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Cross Country – Bat Men Promoted

As a runner who doesn’t really excel at cross country, my main focus behind taking part in this year’s NSCCL was primarily to help the club out and also get some race fitness back into my legs after a long time out. The first round at Winsford spoilt us with gorgeous weather and perfect conditions (for myself anyway), although it was probably a bit too warm for most runners. The course was barely XC. Solid ground due to no rain, so no mud whatsoever. I loved it haha and I performed well to finish 11th and record my best XC position ever! But that was probably due to it not being a true XC!!

When results were all in, it was a surprise to find that Stone MM were sitting at the top of division 2. What a fantastic club effort. I think I can speak for most people at the club by saying, promotion probably wasn’t in the mind at the start of the day. This set the desire and motivation for the remaining 3 races.
Next up was Stafford Common. The conditions couldn’t have been any different than at Winsford. We were greated with cold, chilly weather and I had to opt for tights myself. Cold weather and myself don’t get on haha. The course however still didn’t contain any mud and it was another good performance by the club, however we found that we had slipped to 2nd overall. It didn’t deter us though and actually made us want to push that bit harder.
By the time Park Hall came around, I found myself extra motivated to help the club regain the top spot and I gave it my all! It was a nice clear day, but very windy. The breeze actually helped somewhat by giving us all a boost up the hill on each lap. (Or was that Bernie’s homemade mulled wine?) Either way I felt energized! Another strong performance by the club and although we didn’t get back on the top step, we had opened up a very nice margin over 3rd place. I left Park Hall thinking I’m actually really liking XC now. 3 races done and not a single bit of mud, awesome!!

That soon changed though as the 4th and final XC race at Rodbaston was a mudbath. 0 degrees and freezing rain. It was so cold I had to wear a waterproof under my club top. I opted not to wear spikes as I wanted to protect my calves. Big big mistake. My ‘barely’ trail shoes were completely hopeless. I spent the entire race tip-toeing around the bends and slipping every time I put the power down. Eventually I skied my way to 67th place and by god was I glad that was over! This was the true XC that I’d completely forgotten about. Anyway I soon had a big smile on my face as the results were in and we had done it! Stone Master Marathoners had secured promotion to division 1 with the 2nd placed team overall. It felt great knowing I had done my part in helping the club secure this promotion and I had discovered a new found likeness to XC. Yes despite the cold, rainy, windy weather most XC’s bring, there’s a different feeling and togetherness that road running doesn’t give you.

Fantastic effort everyone! Bring on 2019!!

By Danny Soltys

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Flying Fox 10 – 1st November 2015

Befitting of the morning after Halloween it was a foggy one with a nip in the air and it looked like a few of our members had not took off their masks from last nights Dusk to Dawn marathon (no names Chairman and Mr Cape..oops). I turned up ready to run but secretly hoping to marshal after feeling a bit sore still after last weekend’s XC.  VC

As is the norm I turned up ridiculously early and with Anne-Marie marshalling I was the first runner at the car park so I made my way up to meet with the fellow Bats who were looking after us today.

 

The smell of bacon at the school was very enticing but my pre race ritual is porridge first thing and that is it till after the finish line (then chocolate and sweets where possible). Had a chat with Chris and Pam Eardley along with numerous other Bats, (Chris had something stuck on his face, hope you have managed to remove it ;-). ) but they were all busy getting sorted so I wandered around getting in the zone (yeah right) ready to smash it.

The Bat Girls looked to be out in force and Mick Downes turned up in his race gear so my first in for the club was definitely under threat after quite a few successes for me in this years NSRRA races.

After what seemed ages myself and Mick Downes jogged up to the start chatting with our fellow runners and Group competitors, I am sure group D has about 300 runners this year and got ready for the start.

We had a minutes silence for Dave Upton which was impeccably observed by each and every runner which shows what a great community spirit there is in running and even more so in the North Staffs – a credit to the area.

