Feedback on the 2011 race

Sale Harriers Jnr Dragon. Shamefully deprived of the mascots prize..

Many thanks to all of you who have already fed-back on the WCR race.

A few quotes are listed below. We also welcome suggestions where you think we can improve things still further, particularly with regard to our key aims of ensuring race/road safety and the fulfillment of marshalling and race management duties. Contact us HERE. 

Can LCRC members also note that the WCR de-brief meeting will be held on Thursday the 30th June in the club house ~8:30pm onwards.   

Thanks again to all our runners, supporters and sponsors for making this such a special event. See you in 2012 for our 30th WCR !

Richard & Tim

It's now two weeks ago that the WCR took place. We really enjoyed it, maybe because of the interesting weather on Sunday. My wife and I stayed for another two weeks afterwards to view all of Wales (with thanks to the WCR we remembered some places to return). Unfortunately we were not in the Castle when the prizes were rewarded. I'm really sorry for that. I misunderstood the final instructions and had understood that we had to go to the Rugby Club. After looking for the Rugby Club (we drove by and then it was hard to return...) and one pint we noticed that there were no other teams and then it was too late. Thanks to Nico from Haarlem I got the beautiful dragon. Wales will be always in my house now!

Thanks for letting us compete and the great organisation!

Joos de Bakker, Of de Rood

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Once again you have created a fantastic weekend.  A big thank you goes out to all of you who have worked so hard from all of us. Your organisation is just brilliant. Already sorting out our runners for next year, if we are lucky enough to be accepted. Once again a big thank you to you all from the Abergele Harriers.

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Many thanks to you, the time keepers and the marshals for organising yet another wonderful event. You all do a fantastic job organising the race every year.

Team Bath enjoyed the experience as always. Even the weather on Sunday didn't dampen our spirits!

Regards,

Dan Jones, Team Bath AC

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Thanks once again for another fine weekend of racing and hopefully I'll see you next year. Please pass on Serpentine's thanks to all your marshals and officials etc.

Ian Hodge, Serpentine Running Club

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Can you pass on my thanks and gratitude to your team for their dedication and professionalism over the two days (through sun and rain), our team went home with nothing but enthusiasm for the spirit and camaraderie of the Welsh Castles Relay.

Hope to celebrate the 30th next year with Les Croupiers Running club.

Thanks again

Dave Edwards, Abergele Harrier

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Thank you once again on behalf of Port Talbot Harriers for a thoroughly enjoyable event. Your organisation and attention to detail are nothing short of superb ! Yes the conditions on the Saturday were ideal for running but not even the atrocious weather on the Sunday could dampen our enjoyment and enthusiasm. It is mine and everyone else’s favourite weekend of the year. Magical!

Like all of the clubs we fully acknowledge the importance of our marshalling duties and are grateful for the clearly portrayed details you provided of the locations and specific duties which are so helpful in this. We all want this event to continue indefinitely which will only do so if the high level of health and safety already in place is maintained and we all must play our part in this.

Glad the presentation at Cardiff Castle went well and although we weren't able to be present as we were marshalling on the end of leg 19, we did send a car full of our members to represent us.

Thank you again for a great event. The only downside on finishing on Sunday is that it was 363 days to go to the Castles 2010, but PTH will be ready and waiting for the off.

Looking forward to seeing you in June next year.

Regards

Colin Anthony, Team Manager, Port Talbot Harriers

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Just a quick brief note to say a huge Thank You to you, Richard, and the organising committee for such a wonderful event, yet again, over the weekend. Some fantastic racing through the brilliant Welsh countryside.

Also to say Well Done to all those at Les Croupiers creating and ensuring the existence of such a great race.

Thanks again

Nigel Clemence, Penarth & Dinas Runners

ps.... 52 weeks to go !!

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Thanks for letting us in, everyone who has done it enjoyed it massively and are raving about it already and thank you and your team for all the hard work that you have put into it.

Regards,

Jon Cole, Ellesmere Port RC

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Many thanks to you and all the team, once again the organisation was magnificent.

The Sunday was challenging for runners and marshals, however the unique and special atmosphere generated by the Castles, will never be defeated by a "spot of rain".

Congratulations and Many thanks.

Dennis Michael, South Wales Police

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Full credit to you; once again a brilliant weekend of racing and great camaraderie, even the awful weather on Sunday could not take away the atmosphere that has been created over the years that ensures this is a truly unique event and bonds Clubs and their members like nothing else I have known.

I have taken part in every one of the 17 occasions that Clevedon have competed and although a massive amount of work and commitment to get teams mobilised etc, it is worth every minute of it.

Your organising team are a true example of how to put on a complex event such as the Castles and we always know you will deliver, which is why we look forward to it every year. 

We will be back again next year (as long as we are invited!) and are looking forward to it already - perhaps you could order some better weather though?!

Have a great summer and we look forward to seeing you soon.

