Last Sunday, Newport & District Running Club’s David Thomas took part in the Half Marathon at the Derby Running Festival. Based at Elvaston Castle, the event also features 5k and 10k races, with the course following a flat multi-terrain route on a mixture of trail, tarmac and footpaths, going through the castle’s grade II listed grounds, past the iconic hall and the famous Golden Gates.

David (centre) during the race

In a field of 287 runners, David managed to get a personal best time of 1 hour, 55 minutes, 41 seconds, and finished in 120th place overall, and 11th in his age category.

Dave’s selfie from the start/finish area