On a bright and sunny morning over 200 runners of all ages assembled in Abbey Fields for Kenilworth Runners annual Hilly Challenge
and Fun Run, the sun continued to rise making the conitions very warm and humid for the main race which takes in 3 laps of the very hilly Abbey Fields
At 10.30 am Race organiser Roger Wilkes got proceedings under way with the competitors, composed mainly
of children with some parents, passed along the tree lined avenue to St Nicholas Church and the cemetery and so past the
Old Barn to enter the grassy surrounds of the lake where the runners were greeted with a supreme view of Kenilworth Castle
in the distance. Following the shore of the lake the competitors, passed the swimming pool and ran along Finham Brook to turn over the bridge
to the finish.
Half an hour later at 11.00 am Roger started the Hilly Challenge. As it’s name suggests the course involves
plenty of hills, nine in total, which presented quite an undertaking, even to experienced runners. As with the fun run
it also started by the Tennis Courts and passed the Old Barn but then went up the
slight incline to turn left along the
house gardens before reaching the short,
but severe climb, up to Abbey Field’s
boundary with Hill Street. A short distance
and the first, equally sharp downhill
appears after which a flat section takes
the runners around the lake and back over
the bridges to the far field and, after
weaving around the field, up the long
climb up parallel with Forest Road. At
the War Memorial the runners turn sharp
left and down the hill until just before
the Swimming Pool Bridge they turn through
360 degrees and go back up the Hill, After
this exhausting climb a left turn takes
the runners along the boundary with Abbey
Hill and then with a superb downhill to
cross the little Bridge and pass the start
line to do the whole thing twice more!
