Martha breaks the record

Last Wednesday (July 24), local runner Martha Tibbot picked up yet another record, finishing the ‘Black Knight Charge’ in 36 minutes and 54 seconds, making her the fastest woman ever to complete the course. 

The six-mile race, which has been going for over 20 years, sees runners travel through Daisy Nook Country Park in Oldham, across various terrain. 

Organised by East Cheshire Harriers and the Local Runners Podcast, the race has been a huge success over the past few years, attracting runners across Greater Manchester and beyond. 

Katie Kay, of the East Cheshire Harriers and the Local Runners Podcast spoke of her pride in being involved in the event: 

“I look forward to this race every year, there’s a real community feel and it’s quite a low-key race which I love. 

“We’ve had some great feedback from those involved and people were especially pleased with the support on route- the marshals were brilliant throughout and we can’t thank them enough.”  

Following her record-breaking win, Saddleworth Runners’ Martha Tibbot said she was delighted with the achievement: 

“I’ve done the race three years in a row, finishing third on my first attempt and second on my second attempt, so I just felt it would be third time lucky for me this time, and fortunately it was. 

“I beat my personal best for the race so I had a feeling I might have broken the course record, and I was so pleased when that was confirmed. 

When asked if she will be back again next year, Martha said: 

“I’m not sure, I feel as though I’ve accomplished everything I wanted to in this year's race but never say never, we’ll just have to see what happens.” 

The overall winner was Ashton’s David Barratt, who finished the race in an impressive 33 minutes and five seconds. 

The Salford Harriers runner added yet another race to his impressive list of accolades in 2024, including the Mossley 10k and the Tour 2024. 

As well as the adult race, there is also a shorter two-mile race for Under-16's, with Marshall Fleet taking the victory for the juniors. 

As well as helping to organise this race, the Local Runners Podcast will be partnering with Active Tameside to deliver a brand new 5k race series later this year- The Tameside 5k festival. 

This brand-new partnership will form a number of races held at the Tameside Cycle Circuit in Ashton, with the first one being held on Saturday October 5. 

There will be graded races from 35 minutes to sub 16 minutes, as well as a junior race. 

Entries for the race are now open, to enter, visit the following link: 

https://activetameside.niftyentries.com/Tameside-Festival-Graded-5k-Races-2024 

Updates on the race will also be posted on the Local Runners Podcast social media pages.