Then we were off……there is something about the Flying Fox 10 that the flat bits appear uphill, the uphill appears uphill and the downhills dont last long enough. We started the first 2 miles undulating through the country roads in the fog and Mick Downes soon disappeared off into the gloom. I caught up with Amy and a few group D runners and we eased into the race before we had the downhill past the school and our adoring public….thanks for the cheers team although I had to encourage you !

I had had my doubts about running as the Gluteus maximus was giving me some trouble and it felt like my hamstring was really tight but like the hero I am I struggled on along the flat couple of miles before the steep hill. It was about mile 5 that Pippa strolled past looking very relaxed with shouts from the marshals that she was 2nd lady at this point….go Pippa.IMG_0339

We got to the base of the hill and i stopped for a few seconds to stretch the legs which were not feeling too good but when Kirsty ran past checking I was okay I manned up and started off, couldn’t let the Bats down could I.

We plodded up the hill to be met at the water station with Emma Dutton, Anne Griffiths and girls screaming encouragement to us which is much appreciated – thanks ladies, but I don’t usually take on water in a shortish race as more goes over my clothes than in my mouth.

By about mile 6 or 7 I knew I would finish the race but the shouts of go on girls from behind me meant that Amy and Kirsty weren’t far behind and with a few Group D’s in front I found a few extra seconds per mile and pushed on for home.

Seeing Phil Cape meant the finish was only a mile and half away although again I can’t remember coming down a hill at the beginning so I am sure they put it there whilst we were out on the course.

With a bit more effort down the last hill and along to the school I pushed on, only to be passed by a couple of Group D runners who weren’t after points today…damn I fell for that one, but crossed the line in 73:17 a PB by just over 4 minutes.

I hobbled over to Pippa and Mick, 72:00 and 66:27 respectively, with Amy (73:47) and Kirsty (74:33) hot on my heels.Fab Five

 

We then had 78:57 David-Paul Malaber (PB), 83:48 Richard Shaw, 89:26 Chris Ellerton, 95:30 Gail Evans, 98:21 David Griffiths, 99:40 Joyce Edwards (1st F65) also coming home for the Bats.

 

As it turned out Pippa, Amy and Kirsty were 2nd, 3rd and 4th lady home and with Gail they won the team prize for the ladies (Gents we need to up our game next season…who’s with me ?). Absolutely brilliant effort from the Bat Girls, and also from everyone one else some great times and effort (I think there were other prizes for the Bats but at time of writing I haven’t seen them…sorry)

Group SHot

 

As with every race a big thank you to the marshals but I must admit those today are second to none and it does make it much more enjoyable when your team mates are encouraging you when all you want to do is pack up and go home, I for one am especially proud to be a member of SMM.

 

One last request though, lets get more Bats running in the NSRRA next year, it is good fun but as the ladies showed today we have some great runners in the club and with the team spirit we can start pushing each other on getting the Bats back up and flying high.

 

Paul

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Stone Master Marathoners – Weekend Round Up (24th/25th October 2015)

This weekend was dominated by the North Staffs Cross Country League at Stafford Common on a wet, cold Saturday afternoon.

Everyone gathered on Stafford Common to find Bernie had set up the Gazebo – with a roof !!! Thanks Bernie, it is appreciated and even though you got a good soaking we hope our turn out was worth it.

We assembled with promises of ‘fingers of fudge’, mulled wine, homemade cakes and were all offered tea and coffee to warm the fingers before the racing commenced. There was also plenty of discussion on what footwear to use (all amazed at Kirsty’s size 2 spikes) and how many layers to wear.

The set up with cross country is several junior races go off early starting about 11am before the ladies go off at 1.30pm. The ladies compete in a 5k event (two loops of the common) and the Men in a 10k event (3 extended loops of the common) setting off at 2.10pm.

