Jacksons Junior Duathlon...

Race 2 of 5 - Les Quennevais 15/12/13 

Race 2 of the Jacksons Junior Duathlon series took place on Sunday under grey skies on the Frank Machon cycling track at Les Quennevais. Though rain threatened throughout the morning conditions remained dry enough for safe racing.
A good turnout of 30 junior athletes took part in four age groups.

In the seven year old category Casper Whitewood got off to a strong start in the 500m run leading a group which consisted of race 1 winners Luke Holmes and Elizabeth Atkinson along with newcomer Daniel Stocke. Halfway round Holmes took over at the head of the race but Atkinson and Stocke held on with the gap between the three leaders and Whitewood only 5 seconds as they switched to the bike leg. Second girl Hannah Worth arrived at transition a further 12 seconds back. Holmes dominated on his strongest discipline, the 1.5km cycle, gaining almost a minute on most of his competitors leaving him with a comfortable final run to make it two wins from two. The racing was still going on further back with Whitewood and Worth both cutting the deficit to Atkinson on the bike and only 10 seconds covered these three as they entered transition for the final 500m foot race. Atkinson, winner of the Spartans Junior cross country less than 24 hours earlier, was able to make the break in the final 500m with Whitewood just doing enough to hold off Worth for third overall.

In the 10 and under age group top runners Luke Killian and Freddie Lucas set the pace over their 500m first run followed by one of the island’s leading cyclists Malo Monpetit Le Brun and leading girl Lily Scott. With a short first run the gaps behind were all very tight and there was all to play for as they made their way through transition. As expected Le Brun quickly took the lead over the 3km cycle and entered the final transition with a 20 second cushion to Killian in second with Lucas and a fast cycling Liam Cadoret not far behind. Killian set out on the final 800m run in no mood to lose his lead in the Jacksons series, overcoming Le Brun halfway around and going on to build himself a comfortable gap by the end. Cadoret also fought through with a strong to take 3rd ahead of Lucas but it was not enough to catch Le Brun who held on to second place with a 20 second margin. Scott meanwhile was having a battle with her own cousin, Dan Roderick, whose solid cycle had put him ahead but Scott made back the deficit and had the stronger sprint to finish in fourth overall and first girl, comfortably ahead of round 1 winner Ellie Boustouler.

 The 11 & 12 year old race saw the return of Jack Kennedy who had been unable to take part in the first event of the series. Kennedy made a strong start on his favoured run leg setting a pace over the 1500m run which left Peter Holmes and Will Atkinson over 40 seconds in arrears at first transition with first girl, Adele Maher, a full minute behind the leader. Holmes almost halved the gap on his stronger discipline, the 4.5km cycle, but Kennedy was comfortably ahead and extended his lead further on the final 800m run to win in a time of 19:19 ahead of Holmes in 20:14. Maher had managed to get in front of Atkinson during the bike leg and despite his faster finish she managed to hold him off for third overall, also taking the victory in the girls’ event ahead of Aimee Hugh.

In the final age group Ollie Turner was looking to repeat his victory of the first event over Sam Maher. Maher had clearly decided that attacking early might be his best chance to turn the tables and over the first run he smashed his own course record by 19 seconds running 4:42 for the 1500m loop. Turner hung on as well as he could and his own 5:04 was only 3 seconds slower than the previous run course record with Joe Hugh coming through in 5:29 for third. Onto the bike course and as expected Turner took over the lead but Maher tried his best to keep with the rapid pace and managed to keep the deficit to just 7 seconds as the two set off on their final 800m run. Turning the tables on Turner Maher quickly closed the gap, going on to finish 15 seconds clear of Turner with Hugh coming home in third. After two races in the series Turner and Maher are level at the top of the Jacksons Duathlon Series standings. Race organisers thanked club and event sponsor Jacksons who continue to provide valuable support to the club. Parents and course marshals were also thanked for their help in making the event a success.

The next race in the series sees the athletes go off-road with a cross country run and mountain bike course at Mont Rossignol on 18th January. Jacksons race events are free to enter and open to all children from 7 upwards. For more details on the club, training and events see www.juniorjerseytri.com

Individual category winners: 7 & under Girls - Elizabeth Atkinson 7 & under Boys - Luke Holmes 10 & under Girls - Lily Scott 10 & under Boys - Luke Killian 12 & under Girls - Adele Maher 12 & under Boys - Jack Kennedy 13 & over Boys - Sam Maher

Jack kennedy

Lily Scott v Dan Roderick

Luke Killian

Peter Holmes

World of Luxury...

On Thursday 5 December Jacksons held the now annual World of Luxury evening at the showrooms in St Peter. This event first took place in 2011 and has grown in stature over the last 3 years, rapidly becoming a highlight of the social calendar.

With over 30 of the most reputable luxury retailers in Jersey present at the event, there was a fantastic array of luxury goods and Christmas inspired stalls and gifts for our customers to view and purchase on the evening.

Throughout the event we welcomed more than 600 guests, who were treated to mulled wine, complimentary champagne and drinks through the evening along with festive canapés provided by Harpers catering.

Entertainment was provided by the JCG preparatory school choir who sang a host of festive songs during the early evening, with local band, “The Mood”, providing contemporary music through until the event closed at around 10:30pm.

