The Gin Pit 5 was steaming with Burnden Road Runners last weekend and Matt Dewhurst was the first member to finish for the club in 31mins 3secs, achieving sixth position in a field of 171.

Named in honour of the area of Gin Pit Colliery, (the word ‘Gin’ short for ‘Engine’), the race HQ was Astley and Tyldesley Miners’ Welfare Institute and it is hosted by Astley and Tyldesley Road Runners.

A staple on the running calendar, the race was the choice of the captains for the club’s Off Road Championship.

Leading his club home, Dewhurst was followed by a host of speedy Burndeners. Michael Kermode crossed in 33:36 and Paul Duke completed the top three in 33:50.

First Burnden lady was the ever-swift Lyndsay Darbyshire, in 38:41, and second was Anne Ferguson, in 42:48. Melissa Husbands was third lady in 44:22.

Notable mention went to Bernie Jones, who, in exactly 12 months of running races for Burnden, knocked an astounding 9:23 off last year’s time, crossing the line with her new 5 Mile PB of 44:39.

Six Burndeners brought home the coveted Chester Triple medal as nine members completed the final race in the series - the Chester Marathon or Metric Marathon.

The triple is described as ‘the ultimate running challenge’ by the organisers.

The enviable Chester Triple medal - huge and gold - was created to tempt new runners to increase and progress through different running distances and ‘achieve something they didn’t think was possible’.

Athletes aiming to collect the fancy medal must run the MBNA Chester 10K, the Essar Chester Half Marathon and then finish either the MBNA Chester Metric or full Marathon - either 26.2K or 26.2 miles, in October.

Cheryl and Andy Dunleavy were joined by three other Burnden members.

The club was represented in the marathon by Suleman Badat, who achieved a superb sub-three hours in 2:59:12. Also in the marathon were Martin Archer (4:17:16) and Triple Medallers, Simon and Jennifer Entwistle, who completed 26.2 miles in 5:13:11 and 5:50:16, respectively.

In the Metric Marathon, it was Jason Attwood who chased the Triple Medal home first, crossing in 2:51:19. Sarah Brown decided on the Metric as the first step on the road to Manchester Marathon in April and she finished this challenge in a promising 3:04:04.

Shirley Robinson had her eyes trained on the gold as she finished in 3:36:15 and, finishing together in support - motivated by the Triple Medal - were Gillian McGowan and Jen Forkin, who passed the finish line in 4:11:41.

Twelve months on from completing their own Chester Triple Challenge, Cheryl and Andy Dunleavy were back to support their fellow Burnden Road Runners – partly resurrecting their Road Runner Beep Beep costumes and offering superb support and hugs at Mile Two and 26.2.

Meanwhile, it was Ravi Patel’s time to mark a milestone with his 100th parkrun this week as he chose to volunteer as pacer, finishing in 29:51.

It was a special time for parkrun as it celebrated 20 years and Patel said: “That’s 100 parkruns completed! From running to volunteering, I’ve never been part of a more positive and supportive community.

“If you’re new to running or just need some motivation to get out, go find your nearest parkrun and run or walk around. You won’t regret it.”