AN incredibly busy week for the Ilkley Harriers saw top performances across a range of distances and events.

Top of the list was Jemima Elgood at the International Snowdon Race on Saturday.

Representing England for the first time at senior level, she produced a superb run to finish in the top 10.

On the same day, Kate Archer bagged another podium place with second at the Ingleborough Mountain Race.

She was just 15 seconds behind the first lady, Linda Hardaker of Keighley, who finished 35th overall.

On Sunday, Ilkley's Daryl King made the top 50 at the Lytham St Annes Windmill Half Marathon.

On a fast and flat course around Lytham St Annes and Fairhaven Lake, he clocked 1:34:52 behind winner Grant Johnson of Salford Harriers.

The Harriers were also well represented at a couple of team events last week.

First up on Wednesday was the final race in this season's Harrogate District Summer Race League - an entertaining handicap finale at Sicklinghall, organised by Wetherby Runners.

The start times were staggered according to earlier results, leading to a huge bunch finish as it all came back together.

Jack Wood was the overall winner of the series with a perfect record of three wins out of three, and Malcolm Pickering was almost as dominant in the MV65 category.

And then on Friday, it was the Washburn Valley Relays around Fewston and Swinsty reservoirs.

There was a fantastic battle between two of the Harriers' teams, with Daryl King just holding off Sally Armitage on the final leg to prevail by seven seconds.

Those two races were both under 10km, but it was the ultra end of the running spectrum for a few other Harriers.

Helen Waddington took on the misleadingly-titled Denholme Doddle - a 28-mile circuit with 4,000+ feet of ascent encompassing open moorland, steep-sided Pennine valleys, meandering woodland trails and numerous reservoirs.

The route was quite a handful in terms of route finding, with so many criss-cross footpaths, ways and trails (Pennine, Millennium, Senior, Great Northern and Calder Aire Link).

So it was a challenge to stay on track, especially with a small field of runners, which very quickly thinned out.

But Waddington took it all in her stride and notched a time of just over seven hours.

The Man v Lakes race is described as "an adventure run, like nothing you will have experienced."

Starting with a crossing of the quicksands of Morecambe, it mixed a rollercoaster running route with wades, swims, slides and an assault course before a more serene kayak just before the finish.

Gavin Lamb and Jayne Norman were up for the challenge, Lamb comfortably in the top 10 with his time of five hours and 35 minutes, with Norman also well to the fore in 7:45.

And congratulations to the Harriers' Jann Smith, who completed the Joss Naylor Lakeland Challenge in severe conditions - a daunting 48 miles, 17,000 feet of climbing and 30 summits.

Naylor, a fell running legend with achievements too numerous to mention, set up the challenge for runners over the age of 50 and he was there to greet Smith at the finish in Wasdale.

Covering even further was Abigail Bailey at the Thunder Run.

This is a 24-hour relay race where runners are tested against the clock, putting tactics, endurance and speed and teamwork to the ultimate test.

'Teamwork' is the key for most as it's usually five or six-person squads which take on the event, but Bailey went for the solo option and completed a staggering 100km.

Right back down in distance to 5km, and several Harriers took part in Saturday's Parkruns across the UK and beyond.

There was an unusual one on the sands at Portrush in Northern Ireland, just below where the world's best golfers were in action at the Open Championship.

Hilda Coulsey represented the Harriers to great effect again while Shane Lowry and co were strutting their stuff in pursuit of the Claret Jug.

And finally, at the Cracoe Fell Race on Sunday, Iain Gibbons was an impressive ninth.

RESULTS:

International Snowdon Race (females), Saturday: 1 1:14:49 Sarah McCormack, 10 1:28:04 Jemima Elgood. 137 finished

Ingleborough Mountain Race, Saturday: (1 48:02 Hector Haines HBT), 36 1:00:21 Kate Archer, second lady, 42 1:01:27 Roy Ruddle, 53 1:03:33 Will Buckton. 164 finished

Lytham St Annes Windmill Half Marathon, Sunday: (1 1:10:43 Grant Johnson, Salford Harriers), 44 1:34:52 Daryl King. 435 finished

Washburn Valley Relays, Friday: (1 55:50 Roundhay), 17 68:35 Jonathan Turner 19:15, Craig Mainprize 27:21, Daryl King 21:49, 18 68:42 Dan McKeown 18:07, Peter Roll 28:59, Sally Armitage 21:36, 22 72:24 Mike Duffield 20:59, Michael Ho 30:27, Mike Abrams-Cohen 20:58. 54 teams finished

Harrogate District Summer Race League #5, Wednesday, July 17: (1 32:30 Jonny Johnson, Harrogate Harriers), 28 38:57 Jonathan Turner, 84 44:35 Sarah Pickering, 100 45:49 Malcolm Pickering, 141 48:31 Tom Lally, 234 55:17 Sally Pickering, 245 56:15 Anna Pickering, 251 56:35 Dawn Turner, 280 61:43 Sally Wright, 301 71:17 David Millson.

Parkruns, Saturday: Bakewell - (1 16:31 Ben Hague, Rotherham Harriers), 37 21:25 Steve Newell. 267 ran. Bradford - (1 16:45 Matthew Merrick, Aldershot, Farnham and District AC), 4 18:59 Steven Gott, 7 19:54 Jonathan Turner, 173 28:52 Dawn Turner, 292 35:04 Dave Reynier. 380 ran. California Country Park - (1 17:00 Daniel Brookling, Windsor, Slough, Eton and Hounslow AC), 50 24:50 Emily Elmes. 184 ran. Centre Vale - (1 16:26 Max Wharton, Halifax Harriers), 44 24:50 Will Worboys. 146 ran. Clapham Common - (1 17:21 James Ralston, Southville RC), 30 19:36 Rob Cunningham. 557 ran. Harrogate - (1 17:42 Tom Moulson, U/A), 189 27:07 Chris Cunningham. 449 ran. Middleton Woods - (1 18:06 Calum Clark, Leeds and Bradford Triathlon Club), 59 27:38 Petra Bijsterveld. 158 ran. Portrush - (1 17:58 Scott Rankin, Foyle Valley AC), 121 28:18 Hilda Coulsey. 252 ran. Skipton - (1 17:48 Julian Hood, Skipton AC), 21 23:05 Catherine Gibbons, first female. 190 ran. Whinlatter Forest - (1 18:44 Mark Lamb, Keswick AC), 36 26:59 Geoff Howard. 119 ran.