The Frostbite Report – Round 3 Bens Yard, Ely 2025/26 Season
Sunday 7th December was round three of the Frostbite series. This is a new venue for the Frostbites, the race was hosted by Ely Runners at Bens Yard just outside Ely, this turned out to be a great venue with plenty of parking near the start, good facilities (loos etc), and a good flat fast course. It was a very well organised event and well attended despite it being the furthest event of the season. The weather was good, light wind and 10 degrees, conditions underfoot dry and firm for the most part.
JUNIORS – We had 4 boys and they all put in some good performances, sadly no girls for this race, Cayden Macay on his debut led the team home in 11th with his brother not far behind in 17th.
Cayden Macay 11th (debut)
Ciaran Macay 17th
Rhys Davis 99th
Henry Smith 120th
The juniors finished 9th on the day and remain 9th overall for the series.
SENIORS – Not a bad turn out on the day, we were missing a couple of regulars, as a team we finished 11th but could easily have finished a couple of places higher, but hey we had a full team and we all had a good race. Matthew Bills led the team home in only his second Frostbite for the club. Full results as follows:-
Matthew Bills 34th
Mark Botteley 87th
Tony Gilbert 116th
Jamie Moore 125th
Abi Cooper 136th
Carl Cocking 165th
Jon Spencer 186th
Laura Bailey 229th
Michael Gilbert 273rd
Richard Pearson 352nd
Richard Burton 386th
Alison Burton 401th
The next race is on January 11th at the slightly nearer town of March which we passed on the way to Ely.
Full details and results on the Frostbite website
Cheers Rich P
Hereward Relay 2025 – Bourne Town Harriers Team Round-Up
Catching up on run reports, and this one is for the Hereward Relay — always a big date in the calendar and a proper team day out. We had four BTH teams out on the course this year, and everyone put in a huge shift across the four legs. A mix of tough miles, muddy tracks, fast sections, and plenty of encouragement along the way.
Here’s how our teams got on:
Bourne To Be Wild (Team 487)
Vaughan Roberts – 47:49
Simeon Adams – 1:17:26
Tony Gilbert – 1:27:50
Matthew Bellis – 1:17:16
Total time: 4:50:21
Bjourne Again (Team 484)
Abi Cooper – 51:47
Tom Bellis – 1:28:03
Carl Cocking – 1:39:51
Tom Comben – 1:22:24
Total time: 5:22:05
Bourne To Be Mild (Team 485)
Michael Gilbert – 1:00:29
Jon Spencer – 1:30:43
Mark Wade – 1:44:51
Ellis Parker – 1:34:45
Total time: 5:50:48
Bourne To Be Smiled (Team 486)
Gillian Pryor – 1:00:28
Kate Watts – 1:33:45
Victoria Cocking – 1:47:13
Laura Langdon – 1:54:53
Total time: 6:16:19
A massive well done to everyone who took part, supported, and helped the teams get around.
The Frostbite Report – Round 2 Nene Park, Peterborough 2025/26 Season
Sunday 2nd November was the second round of the Frostbite series, and what a fabulous turn out in both the juniors and the seniors. It was really good to see, and there was a good turn out by all the clubs as well.
The conditions were good, mild, slight breeze, and a bit of dew on the grass. This race was organised by the Bushfields Club, a founding member of the league, (as were Bourne). They are a small club like Bourne, but they did manage to organise a super event and a great course.
JUNIORS – another good turn out and this time a few more girls so we had a full scoring team, great to see some more new faces. Ciaran Macay lead the team home in his debut for the club, full results and timings are available as ever on the Frostbite website but here is how our juniors finished:-
Ciaran Macay 28th (debut)
Alfie Fleming 31st
Artie Sanders 53rd
Oliver Lloyd 61st
Thomas Langdon 67th
Emma Langdon 79th
Freddie Fleming 83rd
Henry Smith 118th
Rhys Davis 126th
Rita Zaliybivska 128th (debut)
Lucy Macay 149th (debut)
The junior race is for up to 16 year olds so our young runners did really well against much older runners, the team finished 8th overall which is a good result.
