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

Another big month for Hyde Park Harriers – read on below, but firstly congratulations to our…

HARRIER OF THE MONTH – JULY 2026

CHARLOTTE CORNER

  • Unstoppable running for twenty four hours. Holding every podium position across the board over the race, and coming away with first lady at Endure24
  • Phenomenal performance at Endure24, culminating in first woman and second overall, and doing it all with a smile on her face! It was a privilege to watch her smash the event and HPH is incredibly proud of her!
  • 23 laps (aka 115 miles) and 1st position at Endure24 – I mean, come on, just incredible! 
  • Taking the female solo win at Endure, apparently smiling all the way and making it look easy. And even managing to take time out for a 3 hour nap!
  • Amazing performance at Endure24 coming first female and second overall – 23 laps is a lot of laps, just mindboggling work!
  • First female and second overall. Wow!!!

IN MEMORY OF CLARE MAXWELL

Very sadly, Clare Maxwell passed away this month after a period of illness. Clare was a wonderful member of Hyde Park Harriers for well over a decade and we will miss her so much. The committee received multiple nominations for Clare and her close friends for Harrier of the Month, copied below:

  • Clare was a wonderful human that we were all lucky to know. A calming presence, with kind words and a sense of adventure that will all be sorely missed. May we all support each other at the end of our lives as well and as beautifully as Clare’s friends supported her.
  • A legend – enough said!

Thank you to everyone who contributed thoughts and memories in response to the sad news, copied below, which we have shared with Clare’s family and friends. The club intends to celebrate and remember Clare; further details will be shared in due course. Clare’s family have set up a fundraising page for the Rob Burrow MND Centre in her memory.

HARRIER OF THE MONTH NOMINATIONS

Well done to all our Harrier of the Month nominees, copied below:

  • Beth Chambers – Beth made some incredibly awesome cupcakes for our 20th anniversary party – they were delicious and I may have had three… Thank you Beth!
  • Dan Stevenson (multiple nominations):
    • A phenomenal run at the York 5K series – Dan just keeps getting quicker!
    • A brilliant run to take the win at the Piglove 5K!
  • Grace Roberts – Grace organised a session for people interested in giving leading a go – it’s really appreciated, as we always need lots of volunteer leaders. Grace is a brilliant example of someone who gives so much to the club and inspires others to do the same.
  • Hyde Park Plodders (AKA Adam, Ben and Sam) – Overall victory in the Golden Acre Relay! Get in lads…
  • Jonny Spain (multiple nominations):
    • VM35 champion at Eccup – a testament to Mr Spain’s running talents!
    • Jonny Spain continues to be one of the clubs biggest assets. The amount of workload he carried for the Summer Mile was phenomenal. From driving his actions to picking up when I completely messed up mine and then went on holiday, Jonny covered it all. He even went to the post office at 8am on the day of the race to collect the medals after a series of mishaps. He’s innovative and he’s a super – an absolute superhero. Thank you Jonny 
  • Mo Meg – Mo has been running so well recently – it’s been really inspiring watching him get faster and faster, well done mate!
  • Richard Sykes – Richard raced at Dorney Lake on 11th July in the UK Sprint Distance Championships, getting the silver medal in his age cat and qualifying for GB in the 2027 age-group 45-49 World Sprint Distance Triathlon Championships in Hamburg. That was good enough for most, but Richard then travelled 230 miles north to Ripon and, the very next day on 12th July, came 2nd in age cat yet again in the Sprint Distance race, this time qualifying for GB for the 2027 age-group 45-49 European Sprint Distance Triathlon Championships in Kitzbühel.
  • Your not-so-humble chair was also grateful for the nominations:
    • ONE HUNDRED MILES, WHAT!?
    • Stellar running at Endure24 covering 20 laps/100 miles in 24 hours!
    • Ultimate legend. Fabulous performance at endure, smashing 100miles.

THANK YOU!

