Banbury - 15 miles and 5000years

Last weekend the Westgates thought they’d been working too hard and decided to have a few days away. At least that’s how Richard saw it. In truth I had been planning accommodation, route and things to see and do for months. And one of those was the Banbury 15 mile road race. Before we got to that however there were a few thousand years of history to investigate starting with the 5000 year old white horse at Uffington. ( By strange coincidence the scene of a current murder enquiry). Thanks to the rain it was quite deserted when we were there. Then we moved on to a 3000 year old hill fort (similar to Maiden Castle). After that we found ourselves in Witney (David Cameron country) and also famous for manufacture of blankets in the past few centuries. Luckily for DC they have now all closed, or burned down providing a neat solution to infill housing problems.
Next day after an excellent breakfast in an equally good guest house we decided to stretch our legs in the direction of Blenheim Palace (18th century) following the Wychwood trail. This should only have taken a morning, but some people walk slower than others and with frequent stops we weren’t back until mid afternoon, so a bit too much time on feet. The rest of the afternoon was spent looking for a suitable and affordable place to eat; picturesque country pubs being hugely expensive. This took us past yet more ruins – 15th century this time.
The next day – Sunday was cloudy and cool, but warmed up later – excellent running weather. Richard had already decided he was going to continue with this year’s plan and run with me. That is, a few yards ahead so conveniently out of reach for conversation. The start and finish was in the park opposite Banbury leisure centre, and the route went in a northerly direction out of town, so after a couple of miles it was on pleasant country lanes, crossing over the Oxford canal at times. A few hills, including one that really sapped the energy from the legs at 11 miles. Then a return to town via the outward route and finally the welcome sight of the finish line. Here we were passed by a couple of runners wearing flip-flops. Apparently they always run in them although on this occasion one was suffering from a bleeding foot as well as damage to the footwear. After showers we checked the results and were relieved to find I was only 3rd in my age group (by quite a margin) and so didn’t have to wait for presentations. Of course we had to continue the historical quest and find Banbury Cross and a statue of a lady on a horse. Banbury doesn’t have a lot else going for it, couldn’t even find a shop open on Sunday selling Banbury cakes. May be the race organisers should give them out instead of fudge bars.
Another reason for choosing this race/location was that my ancestors were from this area, so on Monday we went searching for hovel type dwellings likely to have been inhabited by agricultural labourers, and to get to the villages went on the old Roman Road of Akeman Street. (I did say there was a lot of history). In Leafield a small village of 600+, we came across a church designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott who in his spare time also designed the Grand Hotel at St Pancras and the Albert Memorial. Richard likes looking round old churches and I was pleased to find the names of some relatives on the gravestones and one on the WW1 memorial. After all that you’ll be pleased/relieved to find we drove straight home for a rest.