Roadhoggs Leicester AC
Cross Country Reports
By Kim Richardson, Cross Country Captain
2009-10
Feb 14th Bosworth Battlefield (Hinckley)
Feb 28th Sinai Park (‘B’ final) (Hatton)
Derby Runner League Race 4 - Grace Dieu 31/01/10
The morning was bright but very cold. I was wondering how many would run for us today as I had not had many replies,and with the cancellation of the Bagworth race it had been a long time since the last league race way back in early December. But one by one the Roadhoggs strolled up and we had a full mens team to maintain our record numbers this season. The ladies were one short so we used up our 'one last place given' option which we are allowed once each season. We even had two more new runners; Hannah Richardson, of the famous Richardson running dynasty, came along with her training partner Phil Norman to try out a league race as I had been banging on about it for ages. I am hopeful we will get them back for another one, but Phil has got to get some proper shorts to run in and not his beach ones. We stood around on our club tarp amongst the club tents and decided it was so bloody cold and Roadhoggs should to buy us a tent as well.
The mens race started first and the ladies 10
minutes later which gave them their own race plus the incentive of
catching up with any men. The Grace Dieu course was the same as last two
years, which includes the long climb at the start, the long and steep
rocky scramble up to the top of Broad Hill, a steep climb in the last
half mile and then the 'travelator' right up to the finish line. Its one
of the toughest courses in the league but at least the ground was
generally hard rather than wet and muddy which makes all the running so
much harder. Nick as usual led Roadhoggs in and broke into the top 20,
backed up by Jerry and the rest. Dave and Paul both had really good
runs. In the girls race Rebecca and Emma raced all the way round with
Rebecca just shading it in the end, though Emma is moving up with every
race. As a team we are slowly moving up the division ... thanks guys
lets keep this up!
Results:
Men: Nick Cobley 15th 34.08, Jerry Wilkes (V40) 98th 39.20, Dave Lodwick
(V40) 114th 40.09, Mark Chamberlain (V40) 118th 40.18, Dale Jenkins
(V50) 127th 41.07, Paul Langham (V40) 153rd 42.21, Baz Barratt (V40)
170th 43.38, Hitesh Pandya (V40) 202nd 46.20, 223rd Phil Norman 48.56,
244 finishers.
Ladies: Rebecca Bromwich 21st 43.57, Emma Klimowicz 23rd 44.09, Hannah
Richardson 71st 53.55, 100 finishers.
Teams: men 7th div 2, ladies 4th div 2, combined 4th div 2.
Teams after 2 races: men 7th div 2, ladies 3rd div 2, combined 4th div
2.
Derby Runner League Race 2 - Aylestone Meadows 6/12/09
This was a new event in the league. Aylestone Meadows is the open grassland area between the canal and Narborough Road, so this was very central for the Leicester clubs and a nice change from some of the distances we have to travel to the league races. I got there early but Nick was even earlier, as if he had slept in the meadow all night. The weather was very bright after the rain and the course was another 2-lapper, all quite flat with muddy sections here and there and one or two small climbs. There were some stretches of tarmac so you had the choice of spikes which suited most of the course or studs and get a bit of an advantage on the tarmac.
We had 16 runners again which was another brilliant turnout from the Roadhoggs, thank you. After the 5 league debutants last time we had 2 more with Paul Langham and Hina Patel, clearly the thought of running round the countryside and having to wash your kit in the shower is appealing to more and more of you. Nick and Clare led the teams in with storming runs again, well backed up by the usual strong middle order. Baz had a better run than usual. We were pleased to see Fuzzy, Rebecca and Jon back, and Cleggy making his usual once-every-three-years appearance for Roadhoggs. Thanks for cheering us round Trudy, hope your cold gets better soon.
Afterwards we enjoyed some club mince pies on the club tarp.
Results:
Men: Nick Cobley 20th 32.08, Jerry
Wilkes (V40) 105th 36.14, Dale Jenkins (V50) 119th 36.55, Dave Lodwick
(V40) 140th 38.04, Jon Heap (V40) 160th 39.27, Stef Turner 161st 39.29,
Baz Barratt (V40) 177th 40.20, Steve Clegg (V50) 179th 40.39, Paul
Langham (V40) 182nd 40.50, Hitesh Pandya (V40) 194th 41.08, Kim
Richardson 215th (V50) 43.05, 236 finishers.
