One of the most enjoyable aspects of holding running events is the various degrees of personal achievement reached by runners – from those sprinting home to win races to people taking on their first ultra and friends helping each other over the line.

It was no different yesterday as a host of runners descended on Naseby – once home of one of the most important battles in British history – to take on a range of races.

Our Shires & Spires event features distances over 10k, the half-marathon, the marathon, our 35-mile ultra marathon and – for the first time – the three-quarter marathon.

That final distance is one I really love as it bridges the sometimes frightening gap between half- and full marathon events. It was fantastic to see so many runners take it on yesterday as the next step in their running journey.

We had some fantastic runs yesterday from some super fast athletes, but before I move on to tell you about our race winners, I just want to share this video with you. It’s a chat with James Thorpe, who many people in Northamptonshire will know as a committed member of the running community.

By his own admission, James is never going to be winning races, but in many ways he’s what these events are about: people to striving to reach their own goals, loving running and collecting some bling along the way. In this video, he tells us how his Shires & Spires experience in the 10k went and why he loves our races.

We hope to see you again soon James…