Dave Stone in a sprint finish for a podium place at the Cornish Marathon

In his own words Dave had been "sensible this time" in his training and final build-up towards the Cornish Marathon this year. After the Dartmoor Discovery he took some time off from hard training and from long runs before starting to build up towards the Cornish at the start of the Autumn. So he went down to the neighbouring county on Sunday with confidence that he would perform well.

This is one of Dave's favourite marathons and he usually manages to run it every year, including last year with a stinking cold and when it probably wasn't advisable for him to have run! He also performs well at the race year on year and is a former winner of the event (2003) in addition to having achieved several other podium places over the years.

This year though Dave really had his work cut out as there was some very stiff competition on the start line for him to wage battle with, all of them Cornish athletes. Justin Thomas of Cornwall AC was away and gone from the start and took a comfortable victory in 2:40:13: a superb time on this hilly and exposed course that starts in Pensilver and works its way around Bodmin Moor, taking runners past Jamaica Inn on route.

Second place was also a done-deal with Daniel Alsop of St. Austell Running Club posting a swift time of 2:48:39. But the race for the third and final podium spot was fierce and down to the wire, with our Dave and St. Austell's Duncan Oakes locked in an over-40s battle!

In a track race or a road race over 5k or 10k even, you expect to face a tussle for the line to decide the final top three placings, but there can be nothing more frustrating after 26.2 miles of running than to miss out on a podium spot in a sprint finish, which is what Dave unfortunately experienced on this occasion, being pushed down into 4th in a time of 2:51:42, missing out on third by just 12 seconds. Gutting.

Dave did, however, manage to come away with the top MV40 prize as the third placed athlete, Oakes, was in the MV45 category. Dave can also take encouragement from the fact that this was a course PB for him by a clear minute, so there is ever reason to think that he can return next year and run well and get himself back onto the podium. Well done Dave!

There was an outstanding performance in the women's race with Naomi Tier of Cornwall AC breaking the female course record, placing 6th overall, in a superb time of 2:56:24.