THREE times winner Cameron Brooks took the men's race in the opening fixture of this year's Sweatshop York and District Road Running League at Pocklington.

He was challenged in the first half of the race by twice series winner Paul Goble but pulled away on the downhill stretches to win by 24 seconds in a time of 33 minutes 26 seconds.

Neil Strange pulled away from Mike Raynes at the three kilometre mark to take a comfortable third place with Raynes finishing an isolated fourth.

Nigel Ramsden (fifth) and Kevin Erskine (sixth) were next in easily their highest individual placings in the league.

The team race ended in a dead heat between York Acorn and Knavesmire Harriers with the York clubs filling 12 of the first 14 places.

Helen Wilcock continued her resurgent form with another personal best of 38mins 25secs winning a good quality women's race by exactly a minute.

Angela Dickie (Tadcaster) took second with first over 50 runner from the London Marathon, Dawn Gibbs, also breaking 40 minutes in third.

York Acorn comfortably took the team race from Knavesmire Harriers. The second race in the series is at Tadcaster.

Brooks was Knavesmire's first runner home in the Yorkshire Veterans 10-Kilometre Championships at Rothwell.

He crossed the line in fifth place in 32-04 and continued his good form three days later by winning the men's over-35 (M35) section at the Yorkshire Veterans' 5K Championships at Esholt when he was fourth in 15-51.

Knavesmire had three medallists at Rothwell.

Neil Strange won the gold in the M45 category with a time of 33 minutes and 44 seconds.

Janet Cordingley (F45 - 43-17) and Margaret Metcalfe (F55 - 47-57) both gained bronze medals in their age groups.

Knavesmire had several prize winners in the fourth race of the Yorkshire Veterans Grand Prix series held at Heslington.

Strange won the six mile race outright in 34mins 6secs and won the O45 award. Brooks came home one second later to win the O35 race.

Nick Lovett was fourth and second in the O35 section. Kevin Langan in 13th was the O40 winner and Stephen Cook took the second O40 prize.

In the ladies race, Fiona Strange was third overall and won the O35 race in 41-43.

Jean Snelling, making a return to racing after a knee injury, took the O65 prize and Pat Rowson won the O70 race.

Updated: 10:47 Saturday, May 13, 2006