11 female bats ran with the top 4 counting for the points, 1st in for the club in 23:00 was Pippa Steele with Amy Gamble (23:46), Philippa Boote (24:15) and Julie McArthur (24:20) the top four, closely followed by Kirsty Stephenson (24:24). Others included Pam Davies (26:05), Alison Brind (26:30), Anne-Marie Mountford (27:37), Julie Ebrey (28:04), Julie Boulton (30:07) and Marianne Stopka (32:51) completing her first ever cross country run.

We are seeing a really strong team with the ladies now and they came 4th in their division on Saturday with a brilliant points haul. Also with getting more members running we are pushing down other teams so a big thank you to all the girls for a tremendous effort on Saturday. (If anyone wants to write a brief overview of their experience of the race please feel free to send it to me).

As expected the rain started to fall about 10 past 2 so as the ladies were tucking into the mulled wine the men started around the course which by now had been nicely churned up, I am glad I trialled some spikes because I think I would have gone ‘head over heels’ (the polite version) had I not worn them.

The course basically starts with a steady climb before a few twists and turns around the end of the field with a nice little ditch to jump/tread carefully through which as you can probably imagine several runners disappeared into never to be seen again, one of the perils of Cross Country running. We then circled back onto the main field before looping round and completing two more laps.

The thing with cross country is because of the laps you get plenty of encouragement from your teammates, however the bloke next to me kept wondering who was shouting his name until on the last lap he realised it was Kirsty shouting c’mon Paul (his name was Karl?!), I’m not sure if Kirsty’s accent had anything to do with it !! On the last lap Amy gave me some words of wisdom ‘every vest matters’ and hopefully my sprint finish passing a couple of Trentham lads and a Stafford Harriers runner gave us a few extra points as I actually finished in the top four for the club.

9 men ran with Tim Hulse first home in 42:04 with Mick Downes (42:26), Phil Cape (43:05) and Paul Phillips (46:48) the top four. With Jamie McArthur (49:34), Nick Boulton (52:11), Richard Shaw (52:49), Tim Clegg (63:12) and Dave Turton (64:35) completing the race.

Although the men aren’t quite as strong as the ladies team regarding points it is great to have a team out this year and to be competitive. Fingers crossed we can get a few more out at Park Hall on the 14th November and push on again.

We all enjoyed the snacks on offer and Mick Downes even bought out a few bottles of beer to quench the thirst after a relatively demanding 10.4k before we all went our separate ways (a few of us via the Shirehorse) to dry out.

Big thanks again to Bernie for organising and also to each and everyone one of you for racing on Saturday.

Go Bats !!

Paul

Ps. Sorry no pictures this week unless Mike Keeling has some to add

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The Great Birmingham Run

12105712_10207778435767892_3770758179215119710_nFollowing the constant email countdown reminders (there was no chance of forgetting) Sunday 18th October arrived and the apprehension of joining 20000 other runners for the great Birmingham run became reality. As usual I was sick with nerves and unable to stomach any food and could only manage a cup of tea!
Having researched the best travel options we drove to Wolverhampton and jumped on a train, 40 minutes later at 0930 hrs we arrived in Birmingham. Upon arrival we were greeted to a loving couple sat on the side of the street consuming strong ale and loudly exchanging insults, having been touched by the lovely welcome we hastily made our way to the start line trying to explain in the best possible way to our 13 year old what a crack rat was (a particularly loving quote she’d overheard the couple say to each other).

The race was well organised and signposted and minutes from the train station, the atmosphere was great with live music and a warm up for all waves. There were several waves and we ran in the orange wave. The start was split into two which merged into one after a mile, this was great as it reduced the bottle neck thAt can occur at the start.
We spotted Richard Fain before the start but obviously that was the last we saw of him as he finished long before us! The weather was overcast and cool but perfect conditions to race in.