Ladies: Claire O'Neill 10th 37.50, Rebecca Bromwich 29th 41.06, Emma Klimowicz 33rd 41.58, Fazila Hajat (V40) 101st 52.44, Hina Patel (V40) 102nd 52.48, 110 finishers.
Teams: men 9th div 2, ladies 3rd div 2
(great performance girls), combined 7th div 2.
Teams after 2 races: men 8th div 2,
ladies 2nd div 2, combined 6th div 2.
Derby Runner League Race 1 - Foremark 22/11/09
The league kicked off at
Foremark Reservoir on Sunday, and it was a great start for Roadhoggs with 11 men
and 5 ladies. What an impressive bunch we all looked as we huddled together in
the wind and rain by the doorway to the visitor centre, watching some of the
other clubs put up their tents. Its looking a bit like a refugee camp at the
league races these days but the demands for a Roadhoggs club tent are increasing
so I will start to look at what's available.
Anyway, the race itself is 2 laps with 2
really tough climbs each time. I admire anyone who can run up them because I
couldn't help walking but never lost any ground as everyone around me was
walking as well. These races are getting bigger; over 400 this time. The first
lap was cold and wind and rainy. Ahead, in the back order of the race, I could
see Baz, John, Hitesh and Emma so I had targets to aim at. I did catch Emma and
she chased me round the rest of the race, poor girl. The weather calmed down
second time around but we were all already tired. The best part is a long
straight gravel track at the end of each lap where you can at least try and get
going. At the front our Nick continued his great from with 24th and then Mark
came in 39th on his return to cross-country after a few years out. We had good
middle order with Jerry also in good form and Dale and Dave right in there as
usual. We have scored well in the men's team race. For the girls Claire is also
getting better and better and came in 13th with Angela, I think running her
first league race for us, not far behind. We also got a good ladies team score
and if we keep this up all season we'll be right up there. Stef, Hitesh, Emma
and Anita all made their cross country debuts for Roadhoggs and I am sure they
all had the greatest fun and can't wait for the next race. John and Trudy both
fell, but not together which is a good job or they will never have finished the
race. Anita also fell but got up to finish. Mrs Baz fell as well and she was
only watching!
Results (most times are
missing as they got mixed up at the finish):
Men: Nick Cobley 24th 35.23, Mark
Chamberlain (V40) 39th 36.19, Jerry Wilkes (V40) 109th, Dale Jenkins (V50)
126th, Dave Lodwick (V40) 146th, Stef Turner 183rd, Adrian Stanley (V40) 209th,
Hitesh Pandya (V40) 221nd, Baz Barratt (V40) 226th, John Stew (V50) 232nd, Kim
Richardson (V50) 246th, 282 finishers.
Ladies: Claire O'Neill 13th, Angela
Ladkin (V40) 31st, Emma Klimowicz 56th, Trudy Sharpe (V40) 111th, Anita Pabla
121st, 121 finishers.
Teams: men 7th div 2, ladies 11th div 2,
combined 9th div 2.
2008-9
Derby Runner League Race 5 - Foremark 15/02/09
Last year it was Kim’s dodgy satnav sabotaging the team, this year some cunningly placed road works nearly did the trick. We had to drive home in convoys; otherwise the ladies would still be touring the lanes of Derbyshire. An assortment of injuries and the rival attraction of the Stamford 30K meant we failed to get a team, again. Still, due to the intricacies of the scoring system (known only to Stan, the Zen master from Hatton) our 3 ladies were awarded some well deserved points. As for the men, we were rudderless without Captain Kim, who was attending a birthday lunch. John Hallissey brought his new wife Julieann but for some reason she declined our offer to join us in getting cold and muddy!
The Foremark course is a two-lapper with plenty of variety and a good measure of up and down. Most of the snow and ice had gone, so conditions were fair but with enough mud to make the hills challenging (a bit like running up the “down” escalator). Nick cemented his position as top Hogg with a solid 51st place finish. Best of the rest was Adrian (91st) followed Dave (100th), John (102nd) and Dale (104th) who had a good battle on the way round. Rebecca was first Hogette in 27th and was ably supported by Trudy (70th) and Fazila (75th). Five or so miles of mud and hills was obviously not enough for Bec because she had Trudy drop her off on the way back, so she could run home from Markfield.
MEN: 51st Nick Cobley 38.29, 91st Adrian Stanley 41.36, 100th Dave Lodwick (V40) 42.02, 102nd John Hallissey 42.09, 104th Dale Jenkins (V40) 42.20, team (Dvn2) unplaced, over all 9th.
