Yesterday I found myself doing the Kinder Trog. If you don't know it, it's a fairly local (Hayfield) and to my mind very fine event that gives an excellent value for money work out over a demanding course. It also happens to be in our club fell champs this year. So you will doubtless empathise with my feeling of surprised isolation on finding that I was sole bearer of the lion rampant with wheat sheaf. Alone I faced the massed challenges of the likes of Cheshire Hill Racers, Pennine, Dark Peak, Sale, Trafford, Altrincham, Shelton (Shelton?) and even Fat Boys! Daunted not, I set off in the searing heat of the midday sun to fly the flag of Macclesfield over the wastes of Kinder. I toiled, I sweated, I got blisters, I fell down on the hard grit, my blood it do spilleth, and yea I still wore the shirt with pride.
I think I finished somewhere just in front of the three legged dog but that's another story.
Sure some people were doing the LAMM (you can just here them can't you "ooohh I did the LAMM - it's the hardest you know", others might have been doing the Kettlewell fell races (really), some odd people did the Blackpool Marathon, yet others may have felt compelled to cross the country to do the Novartis Grimsby Five. Yeah right. My guess is that you were either in a deck chair with a bottle of Pimms to hand, or "doing a training run". Of course I forgot - it was Sunday morning - "must do the long training run". What exactly are these people training for? Do they ever do any races? Perhaps we should re-name the club - Macclesfield Hill Admirers or how about, Macclesfield "You Won't Catch Us Racing" Athletic Club?
Clearly there are many people in the club who race and do events regularly on track and field and even on road. This is not meant for you, as you are all right minded folk who are quite clear about why you joined an athletic club - yes - to compete! There I've said it - the dreaded "C" word.
And please don't go on at me if I'm not at the next race you're at - it will very likely be the knees acting up.