The course was relatively flat and closed off to all traffic, the route led us through Bournville where we were greeted with lots of support and past cadburys world ( although we got no chocolate!) and also through the car park of Edgbason cricket ground. We ran through Cannon Hill park where music was broadcast from Free Radio, and again there was lots of support and a great atmosphere. Approximately at mile 8 I spotted the beaming smiles of Emma Dutton and Anne Grittiths, we gave each other some encouragement as we passed by! Bill, Dave and Julia all took part too and Sarah was there cheering them on!
Throughout the race there was plenty of water and isotonic drink stations and Spectators were giving out jelly babies and sweets, there was also a runner shower at mile 10. We caught up with a couple of Stafford Harriers during the race who we ran with after the park. Mile 11’s Killer hill fortunately didn’t turn out to be too much of a killer, certainly when you compare it to the riggers of Staffordshire’s countryside which we’re all used too, and after conquering that the end was in sight!

We finished in Broad street after a pleasant run and was welcomed by an amazing crowd, we received a nice goody bag which included a medal, lucazade, water, flapjack, crisps, T-shirt and cranberries. http://www.stonemm.co.uk/2015/10/21/the-great-birmingham-run/ http://www.stonemm.co.uk/2015/10/21/the-great-birmingham-run/Richard Fain came in first for the club in a fab 1:34:29, followed by myself 1:47:13, Jamie 1:49:01, Julia 2:15:46, Dave 2:18:29, Bill 2:30:17, Anne 2:30:20 and Emma 2:30:21 🙂

After the race we jumped back on the train and was home by 2pm giving jamie opportunity to sleep before his night shift. I would have liked to hit the shops with Emma, Sarah and Anne but instead I spent the afternoon watching christmas films with the girls and making up for not eating that morning!

Julie McArthur

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Werrington 10k – 18th October 2015

This was the last club championship race of the season and after missing the South Cheshire 20 I wanted to do this to do 9 out of the 10 races. It was also the penultimate NSRRA race and my 12th ensuring I qualified for the points.

IMG_0169For once I didn’t arrive at the crack of dawn and I managed to arrive about 9:30 AM to collect my number and T shirt and then mingled with the other bats. As always there seems to be hundreds of group D runners present. We all had a quick chat and then assembled for a 1030 start, it was a perfect morning for running and after a quick safety alert from Ken Rushton we set off.

My plan was to try and stay close to Tim for once so I went off quicker than usual and after about 400 yards I was doubting my plan.! However I stuck with it and managed to do two sub 7 minute miles for the first two and felt ok.

I did this race 2 years ago and remembered there was a hill at mile 4 so although Tim was only a couple of hundred yards in front I didn’t try and catch him and tried to save myself for the hill. I went through the halfway stage slightly quicker than my 5k PB so perhaps the people who say I am not trying hard enough have a point !

The hill as I remember was ‘a beast’ not particularly steep but it just dragged on and threatened to undo all my hard work for the first 4 miles but apart from one point where I had to walk behind a Mercedes going slower than the runners I managed to get up in under 8 minutes.

This left a relatively downhill mile with a slight uphill to finish before the run through the school to finish. http://www.stonemm.co.uk/2015/10/20/werrington-10k-18th-october-2015/ http://www.stonemm.co.uk/2015/10/20/werrington-10k-18th-october-2015/I managed to pass a few D runners but the quality this year is brilliant and I will be happy with 44/45 points today but no guarantees.

I clocked a 10k PB by about 45 seconds (43:47) and was about 3 minutes faster round Werrington than 2 years ago so I was more than happy with my run.

IMG_0162

Tim ran a really good race and finished in about 41:23 with Amy Gamble not far behind me in just over 45 minutes and 1st F35. Anne-Marie, Gail, Joyce and Katie Adams also ran with Joyce 1st F65, so a good turnout with PB’s and prizes and the Bats on the up.

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All the results are on the website www.stonemm.co.uk

Next up is the Stafford Common Cross Country so let’s get a big turnout and start challenging.

