THE Baildon Boundary Way was one of the last races to take place before the second lockdown in England, and it featured plenty of Ilkley Harriers.

This annual mixed terrain half marathon organised by Baildon Runners had been postponed from April.

And the club put on what was described as "a masterclass" of how to host an event during a pandemic.

It involved perfect social distancing and a race in time-trial format, with a staggered departure in groups of six runners at one-minute intervals.

And what it also featured was mud - lots of it, despite the blues skies and sunshine up above.

In its usual April slot, it's a testing event. But in early November, with slippery conditions underfoot, it was even more of a challenge.

Even though most runners spent the entire event on their own, there was a proper race atmosphere to enjoy thanks to enthusiastic marshalls around the marked course.

There were some excellent Harrier performances with Dan McKeown making the top 10 (and first M40), while Kate Archer was second female overall.

The men's race was won by Baildon's Michael Malyon and Ribble Valley's Caroline Lambert led home the ladies in an impressive fifth overall.

There were also second-place finishes in their respective age categories for Ilkley's Catherine Crawley, Mark Judkowski and Catherine Charlton.

Results: 1 1:25:39 Michael Malyon, Baildon Runners, 8 1:34:22 Daniel McKeown 1st M40, 17 1:38:49 Danny Thompson, 28 1:45:48 Kate Archer 2nd F, 29 1:45:51 Dave Robson, 61 1:55:24 Steve Murray, 63 1:56:33 Catherine Crawley 2nd F45, 83 2:02:35 Mark Judkowski 2nd M60, 107 2:08:38 Mike Baldwin, 108 2:08:38 Claire McLoughlin, 112 2:09:04 Catherine Charlton 2nd F35, 196 2:37:11 Petra Bijsterveld, 201 2:38:08 Helen Doyle, 225 2:49:10 Amanda Newham 251.