LADIES: 27th Rebecca Bromwich 45.56,
70th Trudy Sharpe 58.58, 75th Fazila Hajat (V40)
59.58, team (Dvn2) 6th, over all 6th.
Combined team (DVn2) unplaced, 9th over all.
Derby Runner League Race 4 - Grace Dieu 18/1/09
Well the girls
showed the guys what its all about at Grace Dieu. For the first time we had a
full ladies team of 4 with Fuzzy Hajat making her xc debut and supporting Clare,
Rebecca and Trudy. It was a bright but cold day, and the course mostly involved
climbing up a rocky and muddy trail to the top of the Andes. The finish was at
the top of a steep grass bank on the school field, not at the bottom, and our
girl runners seemed to appreciate this judging by the language they used as they
struggled up it to encouraging shouts from the men. Anyway Clare came in a
terrific 10th and Rebecca also had a great run in her bright new shoes to finish
20th. With support from Fuzzy and Trudy the girls team finished 4th, yes 4th, in
their division. Well done you girls!
For the
men though it was more disappointing; only 5 of us ran so we did not finish a
team for the first time this season. Nick led us in (again), then Dale and Dave
having their usual battle with Dale clearly inspired by the Roadhoggs
Cross-Country award he won at the presentation night a week ago. Then came
Edmund, not at full fitness but giving us a last race before he departs for
Australia (look out for him on Home & Away) and then me.
After the
race we wanted to take pictures of our first ever ladies team in their
mud-covered kit to start a club calendar, but Dave's camera overheated.
MEN: 37th Nick Cobley 37.05, 104th Dale Jenkins (V40) 42.02, 113th Dave Lodwick (V40) 42.22, 143rd Edmund Ward 44.55, 193rd Kim Richardson 51.53, team (Dvn 2) unplaced, overall 9th.
LADIES: 10th
Clare O'Neill 42.38, 20th Rebecca Bromwich 44.35, 83rd Fajila Hajat (V40) 59.29,
88th Trudy Sharpe 61.41, team (Dvn 2) 4th, overall 7th.
Combined
team overall 9th
Derby Runner League Race 3 - Bagworth Heath 21/12/08
League race 3
was around the open heath near Bagworth. It was a nice bright morning
but with a cold breeze. The going was mud, not clinging mud, not Mud the
pop group, but wet, splashy, deep and smelly mud. Two of our runners
turned up in new shoes which looked really cool at the start but brown
and mucky like all the rest at the end. We had 9 men which was great but
again 2 ladies when we need 4 to score; come on you girls what’s holding
you back? Why don’t you come and join us and see how much fun this is?
The course was the same as last season, a short lap followed by 2 long
laps with a steep climb each time. It was hard work with lots of places
to slip, not like this easy stuff you do on the roads. Nick was again
the first Roadhogg, then Adrian and then John Hallissey making his debut
in the brightest orange shoes I have ever seen; when he was on the ridge
you could see them from Norway. Then Dale and Rob, then Clare who
started at the back and bombed round wearing my vest which is the
fastest that vest has gone in years. Further back were both Chris's,
Baz, me and Trudy. Some of our times were similar to the last race at
Sinai, which was a bit strange as Sinai was a bit longer and certainly
more hilly! It must be the mud that slowed everybody down.
Afterwards we enjoyed some coffee and
Christmas mince pies on the new club tarpaulin.
MEN: 68th Nick Cobley 37.38, 88th Adrian Stanley 39.25, 127th John
Hallissey 41.52, 130th Dale Jenkins (V40) 42.00, 142nd Rob Milstead
(V50) 42.55, 165th Chris Mann (V40) 44.08, 174th Baz Barrett (V40)
44.54, 185th Chris Peach (V40) 45.41, 195th Kim Richardson (V50) 47.45,
226 finished.
LADIES: 19th Clare O'Neill 43.06, 81st Trudy Sharpe 59.44, 84 finished.
TEAMS (dvn 2):
Overall unplaced, Men 8th, Ladies unplaced.
TEAMS SO
FAR (dvn 2): Overall 9th, Men 8th, Ladies unplaced.
