Harriers of the Month and Chair’s Blog – August 2026

August is often a quieter month for the running community, as folks head off on holiday. HPH has barely slowed down though, with loads happening this month! Read on below, but firstly congratulations to our…

HARRIERS OF THE MONTH – AUGUST 2026

  • Alice Houldcroft (multiple nominations):
    • A biiiiig attempt at something most people wouldn’t even consider, even if she missed a swim – who likes watersports anyway!
    • Alice followed through with going for the Frog Graham, a challenge she set her sights on before she maybe properly realised quite how much a challenge it was. Having decided she was going to give up, she pushed on for another 10 hours, showing incredible perseverance and completed the final running leg, only stopping there before the final swim due to safety and sleep reasons which after being awake for 24 hours is fair. That’s still a huge 65k of running and 1.5K of swimming. What an incredible achievement and hopefully scratches the FG itch!
    • Alice took on the frankly bonkers Frog Graham challenge (40+ miles, 4,000m of fellrunning, plus four lake crossings) and put in a heroic effort! More than that, she made the choice not to push on the final lake crossing, which showed a lot of sense and wisdom rather than risking a dangerous night swim. HPH is extremely proud of her!
    • Alice displayed incredible mental fortitude to keep pushing through the Leg 4 run of the Frog Graham Round despite being convinced she would drop out after the Leg 3 swim, and making the sensible decision not to swim across the final lake in the dark. Inspiring running!
  • Callum Starling – During Alice Houldcroft’s Frog Graham attempt, Callum had only expected to support Leg 1. However, as the day progressed and Alice considered quitting, Callum stepped up to join Leg 4 as an additional supporter to help pull her through the final running leg. He also went above and beyond, drying her feet after the Leg 3 swim, feet which had run/swam ~52km at that point – Rather you than me Callum!

Well done to all our nominees, copied below:

  • Adam Lomas (multiple nominations):
    • Who even wins a race by six whole minutes?!
    • A very impressive second place at MVT Race, the day after finishing fourth at Burnsall Classic!
  • Ben Rispin – A PB at York 10K – nice one Ben!
  • Cat McGuire – Hats off to Cat for completing the She Strides 50K ultra – no route in the Calder Valley is easy, so to complete the run with over 1,500m of climbing is a fantastic achievement!
  • Emma Knowles – Emma has been dedicated to her running and Hyde Park Harriers for many months now. She is getting faster and faster and faster. She came 3rd at Apperley Bridge Canter earlier in the summer and then she smashed the Meanwood Valley Trail Race this weekend coming second. She always brings a smile to club and races and she is great.
  • Flick Burton – Congratulations to Flick on finishing as first woman at the Meanwood Valley Trail Race!
  • Josh Salter – Massive congrats to Josh on breaking 20 minutes for the first time over 5K!
  • Paul Ramsden – One of HPH’s premier mountain goats, Paul completed the Welsh 14 Peaks challenge this month – kudos sir!
  • Your not-so-humble chair was also very grateful to receive the following nomination from Josh – Toby very kindly bought me a coffee after I did my first sub 20 5k at WM parkrun – I think this seemingly small gesture, which meant a lot to me, sums up the beauty of this amazing running club – spearheaded by the chairman!

THANK YOU!

A huge thank you to all our leaders this month – Adam L, Alex B, Alex H, Alice H, Amy R-Y, Andy B, Bethan M, Chris W, Clare E, Curtis B, Daisy W, Eleanor M, George A, Hannah L, Helen N, Jenny C, Jonathan S, Josh S, Laura G, Lucy R, Mike G, Naomi A, Olly H, Richard C, Richard G, Richard K and Sharron N!

If you’d like to give leading a go, speak to any of our existing leaders or committee members and we’ll give you all the support and help you need.

HIGHLIGHTS OF AUGUST 2026

  • As part of our 20th anniversary celebrations, we’re undertaking a club-wide year long relay! As of the end of this month, the baton has travelled 2,882km! During August, it was carried by Cat M, Andrea S, Vicky H, Alice H, Amy R-Y, Paul R, Mike V, Tom M, Matthew B, Curtis B, Sam D, Emily M, Ed S, Tadhgh K, Naomi A and your humble chair. If you’d like to get involved, there’s a specific chat in the club’s WhatsApp community to co-ordinate handovers.
  • Congratulations to Cat M, who completed the She Strides 50K ultra in Hebden Bridge – with  over 1,500m of ascent, this was an ultra with teeth!
  • The York 10K is a favourite of many HPH, with a cracking route that goes through the ancient city centre and a fast and (reasonably) flat profile. This year, a dozen Harriers took part, with Doug B finishing in the top 30! Well done everyone!
  • Adam L was the sole Harrier at the Round Hill fell race, but he made it count with a first place finish! A seventh HPH fell championship title looks to be in the bag for the club’s resident mountain GOAT…
  • The Frog Graham is a bonkers challenge – over 65km of fellrunning over multiple Lake District peaks, and four lake traversals (Bassenthwaite, Crummock Water, Derwentwater and Buttermere) – huge kudos to Alice H for a sterling attempt this month! She completed all of the peaks before sensibly bowing out instead of attempting a mile-long swim whilst very sleep-deprived. We’re very proud of her, both for the superhuman effort and for making a difficult but right decision!
  • A dozen Harriers took part in the Lotherton Hall Trail Race; five miles in a very scenic part of West Yorkshire! Congratulations to Flick B and Eliza T-F, who were second and third women over the finish line!
  • Five HPH ran the Track Restoration 10K, with proceeds going towards the upkeep of the cinder track at Temple Newsam. A beautiful but tough course; definitely one to try next year!
  • The YVAA Grand Prix continued with races at Slaithwaite and Pudsey, with lots of veteran Harriers taking part at each – nice one folks!
  • Ed and Hannah ran an unusual race this month – the Saddleworth Chip Chase! A seriously hilly one, but you get unlimited toast pre-race and a chip butty at the end! What more could you ask for?!
  • Doug B continued his scary form with a brilliant 5K at the York series this month – a sub-16 is tantalisingly close!
  • Paul R is well-known for throwing himself up and down various mountains and this month he completed 15 of them in Snowdonia!
  • Five Harriers took on the Burnsall Classic fell race – less than two miles long, but featuring 250m of climbing and 250m of descending! Everyone earned their ice cream at the finish!
  • Ed H ran a fantastic race at the Beverley Half Marathon; nice work sir!
  • Meanwood Valley Trail Race is a great event – seven miles on some of HPH’s favourite trails, including some brutal climbs and little-known paths! A dozen Harriers took part in this year’s race, with Flick and Emma as first and second women (respectively) and Adam taking second place overall!
  • In memory of Clare M, Naomi organised a berry-picking plod in the Meanwood Valley, with several Harriers joining her to collect blackberries. Clare had led a group doing exactly this almost ten years ago, and it was a lovely way to honour a much-loved member of our club.
  • Gordon C smashed his own VM70 club record at the Golden Mile, running a fantastic 6:49!
  • One of HPH’s Scotland correspondents, Joe L, took on the Portobello Beach Race – roughly 6km-ish on soggy sand… Nice one Joe!
  • Ed and Hannah headed up to the Lakes to take part in various fell races, including on which required 280m of climbing and descending in under two kilometres… Madness!

Well done everyone, and apologies to anyone I’ve missed! September will see Harriers take on the last few races of the Summer League, and the Leeds Country Way Relay – can’t wait!