Kind regards,

Andy Heyes, Chairman - Clevedon AC

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Thank you so much to you and your amazing team for a fantastic WCR 2011. All Mornington Chasers had a fabulous time (new castles & old) despite the not quite so nice weather yesterday!

We were of course happy to cheer on the winners and show our appreciation for the sterling work of the marshals and generosity of the sponsors at Cardiff Castle.

Kind regards and hope to see you again in 2012, if we are fortunate enough to get a place in the special Castles relay.

Camilla Ray, Mornington Chasers

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Thanks for the results.  We at Denbigh Harriers are very happy with results and have no amendments to report.  Thank you again for organising a splendid event.  For a small club like ours, it is a tremendous effort to field 20 decent runners, but we've advanced from scratching around to make up the numbers to actually attracting new members specifically because they wanted to compete in the famous Castles Relay.  One of them slogged through a hard winter's cross-country training to reward us with a 5th place finish on stage 16.  Overall we improved by 2 hours and 14 places, so we're fired up to make a further advance next year.  The only gripe is that 'veterans' start at 35.  If you raised it to 50 we'd be in with a chance of a trophy!

 Congratulations on making the race such fun and inspiring so many outstanding performances over a demanding course.

 Best wishes,

 Peter English, Denbigh Harriers

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Please accept my thanks and also on behalf of Manchester YMCA Harriers for once again providing a memorable racing weekend down through Wales during the Welsh Castle Relay 2011.

Please also pass on our thanks to all of your team who work so very hard not just on the day but during the year to ensure no stone is left uncovered with organising such a fantastic team event.  We know you all commit a lot of time and effort to put this race on and it’s very much appreciated.

Saturday was the perfect day for racing with excellent weather and tremendous support all the way along the route from everyone.

Getting up for the Sunday 7am start is never easy and when its windy and raining also  its even less inviting to drag yourself from your bed.  Having said that as one who has now run this stage eleven times the support this year was truly superb.  Huge thanks from me personally go to all the marshals along with all the team members who lined the route with plenty of support and cheering this definitely helped the runners and myself in a big way on a miserable morning especially during my early Sunday morning run.

Mind it has to be said even though it was raining the spirit of everyone was not dampened in any way and you could clearly see the weather was not going to stop everyone from having a great day and show fully the reasons why this is such a unique and popular relay race.

Next year will see our running club celebrating our 130th Anniversary.  I believe we are the second oldest running club in the country now and hope to celebrate this various ways including hopefully taking part in your 30th Anniversary relay race.

Al the best for the coming twelve months and we look forward to seeing you all again in June 2012.

Cheers

Stephen Symons, Hon Club President, Manchester YMCA Harriers

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Thank you for yet another great Welsh Castles Relay, even with the rain it was fantastic. We are already in the process of recruiting for a ladies team for next year – fingers crossed.

Kind Regards,

Janet Littlewood, Winchester & District AC

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Congratulations on another excellently organised event. The weather just added to the occasion although it was cold camping Saturday night.

 I was surprised and pleased to receive the voucher for best team captain – thank you.

 See you next year

Mark Hulmston, Wirral AC

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Just a quick note to say thank you to you and to your club for another brilliant weekend at the Welsh Castles Relay. Long may you continue to be able to host this fantastic event.

Thanks again

Paul Birkett, Salford Harriers

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Once again BWF AC wish to thank you, Tim and the rest of Les Croupiers for providing another magnificent weekend of racing, fun and friendship through Wales. That we had 3 winners was an added bonus as we go there to take part in a great event and whether we finish first or last is not that important.

Personally I had told my team that after 12 years or organising them I was going to retire, so when they failed to collect me after running Stage 1 I thought that was really it. However, the whole weekend was so inspiring that I might just change my mind and organise them for a 13th time!

Once again many thanks for all your great work as I know just how hard it is to organise an event such as this

Regards

Nick Hume, Blackpool, Wyre and Fylde AC

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Thanks for organising a fantastic weekend, it was another great event. 

Please pass on our thanks to all of your running colleagues who were involved in making the weekend a success. 

Hopefully we be seeing you next year to celebrate the 30th year of the Castles!

Thanks again, from all at Vale Royal

Rob Olliver, Vale Royal

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Thanks for a great event this year it was my 5th time, celebrated with the best leg of all at the Drovers, proud to have done the glory leg.

Gavin Edmonds, Serpentine RC

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Many thanks again for your immense efforts in organising another brilliant weekend in Wales, it is a huge commitment and we are very appreciative of all the effort involved.

Please pass on my thanks on behalf of everyone in Thames to everyone who helped make the race another memorable occasion. One of the many charms of the Castles is its variable weather, which we saw in full measure this year. Sunday was grim for the runners, but no less so for the organisers, but as usual you guys took it all in your stride. A consistently superb aspect of the organisation is the speed with which results are produced, and I’ve enclosed our corrections below, which are no doubt due to mistakes on our part.

