News Archive
Waddesdon Manor 5k
Congratulations to Rita Hollington who came first in the vet 55 category in the Waddesdon Manor 5k on July 21st!
Added July 25th, 2010
Laugavegur Ultramarathon Race Report
Way back in February it seemed like a great idea. Getting on a bus in Reykjavik at 4.30am in July, ready to embark on a 3.5 hour journey to the start, we were less certain. On the plus side, Iceland was enjoying something of a heatwave, with temperatures of 20 degrees, and there were perfect blue skies. On the minus side, those mountains looked awfully big.
The start at Landmannalaugar was a beautiful campsite with a backdrop of spectacular mountains. The first section was straightforward enough. A nice flat bit. For about 20 yards. Then the relentless climbing began. The first section had the biggest ascents but the incredible scenery took your mind off it. Early on we found that the locals were much more comfortable bounding up and down these slopes than us Brits. We’d done plenty of hill training but nothing could have prepared us for the terrain that we experienced. But the views from the top of the mountains made it all worthwhile; the colours varied from greens to purples to yellows and the steam rising off the hot springs made for a unique experience. If the ascents were hard then some of the descents were downright crazy. At one point a marshal said something to me in Icelandic and I smiled and thanked him, imagining him to be offering me some words of encouragement, but then he repeated it in English: ‘this descent is very dangerous’. Slightly less encouraging.
We kept waiting for some easier sections but there was very little flat. Some of the hills got a bit smaller and the terrain continued to change: from lava fields to glaciers to ravines to mountains. After a river crossing we mercifully reached the halfway point and were rewarded with a couple of flattish miles. Then, soon enough we could see the volcano that caused so much disruption to flights earlier this year and we were ankle deep in the ash that it spewed out. It was tough to run on, particularly as it tended to get into your trainers and socks. We did notice that the locals were wearing gaiters and now we knew why. If we hadn’t spent so long emptying our shoes I swear we would have come much higher up the field.
By now it was just a matter of keeping going and taking in the amazing scenery. Every single mile contained incredible sights and you couldn’t fail to smile to yourself and think yourself incredibly lucky to be doing this race. After the final water station there were a few more climbs and then the toughest river crossing. Suffice to say that negotiating icy cold fast-flowing water with wobbly legs after running for more than 30 miles is not an experience I’ll forget. Once I got my now numb feet to work again there were just a couple more miles to negotiate before the finish came into view at long last. We were cheered over the line, wrapped in a blanket and given our medals, before being whisked off to a tent where a lovely man sat us down, checked we were ok and then brought us whatever food and drink we wanted (including a choice of beers). From there we had the option of a dip in a hot spring and then a post-race barbeque. Surely the ultimate post-race experience!
It was, without a doubt, the toughest and the most amazing race experience we have ever had. We have a whole new frame of reference for hills and a new found love of Iceland. We’ve run over glaciers and lava fields, through volcanic dust, crossed rivers and hot springs and that’s going to be very difficult to top!
Kirsty Reade and Dave Knopp
Added July 22nd, 2010
Congratulations to all 'Didcot Races' competitors!
Well done to all those who took part in the 'Didcot Races'.
The results [Updated 19 July] are now available for viewing, and the Championship results available for download.
Added July 11th, 2010
Calling all marshalls!
There will be a brief meeting for all the marshalls for Sunday at the Willowbrook at 4pm on Saturday. Bibs and information will be handed out. If you can't make it to this meeting please arrive by 8.45am on Sunday to get your bib and instructions.
Added July 8th, 2010
Charmouth Challenge
Well done to everybody who took part in the Charmouth Challenge on Saturday 3rd July. There were 6 club members, and 1 honorary member, which was a fantastic turnout for us. It was a very tough race, with 2000 feet of climbing, and it was a hot afternoon, but everybody put in stellar performances. We nervously awaited Sandra's verdict, feeling that we had perhaps underplayed the size of the hills. Preparing ourselves for some verbal abuse we were relieved to find that she in fact enjoyed (well, perhaps enjoyed is too strong a word) it as much as everybody else. Well done everyone!
Added July 5th, 2010
Sunday club runs
A big thank you to Dave Knopp for organising our last Sunday run on 27th June. We had lovely weather, it was a great route and I think most of the nettle stings and bramble scratches have healed up now. We will find another date for the next Sunday run soon and if anybody would like to suggest a route then please feel free to volunteer.
Added July 5th, 2010