On the way up to Aldersley village, the running sages examined the runes and concluded that we had three competitive teams. On the way back, the wordsmiths examined their lexicons for superlatives. From the photo, you can see it could hardly have been a better day: three teams, two gold medals, and one bronze.
The course was two 3K laps of testing, gently undulating terrain with a healthy ratio of mud. It’s an excellent course for spectators, with the fleet of foot able to see the runners half a dozen times per lap.
Chelsea Baker flourished on the first lap for the A team, with another week’s training in her legs from Pembrey Park. Isobel Jones, a talented U20 from Wolverhampton & Bilston, who posted a 16:25 5K parkrun on 5th October, shot off from the gun. Chelsea started more conservatively, gradually opening a gap on the rest of the field, and in doing so, posted the second-fastest time of the day: 23:57.
The club then launched the first of its triathlon stars, Maeva Couchard, who had a storming run, rapidly closing the gap on the leader and pulling away from second place Tipton Harriers to establish a lead of more than 90 seconds by the changeover. Her time was 24:33.
By this stage, there was little doubt that the team was going to take the gold medals. Jessie Sanzo was on the last leg, and it would be difficult to find someone with a better pedigree to hold onto the lead. Jessie ran strongly throughout, even managing a smile for the cheering onlookers. She clocked 24:38 and extended the lead to over three minutes by the finish, one up on the men’s gold medallists.
What of our B team?Rapidly improving Marie Monaghan led the team off. Marie has been concentrating on reducing her times on the road (with quite some success!) and commented on how different cross-country is. This was perhaps reflected in how Marie ran. On the first lap, I made her out to be in about 11th position as she passed me. By the second lap, things had changed. Marie had pulled back two places and looked poised to overtake two more, which she did, giving the B team a solid platform on which to build. Her time was 25:48.
The second of our triathlon internationals then took over. Elaina, as many of you may know, has had a tough time over the summer. Before the race, Elaina confided that she’d only really got back into her running a week earlier. It didn’t look that way. I managed to miss Elaina at my first viewpoint, but spotted her at the second, where she gave me a cheery smile and wave as if to say, "I’m here." She looked amazingly strong and was visibly picking off teams. Elaina ran 24:43 for the course, pulling the team up into 4th place.
Things were getting really exciting now. Could Emma Clarke get the team into the medals? Indeed, she could. Emma is on something of a roll at the moment, and she looked it on the day. Gradually and purposefully, she reeled in Lauren Sykes from Bromsgrove and overtook her with about a kilometre to go. Bronze medals were in the bag.
Many thanks are due to team manager, Sian Davies Parry, for assembling the teams and getting the selection right.
I’ve rarely seen so many happy faces, exhilarated by their joint success. It was a truly joyful day for everyone—team bonding at its best. Next up are the Masters cross-country relays on 26th October and the Gwent League cross-country on Saturday 9th November in Cardiff. Please make sure to get the latter date in your diaries!
Nippy Ladies.
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