From Oli Murphy…
Photo credit Abbie Rothery
Men’s Open
Led by fell running royalty Jack Wood, the Men’s open team ventured north of the border for the annual fell running relays, this year held in the Scottish Borders. Hopes had been dampened somewhat by the inevitable last minute injury list and were dealt a further blow by a local tradesman, who decided against defrosting his windscreen and driving his van straight into Ilkley Harrier’s Galactico, Nathan E. All this meant some last-minute cajoling / persuading / threatening from Captain Jack and eleventh-hour call ups for a hobbling Lawrence McCourt and star of the future Christos Tzelis.
It was with some relief then that six ableish runners turned up in a muddy field in Scotland. As we arrived, we were serenaded by the stirring sound of bagpipes. Jack used the emotive background music to his advantage and delivered a truly inspirational team talk, telling us all that he thought we would “do OK”.
With these rousing words ringing in his ears, Lawrence set off on Leg 1 to take his gammy calf on a 40-minute tour of the finest tussocks and bogs Scotland has to offer. His calf (and the previous night’s beer) clearly didn’t hamper him too much as he returned to the melee of the handover point well in the mix.
Now, Jack does a sterling job of putting together relay teams, but over the course of this year I have come to think that I have done something to seriously offend him. Whatever it is, Jack is getting his own back through his relay pairing selections. Earlier this year at the Calderdale Way I had the (dis)pleasure of trying to keep up with Nathan and at the Hodgson’s Jack had decided I would have a nice time with Ben Rothery. I didn’t. Although I was (obviously) gutted that a van had driven into Nathan, a part of me was relieved that I wouldn’t have to attempt to hang on to his coat tails for a second time this year. That didn’t last long though. Karma had its way, and a ping in the Whatsapp group informed me I would be renewing my acquaintance with Ben’s heels.
So it was that I charged out of the changeover field after Ben, wondering how long it was before I was going to see my breakfast again. We made steady progress, ticking off rival teams. Whilst I could see Ben was having to keep his competitive instincts under control, he did a fantastic job of keeping me in just the right amount of pain to keep us moving through the field but without me blowing up too badly. He certainly showed the class that has taken him to third overall in the English fell championships this year.
Much to Ben Sheppard’s amusement we re-entered the changeover field just as my soul was about to leave my body, handing over to Jack C and Jack W for the navigation leg. Both set off in pursuit of some of the big fell running beasts. Ambleside just ahead and a trio of Matlock, Keswick, and Helm Hill within touching distance. Now well and truly in the mixer Jack W worked his navigational wizardry to pick some superb lines and float over the heather with Jack C in close company. The pair returned to the changeover field in 5th, taking an impressive third fastest time on the leg. Jack W’s return to his favoured regime of ludicrously high mileage training and Silsden Co-op’s finest microwave meals has obviously worked!
All that meant that young Christos, drafted in at the last minute and in only his fourth fell race was well and truly in at the deep end. Surrounded by some of the biggest names in British fell running, Christos set up the first hill on his leg. It was immediately clear to all of us watching in the field below that he was more than holding his own; tapping a nice rhythm up the incline whilst some of his more experienced competitors were reduced to a stagger. As he disappeared behind the horizon, those of us left in the finishing field were left with an anxious wait, daring to dream that a top ten finish might be on the cards. As a trickle of vests reappeared, we counted off the numbers and strained our eyes to see a glimpse of red and green. We didn’t have to wait long and, with the sound of bagpipes in the air, we saw Christos charge over the horizon and storm back into the finishing field firmly inside the top ten. Any parallels with Braveheart were more than deserved and he only narrowly avoided a dousing in beer that he’s not yet old enough to drink.
Big thanks go to Jack Wood for the massive organisational efforts, if not for his pairing selections. And in the words of the bloke operating the PA system: “That’s a great result for Ilkley, just think what they could do if they got Tom Adams out”…..
From Ben Sheppard…
Men’s Vets
The British Fell Relays is a wonderful event. A chance for finely honed athletes to pit their talent, tenacity and technique against the very best fell runners in Britain. While the men’s open team did that, six middle aged men did their best not to get lost or more injured.
Like the open team, the vets team had suffered a few selection issues due to injuries. I found myself travelling to Scotland only a few days after receiving the last ditch call-up, the sound of a barrel being scraped still ringing in my ears, but excited to be running somewhere new and wearing the red and green vest again (over a thermal base layer, obviously).
Up first on leg 1 and wearing his trademark multicoloured shorts, Gavin Lamb ran his guts out and left nothing out there on the course to give us a strong start. Next up Matt Cox and Michael Odell sped round leg 2 fuelled on a diet of kale smoothies and anti-aging serum (I imagine). Not known for my navigation skills, I was happy to let Saltaire Brewery’s Nick Helliwell do the map reading on the navigational leg 3. Nick steered us efficiently from checkpoint to checkpoint and delivered us back, shins heather-thrashed and lungs burning, my mind already on the crate of beer he had brought for post race fluid replacement. As Stephen Gott flew up the first hill of the final leg and out of sight, all we could do now was wait patiently and make a start on that crate of beer Nick had brought. No sooner had we polished it off than we saw Steve’s unmistakable silhouette streaking into the finishing funnel to clinch a very respectable 11th placed (male vet category) finish.
Anyone interested in relay racing – or trying it for the first time – speak to the club captains and put your name down for one when you get the chance. It can be a fun and sociable way to race, whether road, fell, trail or track.