The 2005 Mcr XC League season got under at Heaton Park in surprisingly dry and warm conditions.After the heavy rain earlier in the week , conditions underfoot were expected to be soft but no such thing. Even Mick Fairs could have raced the conditions !
The runners were able to enjoy an excellent course of three laps totalling just under six miles.Unanimous approval from the Heaton Park virgins of Wilmslow who all agreed ‘ that’s how XC should be…..undulations , woods, streams, paths and runnable conditions.’ During the warm up before the race , Malcolm warned that the undulations were actually more demanding than apparent. Those who thought otherwise were in agreement after the race!
An injury and non-availability list akin to Manchester United ( but not the same result on the day) had Jim Pendrill out with an ankle injury and Stuart Parrot recovering from surgery ……all the best from everyone at the club Stuart. Graham Taylor still out with a long term injury and Mike Halman guesting in the Chingford softies League. Damian was ….. where was Damian ?? We had two new signings in Jeff Capper and Dave Quinn. Malcolm was wearing the blue and yellow of WRC after his recent high profile transfer.
The mood from the richly assembled squad was high with nine runners turning out and Paul Ayres explaining how he had done a runner ( ouch ) from the shop leaving Kate blow drying her hair in the back office !
Jeff was sporting his new NB XC shoes allowing him to be seen from 1000 metres by virtue of the orange laces. Jeff explained that this was all new to him and he was just out to take a glimpse of the scenery.
The race was pretty much as expected. That feeling after lap one when you realise that there are two more laps to go and a twisted ankle may not be such a bad thing. I was concerned about my pace judgement as I ran the first 800 metres alongside Malcolm only to remember that he had confided that he was taking things easy due to a recent injury.Tom had a plan which he had explained beforehand which involved ‘going out real fast , to get Malcolm competitive ‘.
Full results are below but in summary , Malcolm was 16th and first vet home ensuring his dental hygene was catered for ( Colgate are the sponsors and a tube of paste was the prize) . Rob took Tom in a sprint finish and I think it fair to say that all nine had good runs and enjoyed the race. It makes a change to run without worrying about your time, head down and just do it !!
Malcolm Fowler 16th
Rob Downes 23rd
Tom McGaff 24th
Nick Bishop 48th
Jeff Capper 63rd
Mike Cooper 80th
Ian Smallwood 84th
Dave Quinn 128th
Paul Ayres 131st.
Six to count for Seniors and four for Veterans.
Well done to all and the next race is Macclesfield on 19th November. See you there .
Nick.