STAVELEY'S Rob Jebb achieved a personal goal by breaking the Vet 40 record in Saturday's classic Three Peaks Fell Race.

The four times outright winner of the event set out his stall to beat Karl Grey's 2013 time of 2-59-50 - and just did enough.

He beat the Calder Valley athlete's time by just 18 seconds to set a new record mark by completing the 23.2 mile circuit - taking in Penyghent, Whernside and Ingleborough - in 2-59-32.

Jebb, who runs for Bingley, finished a respectable fourth overall after pulling his way through the field by picking off athletes who had gone off much faster than him.

"I am really pleased because breaking the V40 record was my aim," said Jebb, who turned 40 in February. "There have been a lot of vet 40s run round there before and the conditions were not that good.

"It felt different this year because I was not thinking about the other runners," said Jebb. "I had worked out my split times before and I knew it was going to be tight on Ingleborough because I had lost a bit of time on Whernside because it was so wet and the footpaths seemed to be a bit more overgrown."

Maryport firefighter Ricky Lightfoot, 30, won the race in 2-51-42 - a minute and 34 seconds quicker than his 2014 time and the fastest anyone has run the race since the current record (2-46-03) was set by Andy Peace, of Bingley Harriers, in 1996.

He had worked a nightshift before driving to the Yorkshire Dales and then apologised that he could not stay for the prize giving and headed back to start another night’s work.

Second place went to Welshman Andrew Davies, of Mercia Fell Running Club, a former semi-professional footballer in the Welsh Premier League, who was World Long Distance Mountain Running Championship silver medallist in 2013.

Davies, who qualified to represent Wales in the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow last year, set a time of 2-53-53 after snapping at the heels of Lightfoot for most of the way round. Third place was claimed by Andrew Fallas, of Carnethy Hill Running Club, in a time of 2-57-51.

Sedbergh's Joe Symonds, who like Lightfoot is a Salomon International runner, returned to the Three Peaks after a year’s absence hoping to equal his father Hugh's three wins in 1984, 1985 and 1987. But the paediatrician from Raigmore Hospital in Inverness, the winner in 2012 and 2013, will have to come back another year after finishing in12th place with a time of 3-09-57.

Helm Hill's Kieran Hodgson had an excellent run finishing 14th and third V40 in 3-11-38 and still had enough energy to win the Arant Haw race from Sedbergh the following day - the last event in the Kendal Winter League series.

Helen Bonsor, of Carnethy Hill Running Club, won the ladies' race finishing 44th overall in 3-27-24secs. Anna Lupton, of Black Combe Runners, was second female in 3-34-46, and Caitlin Rice, of Glossopdale Harriers, was third fastest lady in 3-39-03.

Pictures by woodentops.org.uk