Darent Valley 10K (Kent Grand Prix)

The Darent Valley 10k held on Sunday 19th April was won by Harrier Colin Edwards, with Nick Leech completing the first ever 'one-two' for the club by finishing second. Both Colin and Nick finished with sub-35 minute times over a challenging undulating course with some off-road sections.

Running in the leading group from the start, the pair broke away from the other athletes on a stiff climb just before the 7km point at the start of the final run-in along the main road. In a close finish, Colin took the honours from Nick by 9 seconds in a time of 34:36, scoring a maximum 100 points for the club in the Kent Grand Prix.

L to R: Nick Leech and Colin Edwards

Completing the scoring team for the men in the Kent Grand Prix were Craig Chapman, Andy Howey (3rd M40), Daryl Palfrey (8th M40) and Matt Clark. With a provisional score of 509 pts, the men took first place on the day from Invicta East Kent AC (487 pts) and maintain their first place in the Grand Prix table.

The team event is decided on times for the first seven men and three women from each club. In an extremely close result, the Harriers won by 4 mins 21 secs from Dulwich Runners in an aggregate time of 6:37:14. Supporting the top six from the club were Mark Taylor, Tara Taylor, Siân Roberts and Jo Clift.

Other notable performances on the day from the 23-strong Harriers team were Tara Taylor (2nd F35), Siân Roberts (4th F35), Jo Clift (5th F45) and Bernie Bass (5th M60).