All the best,

Larry Mathews, Thames Hare and Hounds

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On behalf of all the runners and supporters from Eastleigh Running Club who travelled up from Hampshire last Friday to take part in this year's event our team captain and myself would like to congratulate and thank you and all of your fantastic team for another great weekend. Despite the horrendous conditions on the Sunday everyone from ERC thoroughly enjoyed the camaraderie, banter and support amongst the clubs throughout the two days. The event remains the highlight of our running year. We hope to be fortunate enough to be invited again next year when we will be looking to gain revenge on our friends from LLiswerry who narrowly beat us 11 - 9 in the competition we have with them within the Relay itself. Once again many thanks for doing a great job.

Best wishes to you and Les Croupiers for the rest of the year.

 Colin Jones. Chairman and Stuart Hines, Team Captain, Eastleigh Running Club

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A brilliant weekend, thank you! The Stragglers team members have all requested that I send their thanks to you, and everyone involved, for delivering another superbly organised event!

Regards,

Steve Sandham, Stragglers

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A massive thanks to you and all the organising team for another fantastically organised event. Looking forward to next year already (and hopefully better weather)!

Nic Gould, Thames Hare & Hounds

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Our team greatly enjoyed the event despite Sunday's downpour.

Regards

Mike Mann, Dulwich Runners

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First of all: thanks for this great event! Organizing this must take a lot of your time. Everyone of our two teams was very satisfied with his/her stage and even rain was good rated for that's Wales, and that what we want.

Nico Swanik, Haarlem Globetrotters

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Great event, even with the rain which added in some ways to the event, because it showed what the runners and the organization were made of.

Poole Runners would like to commend the incredible efforts made to produce yet another wonderful celebration of friendly and brilliant racing on the most brilliant of "canvas" for our sport. Saturday was painted in oil's (sun oils) and Sunday's was most definitely water colours. The weather far from detracting from the event added an extra dimension akin to the "Dunkirk Spirit".

Best wishes to all

Alan Lewis, Chairman Poole Runners

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The Vipers had a wonderful time, despite the rather inclement weather on the Sunday.

As you know we’re a small club and finding sufficient numbers is always a bit of a challenge, I doubt we’ll ever be competitive in the Castles, but what we lack in ability, we make up for in the camaraderie of our team. We all enjoy being part of this great event.

Thanks to Yourself and Tim for recognising us and allowing us to ‘compete’ (in the loosest sense of course!)

Kind regards,

Chris Moles, Village Vipers

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We had an absolutely amazing weekend and our thanks must go to you for organising such a great event and to the other teams for their support. We may come last but we have the most fun I am damn sure of that!!

All the best

Gareth Evans, Village Vipers

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I would like to thank on behalf of myself and my team on a fantastically organised Welsh Castles this year! It was a joy and pleasure to be a part of the event and next year’s event is already being organised. Despite the freakish June weather, me and my team thoroughly enjoyed it.

Thanks again

Mark Appleton, Bromsgrove & Redditch

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Congratulations on organising a truly amazing race again.  A game of two halves for sure and I'm glad I ran on the Saturday but from where I was standing at Drovers (i.e. by the side of the road - not running), the wind and rain seemed to add to the occasion.  

James Pheasant, Burges Salmon LLP

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Thanks, once again, for such a great weekend.  Feedback at last night’s running club was positive and “buzzy” – it was great that we won the Mascot competition too.

Nigel Barker, Great Western Runners

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Fair play to you guys - to organise 20 races in 2 days and get the results out on email & website in 24hrs is damn good going.

Pass on our thanks and well done to yourself and every other piece of your jigsaw that helped put it together in testing conditions.

Despite being soggy & damp with occasional visits of trench-foot, we thoroughly enjoyed the weekend yet again.

Many thanks again for a cracking weekend, and the weather wasn't all that bad on Sunday was it?

Cheers

Paul Rees, 3M Gorseinon 118 118 Team

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It has been a week since the Welsh Castles and the SWRR Ladies are still on a high. It has been an amazing weekend as ever and from all of us at South West Road Runners a massive thank you to the organising team and all of your helpers. We really do appreciate all of the hard work, time and effort that goes into making WCR a success and were delighted to be part of it this year.

Thank you once again for giving us the opportunity to be part of this event that is so close to the heart of our club and looking forward to being part of it again in the future.

Kind Regards,

Ayse Vahiboglu, Ladies' Captain, South West Road Runners

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Great weekend - I've dried out, my clothes haven't yet.

Third WCR for me and they just get better and better.

It wasn't me snoring at Caernarfon, honest !!.

Would like to say a big, big thank you to all at Les Croupiers for all the hard work put into making this such a special weekend and all the marshalls who helped out

Musketer c/o RW Forum 

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The best race in the world, was it wet on Sunday? Didn't notice, its a privilege to be there, its a shame that this race has to have a limit of 59 teams as 100 would be nice.

I did stage 4, was pretty ordinary, no form at present but doesn't matter as the club finished 8th overall, still in shock.

Dominic Shields, San Domenico RC c/o RW Forum