Whilst sensible people were tucked up indoors watching the Six Nations Rugby runners from Airienteers had to cope with gale force winds and driving rain at the British Orienteering Championships last Saturday.

The championships were held on the fells of Simonside, near Rothbury in Northumberland, and the start was fully 50 minutes walk from the Somme-like conditions which prevailed in the car-parking fields, which meant that runners were soaked before they even began their courses!

Most of the longer courses had the first few controls in the steep-sided forests before emerging onto the wind-swept fell-tops, where long legs provided some interesting route choices for those who still had their wits about them.

Running against the wind was like treading water, running with the wind was like bowling along under sail. Nevertheless, many Airienteers had good runs in highly competitive age-group classes, with two juniors becoming British champions.

Florence Haines won at W10 level, whilst George Stevens won the M14 class by almost six minutes. Meanwhile, Ruth Jones (W45) and Peter Haines (M50) just missed out on victory, both coming second in their respective classes.

The full results for Airienteers runners were: M12 (3.5km) - 9, Robert Kelly. M14 (5.6km) - 1, George Stevens 40.26; 15, Ben Gill (70.58). M16 (7.9km) - 4,Hector Haines (61.20);10,Jack Wood (68.05); 20,Alistair Everett (78.51). M18 (9.3km) - 5,Joe Mercer (68.45); 7,Ben Stevens (69.00);27,Daniel Holmes (86.53). M21 (12.6km) - 19, Matthew Burden (123.11). M35 (11.5km) - 21,Steve Watkins (93.22). M40 (10.6km) - 11, Steve Webb (78.42); 28, Ian Marshall (97.49); 31,Tim Boden (99.37). M45 (9.2km) - 31, Nicholas Jones (82.59);37, Peter Jones (87.33);48, Chris Wales (98.37); 55, Robert King (106.40). M50 (8.9km) - 2, Peter Haines (64.12); 34, Tony Carlyle (84.39); 35, Martin Gill (85.01); 41st Graham Stuart (88.01); 43rd Dave Chapman (88.51); 55, Ken Patterson (97.57); 58, Gerry van Hee (99.44). M55 (8.0km) - 11, Frank Kew (75.11); 20, Tony Thornley (77.58); 42, Ian Hill (84.55); 64, Chris Burden (99.02). M65 (6.1km) - 16, Tom Crowther (72.52); 29, Jeff Mason (86.34). W10 (2.9km) - 1, Florence Haines (21.11). W12 (3.5km) - 17, Cerys Jones (74.55).W14 (4.0km) - 13,Chloe Haines (43.18); 17,Katie Wood (49.32). W16 (5.1km) - 4,Victoria Stevens (40.12). W18 (6.4km) - 25,Elizabeth van Hee (103.50);W40 (7.1km) - 22, Joyce Marshall (86.31);27, Lindsay King (97.16). W45 (6.1km) - 2, Ruth Jones (58.42); 5, Sarah Haines (60.06);15,Shirley Wood (65.43);29, Wendy Carlyle (74.35). W50 (5.8km) - 18,Susan Stevens (78.12). W55 (5.4km) - 14,Hilary Allen (60.48); 30, Jo Thornley (68.31); 35,Patricia Villiers (73.55);46, Gill Ross (84.11).

Next Sunday, Airienteers travel to Market Weighton for a Regional Event which counts towards an individual's national ranking. Details of this and other events are to be found on the club website at www.aire.org.uk.

Steve Webb has attained 'Championship Standard' in orienteering.

Skyrac Fellrunners

Winds of up to 75mph were recorded last Saturday and no one running in the nine mile Pendle Half Tour race would challenge the Met Office given that the gales experienced by runners coming down from the trig point to the Nick of Pendle were as severe as anyone could remember.

Even Andy Schofield (Borrowdale) was heard to say: "It was a hard man's race out there today," and this from the man who came second in the 2002 Three Peaks Race after which 57 people suffered from hypothermia with three people going to hospital.

Perhaps the slight frame of Ian Holmes (Bingley) does not catch the wind unlike lesser mortals for he cruised home to win in 1.06.16, ahead of team-mate Andy Peace (1.06.26). Third was Gary Devine (Pudsey and Bramley) adrift in 1.08.37.

Around 250 runners started and for Skyrac Graham Breeze was 109th in 1.31.56 with Malcolm Coles 158th in 1.43.44.

Both Skyrac runners will be on Pendle again in two weeks time for the next round of the Derek Emsley Memorial Championship which is the short (4.5 miles) Pendle race when presumably all the fair weather runners from Skyrac will be out in force.

Unattached runners are invited to get in touch with Skyrac via www.skyrac.org.uk or 01943 874046 or at the Guiseley Gallop on Easter Sunday.

AireCentre Pacers

The major activity of the winter months has been the club's involvement in the Sport Direct Cross-Country League.

