Erwee runs Petit Port steps seven times

Erwee was a notable sign-up for the Guernsey Long Distance Running Club’s V1000 and certainly made his presence known, having already drawn ahead on the opening climb up from Petit Port and onwards to the first of six rotational legs from Doyle Monument.

With the island’s lack of a true kilometre-high ascent, runners were free to select waypoints as they desired, but there was no game plan for Erwee as he made more and more time on each passing, graduating as the first to climb 1,000m over nine miles of cliffs and taking the J Young Plasterers Cup as a result.

The seemingly invincible winner’s only crux came in the form of seven climbs up the Petit Port steps.

‘It’s brilliant [to win], it’s the inaugural event and I think it will grow from year to year,’ he said.

‘There was absolutely no planning, it was literally like rock-paper-scissors. We had the monument, which we go back down from, to pick and choose and I just went for it.

‘I felt quite strong going down to the respective bays but Petit Port was absolutely brutal, that was kind of a killer.’

There was a gulf between Erwee and the rest, but Jake McNaught took a pleasing second in 1-55-21 and fluid downhills were key to super-veteran Caroline Creed securing the next spot and the women’s Next Generation IT Cup in a shade under two hours.

‘I’m really, really pleased, I just run for fun, really, on the cliffs but I tried to go fast downhill,’ said the lead woman.

‘It was a really good atmosphere, it was all about fun and people encouraging each other.’

At an awards ceremony where Ray Scholes and Jeanne Svejstrup won endeavour prizes, such remarks were commonplace and certainly showed a good reception for what looks to become a GLDRC staple in years to come.