A huge thank you to all our leaders this month – Adam L, Alex B, Alex H, Alice H, Andy B, Bethan M, Caite B, Chris W, Ciaran T, Clare E, Deb A, Eliza T-F, George A, Grace R, Hannah L, Helen N, Jenny C, Josh S, Lizzie L, Lucy B, Lucy R, Naomi A, Olly H, Richard G, Richard K, Samantha T, Sarah U, Sharron N and Tom W!

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 JULY 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 2,469km! During July, the baton was carried by Richard G, Lou G, Julie R, Charlotte C, Pip, George W, Josh S, Lucy B, Ed S, Alice H, Naomi A, Tom W and your humble scribe! If you’d like to get involved, there’s a specific chat in the club’s WhatsApp community to co-ordinate handovers.
  • The YVAA Grand Prix continued with races in South Leeds and Queensbury! Well done to our veterans who fly the red-and-white proudly at each race!
  • Joe L continues to be a proud HPH despite a move to Edinburgh and represented the club at the 7 Hills of Edinburgh race – 700+ metres across the city!
  • Adam L and Colin T ran the Oxenhope Straw Race dressed as hot dogs. I’m not sure if there’s anything I can add to this, but photographic evidence is included at the end of this blog.
  • Eccup 10 expanded to include a five mile race and it was great to see lots of folks take on one or other of a fantastic local event hosted by our friends Abbey Runners, particularly with several people giving it a go for the first time. Big thanks to the Harriers who formed part of the pacing crew, and congratulations to Jonny S who was first VM35, and Ralph K, who was second VM70! 
  • For the first time in a couple of years, HPH had a big contingent at Endure24 (how many five mile laps of Bramham Park can you do in 24 hours, either solo or part of a team!). Charlotte C finished as first woman, running a frankly bonkers 23 laps (114 miles), and we had strong performances all round despite the event being a dustbath for much of the first day!
  • Well done to the chaps who took on the York 5K series race this month – it was a hot one! Kudos to Dan S, who smashed out an incredible 16:46!
  • Our 20th anniversary celebration at Headingley Stadium was a wonderful evening – so many Harriers attended, some who are new to our club and some who have been around for two decades! Congratulations to all our awards winners – the HPH Hall of Fame has been updated! Thank you to everyone who came along on the night, and to the 20th anniversary committee for their efforts!
  • Ilkley Half Marathon is always, always, always a hot one… Kudos to all the Harriers who ran the course, especially those nursing sore heads from the anniversary party the night before! The course and atmosphere make it a great race, but maybe next year we’ll get some cloud cover!
  • Good to see HPH represented at the Baildon Canter fell race, always a cracking event!
  • Well done to Phil H, who continued his ultra quest with the Eight Stations Ultra and the Denholme Doddle!
  • The HPH Tri club had a great time at Ripon Triathlon, with storming performances despite the heat! Well done everyone!
  • Six teams of Harriers took part in the Golden Acre Relay race (thankfully much drier than last year)! Adam, Ben and Sam took the overall win – nice one lads! – and all our teams ran excellently!
  • HPH’s Malawi correspondent, Chloe B, took on the seriously hilly Mt Mulanje Porters’ Race – 23km with over 2,000m of ascent!
  • Slightly closer to home, Joe M took part in the Ingleborough Mountain Race – 10km up to the top of the Yorkshire peak and back again!
  • Adam L ran the Ras Yr Wyddfa – a smidge under 10 miles in a smidge over 80 minutes, with a full ascent and descent of Yr Wyddfa/Snowdon!
  • Five Harriers ran a very hot and dusty St Aidan’s 10K – well done folks!
  • We closed out July with the Great Owl Piglove summer races – some cracking running by the Harriers who took part, with Dan S and Euan D taking first and second place respectively in the 5K!

As ever, apologies to anyone I’ve missed – HPH gets up to so much (even in heatwaves) it’s hard to keep track. Proud to be red-and-offset-white as ever – happy running everyone!