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@gr8ful.co.uk

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🏆UK INT Fell/Uphill, Track, XC Champs
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Northern Cross Country Relays 🏃‍♀️❤️🥉

Today we headed to Sheffield for the Northern Cross Country Relays!

It’s a short, sharp 2.13km course with 41m of elevation ⛰️

Bleu’s cough has almost cleared up now, and we were greeted with crisp but sunny conditions ☀️🍂

Bleu ran Leg 1, finishing 4th and very close to 2nd! I actually timed her at 7:37, although the official result says 7:40 — just 9 seconds off the fastest leg of the day ☺️

She got a strong start & lead it down the hill 😁

She was 7th fastest across all U16 girls’ legs, and her team went on to secure 🥉 3rd place! 🏆❤️

With such a short course, every second counts, and the margins between the teams were really tight.

Well done to all runners today, especially Bleu’s team friends, you all did amazing 🤩

A great day out all round! 😊

Huge thanks to the organisers for putting on a fantastic event for everyone to enjoy, and to the Bingley coaches, who always do a brilliant job looking after the athletes on race day. ❤️👏🏻

Well done everyone! 🏃‍♀️🙌

Edit: @simonrabailey has just said the only reason she had a good run is because she ate some of his homemade bread before the race, bahaha 🤣

#CrossCountry #NorthernRelays #BingleyHarriers #JuniorAthletics
@northernathletics by @gr8ful.co.uk

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2 days ago

English Schools Fell Running Championships 🏃‍♀️⛰️❤️

Bleu is the English Schools Year 8 & 9 Girls Fell Running Champion! 🏆🥇

She’d been poorly with a sore throat just before the Northern Road Relays, which then developed into a stubborn chesty cough, so we really weren’t sure what would unfold today.

She also hasn’t done a fell race for a few months and said she felt a little rusty, so there were definitely a few unknowns going into it!

Another very early start! ⏰ Loo stop 🚽, collect number, then a walk of part of the brutal 5k course, 300m elevation ⛰️

The course was around 200m longer than last year, so although her time was slower, we worked it out as probably around 40 seconds faster over the equivalent distance.

Then it was time to warm up and head down to the start. Si & I found a spot partway up the course to cheer her on 📣❤️

Bleu said she got a really bad start as she was fiddling with her watch 🤦‍♀️😂 but she soon took control of the race.

She had company not far behind, but held on to take the win and become English Schools Champion! 🏆🥇

Well done to Olivia & Daisy on 2nd & 3rd 👏🏻❤️

A huge thank you to the race organisers & Sedbergh School for putting on the event. It’s a brutal course but such a fantastic race! 👏🏻⛰️

All glory to God ❤️ taken in Sedbergh School by @gr8ful.co.uk

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15 days ago

Northern Road Relays 🏃‍♀️❤️

A fantastic day all round at the @northernathletics Road Relays!

We were up super early for the long 3½ hour drive to Sunderland 🚗💨. Once we arrived, it was a quick loo stop, a short walk of the course and then time to warm up.

@bleu.bailey kept the warm-up short today with a few drills before heading to the start.

My advice was simple: don’t set off too fast & try to race back from the turning point.

Bleu set off in about 10th and when I saw her again at the turning point, she looked good in a chasing group, around 20m behind Isobel Beddow, who was leading at that point.

The next time I saw her was just before the downhill ramp back to the track. She was in 3rd and very close to the leader.

Then she picked up the pace down the ramp and overtook Isobel. The girl in front still had a small gap, but with around 300m to go, Bleu really started to close it down.

She absolutely flew the last 100m and finished by winning Leg 1, handing over to teammate Ella, who brought the team back in 2nd.

Harriet then took the final leg, with some very good athletes not far behind.

The team eventually finished 5th, and Bleu was, I think, joint 4th fastest leg of the day.

Bearing in mind all these girls are under-year, that’s pretty incredible! 🏃‍♀️🔥

The rest of the day was spent socialising, watching friends race and enjoying the atmosphere before starting the long journey home again! ❤️

A very long day, but a fantastic one! 🏃‍♀️🙌❤️ taken in Sunderland,UK by @gr8ful.co.uk

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a month ago

Bleu’s training is primarily solo, but recently we’ve found a small group of superstars to occasionally train with! 🏃‍♀️❤️

It’s only the 3rd time she’s joined @Julies.coaching, but they have been so welcoming to her already & it’s great to see her contributing to the group 😊

Julie is incredibly nurturing, which has made such a lovely environment for Bleu to train in. ❤️