Derby Runner League Race 2 - Sinai Ridge 30/11/08
Race 2 of
this season's league was out in the Alps above Burton-On-Trent. The
start is up a hill and its like that all the way round; steep hills, wet
mud, and uneven everywhere so you can't get a grip. It was cold but not
freezing. We just about finished a men's team but sadly with Trudy out
ill we still only had the 2 girls and needed 2 more. New girl Clare
O'Neill made a great debut, racing all the way with old girl Rebecca
Bromwich (not an old girl really, its just that this is her second
cross-country race) and they finished well up the order in 29th and
30th. As neither were in spikes they did well to stay on their feet. In
the men's race, Nick Cobley was first in then we packed well in the
middle order. It was good to have Chris Mann back. We finished 7 men
which means that the league grants an 8th place and so we scored a team.
Thanks to everyone who made it to this race; I appreciate that Burton is
in another country but its a Derbyshire club which organises it there.
MEN: 61st Nick Cobley 37.49, 109th Chris Mann (V40) 40.35, 121st Dale
Jenkins (V40) 41.19, 127th Dave Lodwick (V40) 41.58, 179th Baz Barrett
(V40) 45.41, 191st John Stew (V50) 47.11, 200th Kim Richardson (V50)
49.02, 223 finished.
LADIES: 29th Rebecca Bromwich 45.59, 30th Clare O'Neill 46.00, 86 finished
TEAMS (Dvn
2): Overall unplaced, Men 9th, Ladies unplaced.
TEAMS SO FAR (Dvn 2): Overall 9th, Men 7th, Ladies unplaced.
Derby Runner League Race 1 - Market Bosworth 16/11/08
The season opened with a 5.6 mile race from the country park at Market Bosworth. On a pleasant sunny morning no less than 15 Roadhoggs turned out which is a great start for us. The course was muddy in parts but mostly flat, in fact the toughest part was a short section of ploughed field in the second half which clung to your feet like clay and was harder work than the uphills. Mike arrived just before the start, having done the Seagrave Challenge only the day before, ran a great race to finish 6th, and then disappeared again into the mist like Zorro. Behind him both Peter and Nick finished inside the top 100, followed by new dad Adrian. Further back there seemed to be a battle between Rob, Jon and Baz as they all came in together, either that or they are really close friends.
This season the league is trying out starting the ladies race 15 minutes after the mens to ease congestion at some points on the course, which meant that I had to fight a lone rearguard action to hold off the women and give the other Roadhoggs men a clear run. For the girls Rebecca made her cross country debut and finished well up, and Trudy ran her usual solid race.
We scored well in the mens and mixed race. If only we had one more girl we would have scored in the ladies team race as well, how about it next time girls?
Next race is at Sinai Ridge at Burton on 30th November, come on Roadhoggs lets keep this up !!!
MEN: 6th Mike Munday (V40) 34.05, 49th Peter Sloneczny (V40) 37.31, 56th Nick Cobley 37.58, 106th Adrian Stanley 40.54, 128th Dale Jenkins (V40) 41.50, 143rd Dave Lodwick (V40) 42.40, 153rd Ceri Davies (V40) 43.18, 164th Rob Milstead (V50) 43.57, 165th Jon Heap 43.58, 167th Baz Barrett (V40) 44.09, 183rd Chris Peach (V40) 45.01, 187th John Stew (V50) 45.10, 232nd Kim Richardson (V50) 49.50, 260 finished.
LADIES: 35th Rebecca Bromwich 47.35, 79th Trudy Sharpe 56.04, 102 finished
TEAMS: Overall (dvn 2) 6th, Men (dvn 2) 5th, Ladies (dvn 2) unplaced.
2007-8
Derby Runner League Race 5 - Sinai 2/03/08
Well I have to be pleased that Roadhoggs
made good progress in the league this season, with full men's teams in every
event except this last one. We had six men and two ladies (well done girls), so
just one more guy and we would have been given points. On a bright and dry
Sunday morning we looked down on the breweries of Burton-On-Trent. This is the
race that starts up a steep climb so it takes you a while to recover from that,
then it's a very scenic course with plenty more up an down all the way round
including two monster hills that sort out the wheat from the chaff - in the car
coming home we agreed it's impossible to run up them, so we were all chaff.
There was a long final stretch along an undulating track which was probably the
fastest mile on the course, before hurtling back down the hill to the finish.
Dave Lod chased Peter all the way before just getting in front in the end. Dale
Jenkins and Rob Bedstead also raced each other round, then came Jon Heap and
then me. For the girls it was good to see Hannah and Trudy yet again; Hannah ran
a blinder and Trudy is proving so reliable for us. If just one or two more of
you will join in then we have a ladies team next season as well.
Ronnie was there to collect the results for us as he often is;
cheers Ron, we do appreciate you being there and telling us how good you are
with computers.
