Nearly 500 runners tackled the 34th running of the Dursley Dozen today, Sunday.
First across the line was unattached runner Sam Moppett from King’s Stanley, who clocked a chip time of 1:26:33.
Closer to home, Dursley RC runner James Everett finished second, as he did last year, posting a time of 1:27:48. Bristol & West athlete Dan Shepherd was third in 1:30:12
First runner home for Stroud AC was Nick Hitchcroft in 1:48:09.Vegan Runners UK athelete Caroline McAleese was the first female to cross the line in 1:42:16.
Runners tackled 12 challenging miles of multi-terrain over hillsides, woodland, open country, mud, road and solid rock.
The race started in the car park of May Lane Surgery with runners passing The Old Spot and before they could catch a breath, they were straight into the challenging Hill Road, ascending steeply for almost two hundred metres before entering woodland and climbing onto Stinchcombe Hill Golf Course. The race route then re-entered the woods.
The runners descended on land at the popular Leaf and Ground café, where runners arched around the pond are before climbing back up into the woods and onto the golf course.
A mile and a half of muddy woodland paths took runners to a brief section of road and into more woodland before a steep descent down Axe Lane to the New Inn at Waterley Bottom. A steep ascent followed back to the hilltop and a circuit of Breakheart Quarry.
A section of quiet country road saw runners back into the woods before the last descent into the town.
The final sprint saw runners hit the pedestrianised Parsonage Street to the finish line in front of the Dursley Market Hall, where all received their hard-earned technical T-shirt.
FULL RACE RESULTS HERE
Pictures and video by Matt Bigwood