It’s lovely to see her getting the chance to train alongside other dedicated athletes and enjoy some company while doing what she loves. 🏃‍♀️💨

A big thank you to this incredible group for making her feel so welcome! ❤️🙌

What do you prefer — solo or group training? 👇🏃‍♀️ taken in Stoke-on-Trent by @gr8ful.co.uk

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a month ago

A weekend away in Yorkshire ❤️🐑⛰️

We had a lovely weekend away in Yorkshire, staying at @coxonsfarmglampingpods — a Christmas present from Simon’s parents & sister 🎁❤️

We arrived late Friday night after a few days of dithering about plans 😂

Saturday started with Bleu & Oli doing Cliffe Castle @parkrunuk 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️ — semi off-road, hilly and around 125m elevation ⛰️

As a kid I used to walk through Cliffe Castle Park to school from my grandma’s house, so it was a proper trip down memory lane ❤️ I couldn’t run as my calf is still sore, but it was lovely catching up with Steve Brooks & his family, as he used to come through the park with me & my brother all those years ago 😊

Then off to Skipton Auction Market for a sheep sale 🐑, where my cousin Henry was selling some tups.

With plenty of day left, we headed into Skipton for some shopping 🛍️ Oli needed a few bits and did rather well out of it! 😂 Silver necklace… say no more! 😜

That evening we watched a film in the pod 🎬 and went for a little walk around Cracoe 🌙🌿

Sunday morning Bleu & Oli went for a run together 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️❤️ They don’t often get the chance to run together, so it was lovely seeing them both enjoying it.

In the afternoon we headed to Burnsall, where the sun even came out ☀️ Si did a local fell race while Bleu & I went for a walk to cheer him on ⛰️🏃‍♂️ It was also lovely catching up with lots of friends 😊 Even had a runner come up to me saying how great our gr8ful short compression socks are!

We’d also decluttered a load of running shoes from the garage 👟 and Estelle kindly sold them, with the proceeds donated to BOFRA ❤️

We’d planned to go paddle boarding, but Oli wanted to head home, so we went via Boundary Mill 🛍️ where he picked up a few more bits — including an Austin Reed black-tie suit! 😂🕴️

Then fish & chips 🐟🍟, home to unpack and turn everything around for another busy week!

Absolutely loved this weekend ❤️
Family, running, sheep, old memories, friends, shopping & a little Yorkshire sunshine. Perfect. 🐑🏃‍♀️☀️ by @gr8ful.co.uk

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6

a month ago

Saturday Parkrun 🏃‍♀️🌧️

This morning we decided on a hilly, off-road local @parkrunuk in Macclesfield 🌲⛰️ — and it definitely lived up to the description!

Bleu ran really well and finished 🥇 1st lady & 4th overall, taking a new course PB ⏱️👏

Pretty impressive considering it was raining 🌧️ and slippery underfoot, especially in the shoes we decided to run in… 😂👟 Not sure what we were thinking!

Her new @coros_uk Pace 4 was also giving us some interesting data ⌚️❤️ Her heart rate stayed consistently just under 160, so it definitely looks like there was a bit more in the tank 😁🔥

I decided to join in too and managed 25:53 🏃‍♀️💪 Not too shabby for a hilly course, although I got calf cramp and had to ease off a little over the last 1.5km 😬

It definitely gets harder to keep running as you get older — honestly, I’d quite like a new body please! 😂🙈

But then I remind myself that I’m lucky to still be able to get out there and do it ❤️ Even if I’m considerably slower than I used to be! 😆

It was also great to connect with some fellow running friends too 🫶

Well done to everyone who ran today, and thank you to all the volunteers who make parkrun happen every week 🙌💛

Another Saturday, another run done ✔️☕

Kit check
Bleu ran in Gr8ful shorts & sorks
I ran in Gr8ful vest, phone pouch & socks taken in Macclesfield by @gr8ful.co.uk

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2 months ago

New Event, New Experience! 🏟️🏃‍♀️

Trip out to Loughborough today where Bleu had a go at something completely new — a track 3000m! 🏃‍♀️💨

Conditions were good — warm but not too hot ☀️ — and she ran a fairly even-paced race throughout ⏱️

She was aiming for 3:30 pace & finished in 10:38, giving her a really useful benchmark to work from 📈💪

Using her new COROS Pace 4 ⌚️, we also got some interesting heart-rate data — sitting around 160 bpm for the race ❤️. That suggests she still had a bit more in the tank, which is encouraging for future 3k attempts! 🔥

And most importantly… she said she enjoyed it! ❤️

🥇 1st U14 girl

Another new experience ticked off, and another little piece of the puzzle to learn from 🧩🏃‍♀️

Well done to everyone who ran, and thank you to everyone who helped make the event happen 👏 taken in Loughborough University Stadium by @gr8ful.co.uk

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2 months ago

Summer Summary So Far… ☀️🏃‍♀️🌴

A little summer round-up — running & everything else!

