A 16-year-old athlete from Little Langdale will be chomping at the bit to try to break a 50-year-old record at Grasmere Lakeland Sports and Show, on Sunday August 24, having wisely invested our Grasmere Sports bursary support money won one year ago.
Zeke Sumner, a member of Ambleside Athletics Club, was the recipient of Grasmere Sports’ Pete Bland bursary, winning £500 to help him with his athletics development.
Sports bursary support plan
From the word go, Zeke had a sound plan in place, applying for the bursary so he could overcome some of the obstacles in trying to maintain fitness in Little Langdale in winter. With no street lights to allow him to go on winter runs in the dark, his aim was to take out a gym membership at his local hotel and train indoors throughout the winter.
With the rest of the money going towards new running shoes and parts for his road bike, he wanted to make some significant gains in his fitness and over-winter preparation for the fell running season.
Bursary winner's motivation
Unlike some athletes, Zeke is not interested in running on the track or in cross-country competitions. He is a fell running purist and every pound of the money was to be devoted to improvements in his fell running performance.
The carefully thought-out strategy has worked to a tee. Zeke trained in the gym at the Langdale Estate Hotel from November to April, both on treadmills and in the pool, and the result has been phenomenal. Whilst he came ninth in the Fell Running Association’s English Championships last year, he has achieved an amazing second position this year.
Success since winning the sports bursary support
He has also been selected to represent his country at the Youth Skyrunning World Championships in Gran Sasso, Italy, from August 1-3. Zeke will be part of a team of four and will be cheered on in Italy by his mother and grandma, with his family being hugely supportive of everything he has done on his fell running journey.
In terms of British Open Fell Runners Association (BOFRA) races, he has won five out of five this year, with the most recent win being at Cracoe. He has also represented Cumbria this year at an Inter-counties Championship, with the Cumbrian team picking up silver medals – an impressive achievement considering all the counties involved.
English selection for Under-17 fell runner
Now, he has just achieved his dream of being selected to run for England Athletics, competing against athletes from other Home Countries, at the British and Irish Junior Mountain Championships, to be staged in Wales on September 13.
In the meantime, there is the question of the Under 17s Guides Race at Grasmere Lakeland Sports and Show, for which the record has stood for a staggering 50 years this year. Graham Moffat set what Zeke regards as an `”unbelievable” time back in 1975, but that will not stop him trying his best to at least get close to it.
Under-17 record challengers
This year, he and some of his main competition, including Jake Ireland and Thomas Wood, will be able to register for their fell running race online. Grasmere Lakeland Sports and Show has introduced an online entry system for the first time, via a link at its website. This is for all of the fell races – or Guide races as they are known at Grasmere – for Under 9s, Under 12, Under 14s, Under 17s and Seniors.
This is accompanied by instantaneous access to results on the day and also precise electronic timing of races. This is quite an advance, given that the Senior Guides Race began in 1868 and has been run on its current Butter Crags course since 1919.
Feedback on the Pete Bland sports bursary support
Zeke says, “I’ve a busy month ahead with the trip to Italy but then the major race after that will be the Grasmere Sports Under 17s race. I should be much better equipped for this race this year, having finished second in 2024.
“The Pete Bland bursary has been a massive boost; in fact, I’m quite surprised by just how much it has helped my development. By having the additional training regime in the winter, I emerged much stronger, much earlier in the year than usual and that has made a tremendous difference.”
Zeke is definitely a very focused and determined young athlete, able to set clear goals and motivate himself to achieve his objectives. Whether that will include breaking Graham Moffat’s 50-year record will remain to be seen but there could be an omen, if you believe in such things. Graham has always followed a career in the building trade. To earn some money over summer, Zeke is working for a builder, as well as cutting logs.
Online registration for fell races
Any fell-runner wanting to take up the same major challenge can enter the race at www.grasmeresports.com free of charge, thanks to the new online entry system. Anyone wanting to know, within seconds, whether that 50-year record has been broken, or the 47-year-old record of Fred Reeves in the Seniors’ Guide Race, need only turn up on August 24 and watch the action, as just part of a fantastic traditional Cumbrian day out.