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Stone Master Marathoners – Vice Captain’s Weekend Round Up (17th/18th October 2015)

IMG_0079

I thought I would try and write a summary report of all the performance’s over the past weekend, no promises I will do this every week but I will try.

So where do I start this weekend saw ‘The Bats’ running across the globe from Melbourne to Werrington.

On Saturday Alison Brind and Kevin Uzzell did the Round Rotherham 50 miler, with Alison 1st F50 in 10h 13min and Kevin completing it in 12:54, a great effort by Alison and Kevin. I would also like to mention Roger Taylor who we all know is a Bat at heart even though he wears a funny green colour now and then – he came 6th overall in an amazing time of 7hr 28.

Steve Parker ran the Melbourne Marathon whilst we were all sleeping in a cracking time of 3:28 and was the 8th V60 in a field of thousands, this is Steve’s 3rd sub 3.30 marathon in a matter of weeks, massive respect out to Sparker.

12105712_10207778435767892_3770758179215119710_n
8 Bats took part in the Birmingham Half Marathon with Richard Fain 1st home for the club in 1:34 , nice to see Richard still racing after his move down South. Julie McArthur was 1st female Bat in 1:47 with a PB, beating her husband, Jamie and even making excuses for him.

Others running included Anne and Bill Griffiths, Julia Dando, Emma Dutton and Bill Clarke, very well done to everyone.12096010_10200791091056729_2399716155259569153_n

 

 

 

 

 

Over in Portugal, Club Captain, Bernie Priekulis and Phil Cape ran approx. 4:14 in the Lisbon Rock and Roll Marathon in wet conditions. http://www.stonemm.co.uk/2015/10/20/stone-master-marathoners-vice-captains-weekend-round-up-17th18th-october-2015/ http://www.stonemm.co.uk/2015/10/20/stone-master-marathoners-vice-captains-weekend-round-up-17th18th-october-2015/The excuses have already come in and I am sure we will hear all about it on Wednesday in the bar.12107976_10153555631637211_8023066519124608735_n

Closer to home, 7 Bats completed the penultimate NSRRA race, Werrington 10k with Chairman Tim Hulse first home in 41:23,IMG_0070

Vice-Captain – Paul Phillips with a PB of 43:47 and prizes for Amy Gamble – 1st F35 and Joyce Edwards – 1st F65 with Anne Marie Mountford, Gail Evans and Katie Adams also completing the race.

Only one more NSRRA race to go, Flying Fox 10 in November, its been a long season but many friends made and I for one am already planning next year and would highly recommend getting more Bats signed up as it is a great laugh.

Finally, on top of all this our Chairman managed to convince 24 of us to run in the Thunder Run (http://www.tr24.co.uk/), a 24 hour event next July. So on Monday morning Tim and his lovely wife, working on 3 PC’s booked us up and we now have 3 teams successfully entered – well done Tim 😉

Paul

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Chester Marathon – 4th October 2015

Race Report – Jim Holland

ChesterM_2015_GroupWhen my alarm went  at 5.30am on Sunday morning, I was wondering whether I really wanted to get up and travel to Chester to run the marathon. After picking Steve up on route to Stone, we met Kim, Marian and Mick at the tennis club to travel to the race together.

By the time we arrived in Chester it was clear that the weather would be perfect for the race. We were greeted by the race organiser who I’d last seen at the Paris expo when Bernie and I called in to see if he had any liquid refreshments. At this point there was no sign of his brother Tim Hulse, who we subsequently discovered was catching up on his beauty sleep at home.

Before the start at 9am I said hello to ex bat Michelle Rushton – Fox who was running her first marathon for 5 years, Jason Blount from Newcastle AC and our friend Stu who we met at the Vilnius race in Lithuania.

