- Wednesday 15 January 2025
What a glorious way to start the New Year! We were treated to a stunning sunrise on a very cold but dry Saturday morning with the temperatures slowly rising all day to reach a balmy 4 degrees by midday. Given the time of year and the freezing temperatures across most of the country, we couldn’t have ask for better race conditions and neither could the racers, as they came out in a plethora of gear, ranging from shorts and t-shirts to all the layers and wind/waterproofs.
It just goes to show, don’t judge a winter race event by the date. It felt like spring midday and only when the sun was hidden in shadow were we reminded that we were in the dead of winter.

The course area offered a lot of variety with heathland, woodland and even a few coastal stretches for those willing to put in the distance to get out there. Although a flatter course than normal, flatter does not mean easier, it just means you go further and faster and there is not as much chance to rest legs on the downhills or walk up the ups (who knew you’d be missing the hills!?)!
A special thanks go to Andy Wayland and Rob and Sarah Burridge who gave away their pump, spare inner tube and puncture repair kits to other racers to allow them to finish their races, a true demonstration of the adventure racing spirit.

In terms of the races, as is often the case, most racers (67%) in the Full and Taster categories opted to run first on fresh legs. Overall, the course slightly favoured bikers, with teams picking up an average of 1.91 points per minute on the bike versus 1.85 points per minute on the run.
Five teams managed to clear the run course, all using a slightly different route to do so, with Tom Davies fastest in a time of 2:16, ahead of Simon Phillips in 2:25, David Chaplin in 2:55, Zak Harper in 3:06 and Jeremy Waite in 3:07. Tom Davies had a brilliant run picking up 2.86 points per minute for the most efficient run of the day ahead of Simon Phillips (2.71 points per minute) and Team Rudd (Alice and Philip Rudd – 2.46 points per minute). In the female category, In Search of Control (Eleanor Thackeray, Pollie Boyle & Julia Robson) had a superb run dropping just one checkpoint for the highest score of the day in a time of 3:14 whilst also picking up 1.95 points per minute for the most efficient run of the day, followed by Escaping the Kids (Charlotte Duncan, Belinda Robbie & Rebecca Galea – 1.7 points per minute) and Sarah Russell (1.58 points per minute).

An impressive six teams managed to clear the bike course with Dan Thorby quickest in a time of 2 hours and 28 minutes ahead of Nick Gracie (2:43), Helen Chapman (3:11), Julie Banton (3:42), Team Burridge (Rob and Sarah Burridge – 3:51) and Andrew Wayland (4:07). Team Doctored Results (Simon Jennison & Graham King) had a great ride to pick up 3.06 points per minute for the most efficient bike of the day, followed by Dan Thorby (2.73 points per minute) and Tom Hards (2.66 points per minute). In the female category, In Search of Control (Eleanor Thackeray, Pollie Boyle & Julia Robson) backed up their superb run with a really efficient bike to pick up 2.6 points per minute, followed by Fuelledbychips (Emma Hill, Caroline Gillespie – 2.3 points per minute) and Helen Chapman (2.11 points per minute).

Overall, rewards for finishing early outweighed penalties for finishing late with 83% of teams finishing within the time limits, but there were a few notable exceptions with The BBBs (Frederick & Laurence McDonald) and the Posh Gromits (Veronica Benson & Ruth Horner) picking up an impressive 122 penalty points combined for finishing by finishing 34 minutes and 27 minutes late respectively in the three-hour event – and who can blame them with the weather like it was; it certainly was a day to stay out and enjoy it! Doug Bewley and Emily Hartley both timed their races to near perfection finishing just five seconds inside the time limit whilst there were six teams who finished less than a minute over with De Wet Kruger the unluckiest of those teams finishing just six seconds over the time limit.
We now look forward to seeing you all at our next event in the Forest of Dean on Saturday 15 February, for another spectacular course and race. We can’t wait to do it all again in five weeks’ time!

