9th August Ricky's race in the rain (R38)

This is another race right on my doorstep. Well TOM's doorstep to be precise and so it's suprising that I have only managed to run it officially once Perhaps thats because it used to be run just 24 hours before another local race Hob Hurst, one during which my favourite racing picture was captured. 

Favourite because I actually seem to be running in it. But as that particular run up onto the moor above Beeley has been cancelled this year I wasn't faced with the dliemma of which one to chose.

Now I don't know who Ricky is / was but what he has named after him is described as a fun, friendly race that contains a mile of lung bursting ascent, a techinally demanding descent and a sting in the tail with a 1:3 hill, three things which in my mind are not fun or friendly. And that wasn't even mentioning the rain which had falled all afternoon and was still in the air as I set off alongside a dozen or so Hucknall Harriers who had made the trip north.

Set off in a snail like trail through the initial wooded section as nervous Nellies and timid Timothys didn't appear to be able to run for for fear of muddying their trainers and so tip toed round every puddle, mud bath and tree root. Eventually after 400 yards or so we began to stretch out into a sedate trot up the first incline before the real climing began. One day I am going to come and just see if the first runners, who manage to cover the course in half the time it takes me, actually do manage to run up these sections.

As the old saying goes, what goes up must eventually come down, but an overcast, drizzling sky and 162 runners ahead of me squelching up the route did not make for confident descents as I tried to keep my balance and remain upright whilst trying to maintain a decent pace. Well decent for me. And as for the 1:3 ascent upto the trig point at the top of Oker Hill, well let's just say it wasn't even a power walk by that stage.

A final downhill stretch across the fields to a very welcome finish line and depite the difficult conditions I was pleased to discover I had covered the course 'slightly quicker' than my previous attempt 2 years ago. And I will take that as a gold medal winning performance any day of the week.