THE third in Okehampton Running Club’s summer race series, the Oke Croak, took place last Saturday on a beautiful sunny day slotted between two wet and windy ones.

The sun always seems to shine for this race giving it a reputation of a tough but stunningly beautiful run. Starting in Simmons Park, Okehampton, the runners are taken along Ball Hill to Fatherford, continuing on through the woods to access the moors at Chapel Ford. From here the course is no longer marked and the race becomes self-navigating out to a checkpoint at Oke Tor, after which varying routes will be taken either round or over East Mill Tor to then climb to the top of Yes Tor where there is the only other compulsory checkpoint.

Once the boulders around the summit of Yes Tor are cleared, the almost entirely downhill course gives the runners the opportunity to finally get some speed up if the legs are not too tired.

Leaving the moors at Moorgate, the return route is via Klondyke corner to Fatherford and they then retrace the path back to the park along Ball Hill.

The conditions were perfect for a great race and the first two runners both finished inside the previous course record, with the winner, Ceri Rees, knocking three minutes off with his superb time of 1 hour 15 minutes 19 seconds.

A good battle can always be assured between Okehampton’s Rob Hicks and Axe Valley runner Tim Lenton, but while these two were having a tussle coming along the road from Moorgate, Okehampton’s Paul Crease flew past both of them and continued to put distance between them, running sub-six minute miles to come home in third place in 1.21.12.

The first Okehampton lady home was Charlie Collyer with a great time of 1.56.30 to be second lady overall with Gill Spinney taking the third lady prize in 1.59.03, a 30 minute improvement on her time last year.

Other ORC times; Rob Hicks; 1.22.41, Andrew Vernon; 1.39.19, Phil Read; 1.49.50, Ed Dumpleton; 1.49.54, Andy Collyer; 1.56.50, Tom Andrew; 1.57.59, Jo Turner; 2.06.17, Karen Vallance; 2.06.17.

Before her marshalling duties at the Oke Croak, Okehampton’s prolific race runner, Jo Page, ran a new personal best at the Killerton Parkrun.

Jo has taken a step back from racing at the moment while training for her first marathon, but ran here to accompany her father and was surprised and pleased to set her new record time of 21 minutes 01 second.