On a damp overcast Saturday morning, eight striders made there way to Arley Hall for this popular 'Cheshire 10k Race'. The weekends forecast was for wet and windy, which is exactly what it was.
We met at our cricket club, and a convoy of three cars made there way to Arley Hall. We parked on a large grassy field, it was evident it was going to be a muddy affair. Not to be outdone, the ever organised 'Matt Wood' came armed with planks of wood and a length of rope to get out should we get in trouble. Getting bogged down and stuck in the mud wouldn't be a problem for the striders, Matt's army training had served him well!
There were a lot of runner's milling about on arrival, with nearly 1500 runners entered, this was one of the bigger races in the Cheshire area. We made our way down to the registration tent, where the organisers efficiently gave us our race numbers. With plenty of time to spare, we went back to are cars to take shelter from the wind and rain. Denis, Helen and myself sat in the boot of Denis's car which was a nice dry haven from the blustery wet weather conditions.
The course is a 10k loop. Starting at Arley Hall, the route goes out towards Antrobus, then anticlockwise down quietly country lanes back round to Arley, the lanes are closed off which is an added bonus. It's essentially a flat course with some gentle undulations along the way and is considered to be a good PB course. With fifteen minutes to go I went through my usual pre race warm up and joined the other runners at the start. This wasn't a day for standing around, so thankfully they sent us on are way without too much waiting around.
I went out quite quickly as I always do for some reason ( I think the nerves get the better of me) and did my first mile in 6 minute's, I then settled into a more comfortable 6min 20sec mile pace. From just after the halfway mark, it felt a little more downhill and wind assisted and my pace seem to pick up a little. The 9km marker couldn't come soon enough, and I knew I just a few minutes to hang on to the finish. With the finishing line in sight I glanced at my watch to be surprised to see 37 minutes, if I knuckled down, a PB was a possibility. I gave it all I had to cross the finishing line in 38 minutes 15 seconds, a PB hooray!
Despite the unpleasant weather, this was an enjoyable race, well organised which all the striders seem to enjoy.
The results were as follows;
Tony Taylor 38m 15s (65) (PB) (1st male 50)
Tom Mayell 45m 43s (253)
Duncan Robertson 51m 52s (514)
Matt Wood 54m 03s (599)
Denis Culloty 54m 09s (603)
Helen Child 54m 13s (604)
Liz O'keefe 54m 21s (611)
Elaine Wood 102m 10s (910)
For more information, visit the race website.
Tony