Author: Peter

Awesome running from Sarah Capstick this week in the Weston Prom Run 5 mile series with a super fast time of 36 mins 04 secs. This gave her a top spot in the FV60 category and makes her one of the fastest females in her category in the UK this year!!!!

The month of March has been a busy one for our hares. In the early part of the month, runners attended the Grand Canal 10k, Half Marathon and Marathon down in Devon with Jess coming in 3rd female and Georgina completing her 170th marathon!!!
A plethora of half marathons followed in Brighton, Exeter, Telford, Lisbon, Bath and finally Yeovil with great results all round!!
As always there was a huge club turn out to tackle the muddy bog of the Grizzly and its little sister, the Cub, in Seaton whilst Peter and Sally journeyed over to Dorset for the LDWA Cerne Giant event.
This was the month in which we held our very own Humdinger and Hurtle races. The runners and marshals were blessed with perfect weather and there were an incredible 3 course records!!!
Our new membership year has just begun so why not check out our website and join us? We cater for all abilities with a range of sessions on road, trail and track. What are you waiting for? Sign up here Home – Running Forever Running Club, Taunton

RFRC have kicked 2025 off to a good start!!
11 runners braved a cold and rainy Chard Flyer 10k on the first day of the year with a 1st place in the V60 category for Ali Bisatt!! This was the opening race of the Somerset Series, and we are looking forward to seeing how our runners progress throughout the year!!
A few days later, as the weather continued to challenge, runners headed to Devon for the Walter Raleigh Half whilst Kate Mackenzie represented RFRC in the First Chance 10k in Exeter. Great results as Emma Rathbone achieved a 3rd lady place in the Walter Raleigh Half and Kate Armstrong, Nicky Chrascina and Emma Biswas placed well in their respective age groups.
Spirits were high as our weekly running groups have carried on despite the weather, with some people having to wade through knee-deep waters around the local lanes.
If you would like to be part of this fantastic sociable club, we cater for all abilities and the camaraderie is second to none. Sign up at – https://runningforever.club/

The last few weeks of the year have proved fruitful for RFRC runners with many miles covered. Not only running miles but air miles, as once again, our members have travelled far and wide in search of adventure.
Back in November, three trips abroad covered the Verona marathon, Lanzarote marathon and the Benidorm half marathon where the ‘après run’ was well earned and our runners were suitably re-hydrated European style.
Into December and Peter Hall took on his 85th ultra in the ‘Fairytale of Newquay’ and a group of runners travelled closer to home for the ‘Weston Christmas Cracker’ – now in its 36th year!!
Talking of milestones, our very own Running Forever Running Club is now 20 years old!!!!! The club began in a small running shop on Station Road, Taunton where the owner, Simon Reach, decided to set up a training group for the Taunton Half Marathon. (We are all glad to hear that this race will be back in its new format in 2026 😊)
Running Forever Running Club would like to wish all members, old and new a wonderful New Year. Here’s to another 20 years of club running!!!

Our runners have been busy over the last couple of weeks!! From 5 miles to 100k, Taunton to Valencia, we have raced our little socks off!!
But first, we need to congratulate and thank all those amazing trail runners who tackled our own Herepath half marathon yesterday. Our sell-out race is popular with people of all abilities, and we had some amazing feedback. As always, the marshals fulfil their roles with big smiles whatever the weather, all the entrants had a jolly good time and money was raised for a local charity!!
October was good to Rob Harris who earned a 1st male place in the Coast to Castle 100k where the conditions were tough due to the weather and the arduous climbs over Exmoor National Park from Lynmouth finishing at Drewsteignton on Dartmoor.
Dee Finch enjoyed the Bath to Bristol 25k which she signed up for at the last minute (as you do) and half marathons were completed far and wide, from the Eden Project in Cornwall, to Valencia in Spain!!
Peter Hall went over the border into Wales to run up Pen y fan in the cold and foggy OTT Ultra
A group of runners attended the Weston Prom 5 miles on Thursday evening, one of a series of 8 races and another group trotted along the waterside in the Grand Canal Canter 10k a couple of days later.
This weekend whilst the Herepath Half was happening, Georgina Brice completed another marathon in Cornwall, Sally Tuer was awarded 2nd lady in her age group in Apocalypse 10 mile trail race and we had a great representation of runners in the Bideford 10.
All in all, a great couple of weeks!!

Another busy weekend for RFRC with races all over the South West and beyond. A small group of our runners headed off to Burnham on Sea for a local Half Marathon while Emma Biswas ran the Bournemouth Half. A slightly longer distance of 20 miles was completed by Tanya Downes who ran the ‘Winding Paths’ tough and hilly ‘Loop’ in Devon.
Also in Devon, Peter Hall completed a larger loop of 50 miles. ‘Potter Round the Otter’ is a Long Distance Walking Association event which also welcomes runners. Further afield, Dean Bennett tackled the Autumn 100 in Surrey in a fantastic time of 17hrs and 2mins to finish in 6th place overall!!
If you want to be part of our fantastic club, check out our website and sign up https://runningforever.club/

Fantastic turnout from RFRC at the Taunton 10k!!! Great results all round including age group trophies for Ali Bisatt, Hannah Kirkman and Sarah Capstick 🏆🏆🏆