SENIORS – I got quite excited when I saw how many runners we had, 16 in total, a really good turn out and some cracking results. A few more new faces and Matt Bellis led the team home with a top 20 finish. Full results as follows:-
Matthew Bellis 19th
Matthew Bills 47th (debut, excellent top 50)
Simeon Adams 88th
Mark Botteley 90th
Vaughan Robert 119th (not quite a debut, but a welcome return after several years)
Tony Gilbert 123rd
Jamie Moore 144th (debut)
Giles Hawthorne 192nd
Abi Cooper 193rd
Jon Spencer 235th
Carl Cocking 236th
Laura Bailey 300th
Gill Pryor 384th
Laura Langdon 385th
Richard Pearson 424th
Maria Merridan 473rd
These were good results in a very big field, over 500 runners is unusual, but there were 513 this Sunday, a great event, well done everyone. Scoring note, we finished 12th but there were only 74 points between us and the 3 teams above us, so close.
The next race is on Dec 7th at Bens Yard in Ely, this is a brand new venue for the Frostbites so I am really looking forward to it, which actually means I have no idea what the course is like so I can’t worry about it.
Full details on the Frostbite website
Cheers Rich P
The Frostbite Report – Round 1 Priory Park, St Neots 2025/26 Season
Sunday 5th Oct was the first Frostbite and it was great to be back at Priory Park in St Neots.
We started with a BANG, a great turn out for both the senior and junior teams, lots of new faces, good results all round, a great start to the new season.
The weather was good, maybe a tad windy but it did at least blow us up the hills, the course conditions were dry and firm, 3 laps of the park, all slightly different and 6 hills.
This first event was organised by Riverside Runners and as ever they did a fantastic job with 427 runners in the senior race and 169 in the juniors..
JUNIORS – It was good to see a big turnout of juniors with lots of new faces, they were lead home by Alfie Fleming in 28th followed by :-
Artie Sanders 46th (debut)
Usaym Moin 66th (debut)
Freddie Fleming 68th (debut)
Emma Langdon 81st
Thomas Langdon 84th
Ayman Moin 124th (debut)
Henry Smith 125th
Rhys Davis 128th
Bourne had a lot of young runners up against bigger and older runners so they did really well to get a team finish of 9th overall, well done. From a team scoring point of view it would have been nice to have had another girl finisher but it was great to have 9 runners out.
SENIORS – The seniors had a full team including 6 ladies and finished a creditable 11th overall. Some good performances in almost ideal conditions, the team was lead home by Mark Johnson on his Frostbite debut for the club with an amazing top 10 finish. Abi Cooper, who I have classed as a debutant even though she ran for us as a junior and may have done a senior frostbite a few years ago, had a great race. Full results as follows :-
Mark Johnson 7th (debut)
Matthew Bellis 24th
Mark Botteley 60th
Tony Gilbert 90th
Carl Cocking 169th (? official results say Chris Ward, but I’m sure this was Carl)
Abi Cooper 170th (debut*)
Laura Bailey 202nd
Micheal Gilbert 300th
Gill Pryor 319th
Laura Langdon 321st
Richard Pearson 364th
Maria Merridan 386th
Alison Burton 409th
The next race is on Nov 2nd in Peterborough at Nene Park, (Ferry Meadows), make a note in your diaries now, in fact put all the races in there.
Frostbites have only 2 rules you need to worry about, you have to be a member of a competing club, and you have to wear a club vest.
For the uninitiated :-
Frostbites are free entry,
Participating club runners only,
5 mile XC races, (thats 8K)
No numbers,
No registration,
Must wear a club vest.
At the end you get given a ticket that tells you what position you were, when the scores are added up the club gets a team position as well.
Around 400 competitors from 16 local clubs in the senior event, probably 120 in the junior event, junior distance is 1.5 miles (2.4K).
Cheers Rich P
🟣💙 Bourne Town Harriers at the September Equinox 2024
Catching up on run reports, and this one’s for our fantastic team who took on the September Equinox 2024! 🌅
Representing Bourne Town Harriers were Matthew Bellis, Tony Gilbert, Michael Gilbert, Alison Burton, and Richard Burton, joined by Helen Upchurch from Thorney Running Club. 💪
For those unfamiliar, Equinox is a 24-hour endurance event where teams complete as many 10K loops as possible within the time limit — testing not just speed, but stamina, teamwork, and determination. ⏱️🔥
Our team of six rose brilliantly to the challenge, completing an impressive 24 loops in 24 hours! 🙌 Every member put in a huge effort, showing true grit, great camaraderie, and plenty of laughs along the way.