Chester M_2015_MedalThe marathon began at 9am prompt with a few hundred metres on the race course before climbing up to the city centre for a loop and then out towards Belgrave and Pulford. I’d moved in front of the 3:15 flag carrier as I headed to the half way point in 1:32. A two mile loop here saw us emerge back on the road where we were joined by the metric marathon runners.

It was a pleasant run to the finish on the race course  with plenty of support all along the route and lovely sunny day. I finished in 3:08 which was my quickest time in 5 years. http://www.stonemm.co.uk/2015/10/09/chester-marathon-4th-october-2015/ http://www.stonemm.co.uk/2015/10/09/chester-marathon-4th-october-2015/Sparker was next in 3:20 (1st vet 60), Tim 3:24, Mick 3:24 and Kim 3:56. After a shower and beer we set off back to Stone to continue the rehydration in the Royal Exchange.

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CAPTAIN’S REPORT 07/10/15

We’ve had an improved level of participation by club members at races all over Britain (and Poland) and over varying distances.

It was good to see newer members racing, with Jane Capey getting 2nd F55 at the Katherine House 10K, Shugborough.

Richard Shaw has been running really well recently, following up his 2nd M65 at the New Forest Half Marathon with 1st M65 at the Tissington Trail Half Marathon.

Anne-Marie Mountford continues her impressive form with 1st F40 at the Ipstones 5.

At the St Thomas 7, Amy Gamble was 1st F35 and Joyce Edwards was 1st F65.

8 Bats ran the Wroclaw Marathon, in the company of Ben Gamble, as part of Jim Holland’s Stag Weekend. Wroclaw_TeamSteve Parker led the Bats home in Poland, in 3.24 which he improved on at the Chester Marathon to record a time of 3.20 and was 1st M60. He was beaten in by Jim’s best time for about 4 years, 3.08.

There was a great turn-out of 12 men and 10 ladies at the Winsford X-Country, a huge improvement on last year.

Open Air

We all need to encourage a similar turn-out at Stafford Common on 24th October. The Captain will ensure that our portable Bat Cave will have a roof and sides for its next outing, so that cakes, bottles and runners stay dry!

Finally, 20 Bats supported the new Moddershall 5 and were led in by Roger Taylor in 31.30 and Pippa Steele in 37.24, who was second lady overall. http://www.stonemm.co.uk/2015/10/08/captains-report-071015/ http://www.stonemm.co.uk/2015/10/08/captains-report-071015/Kirsty Stephenson was 3rd lady with Kevin Uzzell 1st M65 and Pam Davies 1st F60.

Vice Captain’s additional note – In addition to seeing Jane Capey achieving 2nd F55 (see above) it was also good to see Tim Clegg complete his first half marathon at Congleton on 4th October. Both have joined this club this year and have made excellent progress and it is great seeing them competing in races.

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Christmas Gathering !!

SAVE THE DATE

What Stone Master Marathoners Christmas Gathering

When Friday 27th November 7.30pm

Where Gilmores at The Wheatsheaf, Oulton http://www.thewheatsheafstone.co.uk/

More to follow…………http://www.stonemm.co.uk/2015/10/05/christmas-gathering/http://www.stonemm.co.uk/2015/10/05/christmas-gathering/

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Winsford Cross Country – 26th September 2015

For some weeks Captain Bernie has been mentioning (on the odd occasion) Cross Country and after a disappointing turn out from the Men last year he wanted a few more volunteers to run. Now Saturday’s are not ideal for me but I wanted to give it a go as I heard it is great fun and a good laugh.

So after taking the kids swimming and then dropping them off at a conveniently timed party I went down to the club and jumped in a car with Rose Gillick and Kevin Uzzell who have a couple of years of experience behind them.

Taking the scenic route through Nantwich to avoid the M6 we arrived in Winsford and parked up setting off to find Bernie in the club tent, he had kindly gone early to set up, bad ribs and all, so we could concentrate on running.

