Having struggled with a troublesome groin for now 4 months and with no improvement through reduced mileage , reducing levels of fitness and running in discomfort losing its appeal ,I have recently been forced to take a rest for a couple of weeks to try to fix the ‘throb’.
I dont get the same kick from cycling but needs must. So Saturday gave me a chance to cycle to watch the Langley 7. Mine is no fancy machine , a mountain bike bought second hand seven or eight years ago , but it does the trick.
So helmet and gloves on and off to the race. Tenner in my pocket ( pub stops are part of cycling ?) and away. I get some half acknowledgements from other cyclists but I fear that my running gear makes me an imposter on their cycling circuit .
Quick check on speedo , eleven miles done , three to go …….its up hill. By now its obvious that running up hill is easier surely ?
I’m coming in from Teggs Nose ….the downhill to the village is getting steeeeeeeeeep.Blimey , over the handle bars come to mind . Brakes hard on seem to awaken grazing cattle .Some oil when I get home I think. A quick look at the watch …2.15 , good time to watch the build up.
When you are not racing , you notice and take in things that your usual state of preparation cause you to miss. Maybe your own trail of thought stops you from seeing all different shapes and sizes , expressions and reading the obvious body languages on display. Nervous , excited , agitated , thoughtful , they are all here ……makes me wonder what I am on race day .
Large groups whose aim is perhaps more just to finish , laughing and joking as they walk towards the start . Combined , they create the fabric of the race.
Runners doing last minute checks on laces .
Slow warm ups , sprinted warm ups and all combination of stretches .
Good natured banter between rivals and cries of ‘ how’s your running ?’.
Do I never normally notice this ?
At the start line the blue and yellow army are massed. The conversation here is ‘how many points are we on for ?’.
I cycle ahead with Carl from Manchester Harriers to mile one . Fear of being overtaken on the hills prevents me doing any more . From acoss the fields we hear the gun and in less than five minutes the lead car passes with Mike and Damian running together . Interesting one to call this . Some lead these two have already . Malcolm heads the next group with Jim just behind and then Graham .
Nicky Peach from Sale comes by. School, XC comes to mind . We were rivals at school . Nicky went to Marple Hall while I was at CHS. I spent some time talking with him this summer after a race about all the people we knew in the 70’s and who still runs. Nick went on to represent GB in the steeplechase while I went on to ………..enough said !
Plenty of waves and acknowledgements from runners some ask if they can borrow the bike. Hey , I could get to like this spectating , this is good fun !
As the field of runners stream by , the sheer number of Wilmslow runners impresses . Trust me , people passed comment on our numbers. Great to see ………..Oh no I”ve missed one ……….apologies Sean, as I turn away for a second and then look up , you’ve passed me . Smile of the day award goes to Catrina . Can everyone try to look that happy when racing ! Smiling and for the highly trained excuting the full waive while on the run is a practiced art that only a few have truly mastered .
The classic execution of this style is captured below in shot one, but until well practiced is best not executed at high speeds.You can see that Nicki is trying to mimic the athlete in the earlier shot but is untrained at waiving arms while running at pace. The final shot has Chairman Roy . It is unclear from this if Roy is only part trained in waiving at pace thus the arms are not in the classic waive position or if it is Roy purely requesting ”no shots please without first speaking with my agent” ……….aaah , the price of stardom.
Shot one : Classic waive and smile on the run
Shot two: Smile in evidence but Nicki lacks the classic waive and run technique 
Shot three: Chairman Roy gamely attempting the smile,waive and run technique.
The further back in the field , the greater appreciation there is for the cries of ‘ well done , only six miles to go !’ You can almost have a friendly chat with these runners . The ambulance brings up the rear . For the back markers thoughts of the grim reaper must spring to mind .
It also becomes apparent that with a few exceptions the amount of effort being expended increases the further back in the field you are . That said , when watching you notice all manner of styles from every ability level ; shufflers , sliders , striders , skippers , saunterers , steppers …everyone has a unique and personal style . Wow , more to running than I realised .
Jump on to the bike and I pedal back to the village but decide that other commitments mean that I cant wait the half hour to determine who will win the battle on the hills….Mike or Damian. Can Malcolm turn the clock back and use those legs on the uphill stretches .
That can wait for later and a phone call.
Homeward bound , a quick shower and out . To get any gain from cycling excercise needs a few hours in the saddle. Not as easy as flinging on the shoes for a half hour burn . Besides it takes half an hour to climb over the lawn mower and other tackle in the shed , three other bikes before I get to the mean machine .
So , I got thirty boneshaking miles in , I saw the race and enjoyed another part of the race day. Not what I want on a regular basis but for now the bike and some spectating /supporting ,will I am hoping help to fix my injury . So I am not a convert yet but It’s ok !
So see you all Tuesday at training somewhere up a hill in AE !If you see a bike propped up and some words of encouragement , it might not be Paul Sanders in disguise !
Nick.
Photos at: http://racephotos.topcities.com/