A fantastic event once again — and an incredible achievement for everyone involved. 🏃♀️🏃♂️💜💙
#BourneTownHarriers #Equinox24 #RunningCommunity #EnduranceEvent #TeamSpirit #24HourChallenge #BTHFamily #RunReport
🟣💙 Bourne Town Harriers at the Sawtry 10 Mile Race
Catching up on run reports, and this one’s for our seniors who were out in force at the Sawtry 10 Mile Race! 💪 A challenging but rewarding course with fantastic efforts all round.
First home for BTH was Vaughan Roberts, finishing in 63rd place with a strong 1:15:29 👏
Next in was Laura Bailey, securing 116th place with 1:25:05 — and taking 1st place in her age category! 🏆 Outstanding performance, Laura! 🌟
Also running under first claim was Maria Merridan, finishing in 284th place with 1:57:13 — great perseverance and team spirit throughout the miles! 🙌
Another brilliant outing for our Harriers showing consistency, strength, and camaraderie every step of the way. 🏃♀️🏃♂️💜💙
#BourneTownHarriers #RunningCommunity #TeamSpirit #Sawtry10Mile #RoadRacing #BTHFamily #RunReport
Matt’s latest ultra run report
GB Ultra Yr Wyddfa 100 complete! VINDICATION!
After last year’s DNF at mile 63, I was apprehensive
Thankfully, the weather gods were on our side, and we didn’t have torrential rain in the night like last year, making navigation a lot easier!
CP8 (63 miles) My body was ready to stop, and I managed to get 2 mins sleep! Thankfully, Glen Wareing did exactly what he said he was going to do. Give me cheese on toast, then kick me out the door! Thanks, Glen. I needed that!
Paul Gladwell , it was awesome to spend time with you on the trails again. Thank you for getting me through the night and regaling me with Saddleworth facts! Thank you, your wonderful partner, for me too, Ali Sparkes. The tea and brownies were amazing! I’m sorry you had to cut your journey short, I made sure I finished it for both of us!
I didn’t think I was going to make the 40-hour cut off and constantly trying to do the math on minimal sleep. I managed to pick up the pace fuelled by cheese on toast and tea (4 sugars) and got in at 38h 24m; taking 17 hours off my 100 mile pb, think the lack of snow helped!
I’m not ashamed to say I wasn’t in a good place last week. I was debating whether to even do this.
Mental health is incredibly important, and that is why I’m such a big advocate of Dont Lose Hope who provide counselling services and can only do this through donations.
Any support would be greatly appreciated, and thank you to those who have already donated!
https://www.justgiving.com/page/matthew-bellis-3?utm_medium=FR&utm_source=CL
Thank you, #GBUltras team, for an amazing weekend
Final races of the Grand Prix hosted by Panvac at Ferry Meadows 🏞️
Firstly, a huge well done to Oliver Lloyd for representing the juniors in the 3km with a fantastic time of 13:03 💜💙👏
Onto the Seniors: 🏃♂️🏃♀️
23rd – Matt Bellis – 17:14 🔥
121st – Tony Gilbert – 19:44 💪
143rd – Mark Botteley – 20:16 ⭐
175th – Carl Cocking – 21:22 👍
231st – Jim Sands – 23:05 👏
276th – Michael Gilbert – 24:21 🙌
359th – Richard Pearson – 27:41 💥
390th – Alison Burton – 29:38 🌟
396th – Maria Meriden – 29:48 🎉
406th – Richard Burton – 30:31 💯
💜💙 Huge congratulations to Matt for finishing 16th overall across the races – a brilliant achievement! 🏆🎽
#BTHarriers #FerryMeadows #GrandPrixFinale #TeamBTH #RunningCommunity #LoveToRun #ProudMoment
🏃♂️ Bourne Town Harriers at the Bassingham Bash 🏃♀️
It was a quieter turnout for the seniors this weekend as we headed to the Bassingham Bash – a fast, friendly race that’s part of the village fayre atmosphere. 🎪🏅
This year also marked a special first… Skye’s debut as the BTH mascot! 💙💜 She did a brilliant job cheering on our runners and spreading Harrier spirit around the course.
