A very muddy race on Hampstead Heath

War paint!


11M incl 15K South of England cross-country champs (116th; 55m39s)

This race is quite a big deal in the world of x-country. Corporate sponsorship. That sort of thing. But they could do with employing an extra few brain cells in their organisation of the start.

Their deployment of a purposeless tent prevented easy access to the start and meant that literally half the field were held 30m from the start behind a fence when the gun went. Yes, including me (and most of my team mates). And yes, could have been avoided by all of us involved by arriving 10mins earlier. And yes, it only cost us about 10s. But when it's half the field, you've got to wonder if organisation is to blame.

Anyway, though I only came 116th (I was hoping for top 100), I really enjoyed it. The start added to the adrenalin and meant there was plenty of fun overtaking to be done. And, perhaps down to that, I found it the first x-country race when I've been effective in cutting through the mud. I was less bad on the down hill segments too.

The top 6 from the club (I was 7th) earned us a bronze medal in the team competition. Fantastic result. Best since 1997 apparently. And we came 2nd in the 12-to-score competition. TIDY!