A great run by my 64 year old son Jon who,lives in Cornwall . He ran the Cardiff Half Marathon in 1:32.46, his fastest since he got back to running.

What a great Paralympics. Fantastic organisation, great coverage on Channel 4 and those great performances.How sport for disabled people has improved from when we tool wheelchair athletes in the Reading Half Marathon in 1983.GOOD TO SEEto see Tanni Grey- Thompson playing a major roll in the to coverage, she started her success in the Reading HALF WHEREshe competed for a number of years.

 

 

 

Another Reading Half Marathon was run on 14th April. Not very successful as only 5375 finishers, about the same as the first event in 1983. The winning time was also much slower than ost years.

The lack of numbers at have been because of London just one week later.

 

 

Jit is 42 years since several people got together to set up the first running of the half marathon on 1983. I was selected as the first chair and race director .

 

I still have many of the early medals, programmes, and other memorabilia.

What can I I do with them? 

 

 

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8What has gone wrong at Reading, two records but not good ones.

The smallest number of finishers in its 40 year history of just 3602 and the slowest ever winning time of 65.58.

Congratulations to the winner James Connor, Neil Kevern (Bracknell AC) 3rd in 66.59 and George Sutton (Reading AC) 12th with 69.44 and  all those that did run.

Sunday 13th  March 2022, 39 years since the first Reading Half Marathon with 5000 runners on a bright sunny day with temperature in low 60 degrees. The race run from and to the University was won by 21 year old Mark Couzens in 67.45.

The result of having wheelchair athletes included led to them getting into the London Marathon a few months later. The British Sports Association for the Disbled raised over £17,000 from the Reading venture in that first year.

Over 300,00 have now run in the race.

 

2021 Another Reading Half Marathon, a great medal but very poor number of finishers, the lowest for a very lomg time, just over 6000.

It was a good day for the Eldon family, not old man Stan, the founder of the race in 1983 but son Jon who finished 545th with 92.51 and was 4th in the over 60 category. Seven minutes  faster than two years ago and back to his times of 28 years ago.

 

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A great Olympics BUT not so good for athletics. Why have so many failed with problems, cramps etc.

Could it be the track and/ or the footwear.

 

Another great of athletics past died on 23rd May, in fact one of the greatest of all distance runners, Dr Ron Hill age 82 years. Possibly the UK's most successful marathon  runner.I knew him as an athlete but also as a rival in business, he followed me into the sports trade' He supported me in many ways including sposorship of a race in Reading and he ran in the 1984 Reading Half Marathon  where he was 13th and second vet in 69:15 when he was 46.He was a great inovator and developed many itms of running kit and shoes. He had his own special drink when running, Coke with no fiz.

RIP Ron,

Stan

The first Reading Half Marathon was 38 years ago so here are some pics from the early years.

LAST CHANCE TO GET A COPY of 'Life on the Run' they are available as an Ebook from Amazon and others from £5.95. Printed published, signed  copies available from Stan Eldon (staneldon@btinternet.com) at £8.00 incl. P&P

BASIL HEATLEY MBE

Born 25th December 1033, died August 2019

The siver medallist at the marathon in Tokyo 1964. I knew him very well. We served in the Army at the sametime and shared the honours in cross country and 3 mile races. I ran with hime when he set a world record for the 10 miles of 47:47 on the track( I dropped out.).

 

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Jon Eldon, my eldest son and former member of Reading AC and Reading Joggers  retired to Cornwall 2 years ago and has regained his running form. Now 60 years old, he is winning his age category in the local Park Runs and has joined Carn Runners.

Recent results include Storm Force 10 miles in 69;49, 10K 40:38, Bideford Half Marathon 96:36, Marazion to Mousehole 94:59 (? over length), 5 miles 35:40, 4 miles 27:16, Park Run 5K 19:51, Duchy 20 Mies 2:44.39, 7 miles 49:45. Cornish Maraton 3:41.41, Classic Quarter 44.7  Miles 11:41.33.

 

Reading Roadrunner Gemma Buley ran the Abingdon Marrarthon in 3:15 on 21st October. After a log layoff she is now getting fit again.

Congratulations to Reading Roadrunner David Dibben who ran his first marathon , just a few months before his 70th birthday at Brighton in 3:43. He was top in his age group and now runs at Chester later in the year where he will wear the England vest. I remember when he started running about 30 years ago in Caversham when we used to run together on Sunday mornings.

