Abbey Dash Result & Report

Race Date: Wednesday 10th July 2024

Race Report by Martin Downham

The NEW KMR (Race 5) Abbey Dash 2024 took place on Wednesday 10th July. It was ran on the new “hillier” off-road course.

Event summary:

Conditions: Warm, muggy (but dry). There was a pleasant light breeze up top

Terrain: Woodland paths, lumpy open grassland trails, farm tracks, steps (up and down), swing gates and a short but welcomed stretch of paved pathway

Strava stats: Distance 6.78km. Total elevation c. 138m (previous event distance 8.29km and elevation 85m). 

For comparison, the Memorial Run was a mere 5.37km long with 64m of elevation. Variety or what!  

Registration at Maltby Catholic Club, Millindale, Maltby from 6pm.

Entry on day only EA £6 / OTHERS 8. TRA members also qualify for discounted entry. Age: 16 years old to enter the race. 

Race starts at 7pm but runners assemble by the start on Maltby Crags at about 6.45pm (which is approx. 200m down the lane over the main road) for a pre race briefing.

This is a qualifying race in the KMR series but also a standalone race, so there are prizes.

Parking is very limited on local roads so car share is preferable.

There is first aid at the start/finish. A defibrillator is also available, courtesy of Maltby Town Council and England Athletics.

After the race runners can purchase drinks at the bar and Maltby Running Club very kindly provide a post race chip butty


Report

Following on from yet more rainfall (the day before) there were puddles and slippery mud on some parts of the course. The nylon/plastic matting encountered shortly after the start was also rather slippery. The “new route” took us out of the woods (and the valley) up a steep climb to an open farmed loop, past a pylon and around a large arable field. The grassed / mud path was quite uneven. Someone had very nicely mowed the sides of this path (which cleared all the pesky overhanging grass and nettles), thus avoiding the accepted lower leg smarting for the journey home. After what seemed like a very large loop, a return to the lower path ended in a welcome right turn towards Maltby on a surfaced path. There were some widely spaced steps (for the brave) on the way down, followed by a run along the brook (via a couple of swing gates) back to the start / finish funnel.

As nice as it is to rise above the valley, the new undulating route no longer passes The Abbey (which was point of distinction from other trail races). The uneven surface required a lot of focus and stressed the knees more than usual. An important semi final in the football may have affected tonight’s attendance, but this is definitely a local trail race worth trying, maybe sometime soon (and not just for the food!).

Runners and marshals mingle at the Abbey Dash

Thanks go to the organisers and marshals (at all key points), the yellow arrow painter and the grass cutter (a top tip for other narrow trail events).

Martin was the sole Strider among 77 finishers at the Abbey Dash. Luke Davis of MRC won the men’s race in a time of 00:27:15. The women’s race was won by Catherine Eddison of RHAC in a time of 00:30:59.

Strider Results

Pos Name Cat Cat Pos Time
32 Martin Downham MV60 3 00:38:55

Full results are available on the Maltby Running Club website.

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