Highlights of the evening included the Jersey Hospice raffle of jewellery, including two bespoke pieces created by Aurum and Catherine Best. In total over £60,000 was raised for the charity on the evening.

One lucky guest also won £250 of vouchers for Shaun Rankin’s Ormer restaurant in St Helier.

A similar event is already being planned for 2014 which already promises  to be another spectacular evening.

Please go to our Facebook Page for a image gallery from the evening.

Porsche launch Macan...

PORSCHE has unveiled its new Macan compact SUV, which has been tipped to take its sector by storm.

At 4.68 metres long and 1.92 metres wide, the smaller brother to the hugely successful Cayenne is a considerably more manageable size than its full-size sibling, as well as being more affordable and still packed with performance.
Two closely-related turbocharged petrol engines are being touted by Porsche as the initial flagship powerplants. The Macan S uses a 3.0-litre unit with 336bhp and 339lb.ft, while the 3.6-litre Macan Turbo puts out 395bhp and 406lb.ft.
Performance figures for the Turbo model include a top speed of 165mph and the ability to sprint from 0-62mph in 4.8 seconds – a length of time that falls by 0.2 seconds if the optional Sport Chrono pack is specified.
A diesel model is offered as the ‘touring’ Macan, with a larger cruising range linked to its lower fuel consumption. The Macan S Diesel can return more than 46mpg for a range of 611 miles, despite weighing almost 1.9 tonnes and boasting both 254bhp and 428lb.ft – more torque than the Macan Turbo.
Four-wheel drive and tyres as fat as 255mm as standard, with 295-section rubber optional, mean the Macan can call upon massive traction to give it a real-world performance edge over any of its potential rivals.
At its launch at the Los Angeles Auto show, Porsche vowed to build the Macan to the same standard as its 911. The Macan will actually share factory space with the Cayenne and Panamera models at the firm’s Leipzig facility.
A vast array of options and customisations will be made available to Macan buyers from the outset.
In the UK the Macan S and the Macan S Diesel will both cost £43,300, with the Turbo starting at £59,300.
To keep updated on when the Macan will arrive in the Channel Islands and test drive availability, subscribe to Jacksons eNews HERE.

Jacksons Junior Duathlon

Les Quennevais 30/11/13

The annual winter duathlon series, sponsored by Jacksons and organised by the junior section of Jersey Triathlon Club, got underway on Saturday in bright and calm conditions at Les Quennevais. A field of 25 junior athletes took part in four age groups with the 7 year olds racing first followed by the older age groups.

For the athletes aged 7 there was a new run course of 500m around the football pitches which was followed by a lap of the cycling track by bike and a repeat of the same run again to finish. Elizabeth Atkinson set the early pace followed by Luke Holmes with Olivia Boustouler some way further back. Through first transition it was neck and neck with Holmes and Atkinson but Holmes made a break on the bike course to build up a strong lead. Further back Hannah Worth had a slower start but quickly made up places with the fastest bike split of the day climbing from 5th to 3rd place overall. On the final run Holmes cruised to a fine victory with Atkinson just managing to hold off the fast approaching Worth to win the girls category with Worth in second and Olivia Boustouler in third. Casper Whitewood and Jamie Parslow, both competing in the duathlon series for the first time, took second and third places respectively in the boys’ event.

The next three age groups had different distances to cover but raced together after the end of the 7 years old race. Last years’ series champion Luke Killian stormed round the new 800m run course, 3km cycle and final 800m run with the fastest splits in all three to record a dominant victory for the 10 & under boys with Freddie Lucas pipping Thomas Atkinson to second place in race which was closely fought from start to finish. In the girls’ 10 & under category Ellie Boustouler had the upper hand on Lily Scott over the first run, Scott attacked the cycle hard trying to make up the deficit but was somewhat hampered by a mechanical issue on the bike. Boustouler was never headed and took victory from Scott with her younger sister Eva Scott finishing third.

The older two categories raced over a longer 1500m first run. In the over 12 category Sam Maher set the pace but Ollie Turner demonstrated his fantastic run form to keep the deficit to 8 seconds with Joe Hugh only slightly further back. Meanwhile Peter Holmes and Will Atkinson were head to head entering the first transition together at the front of the 12 & under race with leading girl Adele Maher close behind. Both Holmes and Turner turned up the heat on the bike courses of 4.5km and 6km respectively coming in at the end of the cycle with enough breathing space for an uncontested final 800m run. In the 12 & under race Adele Maher managed to move ahead of Will Atkinson and hold off his strong run to come home as first girl ahead of Aimee Hugh and second overall. Sam Maher switched off for the final run to save his legs for a cross country race the following day, Joe Hugh kept the hammer down on his run but the few seconds made up on Maher this time were not going to be enough to make up for his cycle deficit.

Race organisers thanked club and event sponsor Jacksons who had kindly sponsored the new club tracksuits being sported by most of the athletes. Parents and volunteers were also thanked for their help in managing the new, more complicated, run routes which were generally well received.
The second event in the series takes place on Sunday 15th December with an 8:30am sign on for a 9:00am race start for the 7 year olds and 9:15am start for 8s and over. Jacksons race events are free to enter and open to all children from 7 upwards.

For more details on the club, training and events see www.juniorjerseytri.com