SANTA POLA HALF MARATHON

Three Striders took part in the XXI Santa Pola half marathon on Sunday January 24 (2010), Neil, Matt and Helen. I had thought about running it but that was as far as it got... thinking about it. Neil reckoned that the conditions were very good, and the organisation of the event was second to none.

All three managed excellent times, Neil posted a PB, finishing in 493rd place overall (out of just under 6,000 finishers) in 1:26:50. He elected to get as near to the front of the start as possible but as the start area was pretty packed he didn't manage to start his watch, and went off a bit too quickly, tiring pretty rapidly towards the end.

Matt was hoping to break 1:35, which he did by quite some distance, coming home in 1:32:36. Helen wasn't that far behind him, completing the course in 1:39:12. Well done to all three.

The overall winner of the men's race was the Kenyan Erick Kibet in 1:01:08, which I believe was a course record. In the women's event Helah Kiprop, another Kenyan, came home first in 1:15:23.

Jeff