The key result after the latest 2 stages in the Club League Race to report is:

Kenilworth Runners 0, Biting Insects 2.

First up was Event 6 in the series:

‘Coach Pete’s Hay Wood Walkabout’, a trip out to a Forestry commission near Baddesley Clinton.

It’s not often I find myself quoting Jimmy Tarbuck, but this was definitely one where ‘We have a difference of opinion’ (qu: .J.Tarbuck, ‘Winner takes all’, every episode from 1975 to 1986).

For those who didn’t enjoy it, my apologies to them. I hope to see you at the next event, and hope that your enthusiasm for the Club League hasn’t been dampened by this venture into the world of mud.

For others, the mud and woodland obstacles proved a very welcome change from usual road-based run, and some were able to enjoy the challenging conditions. Pauline Dable would stand out as someone falling very much in this group, with falling being the operative word at around the half- way point. Picking herself back up out of a particularly treacherous patch of mud with a big beaming smile on her face proved that she has what it takes to thrive in these events.

Similarly, taking on Barry ‘The Map’ Elkington in these conditions is like challenging Bear Grylls to a Bush Tucker Trial. It was clear Barry was in his element from the moment he arrived, with the terrain being familiar to him from his extensive experience of competition orienteering. Even his Club vest looked a brighter green than anyone else’s on the night. Barry was regularly heard to tell anyone looking for advice and guidance that it would be ‘like orienteering, but without the compasses, paperwork and beards’.

Both Barry and Liam Chapple played their jokers, and Barry’s confidence was well-rewarded with top position in the results, and the customary 100 point reward. Liam also scored well, finishing in 13^th place and garnering a healthy 76 points on the night.

The nature of the course meant that everyone’s time was significantly slower than their handicap, and it was a case of putting in the effort to minimise the loss. Course designer Coach Pete took second place to Barry, with 3^rd place Mick Williams and 4^th place Nick Benbow also presumably having either the technique to finesse their way around the course, or the boldness to take the most direct route. Coming very much into this latter category would be the winners of the ‘muddiest finisher’ prizes, Richard Simkiss, who arrived back first and had added significantly to his bodyweight with a comprehensive layer of mud, and Mike Crust, who looked like he’d had a coming together with the Bog Monster at several points around the course. In his acceptance speech Mike did acknowledge that mud is a ‘key part of his skincare regime’ and ‘one of the main ways to keep young-looking skin’.

(Muddiest Finisher prize kindly donated by Rod Goodwin),

Coach Pete's Hay Wood Walkabout Results