Race reports will appear here from club members on a regular basis.
If you have a race report please e-mail it in to roadrunneraj@btinternet.com
Lletty Inter-counties Fell Championships
Martin Cox lead a high class field round the Fell Inter-Counties at the Lletty fell race, North Wales. Martin won the race is a time of 1 hour 11 minutes 34, beating Simon Bailey, Mercia by over a full minute. The event landed on a very hot day which saw a few top fell runners not finish the race. Martin was running for Leicestershire at the event. John Brown was the first Salford Harrier home in 8th place, who along with Gareth Raven (5th, Sale Harriers) and Alastair Murray (34th Horwich) were second team in the Inetr-Counties. Results
(Thanks to Pete Hartley for the image)
Pendle Fell Race
John Brown won the recent Pendle Fell Race held on Saturday 3rd April. John is currently training for the Three Peaks Fell Race which is being staged on Sunday 25th April.
National Cross Country
Only the legendary Cecil B.De Mille could have inspired a scenario of such monumental proportions. Yet Ben Hur was nowhere to be seen and Cleopatra conspiquous by her absence as the 1500 bravehearts lined up on the battlefield,their faces betraying their emotions of excitement, anxiety, tension and fear, fear of the unknown demons that lie in wait. And yet the fearsome and dreaded Hydra and the fabled giant Polythemus had long been slain centuries and more ago . So was this not a conflict that could indeed be won , and won with panache ? As the pistol fired at no one started the charge of the Light Brigade , the bravest of the brave strode away and clear ,kill or be killed were their orders and motive with no prisoners to be taken on this day of days, and the rest , well they would have to fend for themselves . The mighty Ceasar himself would surely have looked on approvingly as the army, chariot like, snaked its way unerringly around the sprawling arena. As the protagonists locked horns, the fever intensified. Could this be a conflict won , or lost , without casualty or suffering, or were we to witness a bloody battle on the sacred fields of Roundhay. We were soon to know as the massed ranks approached the gaping mouth of the hitherto dormant monster of the hill, watching , waiting to devour the weakest of the weak, only the most ably bodied of man would survive. The hardened Gladiators , trained to conquer, ploughed their way effortlessly up and through the clawing tentacles of the beast , in their hundreds the bonny battlers gave their all against the most fearsome of adversaries . But alas, the footsoldiers , bringing up the rearguard, not yet as skilled in body nor mind were soon to be engulfed and slowly , eventually, wither against this formidable foe . This was of course a most uneven of contests , like Samson ,shorn of his beloved hair , they had neither the strength nor faith to carry them to victory . And finally and irrevocably , as the final curtain began to fall on this classic melodrama and the sounds of gladitorial triumph filled the airwaves, and anxiety and fear gave ground to elation and illumination , pity the soulful throngs of infantrymen, left tendering their wounds and pain of conflict had taken their inevitable toll . Yet there from adversity , they too would arise from the ashes of desolation to once again feature in the next performance of this Hollywood style blockbuster . And what of the Demon of the Hill ? Just for now he sleeps, becalmed in a sea of tranquility . But beware , ye who treads warily into his lair do so at thy peril !
Haigh Hall 4 Stage Relays
A tough 4 mile loop was used by some of our members as a run out/trial for next weeks Northern 12 Stage Relays. Salford had 11 runners out (2.3 teams!) a stacked Vets Team of captain Dave Lockett, Ian Jackson, Gerry ONeil and Paul Simons, an A Team of Dave Hudson, Andy Kay, Dale Daniels, Phil West and a B Team consisting of the ever reliable Ron Warrender, Tommy Daniels and Sean Cordell.
The first leg runners all had storming legs with Dave returning the Vets in 2nd place (2nd fastest leg of the day) just behind Horwich. The ever improving Huddo had a great run to bring the A Team back in 7th place, with Tommy running as always a sterling leg to bring the B Lads home mid pack. The 2nd leg runners made up massive ground on the leaders with Paul Simons running out of his skin to get back to Alfie!! keeping the vets well placed in 2nd, with Andy Kay making up a place to bring the A Team upto 6th with Sean Cordell the biggest mover of the day making up 7 places for the B Team, Jacko continued his great form by having another good run to pull back more time on the leaders, with Dale and Ronnie both making up time on the teams in front. The last leg was set up for Gerry ONeil (or Martin Cryer as Jacko called him all day!!) to go head to head with Horwich's newest recruit Sean McMyler, Gerry had a great run (3rd fastest of the day) to romp home by a clear margin to win it for the legendry Salford Vets, Westy slowly returning to form had a typical gutsy run to keep the A Team in 6th and unfortunately Andy Kay lost his bottle to do 2 legs and left the B team high and dry with 3 runners!!
Full results here.
Reusslauf in Bremgarten, near Zurich
Martin recently competed in the Reusslauf, an 11km hilly race in which he finished in 3rd place only 8 seconds off the winner. Unfortunately, Martin was removed from the results and his prize money with held because the officials said he was too old!!! He was informed that he should have ran in the veterans and womens race earlier in the day and should not have been in the main race for the elite!!!! I quoute him saying 'apparently, it wasn't fair on the (young) runners that I ran in the elite race... i shit you not... two months rent went to the young ethiopian in 4th, who was very happy.'
Racchettinvalle, Italy
Martin Cox won the Racchettinvalle in Pragelato, Italy. The event was a snowshoeing race. Fellow Salford Harrier Billy Burns finished 2 minutes behind Martin in 6th place.
Wadsworth Half Trog Fell Race(9m/1500ft)
This fell race starts from a small village just north of Hebden Bridge. You have two choices on the day, the ‘Half Trog’ which is 9 miles or the ‘Full Trog’ which is 20 miles. A lot of fell races across the Pennine Moors are called ‘Trogs’, it’s difficult to put into words a good definition. Having run a few of these races, ‘Trog’ is as good a word as any to describe them.
Us ‘Halfers’ got to set off 10 mins early and head straight for the fell, the Full Troggers had to do a lap of the village first. So I challenged myself to make it to the first check-point (CP) before the leaders of the longer race. This was duly achieved and also the 2nd CP. Due to a bit of route choice and the thickness of the mist from here onwards, I only caught sight of any runners on the full course just before the 3rd CP. The full course then heads out for a long loop of Wadsworth Moor and hence the name of the race, returning to the same CP 10 miles later! For the shorter course this is the furthest point out, and where the course turns for the return route and a further three CPs (the long course also uses this as its final section).
The special mist (or clag, for the initiated) made for some interesting route choices for some runners. This included the lady runner who was keeping pace with me up to the half way point but on nearing the next CP decided to break into a sprint to beat me to it. Unfortunately for her, she then headed off at right angles to where she should have been going. The marshals very kindly called her back, but not quickly enough, allowing me to disappear into the mist ahead.
I’ve got a lot to thank her for really and for Calder Valley Fell Runners for putting on a great race. It meant I finished in 40th place, and was 3rd lady and first LV40. Of the 55 runners who set out on the Half Trog, 46 made it round the course. The winner was Lee Athersmith of Bingley Harriers in a time of 1:26:13. I finished nearly an hour later in 2:20:59. Full Results here www.cvfr.co.uk (for Half and Full Trogs)
The more observant of you will note that there was only one LV40 finisher in the Half Trog, but as they say ‘you have to be in it, to win it’!
Julie Laverock