RESULTS: 64 Dave Lodwick (V40) 38.57, 67
Peter Sloneczny (V40) 39.05, 88 Dale Jenkins (V40) 40.48, 93 Rob Milstead (V50)
41.13, 116 Jon Heap 42.51, 128 Kim Richardson (V50) 45.14, 153 finished, team
unplaced.
Women: 13 Hannah Green 41.14, 47 Trudy Sharpe 50.05, 66 finished,
team unplaced
So at the end of the League this season we finished in the lofty
positions of: MEN 8th, LADIES unplaced, and COMBINED 9th, all out of 13 clubs in
division 2.
Thats our best, thanks everyone, next
season I am aiming for European qualification.
Derby Runner League Race 4 - Foremark 17/02/08
Another good day for Roadhoggs mudlarks. It
was a bright and cold day and the ground was hard. This is a 2-lap course, with
each lap starting around the visitor area with lovely views across the
reservoir, then 2 steep hills with a steeper downhill in between, then a long
run back along a gravel track. We had 9 men running so some poor bugger ran his
best but did not score team points. Still, that's another improvement for the
club. Mike Munday was first in, making another welcome appearance and leading
for most of the race until he was overhauled into 2nd pace. Mike continues to
amaze because no-one sees him train, he just turns up and wins races. Then a
great debut run from young Nick Cobley who is looking like a very good prospect
for us, chased in by Karl who won the battle of the Attons. Then Dave Lodwick
who reckoned that was the fastest he had run in a cross-country, Craig Atton,
Dale Jenkins, Chris 'blackbelt' Mann who has made a good recovery from his eye
injury, Jon Heap and yours truly.
Also a record number of 2 Roadhoggettes ! Hannah Green also made
her debut in this league and ran a great 21st followed by Trudy Sharpe who ran
well considering she had little time to prepare as I managed to get us so lost
on the way there (remember East Midlands Airport, Trudy?).
Thanks to everyone who ran; the mens team has climbed another place in the
division and the women nearly scored some team points! Just one more lady next
time ...
RESULTS: 2 Mike Munday (V40) 31.16, 61 Nick Cobley 36.37, 65 Karl
Atton 37.14, 77 Dave Lodwick (V40) 37.51, 97 Craig Atton 38.57, 111 Dale Jenkins
(V40) 39.54, 116 Chris Mann (V40) 40.00, 134 Jon Heap 41.22, 164 Kim Richardson
(V50) 43.56, 197 finished. Team 5th in dvn 2, overall 7th.
Women: 21 Hannah Green 41.14, 51 Trudy Sharpe 46.55, 85 finished.
Derby Runner League Race 3 - Grace Dieu 20/01/08
After all the rain the Grace Dieu course was expected to be wet, and it was
soggy and muddy all the way round. It seemed to go on for ever but was I guess
between 5 and 5.5 miles. The club's annual dinner the
previous evening also didnt help as all of our runners claimed that the beer and
wine impaired their performance (any excuse). This is a regular league course
but normally 2 laps round a variety of fields and woods, but this time it was a
single lap with a long section around a very muddy, rocky and hilly track. In
some places it was more like a fell run and a bit dangerous because you had to
watch where you were planting your feet with rocks hidden under the deep mud,
along with the leading runners coming back down the hillside on the same track
you were going up!! Still we had the 8 scorers for the mens team so we are
keeping up the much better league performance this season, led in by our newly
crowned athlete-of-the year Peter in 54th. We had good middle-order finishers in
Dale, Craig and Dave Lodwick, plus Rob Milstead (Swanee: it's not Newstead) in
144th. Behind that came John Stew, Jon Heap on the comeback trail and then me
who managed to fall over on the safest section of the course. Another Roadhoggs
debutante was Trudy who ran a great 54th in the ladies race ... I hope we will
see more of you girls turning out, it would be great if we can start finishing a
ladies team as well and finally begin to make our mark in this league.
RESULTS: 54 Peter Sloneczny (MV40) 36.06, 113 Dale Jenkins
(MV40) 41.43, 124 Craig Atton 41.53, 135 Dave Lodwick (MV40) 42.27, 144 Rob
Milstead (MV50) 43.04, 187 John Stew (MV560) 48.23, 200 Jon Heap 49.33, 209 Kim
Richardson (MV50) 51.35, 230 finished. Team 9th (dvn 2), overall 8th.