We were met with the air conditioned version as Bernie had obviously seen the weather forecast and thought we would appreciate the open sides (and roof).Open Air

 

Following Bernie’s cajoling we had 22 names down who had offered to run and by 1pm we had 10 women and 12 men fit and raring to go. Several members had dusted out their spikes after several years who seemed thrilled to be back on it and then there was us newbies who didn’t know what to expect, but there was a real buzz about the place and with promise of chocolate and alcohol at the finish we were all very eager to participate.

The set up at Cross Country is that the juniors have several races first and then the U17’s and Senior Women go off about 1.30pm. At Winsford the Women do two laps (approx. 5k) of the sports field which starts on a slight incline and then loops round the field through a couple of woody areas with not many twist and turns, the Men then follow later about 10 past 2 but do 4 laps (approx. 10k) doing the same course.

So at 1.30pm the 10 Female Bats with the bottle of Prosecco awaiting them in about 25 minutes set off and all get a loud cheer as they go past on lap one with Amy Gamble leading the way up the field. Approximately 12-15 minutes later they pass us again on the start of the second lap with Amy still out front closely followed by Philippa Boote and Julia McArthur and then (in no particular order), Alison, Pam, Julie B and Julie E, Anne-Marie, Margaret Shaw and Rose Gillick.

Sometime then between 24-33 minutes they all cross the line after putting their all in (and even some giving some back) having done a great job for the Ladies and setting high standards for the men to follow.

2.10pm and time for the men to set off on their four laps, this being my first cross country I didn’t quite know what to expect. We started off on the sports field on a slight incline and then flattened out as we ran round the perimeter of the field with the occasional zig or even zag, I was surprised how quickly my legs started complaining but then we dropped down through a couple of windy paths and wooded areas which broke up the field and up and down a couple of banks which I quite enjoyed, we then circled back to the beginning and started lap 2.

In the head running laps isn’t always easy but then again you know what to expect and when to push on, the added bonus is that you get cheered (or abused) more than once by your teammates, family and of course the super fans, Lynne and Frank Shepley !! So getting through laps 2 and 3 and trying to pick up runners in front of you is the main aim whilst trying to keep other teams behind you as it is all about points in this game.

By the 4th lap are just trying to hold on and by this time Jim, Tim and Sparker were away in the distance and Fabian and Super Kev were still going well so although I wasn’t going to score any points I just tried to beat the few club runners in front of me just in case. After crossing the line and a brief lie down, I joined the rest of the team mates to cheer on the remaining lads, Alex, Jamie McArthur, Nick, Mac, Richard and Chris Ellerton all coming home in under an hour.

After making our way back to our air conditioned tent we all tucked into the chocolates and cake that was on offer (no champagne left by this point) and talked about the run.

For my first time at Cross Country it was fantastic fun and with the turn out and great team spirit I have already organised the childcare for Stafford Common and I urge anyone who has any doubts at all to come along because it is great fun and running as part of a team really helps.

Big thanks to Bernie for sorting it all out and the rest of the team for the encouragement – I have put a list of the times below, they are also on the website.

Bring on Stafford Common on the 24th October and look forward to seeing even more than 22 there.

Paul

Ladies                                                              

24:31 Amy Gamble                                                    
25:13 Philippa Boote                                                
26:00 Julie McArthur                                                
26:12 Alison Brind                                                   
27:13 Pam Davies                                                     
27:10 Anne-Marie Mountford                             
29:30 Julie Ebrey                                                   
31:05 Julie Boulton                                                  
31:26 Rose Gillick                                                  
32:40 Margaret Shaw                                               

Men
44:08 Jim Holland
45:10 Tim Hulse
47:30 Steve Parker
48:16 Fabien Carbonell
48:55 Kevin Uzzell
49:03 Paul Phillips
52:14 Alex Yendole
53:33 Jamie McArthur
54:21 Nick Boulton
55:04 Richard Shaw
57:45 Mac McCoig
58:59 Chris Ellerton