran her first event in an impressive time of 1.14.19.

A few miles down the road, Sebastian Linke took part in the Adventurous Trail Half-Marathon, finishing in 1.44.26.

On September 26, the much-loved Punchbowl Challenges made a welcome return with a number of HBAC runners taking part, and others dotted around at marshall points along the route, or at the finish line taking in the scores and cheering the runners in.

Success was had for Katy Ward and Sarah Smith, who took first and third place respectively.

On the same day, Ultra runner Dean Kelway ran the 61km Surrey Hills Challenge which begins in Haslemere and takes runners along the Greensand Way towards the Devil’s Punch Bowl, along the footpaths through Wormley Hill, Hydon’s Ball, Hascome Hill and Leith Hill before descending on to the Northdowns Way and finsihing at Denby’s Vineyards in Dorking.

Dean ran in an impressive time of 6.43, taking in 4,281ft of elevation along the way!

Members also competed in the Virgin London Marathon, with some outstanding results from the HBAC team.

Jon Fairs and Dave Jarrett both completed their races in 2.38.30 and 2.38.39 respectively - with Dave achieving yet another PB - closely followed in by Luke Brocks (2.44.34), Tom Milns (2.59.38), Luke Shearring (3.04.03), Katy Ward (3.06.09), Daniel Allaway (3.09.08) and Sarah Smith (3.33.28).

Ann Varnes also took part and for her it was an extra-special day as she was running with both her son and daughter.

Ann completed her race in a fantastic time of 5.32.26 - and a PB. Well done to ’Team Varnes’.

With every runner achieving their target goal, all the months of training they had each put in definitely reaped their reward.  

October 10 saw members travelling further afield to compete.

Dominic Perkins and Susan Payne both went north to take part in the Manchester Half-Marathon.

Susan finished in 1:40:56 - an improvement of five minutes from her Hampton Court Half result four weeks earlier - and Dominic Perkins crossed the line in a time of 1.58.40.

Andrew Steele, who is currently based in the US, ran the Philadelphia Broad Street ten-mile road race.

Now in its 41st year, the city of Philadelphia welcomed back runners to their streets, in a much-needed sign that everything is returning to normal.

Andrew, proudly sporting his HBAC shirt, finished in a time of 1.23.33.

Last weekend saw one of the highlights of the year, the Great South Run, and Haslemere Border athletes descending on Portsmouth in volumes, for a day out by the seaside.

Ann Varnes and

Philomel Bennett

The Vitality Big Half was the scene for Peter Varnes, Sarah Barnett and Ann Varnes, who had all entered in 2020, with their places carried forward until 2021.

On what was a perfect day for running, all three performed well, with Peter Varnes first home in a time of 2:03:57 and a PB, Ann Varnes in 2:23 and Sarah Barnett 2:38:42.

To celebrate their success, the trio rewarded themselves with a visit to a nearby ice-cream parlour - well, they had burnt up a lot of calories!

The Bournemouth half- marathon normally attracts a strong contingent from HBAC runners, but with races being deferred from 2020 and with the Great South Run just a week away, Andy Wise was the sole club representative.

The start was at the spectacular Hengistbury Head, before heading up to the top of the cliff path and the wonderful views.

Not that Andy stopped to admire the views, as with great pacing throughout, he finished in an excellent time of 2:03:53 - even more impressive considering he was recovering after knee surgery.

Despite not being able to take part in this year’s event because of injury, Steve King volunteered to marshal at the race and was able to cheer on Andy.

The popular Richmond Runfest, held over two days, saw club members take part in the Kew Gardens 10k and the Richmond half-marathon.

The Richmond half-marathon takes participants on a scenic tour of Richmond, starting in the botanical gardens of Kew, along the Thames path to Ham House and finishing in Old Deer Park.

Karen Sinclair represented HBAC and completed the course in a time of 2:29:09.

The Kew Gardens 10k, set in the spectacular gardens, saw Susan Payne finish in an excellent time of 46:39 and seventh in her age category, with Peter Varnes clocking 55:33 and Ann Varnes 1:05:07.

Club member Dave Jarrett continued his impressive form when taking part in the Egham and Thorpe half-marathon, as part of his London Marathon training.

Dave claimed fifth place in the race in a time of 1:13:23, smashing his previous PB. His hard work and dedication to training is certainly paying off.

With the popular park runs now back, club members can be seen most weekends either running or marshalling.

