A testing hill in the final mile of the Lindo’s to Lindo’s 10K road race provided the make-or-break moments that decided the men’s and women’s champions.

Spencer Butterfield and Deon Breary came out on top to claim the respective race crowns after managing to keep a buffer of daylight between themselves and their pursuers.

On a humid morning, Butterfield, 34, ran much of the race as part of a tight leading group that included Ryan Wilson and Christopher Hands.

By the time they had reached the steep drag of Collector’s Hill at four miles it was Butterfield and Wilson who were leading the way.

Then, as they ran a fast downhill section along Middle Road, past Somersfield Academy, Butterfield broke away.

“I saved myself for Chaingate Hill,” he said, referring to the final energy-sapping uphill leading to the finish at the Lindo’s supermarket in Devonshire.

He kept his head down and pushed hard up the hill, eventually winning in 36min 2sec, some 22 seconds ahead of Wilson, 31.

Afterwards Butterfield said it had been good to work together with the others during the race, and he was pleased with his finishing time. He has been doing a fair amount of cross-training and cycling training to supplement his running, and is gearing up for a half-Ironman triathlon in Utah in May.

Hands, 26, was third in 37:53, followed by 13-year-old Ryan Outerbridge, who is a name to look out for in future years after clocking 38:17. The top three women were separated by only 21 seconds, with Deon Breary, Gayle Lindsay and Krista Dyer all looking like potential winners in the final mile.

Breary’s experience showed as she confidently led the race from start to finish. However, Lindsay and Dyer, who traded places earlier in the race, were within striking distance as all three tackled Chaingate Hill in the final mile. It was at this point that Breary, 45, became aware of how close her pursuers were.

“Gayle was near to me just before the top of the hill, that’s when I had to pick it up. She ran well. I’m happy with what I did, I wanted to see where I was at,” said Breary, who was 14th overall and first woman in 41:24.

Lindsay, 27, said she had worked to keep up with Dyer, 28, in the later stages of the race before they both tried to close in on Breary. She added: “During the race there is a friendly rivalry which helps us push each other on.”

Lindsay clocked 41:40, with Dyer next to finish in 41:45.

A four-mile competitive walk was won by Mike Watson in 38:36, followed by Sinclair Smith in 43:13 and Ray Medeiros in 43:28. First woman was Gilda Cann in 43:38, followed by Carol Redahan in 43:58 and Sheena Young in 44:06.