Bernard writes… although the Langley 7 has has been a fixture in recent years for closing the WRC SS, this year, that honour went to The Dovedale Dash the following day. The sensible members of the club decided to do one, or the other, or maybe neither. In my eagerness to play catch up following my trip to Chamonix, I decided to do both. As we stood around chatting before the start, Tony told me it was a good strategy to race on consecutive days. Suffice to say, he wasn’t. Hmmm…
Despite not featuring in the Summer Series, WRC were well represented with some of our group 1 runners opting for the undulating lanes round Langley rather than brave the river crossing madness that awaited at Dovedale.
At the start line, alongside Christian, I rather ambitiously took my place a few rows from the front. This was the last I’d see of Peter Speake, Di McVey, Trevor Morris, Jarrod, Mike Hill and Sharon Johnstone… Behind me, I could see Patrick, Amanda and Belinda. This year the starting firework didn’t hit anyone so we all got away safely.
The Langley 7 is the running equivalent of a “game of two halves”. The first 3 and a half miles take you out of the village, then rises past the Ryles Arms where Simon and Roy cheered enthusiastically. The route then continues to rise further up the lane and then steeply up Withenshawe Lane. It will surprise no one that it was here that Tony, Dave and Paul (or was it Compo, Clegg and Foggy) took their vantage point to offer a more curmudgeonly brand of encouragement. Anyway, after ascending Withenshawe Lane, the fast flat section to the Hanging Gate was hampered by a strong headwind.. although my Strava feed gave me a pb for this section, it wasn’t enough for me to hold off Christian as he passed me as we reached the descent just past the pub.
As we exited the trail section , Simon and Roy were still shouting their support as we sprinted to the finish line.
Although WRC didn’t have the numerical supremacy of previous years, it was great to see Peter won the race by a margin of 34 seconds. Di was first lady and eighth overall.
Patrick just pipped Amanda at the finish. With a big smile and fresh from her Loch Ness marathon, Belinda followed.
A short walk to the village hall provided an escape from the cold and the opportunity to replenish burnt calories with an amazing spread of home made chocolate cake / carrot cake / cookies etc.
A much more pleasurable experience than what awaited at Dovedale. I for one will be hoping Langley returns to the 2017 WRC SS fixture list!
Bernard
Good report , and you seem to have enjoyed both races , you and Ian seem to share a similar appreciation of the river Dove .