June has been a busy month so far for RFRC members with lots more to come but I’ll leave that for next time!!
2 major races featured over the last couple of weeks – the first one being the Dartmoor Discovery 32-mile road race. This is super tough and has beaten many a runner but for some reason we just keep going back!! It is a major local race on our calendar for runners and supporters and was extra special this year. It is the favourite race of our beloved Scott Weetch and a chance for many to reminisce and do him proud. A disco followed the race and some well-deserved ale to aid recovery.
As if that wasn’t tough enough, the following week some of those same runners attended the Giant’s Head trail marathon in Dorset!! There were also the shorter half marathon and 11k distances ensuring something for everyone. Runners were once again accompanied by many supporters from the club with a barn dance in the evening to finish off the legs completely.
Runners also attended the Crewkerne 10k, Maverick Dorset 14k and Shiver Me Timbers 10 mile trail race with beautiful scenery all round.
A special mention goes to Dave Urwin who completed the South Downs Way 100 miles in 27 hours and 40 mins. Fantastic work Dave – lovely to see you back doing ultras!!

Bank holiday weekend kicked off with our club AGM, Quingo and raffle. Great fun was had by all as we reminisced over the last 20 years of the club and started looking forward to our 20th Anniversary celebrations. Club president, Helen Phillips was honoured with the George Hudson award for contribution to the upcoming celebration activities and Scott Weetch was posthumously awarded the Mike Nicholls trophy for his inspiration to others. Our club charity for 23/24 was St Margaret’s Hospice and it was decided to roll this over for another year with £185 raised in the raffle to kickstart the fundraising.
A couple of great weeks of running for our club members!! A regular race on our club calendar, The North Dorset Villages Marathon, does exactly what it says on the tin and follows a beautiful route around North Dorset villages!! Some good results all round with new member, Emma Rathbone, achieving a 1st in her age group and Georgina Brice adding to her 160 marathons!
Members travelled over to Yeovilton on Wednesday night for the second race of six in the Yeovilton 5k Series where Sarah Capstick came 1st in her age group. Excellent running on a sticky evening as the weather started to heat up.
This Saturday, most of the competition stayed local with the West Country Ultra Hilly 50 and Flat 50. Starting from Taunton, an unexpectedly hot day didn’t stop our members from completing the 50-mile, flat route along the canal, River Parrett and coastal path to Minehead. Dee Finch was surprised to receive a third lady place, but we all knew she was more than capable and look forward to seeing great things from her. Emma Grieg completed her 50th marathon, walking the whole distance in just 14 hours!! 2 members took on the Hilly 50 from Minehead up to Dunkery Beacon and back – a beautiful but tough route along the coast path and up onto Exmoor National Park. All the runners were encouraged along by friendly and supportive RFRC members marshalling at aid stations throughout the route.
Further afield, Rob Harris took on the gruelling Apocalypse Ultra in Shropshire which involves 4 tough loops totalling nearly 10000ft of ascent!! He survived to tell the tale and was one of only 24 people out of 130 to finish this year!!
Sunday saw club members travelling to the Ottery 10k and Portcullis 10k in Langport.
A great weekend of racing and supporting others. This is part of the ethos of our wonderful club. If you want to be part of the next 20 years, why not check out our website and sign up? https://runningforever.club/

The past week has been a time of very mixed emotions for the club. On Wednesday there was a deservedly huge turnout at Taunton Crematorium to say a final goodbye to Scott Weetch, a founding member of RFRC but more importantly a thoroughly decent man who made friends wherever he went. As a result it was standing room only for a very moving service, with people from every part of Scott’s life there to pay their respects to him. Members of RFRC and Taunton Athletic, accompanied by past and present race directors of Scott’s favourite SW races, formed a guard of honour on the approach to the crematorium building proudly wearing their respective club colours.

Scott was hugely supportive of runners of all ability and would have wanted nothing more than for club members to continue to enjoy a sport he loved very much. He would certainly have been present in some capacity at the inaugural Channel Events ‘Steaming to the Coast’ race on Saturday. It’s fair to say that without Scott being a friend of the race director that the event would not have been devised. It was very poignant therefore that Channel Events announced on the day that this would become a memorial race for Scott – a wonderfully fitting tribute to him.

The red and white of RFRC was everywhere you looked in the assembled throng, who had just enjoyed a steam engine powered trip from Minehead to Bishops Lydeard, before setting off under their own steam to complete distances from 11k up to a full marathon. There are too many to mention here, but well done to everyone for supporting this new race, which looks like it will become a fixture of the spring calendar. The weather was absolutely perfect – I’m sure it will be far more ‘interesting’ in future years!

If you say marathon to most non-runners in the UK they will immediately think of London, and this year’s event saw strong club representation in the event, including a few ‘lucky’ entrants who made it through the ballot, the club ballot, charity entries and some well earned ‘good for age’ places. Congratulations go to Eleanor Perry, Ali Bisatt, Damon Butler, Isabelle Ashton, Jamie Bousfield, Nicola Kelly, Morwenna Dunstan & Nicky Chrascina.

And bucking the London trend was Georgina Brice who took her marathon completion tally to an amazing 160 by running ‘Not the London Marathon’.