THREE women from Dudley Kingswinford (DK) Running Club took on one of the UK’s most formidable marathons on Saturday.

Samantha Hemming, Vanessa Harris and Farrah Hunter-Coley travelled to north Wales to represent the hoops at the Snowdonia Marathon.

As icy rain lashed down, the three Black Country athletes set off with over 2,000 other runners on the tough but spectacular 26 mile course that encircles Snowdon, the highest mountain in England and Wales.

Samantha battled through the atrocious conditions to finish in five hours 45 minutes. She said: “It was horrendous at the start, I was soaked through before the race had even begun. I just wanted to get in my car and drive home but thankfully I didn’t.”

Vanessa and Farrah crossed the finish line together in five hours 55 minutes. Vanessa said: “After 18 miles I saw a runner in a DK club top ahead of me. I ran faster to catch up and to my amazement it was my best friend Farrah. We hugged and laughed and this changed the race for both of us. We decided to finish the race together and to enjoy the last eight miles with no time pressure and to take in the amazing views.”

Elsewhere, DK runners Jane Campbell, Rory Campbell, Kevin Herbert and Tim Rowe took part in the first ever 10K run at Comer Woods near Bridgnorth on Sunday (27th October). The event, which is untimed and free to enter, will now take place on the last Sunday of every month on the National Trust’s Dudmaston estate.

Still in Shropshire and also on Sunday, DK athlete Daniel Davey enjoyed the hilly Bridgnorth 10k, finishing in 46 minutes 21 seconds.