VIEW FROM THE BACK OF THE PACK – JULY

by Dave Webb

In mid-May we entered 2 teams for the Wessex Ridgeway Relay. This is a 100km cross-country, self-navigating event that starts in Wiltshire at 7.30 on a Sunday morning.  We gave careful thought to which runners should do the 1^st leg, before deciding that it should be Richard Blackmore and Phil England, on the grounds that they were absent from the meeting and therefore could not protest about the early start. Overall the day was a great success – our definition of success being that our runners found their way from the start to the finish. We ended the day just after 6pm at Uplyme, and could have finished slightly sooner had we not experienced some unexpected delays. Elite athletes don’t usually find themselves spending several minutes waiting for a woman to move 2 cows and their unco-operative calves, as Jackie and Alison did on Lancombe Lane. Then on leg 10 Neil Goode discovered that his pre-race meal was not agreeing with him, and had to spend some time behind a nearby bush. In fact, by the time Dave Butt and I crossed the finish line and headed for our free meal at The Talbot Inn, Neil was at home in bed feeling decidedly peculiar.

Now that the weather has finally improved we have been able to enjoy some beautiful club runs. On a Wednesday night in early June Martin and Lin led 7 of us on a scenic route from Shipton Gorge which sea views over Burton Bradstock before a steep climb to the top of Shipton Hill. If we’d had any breath left it would have been taken by the stunning panorama. The landscape of fields and hills, strip lynchets and hillforts could have been ancient, except for the electricity pylons and the noise from the A35. In fact this part of Dorset is known to be behind the times; in 1901 a bullock’s heart pierced with thorns and pins was found in a cottage chimney, being a traditional defence against witches. It makes Maiden Newton look positively modern.

The recent hot weather has prompted this month’s running question, which is what to wear when running in the heat. My advice is to wear a ‘technical’ running top, which is designed to ‘wick away’ the moisture (I told you we were modern in Maiden Newton). I am also a strong believer in something more traditional, namely a hat. This serves 2 purposes, in providing protection from the sun and in helping to obscure one’s red and toiling face. My co-panellist, Mr Les Knott-Bother, sas that it’s best not to run at all in the heat (he also believes that it’s best not to run in the cold, the wet, the dry or any other weather). If people do insist on running, he prefers it if they wear as little as possible.

Mr Knott-Bother should perhaps follow the old advice of being careful what he wishes for. On 7 July in Wales there is a race called the ‘Bare If You Dare 5K’. Runners are encouraged to wear only their shoes (and possibly a hat if they are sensible like me). The prospect of being a spectator at a race like this is positively alarming if the local runners look anything like their Dorset counterparts.

As well as running, we also organise some races, which are coming soon. At 7pm on the last Wednesdays of June, July and August we are holding a 5K race in Poundbury, from the new leisure centre. And on 10 August at 7pm we will be staging the annual Maiden NewTen Madness 10K race, from the Youth and Community Centre in Maiden Newton. Everyone is welcome to participate, however fast or slow, and a friendly atmosphere is guaranteed.