55 Trudy Sharpe 51.30, 92 finished
Huncote Hash 30/12/07
This is the annual Christmas calorie burn-off race, about 6.5 miles round all
sorts of terrain and obstacles. It is always a friendly and well-supported event
with a few local runners in fancy dress; this time some of the men were dressed
as pirates but of course Roadhoggs already did that earlier in the month (am I
missing out on something here?). The course was as usual wet and muddy but the
section around the quarry was firmer than expected which helped. Croft Hill was
such a slog, with plenty of jolly spectators to (take the piss) encourage you to
the top. Then came the brook which was quite deep this year, and later on you
had to literally haul yourself up the sandhills but at least that was near the
end. We had 4 runners, including Trudy Sharpe who ran unattached but is soon to
join us.
RESULTS 74 Dale Jenkins (MV40) 50.48, 119 John Stew (MV50)
55.24, 148 Kim Richardson (MV50) 58.54, 171 Trudy Sharpe 61.35 207 Finished.
Derby Runner League Race 2 - Bagworth Heath 2/12/07
The day started wet and windy (reminds me of our Chairman) but I was looking forward to another Roadhoggs team in double figures, not least because I was trying to get out of running this myself as my Achilles was a bit sore again. Well we had 6 before the start so with first 8 to score it would not have made any difference if I ran well or not, so I ran anyway and was ok.
The day brightened up during the race, though it was very muddy underfoot and there were plenty of places to fall over. This is a two-and-a-bit lap course with a tough climb up to the top of a ridge in each lap. The number of runners is also up this season, so you have more runners to race against wherever you are down the order. Some of the track was narrow so it was difficult to overtake (or be overtaken) and so you tended to settle into a pace, but it was still all a hard slog. Apart from coming down off the ridge and a long grassy straight near the end of each lap there are no easy sections to get your legs back.
Roadhoggs were led in by Mike Munday in 6th place, a great performance considering he hared all 8 primary schools' races on Western Park the day before. Then Peter Sloneczny ran another stormer to finish 27th. Behind that we packed quite well, Dave and Craig must have been chatting because they finished 122nd and 124th (in truth Dave caught Craig just at the end), then Dale Jenkins in 132nd, Chris Peach in 146th, Baz Barrett in 170th and then me. That makes 8!! I wasn't aware that Chris had ran until after the race but it made my brilliant 207th so important.
As this was the last league race before Christmas, we enjoyed some mince pies and coffee afterwards. The league is becoming ever more popular and there are more clubs now, split into 2 divisions with Roadhoggs in the 2nd. It was good to see some new cross-country runners in our team, and to finish another full team and earn league points. We must be doing better than ever, no longer stuck to the bottom of the table and we have the incentive to get promoted. We just need some of you girls to turn up now, so we will have to think of something to tempt you. Thanks Guys, I hope we can keep this going.
Results: 6 Mike
Munday 31.34, 27 Peter Sloneczny 34.14, 122 Dave Lodwick 39.53, 124
Craig Atton 40.00, 132 Dale Jenkins 40.32, 146 Chris Peach 41.20, 170
Baz Barratt 42.55, 207 Kim Richardson 46.40.
Men's Team: 7th (Div 2).
Derby Runner League Race 1 - Fosse Meadows 18/11/07
Report by Dave Lodwick.
Kim is simply not going to believe this! When Kim released that the first Derby Runner race clashed with his nookie weekend, he probably thought he wouldn't be missing much - it is two seasons since we have scored a single point. I'm not sure which he will find the most shocking - the fact that we fielded 13 runners or the fact that one of them was Swanee! Actually, given our Chairman's longstanding dislike of running on anything other than tarmac I'm pretty confident it'll be the latter.
When a spell of cold weather turns wet, you normally expect the temperature to rise a bit. Unfortunately, we all woke to strong wind and cold driving rain - hardly the weather for encouraging our Derby Runner debutants. I had been secretly hoping we might just manage a team, despite regulars Chris Mann and John Heap being injured, but nobody could have expected 13 runners. It was a pleasure to welcome Mike Munday back after a long time out with a very serious injury. The course was a really nice one, with a bit of everything. Much to most people's relief, there were no hills to speak of (just a couple of gentle slopes). The car park was a bit of a challenge, particularly for those with rear wheel drive BMWs, and that was just getting in! Fortunately, there seemed to be plenty of people on hand to push stricken cars.
