Today it was Jenny Yeo that took the woman’s victory in the Montane Summer Spine Race and placed 6th overall. Jenny was side by side with Laura Swanton-Rouvelin for the majority of the race, but she eventually took the lead at Alston. She arrived into Kirk Yetholm in a time of 101 hours 39 minutes and 50 seconds.

Jenny stayed true to her own race strategy – when the pace on the first night was faster than she liked, she held back and ticked off miles on her terms. As the grinding effect of the endless days on the Pennine Way began to take it’s toll on runners around her, Jenny found a reserve and a resilience that allowed her to take the lead and make it to the line as the well-deserved winner. This is all the more impressive when you consider that it was Jenny’s first time over this distance.

Laura Swanton-Rouvelin, who crossed the finish line with Rob Moore, finished the race in 2nd place after a superb run that saw her never give up. She took on the Pennine Way with grit and determination, but always with such positivity and a smile on her face. The conclusion of the woman’s podium should be settled by Thursday night.

Whilst Dave Phillips took the overall win on the Summer Spine Race yesterday, the rest of the overall and men’s podium was settled today. The battle for 2nd place was a tightly fought contest overnight. Peter Mortimer and Rory Brevin had been running together for some time in joint 2nd, but Phil Harris came from behind and spurred Peter to kick on and take second.

Mortimer, who is British but lives in the US said “I would have liked to have gone faster but I’ve been jet lagged from the start. I ran with Rory for some time, but had said to him that as soon as 4th place comes up behind us, I’m going to go.” And that’s what he did.

Phil Harris went on to move ahead of Rory Brevin and had a great finish to take third place overall. Phil was sitting further down the rankings yesterday, but as the runners ahead of him began to tire, Phil found a reserve tank that allowed him to kick on.

Michael Hyde finished in 4th place. During an eventful final night of the race, Michael moved himself up the leaderboard. He earns his 4th place with a determined and well-managed performance. Two hours later, Rory Bevin arrived in 5th place after a serious display of tenacity. For a long time, Rory was in 3rd and looked set to hold that spot, but the wearing effect of the endless miles left him with a number of issues that held back his pace.

Congratulations to Jenny Yeo as first woman on her phenomenal performance, as well as Peter, Phil, Michael and Rory who finalise the top six of the Montane Summer Spine Race 2023. 

Overall Results – Top Six

Dean Read and Stef Lowry brought the Montane Summer Spine Challenger North to a close earlier today. Dean joined the #SpineRace team full-time a year ago, and has since proven himself to be invaluable. Those who have seen the lovingly made videos on his YouTube Channel will already have seen Dean’s passion for long trails and love of the outdoors, but those of us behind the scenes have also seen his passion for this race. Today he and partner Stef celebrated his first year as a member of the #SpineFamily by completing the Summer Challenger North.

Congratulations to both, and to all those who took part in the first-ever Montane Summer Spine Challenger North.