With the added attraction of parkrun tourism returning as travel restrictions ease, the new Broadwater Park run has seen many members try out the new course.

Others have taken to Southsea on the fast, flat out-and-back course - and for some, the attraction of having a cool- down dip in the sea afterwards is an added reward.

For Dave Jarrett and Jon Fairs, the reward for them was finishing first and second respectively, with Dave breaking the 16-minute barrier, completing the 5k in 15:57, and Jon coming home in 16:01.

Further afield in Pennsylvania, Andrew Steele took part in the Peace Valley Park run and on his first outing at the event, finished in first place.

A group of five club runners took part in The Hampton Court Half-Marathon, the flat course which starts and finishes inside Hampton Court Palace.

Susan Payne finished in 1:45:15, Peter Varnes 2:03:30, Dave Bateman 2:19:22, Lorraine Herring 2:44:49 and Ann Varnes 2:44:49.

Brighton marathon weekend saw club members taking part in a number of the events.

First up was Dave Jarrett in the 10k and setting yet another PB, as he continues a very successful year, finishing in a time of 32:48.

Helen Spandley, and her guide Issy Peters both ran the marathon, and Helen - who is partially sighted - defied the elements and progressed to the finish line in a very rewarding time of 5.25 with the full distance being 26.75 miles.

On September 20, Philomel Bennett took part in her much-anticipated CW50 Ultra - the third race in the Centurion Grand Slam Series - after it was postponed because of Covid.

The route started and finished in the pretty Oxfordshire village of Goring-on-Thames, and took runners out into the Chiltern Hills and along the Ridgeway, tackling some of the most challenging - but stunning - climbs with a maximum elevation of 5,600ft.

The weather was dry with plenty of sunshine which made for a lovely day out, but at times was a gruelling effort.

But Philomel persevered and to her astonishment and ultimate delight she came in second lady with an impressive time of 9:15hrs and was also first lady in her age group. Not bad for her first 50!

The following week was the Windsor 10k, where one of our recent Get Up and Run graduates and newest members of the club, Tanya McCormack, ran her first event in an impressive time of 1.14.19.

A few miles down the road, Sebastian Linke took part in the Adventurous Trail Half-Marathon, finishing in 1.44.26.

On September 26, the much-loved Punchbowl Challenges made a welcome return with a number of HBAC runners taking part, and others dotted around at marshall points along the route, or at the finish line taking in the scores and cheering the runners in.

Success was had for Katy Ward and Sarah Smith, who took first and third place respectively.

On the same day, Ultra runner Dean Kelway ran the 61km Surrey Hills Challenge which begins in Haslemere and takes runners along the Greensand Way towards the Devil’s Punch Bowl, along the footpaths through Wormley Hill, Hydon’s Ball, Hascome Hill and Leith Hill before descending on to the Northdowns Way and finsihing at Denby’s Vineyards in Dorking.

Dean ran in an impressive time of 6.43, taking in 4,281ft of elevation along the way!

Members also competed in the Virgin London Marathon, with some outstanding results from the HBAC team.

Jon Fairs and Dave Jarrett both completed their races in 2.38.30 and 2.38.39 respectively - with Dave achieving yet another PB - closely followed in by Luke Brocks (2.44.34), Tom Milns (2.59.38), Luke Shearring (3.04.03), Katy Ward (3.06.09), Daniel Allaway (3.09.08) and Sarah Smith (3.33.28).

Ann Varnes also took part and for her it was an extra-special day as she was running with both her son and daughter.

Ann completed her race in a fantastic time of 5.32.26 - and a PB. Well done to ’Team Varnes’.

With every runner achieving their target goal, all the months of training they had each put in definitely reaped their reward.  

October 10 saw members travelling further afield to compete.

Dominic Perkins and Susan Payne both went north to take part in the Manchester Half-Marathon.

Susan finished in 1:40:56 - an improvement of five minutes from her Hampton Court Half result four weeks earlier - and Dominic Perkins crossed the line in a time of 1.58.40.

Andrew Steele, who is currently based in the US, ran the Philadelphia Broad Street ten-mile road race.

Now in its 41st year, the city of Philadelphia welcomed back runners to their streets, in a much-needed sign that everything is returning to normal.

Andrew, proudly sporting his HBAC shirt, finished in a time of 1.23.33.

Last weekend saw one of the highlights of the year, the Great South Run, and Haslemere Border athletes descending on Portsmouth in volumes, for a day out by the seaside.

Ann Varnes and

Philomel Bennett