He is planning to run two marathons in a month when they resume in Spetember/October

Basil HEATLEY another great from the 1950/1960'swho has passed away.

 

Bruce TULLOH

Another great athlete from the 1950/60's passed away on 29th April. We ran together many time including Moscow and Helsinki in 1959 where we were 1st and 2nd.

We used to train on the roads north of Reading and south Oxfordshire for up to 15 miles.

On one occassion to help with his training he ran a 1.5 mile time trial on Warrave recreation ground with Mmary Rand running some laps as pacemaker and me for most of it.

It was thanks to him that I  bcame the sole agent for ASICS(Tiger) shoe in Europe.

We ran together many times.

                                                                               London Marathon 2018

 

The usual large number of Reading Roadrunners and Reading Joggers took part. One of the best performances must have been the run by former Reading prison officer and Reading Roadrunnef Paul Jenkins now over 70 years old who finished in 4:33.45. The faster runners were RRR,s Matthew Richards 2:32, Rob Corney 2:41 and Seb Briggs 2:42. One of the faster ladies was Gemma Buley 3:33., 

Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.

The UK's best marathon runner for over 20 years, Callum Hawkins of Scotland, had a good lead until 25 miles but then collapsed with the effect of the heat.

It was 50 years ago this year that I suffered a similar fate in these Games running in the six miles on a very hot day in Cardiff.

As a result of which I was used by Roger Bannister for research into running in excessive hot conditions. Much research has been done since but the problem still occurs.

I hope it does not damage Callum's future prospects.

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Sad news on Sunday 4th March, the death of Dr Sir Roger Bannister.' a great man in every sense. His great achievemnent in 1954 when he was the first man to break 4 minutes for the mile. Someone I knew very well as we did research together on running in hot weather back in 1958. he was the doctor and I the guinea pig.

I had met with him a couple of times in  the last few years in Oxford including at the JR Hospital where we were both patients.

The photo is the two of us on stage at the Kassam Stadium, Oxford in 2002 with chairman of County Council

RIP Roger

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Rob Corney, 23 years, set a new RRR's half marathon record time in the Wokingham Half Marathon. His time of 69 minutes 20 seconds beat the previous best by Howard Grubb by 4 seconds. More great runs from by great-niece Gemma Buley who along with husband Chris is constantly setting P.B's. At Wokingham Chris improved by 6 minutes and Gemma by 4 and in the Bramley 20 mile Gemma took 10 minutes off her previos best.

 

Reading Roadrunners have produced a book

'Celebrating 30 Years of Reading Roadrunners'         1987 to 2017

It has contributions from many of the members with articles and photos from the 30 years history.

Stan Eldon receiving book from Chris Mason

                                *******

Stan and Marion Eldon's Diamond Wedding

Married at Windsor on 12th October 1957

Reading Half Marathon 2017

Details on the RHM page.

In the last few weeks one of the great distance runners of the 1950/60's died.

Derek Ibbotson MBE was a great athlete and I remember the night he broke the World Mile Record, 19th July 1957. I was in my police digs waiting to go on night duty and had no TV so had to listen on the radio. He broke the record with 3:57.2.

He was a character as well as a super athlete. At the Commonwealth Games in Cardiff in 1958 he found the beds in the RAF camp at St Athan uncomfortale so he rang a well known matress maker and almost instantly a new matress appeared on the top of a car.

I ran with him many times.

Derek is No.10 Eldon No.6

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Congratulations to Reading Roadrunners who celebrated their 30 year history on 21st January with a party. The club formed in 1987 following training sessions for the Reading Half Marathon organised at Palmer Park on three previous years.

Later this year Reading Joggers celebrate their 40th birthday.

Both are young compared to Reading Athletic Club who were formed in 1881.

   

Stan with Jimmy Hill and founder of the Miss World event

The autobiography by Stan Eldon 'Life on the Run' publisher by Arthur H Stockwell tells his life story which has had 'running connections' since the age of 12 as a schoolboy in Windsor.  Various careers and activities, police, event organiser including setting up the Reading Half Marathon, charity administrator and newspaper columnist.

For details of the book contact staneldon@btinternet.com