Results:
🔹 101st – Carl Cocking – 37:19
🔹 118th – Laura Bailey – 39:59
🔹 140th – Michael Gilbert – 42:12
🔹 154th – Alison Burton – 51:27
Well done to all who took part – great racing and great representation for the club on a sunny village race day. 🌤️
#BourneTownHarriers #BassinghamBash #BTHMascot #BlueAndPurple #VillageRace #ClubRunning #HarriersOnTour #RunTogether #HarriersInAction
🏁 Grand Prix Series – Race 4
📍 Hosted by Stamford Striders
Bourne Town Harriers were back in action for Race No. 4 of the Peterborough Grand Prix Series – with strong representation, fantastic efforts, and one more race to go in the 2025 series 💙💜
👟 Junior 3K Report:
A huge well done to Oliver Lloyd, who proudly represented the BTH Juniors in the 3K event. Great to see our young athletes stepping up and gaining valuable race experience – well done, Oliver! 👏
🔥 Senior 5K Results:
🔹 18th – Matt Bellis – 17:21
🔹 125th – Carl Cocking – 20:50
🔹 107th – Laura Bailey – 22:53
🔹 174th – Jak Chambers – 23:04
🔹 220th – Michael Gilbert – 24:41
🔹 269th – Richard Pearson – 26:43
🔹 310th – Alison Burton – 29:26
🔹 316th – Maria Merridan – 29:37
🔹 336th – Richard Burton – 30:52
⚠️ Note: The course did come up a little short of 5K, so while we saw some fantastic times and a few unofficial PBs, they won’t count as official.
🏆 Series Update:
With one race remaining, Matt Bellis is still holding strong in 8th place overall in the league standings – a superb and consistent showing throughout the series!
📆 Eyes now turn to the final race of the series – let’s finish strong, Harriers!
#BourneTownHarriers #GrandPrixSeries #StamfordStriders #BTHJuniors #BTHSeniors #Race4Recap #UnofficialPBs #BlueAndPurple #ClubRunning #OneToGo #HarriersInAction #RunTogether
🏅 Thurlby 10K 2025 – Race Recap 🏃♂️🏃♀️
The BTH Seniors pulled out a huge team for this year’s Thurlby 10K, and what a day it turned out to be! A fantastic local race with big club energy, impressive individual results, and some serious silverware brought home 💙💜
🌟 Highlights:
🥉 Matt Bellis stormed into 3rd place overall with a superb time of 38:30, earning both the Third Place Trophy and the BTH Club Champs Trophy! 🏆🏆
Even better – thanks to the strength across the team, Bourne Town Harriers took home the Team Trophy too! 🥇💪
📊 Full Senior Results:
🔹 3rd – Matt Bellis – 38:30
🔹 25th – Del James – 48:33
🔹 26th – Carl Cocking – 48:45
🔹 34th – Jim Sands – 49:45
🔹 36th – Jak Chambers – 50:13
🔹 43rd – Laura Bailey – 51:32
🔹 56th – Victoria Cocking – 54:15
🔹 58th – Michael Gilbert – 56:20
🔹 59th – Gillian Pryor – 57:11
🔹 85th – Alison Burton – 1:11:09
🔹 90th – Richard Burton – 1:11:40
👏 A massive well done to all who raced – brilliant running, brilliant support, and brilliant team spirit all round!
🎉 Our Juniors also did us proud in the Fun Run – with some fantastic performances and more trophies on the way! 🏅
📸 Keep your eyes peeled for the Juniors’ recap post – coming soon!
#BourneTownHarriers #Thurlby10K2025 #BTHSeniors #TeamTrophyWinners #ClubChamps #BlueAndPurple #BTHJuniors #FunRunHighlights #RunTogether #HarriersInAction #ProudToBeBTH
🏃♂️ Whissendine 6ix – Friday 12th July 🏃♀️
Some of our BTH seniors took on the ever-popular Whissendine 6ix, a tough but rewarding 6-mile evening road race through the Rutland countryside 🌄
A mix of grit, pace, and determination saw our runners deliver a fantastic set of results across the field 💙💜
📊 Run Report:
🔹 17th – Matt Bellis – 39:34
🔹 47th – Mark Botteley – 44:08
🔹 89th – Carl Cocking – 48:11
🔹 163rd – Michael Gilbert – 55:50
🔹 248th – Alison Burton – 1:07:54
🔹 250th – Richard Burton – 1:08:06
👏 A brilliant effort from the team on a rolling course – great to see the blue and purple represented at local events once again!
#BourneTownHarriers #Whissendine6ix #BTHSeniors #ClubRunning #EveningRace #RoadRace #LocalRunning #HarriersOnTour #RunTogether #TeamEffort
Bourne Town Harriers AC 