Mike led us home in 10th and then there was a bit of a gap but we packed superbly. Adrian ran a well-judged race to finish "best of the rest" in 82nd. Karl (90th), now benefiting from training with his second claim club, Belper Harriers, continued to hold sway over brother Craig (108th) with Dave L (112th) not far behind. Peter felt unwell after a mile and so took it steady (127th), just holding off a fast finishing Jerry (128th). Dale (134th) completed the eight with Baz a bit further back in 145th. Despite losing Chris, who pulled up with an injury after a mile, we still hadn't finished. John S came in 211th and Dave S 248th. Both Dave S and Jerry were wearing road shoes so they must have found it particularly tough in the conditions. Sally (74th) was the only lady to swap the duvet for a running vest and hopefully, after she has thawed out, she'll persuade some of the others that this cross-country lark is actually rather fun (provided you don't mind peeing in a hedge)!
So Kim, I can't offer you photographic evidence (too wet for cameras) but if you look at the results you'll definitely see "248 Dave Swan V60" and I'm sure he'll gladly show you his muddy trainers if you still have any lingering doubts!
RESULTS: Men: 10 Mike Munday 32.57, 82 Adrian
Stanley 38.34, 90 Karl Atton 38.50, 108 Craig Atton 39.55, 112 Dave
Lodwick 40.07, 127 Peter Sloneczny 41.06, 28 Jerry Wilkes 41.08, 134
Dale Jenkins 41.27, 145 Baz Barratt 42.09, 211 John Stew 47.29, 248 Dave
Swan 52.53.
Ladies: 74 Sally Waterfield 52.09.
Men's Team: 7th (Div 2).
2006-7
Derby Runner League Race 5 - Sinai Ridge 18/02/07
This is the race that starts up a steep hill so you are
knackered for the whole of the race. Then we ran around the ridge, which was
quite muddy and with some difficult cambers so you had to watch your footing.
After about 3 miles we came to a long tough climb which was ok to run at the
start but in the end you were walking. Then down again which made me wonder if
there was more ahead; I was right, we had to climb an even longer hill and I
walked this one all the way but didn't lose any places because no one was
running. All in all I like this course because it's scenic and there are some
fast sections. Still only 5 Roadhoggs; Jon is still improving and at one point
got past Dave but Dave made a race of it.
RESULTS: Men: 64 Adrian Stanley 40.16, 81 Dave Lodwick (V40) 41.20, 92 Jon Heap
42.41, 128 Kim Richardson (V50) 45.53, 153 Rex Stapleford (V70) 64.34, 156
finished.
I don't want to mention where the team finished, but everyone else is above us.
Derby Runner League Race 4 - Castle Hill Park, 21/01/07
With most Roadhoggs on marshalling duty we did
well to have 5 in this race, though it will have cost us points for not
finishing a full team again. After even more rain the Roadhoggs course was mud
and water all the way,
even the higher ground was wet underfoot and it was hard work for all of the
runners. At least it was a bright day and not too cold. Being on duty near the
finish, I was amazed how quickly the leaders reappeared
again; why can't I be as fast as these guys?
RESULTS: Men: 93 Adrian Stanley 44.04, 99 Chris Mann (V40) 44.18, 130 Jon Heap
47.49, 155 Baz Barrett (V40) 51.44, 179 Rex Stapleford (V70) 63.26, 18 finished.
Huncote Hash 31/12/06
The hash course was quite wet and muddy this year but it could
have been even worse after all the rain. Only 2 Roadhoggs made it, Dave covering
the 6.5 miles in overall 75th and Kim in 133rd out of 255 finishers. Croft Hill
as usual was a real challenge, a long and steep climb followed by a shorter and
even steeper downhill. Then there was the run through the brook and round the
quarry where your feet sank into a mix of mud and sand for almost a mile.
Then there was the vertical sand-heaps which you had to pull yourself up. Oh
joy. Really this race is just a good post-Christmas burn-out and it's very
friendly and good fun. There are always one or two fancy dress runners, and this
year I passed a group of blokes in dresses; you wouldn't catch me out in the
countryside wearing those colours. The soup after the race was very welcome !!
RESULTS (overall): 75 Dave Lodwick (V40) 52.49, 133 Kim Richardson (V50) 60.18,
255 finished.
