JJ's Stuff: Running

Showing posts with label Running. Show all posts

Tuesday 16 December 2014

13th December, The Championship

Tally-Ho! are not a competitive club although they do run two ‘races’ a year: The Championship and The Steeplechase. Today’s race was the former. It’s been at the same venue, the Boars Head in Poynton, and is roughly the same route each year – around 6 miles, for as long as I’ve been a member.

At approximately 2.15pm the 16 rufty-tufty runner set-off up a stiff uphill pull into Lyme Park in cold but bright conditions – good for cross-country running. Although the route is nearly always nearly the same each year, a sawdust trail is still laid – we’re old a and prone to forgetfulness…..and one year the route just may change a bit too much.

I chose to run with Terribly Fast Whitworth, we had things to chat about whilst we tore round the trail and he’s very good company. We take this sort of running (almost) seriously.

After what seemed an age, discussing and comparing our various aches, pains and other problems, we were surprised – nay, SHOCKED, to see Stanton running back towards us – an expression of grim determination writ all over his face. It was clearly his turn to win today’s race. I wasn’t fast enough to photograph the leader, in fact I only just managed to take a photo of No2, as he sped past in a blur.

McHarry, holding on to 3rd place

Fast Taylor being chased by Eastwood and (I think) Young Ruddock

The running surface is best described as ‘variable’: everything from tarmac (lethal when icy, as this route often is) to boggy and squelchy.

The winner, Stanton the musical, came in at around 43 minutes (I think), the rest of the field were nicely spread out. Terribly Fast Whitworth and I were rather grateful to have the benefit of a reasonable handicap. I’ll say no more.

Nice hot showers are an attraction of this run, we have the use of the local football team’s changing rooms. The other attraction is that it’s the Club’s Christmas dinner, turkey with all the frilly bits, followed by Christmas pudding. Very nice too.

The various prizes are presented after dinner and the Hon Pres has to deliver his Christmas Speech – think of the Queen’s Christmas Speech. Well it’s nothing like that.

Pleasantries dealt with, we all left the venue tired and very full. That’s the runners who were tired and very full, not the venue. Although it might have been. It’s nearly Christmas after all.

The route

Around 5.5 miles with a couple of nasty little uphill pulls.

Monday 3 November 2014

18th October, Tally-Ho! from The Jug and Glass

This was a re-introduced venue for the Club. The Jug & Glass at Newhaven in the White Peak has a had a chequered history in recent years. It seems to have been closed more than open. Happily it’s now very much open and in the hands of good people who know how to run a pub, keep beer properly and look after their customers.

I arrived early at the pub, my Plan was to start and finish early because I needed to be in Dunham later that day to play at a ceilidh with Neezzup and it wouldn’t do to be late for that!

In the car park were two very shady-looking characters – one trying to flog some obviously nicked silverware to a local fence:

I set off running with Ding Dong, struggling to keep up with him. We followed the sawdust trail out of the pub car park and across the main A515 to pick up a green lane which turned to tarmac after a mile or so. The lane crossed the course of a Roman Road running roughly North to South.

Remarkably well preserved Roman Water Board sign

We headed eastwards almost as far as Middleton, keeping our shoes mostly shiny-clean. Avoiding Middleton, trail then led us on a dogleg uphill (?) close to Ringham Low – an ancient monument or something. Wisely the trail-layers didn’t take us quite as far as the site, our ancient and monumental runners might get lost in a place like that…..we’d blend in with the background too easily.

The initially easy running surface had lulled us into a false sense of security, before long we had dual battles on our hands: overgrown undergrowth (eh?) and difficult-to-follow sawdust trail…...but we weren’t to be deterred. Well not much:

Ding-Dong tearing up the trail at break-neck speed

Next came a short dale, a section of typically White Peak countryside. I’m not sure of it’s name, there’s no name mentioned on either the 1:25k or 1:50k maps, but it runs West - East from near Ringham Low to Smerrill Grange.

A much nicer dale was to come: Long Dale – lovely it is:

It’s a shame this section was so short, it made for very pleasant running. Within a short distance the terrain changed and we left the dale behind.

Another short stretch of tarmac took us to the Mid-Shires Way / Pennine Bridleway…and past the picturesque brickworks at Friden:

Lovely

There was definitely ‘something in the air’ around this part of the route, both Ding-Dong and I ended up coughing and spluttering. It might just have been a misfire though…I don’t recall any of the other runners mentioning a problem.

A loooong, flat and straight stretch of the Way took us almost back to the pub where a quick pose (or two) was called for:

Unusually (VERY unsually) clean-ish shoes

This is where we wented:

Around 8.3 miles with norralot of ascent / descent…

Atcherly (and quite coincidently, I’m sure) the total ascent was exactly the same as the total descent. You’ll need to ask Ding Dong to explain, he’s good with numbers.

The food and the beer at the pub were both excellent – it was just a shame I had to rush off without being able to sample the beers properly. I was driving anyway. Ho-hum.

Thanks to David for allowing me to trot round with him. As always, he was the very best of company.

Thanks and great appreciation to Ships and Whitworth for laying an easy trail….just right for an unfit old fart like me.

Saturday 23 August 2014

November 2013, some missed out bits

I’m still trying to play catch-up with some draft postings that I’ve been neglecting, so….

A wander around Rostherne. And Tatton.

St Mary’s Church, Rostherne

Inside the church hang the colours of the local Parachute Regiment Association. During WW2 the Paras trained in the area – Ringway Aerodrome (now Manchester Airport) was home to No1 Parachute Training School.

The church’s lych gate, dating to 1640