This has both focused personal fitness and club endeavour, with Chairman Richard Archer regularly cajoling and press-ganging reluctant runners into action.

This has been rewarded with the club's best ever results. Good performances in the final race of the season at South Leeds saw the men's team lifted into fifth in the first division and the ladies into third place in their first division.

The South Leeds race saw 12 runners from the club take part. Among the men the leaders were Will Morris and Rob Megan, though also performing well were Chris Hill, Matt Tupling and Richard Archer. The team was completed by Arthur Edwards, Russell Olliver and Steve Horne.

The women were led home by Diane Craven, ably supported by Angela Crawford.

On the individual front there have been some notable performances, with the highlight being the return of Steve Horne to competitive action following a long lay-off with injury. His run of 55 minutes for the Dewsbury 10K was a personal triumph, two years on from breaking down in the same race.

He was almost outshone by a rare appearance from Steve Campbell and by a steady run from Chris Hill.

Diane Craven is again showing great form. Tackling the always tough Baildon Boundary Way, she allegedly completed in one hour 48 minutes, though the results computer has been having other ideas.

More assuredly Angela Crawford battled through to a most creditable one hour 55 minutes.

Richard Thompson and Diane Craven also tackled the Snake Lane ten mile race though the conditions left them in a state such that they have only just thawed out.

Record entries for Guiseley Gallop

The 9th Guiseley Gallop 10K Trail Race will start at 10.30am on Easter Sunday, 11th April.

Entries are coming in at a record level and are already well over 200 suggesting that, with entries being accepted on the day, the 2003 entry of 450 is likely to be exceeded.

The race is again supported by Ilkley's The Complete Runner and starts at the early time of 10.30am from West Side Retail Park.

Race organiser Peter Rawnsley, whose family has lived in Guiseley for many years, has been intrigued by the entry from an Andrew Guiseley from Newport Pagnall, the first time he has encountered the surname.

Runners from Skyrac will be checking the course on Tuesday 6th April setting off at 7:30 from the ANSA Clubhouse at Nunroyd Park (opposite MacDonalds). Anyone wishing to join them for an informal preview of the course will receive a warm welcome.

Entry forms can be downloaded from www.skyrac.org.uk and Peter can be contacted on 09143 875516

Andrew's personal best in Combined Events Championship

A group of five Leeds City athletes spent the weekend in Cardiff at the AAA's Indoor Combined Events Championships held at the 200m track of the UWIC Athletics Centre.

In the Under-20 men's heptathlon, Horsforth's Andrew Staniland pushed himself into sixth place on the UK All Time Ranking Lists (and second position on the 2004 UK lists) with a personal best score of 4,885 points.

In his first year of three in this age group, this points total gave the 17 year-old Leeds GS student the silver medal behind GB junior international Kevin Sempers of Belgrave Harriers.

In fact, after Day One's four events, Andrew was leading, following a massive PB in the Pole Vault of 3.70m and three other pleasing performances: 60m, 7.23s; long jump, 6.99m; shot (6kg), 12.51m. However, Sempers is a specialist hurdler and high jumper, and on the second day these were enough to give him overall victory.

Nevertheless, Andrew set a personal best over the senior height 3ft 6ins 60m hurdles with 9.01s and then high jumped 1.95m. He finished the competition with another best, this time in the 1000m with 3 mins.06.42s.

Former Skyrac athlete Matthew Hudson also enjoyed a very successful championship and set personal bests in his first four eventson his way to fifth place in the U-17 men's pentathlon.

His day began well with a 8.62s over the 60m hurdles and this was closely followed by a fine putt of 11.57m in the shot (5kg).

A high jump clearance of 1.83m and a magnificent leap of 6.19m in the long jump rattled up his points tally with a 2 mins.17.32s 800m to finish off with. His overall score of 3,162 points was a massive personal best.

In the U-17 women's pentathlon Horsforth's Bethany Staniland could not have got off to a worse start as she hit the first hurdle in the 60m hurdles, the first event of the competition, and crashed to the track.

She picked herself up and finished in 12.65s, but with a PB of 9.8s for this event, she had immediately lost over 400 points and any medal chance well gone.

Deciding to take the remaining four events as individual competitions, she went on to set two personal bests and came within a centimetre of one in another. The PB's came in the shot (4kg) with a putt of 11.32m (a new Leeds City U-17 record) and in the 800m with an excellent multi-eventers' time of 2 mins.22.35s. A high jump clearance of 1.47m was close to her PB and she produced a steady 4.90m long jump.

With a total score of 2,825 points Bethany still finished in 15th position out of the 30 best U-17 women combined eventers in the country, but when employing the great "if" factor, she would have finished fourth with only a respectable hurdles performance. This place went to City of Sheffield AC's Amy Hill with 3,207 points.