Derby Runner League: Race 3 - Bagworth Heath, 17/12/06
We returned to the popular Bagworth course for the next league
race. Another bright and cold day, another wet and muddy slog but this time is
was splashy rather than clingy mud. Some of our regular runners were unavailable
but some other Roadhoggs returned to the team so we ended up with just 5 men
again, and this time no Rachel. We welcomed back Steve Gale, after 7 months
without racing, and Adrian Stanley, another quality runner (creep creep). Chris
Mann returned from his French nuptuals, cycled to the race, ran, and cycled home
- tough guy! All 5 were pleased with their runs round a testing course, lots of
hills and slopes to fall down.
RESULTS: 34 Steve Gale (V40) 37.04, 101 Chris Mann (V40) 41.54, 109 Jon Heap
42.41, 110 Adrian Stanley 42.48, 141 Kim Richardson (V50) 45.12, 189 finishers.
Afterwards we enjoyed coffee and mince pies. Once we get Dave and Rex
back, we're nearly a team !!
Swithland Cross Country relays, 3/12/06
We were
back at the Swithland course just a week after the league race for the
cross-country relays, organised by Barrow Runners. Same course, still
wet and muddy. Roadhoggs had a bit of a makeshift mens team. Jon
Heap set off first around the 2.5 mile loop (it seemed a very long 2.5
miles to me!) and reappeared at the changeover whilst Dave and me were
still chatting! Jon later confessed he and a few others had taken a
wrong course, and I think the organisers added time to the last runners
to compensate for this, either that or Dave Lodwick had a crap day. I
set off on leg 2, handed over to Rex for leg 3 and finally Dave had the
glory leg. We
didnt do too bad, finishing 26th out of 35 teams. These relays make a
nice change, there is always someone to chase and you have to work hard
round the shorter distance.
LEGS:
Jon Heap 21.04, Kim Richardson (V50) 25.22, Rex Stapleford (V70) 32.15,
Dave Lodwick (V40) 27.36 (adjusted time).
Derby Runner League, Race 2: Swithland, 26/11/06
Mike Munday is back !! On a bright day we all set
off but after just a few minutes, with the race strung out down a field edge,
somebody shouted that we were all going the wrong way !! So the race stopped and
we all trudged back from different directions to a restart. We were asked to be
honest and position ourselves more or less where we were before the race
stopped, which was a bit of a bummer because I could have restarted in front of
Mike - in fact he came to the restart as last Roadhogg but he still got back to
the front and WON the race ! The course was 2 laps, not hilly but very wet and
very very very muddy. There were few sections which were not deep and soggy mud,
so it was all hard work. There were queues at the early stiles and brook
crossings so you could have a bit of a breather. We only had 5 guys again, plus
dear ole' Rachel who is our entire ladies team. Once again we are struggling as
a club and propping up the league. Where are the rest of you girls and guys?
Don't you like getting dirty on a Sunday morning? Speaking of that, Chris Mann
did contact me to say he was in France on a dirty weekend but would be thinking
of us ... ooh er.
RESULTS
1 Mike Munday (V40) 35.26, 119 Dave Lodwick (V40) 47.24, 143 Jon Heap 49.43, 185
Kim Richardson (V50) 54.35, 220 Rex Stapleford (V70) 68.45 - 224 finishers.
56 Rachel Moyes 58.31 - 117 finishers.
Derby Runner League, Race 1: Ullesthorpe, 29/10/06
There was a new venue for the first race
of the new cross country season and it was not quite like any that I had
come across before. It was run from Manor farm at Ullesthorpe. The
parking, certainly for the early
arrivals, was in the farmyard and surrounding areas and my own place was
up against the cow shed where the occupants were enjoying a late
breakfast. The walk to the start then took you by the pig sties and into
a field which gave the spectators a great view of much of the race
because of its elevated position. I did not run due to my continuing
injury problems so I watched the race unfold beneath me, when I wasn't
showing Baz's Louis the cows and pigs, rather like King Richard watched
the battle of Bosworth Field from his vantage point nearby. I suppose it
could be said that Roadhoggs had an equally bad day. The troops who did
turn up, Chris, Baz, Jon, Dave L and Rachel fought valiantly over a good
course on a bright autumnal day but they were swamped in a massive field
of 302. However, I am sure that the fab five will not be put off by such
poor support and will live to fight another day, particularly Rachel who
has invested in a snazzy pair of cross country shoes. Personally, I hope
we see this course again.
RESULTS
76 Chris Mann (V40) 44.40, 111 Dave Lodwick (V40) 47.51, 136 Jon Heap
50.22, 150 Baz Barrett (V40) 51.47 - 204 finishers
53 Rachel Moyes 58.48 - 102 finishers
Steve Martin