A summary of the results follows:
Run-only (2 hours)
In the female category, Emma Clarke had a brilliant race to win with a score of 276 points (the best run-only score of the day) ahead of Team R&R (Ruth Brownlee and Rochelle Jones) on 222 points and Team Snails (Anne Beastall, Jodie Mitchell) making a mockery of their team name to round out the podium on 184 points.
In the open category, Oscar Sly once again topped the podium with 266 points ahead of Timothy Hooker on 245 points and Stephen Turley on 232 points.
In the mixed category returning racers Team M&M (Mike and Amanda Yorwerth) won the day with 273 points ahead of Team Red (Ivor Crooks and Jade Smith) on 201 points whilst Team Had to Buy a Compass for This Event (Kelly Wickens and Mitch Wren) made excellent use of their recent purchase to finish third with 184 points.
Bike-only (2 hours)
In the bike-only category, Team C Squared (Clare & Chris Gibson) improved on their score in the last event to finish on 185 points and win the day!
A special mention to Jason Bennett, our youngest racer on the day, who had a great race alongside his dad, and regular racer Rich, to finish four minutes inside the time limit for a brilliant overall score of 169 points.
Duo Taster (Run & Bike 3 hours)
In the female category, Muddy Mamas (Carol Winch, Jennifer Burton & Susan Fridd) topped the podium with a brilliant 285 points ahead of Team Cartman (Hannah Chapman, Grace Cartwright) on 244 points and The Posh Gromits (Veronica Benson, Ruth Horner) on 181 points.
In the open category, Scott McMillan topped the podium with 324 points ahead of The BBBs (Frederick & Laurence McDonald) on 292 points and John Russell on 241 points.
In the mixed category there was a real ding-dong battle for the top spot on the podium with Team Dolly (Luke & Amy Dollaghan) and Faster than Badger (Will & Sophie Garrett) separated by just one point! In the end it was Will and Sophie who won with a score of 350 points for the best Taster score of the day, with Luke and Amy settling for second place. Team Map & Compass (Kathryn Heppinstall, Alan Lester) made up the podium with 232 points.
Duo Full (Run & Bike 5 hours)
In the Open Teams category, Doctored Results (Simon Jennison & Graham King) topped the podium with an excellent 628 points ahead of Fusion Adventure Racing Team (Graeme & Aidan Williams) on 565 points and Need for Speed (Andrew Cawthorne & David Birrell) on 554 points.
In the Mixed Team category Team Gill (Emma & Richard Gill) had a brilliant race to win with a score of 660 points ahead of Team Rudd (Alice & Philip Rudd) on 631 points with Team Mile Hunters (Jennifer Hunt and Nick Mileham) completing the podium with 572 points.
In the Female Team category In Search of Control (Eleanor Thackeray, Pollie Boyle, Julia Robson) won the day with a brilliant 628 points ahead of Fuelledbychips (Emma Hill & Caroline Gillespie) on 553 points and Team Kick on! (Ellie Caple & Katherine Hands) on 517 points.
In the Female Solo category, Helen Chapman had another superb race to win with a score of 610 points ahead of Ella Pyman on 530 points and Julie Banton on 497 points.
In the Open Solo category, Tom Davies dropped just one checkpoint to win with a score of 791 points ahead of Carl Silver on 740 points with Daniel Thorby rounding off the podium with 731 points.
Vets Category
In the female category, Pollie Boyle topped the podium with an excellent adjusted score of 637 points ahead of Juliet Vickery on 623 points and Emma Roe on 607 points.
In the open category, Nick Gracie topped the podium with an adjusted score of 704 points and then there was a real bun-fight behind him with five racers all finishing within six points of each other! Jeremy Waite finished at the top of the chasing pack in second place overall on a score of 676 points with Andy Prince rounding out the podium on 674 points ahead of David Chaplin (673 points), Phil Haycock (672 points) and Richard Gill (670 points). Incredibly close racing!
The 2024/25 Questars Winter Series
Our Winter Series draws to a close in the Forest of Dean on Saturday 15 February.
Anyone entering into any of our adventure races will be automatically entered into our Series Championship with each individual’s top three one-day results counting towards the final Championship position. Full details can be found on our Series Championship page.