Bleu has been keeping busy with a mix of racing and training, even joined a session with @jsmitm03 🏃‍♀️💨

🏃‍♀️ Midlancs 800m
🥇 Media City 5k
🏃‍♀️ Trafford 1500m
🏃‍♀️ York 5k

Oli & Si haven’t done any races this summer, so things have been a little quieter on the racing front.

I’ve managed to squeeze in the York 5k and a local parkrun this morning 🏃‍♀️☀️ I’m hoping this is something I can keep up because I think it will do me good both physically & mentally ❤️

But there’s been plenty going on away from running too!

🌴 Bleu & I had a week in Majorca for a bit of rest and sunshine. She even squeezed in a few sprints while we were away and came home with a big 100m PB! 💨🔥

🏟️ One of the biggest highlights was watching Jakob Ingebrigtsen and Amy Hunt live! We even managed to get a photo and a high-five with Jakob 🙌📸

🌑 We also got to experience the solar eclipse, which was such a memorable moment to share together ✨

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 We’ve also enjoyed meeting up with some family in Yorkshire, which has been lovely ❤️

👯‍♀️ Plenty of hangouts with friends, with even more planned for next week
🛍️ A few shopping trips
💦 An outdoor water park day
🏄‍♀️ Paddle boarding in Burnsall — and lovely to catch up with friends while we were there
🚵‍♀️ Mountain biking on the Cloud
🚐 A couple of nights in the campervan, which was seriously good fun
🎒 And today… the annual school uniform shop 😩😂

So summer has been a bit of everything — running, racing, travelling, friends, family, sunshine, adventures & plenty of lazy moments too ☀️❤️

Now we just need to decide what on earth we’re doing next week and next weekend! 🤔😂

Still plenty of summer left… let’s see what happens! ✨ by @gr8ful.co.uk

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2 months ago

Weekend Running Round-Up 🏃‍♀️🌬️⛰️

Yesterday Bleu raced an 800m at the Mid Lancs track meeting 🏟️. It was very windy 🌬️, and considering she’d just had a week off doing very little on holiday (legs felt very heavy) ☀️🏖️, it was great to see her with another consistent run & so close to her PB 👏

Today was a long steady run with a 400m uphill Strava segment thrown in for a bit of fun ⛰️😅. Bleu smashed it, taking 11 seconds off her segment record and finishing fastest overall across both the men’s and women’s leaderboard 🏆🔥

Si ran it with her and was thinking, “I’ll catch her at the top…” 😄 Unfortunately, he came up 8 seconds short! 😂

All fun and games… and another great weekend of running 💙🏃‍♀️

Bleu wore her gr8ful short compression socks & girls shorts. All products available on our website or direct from @amazonuk taken in Bury Athletics Club by @gr8ful.co.uk

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3 months ago

Sunny, Windy & Another PB! ☀️💨🏃‍♀️

Trip out this morning to a very sunny but blustery junior parkrun in Manchester ☀️💨

Bleu found herself running a solo effort out front from early on, so there was no one to tuck in behind or chase. Despite the windy conditions, she was rewarded with another 5-second PB ⏱️👏

She just keeps making those steady improvements, one step at a time 💙

Massive thank you to all the volunteers who make junior parkrun happen every week 🙌 and well done to everyone who took part! 🌟 taken in Manchester, United Kingdom by @gr8ful.co.uk

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3 months ago

Hot like a heatwave 🥵
Loughborough 800m
@bleu.bailey
#run #800m #track taken in Loughborough University Stadium by @gr8ful.co.uk

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3 months ago

Northern Track Championships ☀️🏟️🏃‍♀️

Absolutely boiling hot at the Northern Track Championships today! 🥵☀️

Bleu lined up for the 800m and came away with a new PB! All 2’s 2.22⏱️🎉👏 It was great to see her race with confidence and keep making steady progress.

As always, the racing was only part of the day. We had such a lovely time catching up with friends, both old and new ❤️ It’s one of the best things about the athletics community.

Well done to everyone who competed today 👏💙 taken in Leigh, Wigan, United Kingdom by @gr8ful.co.uk

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4 months ago