Yes they were put on Facebook last night so I expect they will go onto Mercia site in time...
With pre-entries closed for this year's race, runners aged under 50 are just in the majority: 28 under-50's, with 27 M/W50 and older. There are 12 M/W60 and older entrants. But I think entries on the day are accepted, and I suspect more of those will be younger (young people just aren't well enough organised to enter in advance ).
In his lifetime he suffered from unreality, as do so many Englishmen.
Jorge Luis Borges
Its quite a strong lineup this year. Usually for a local race i'd be setting my sights on a podium veteran position, but there's some quality runners in there and i think top 5 v40s is wrapped up.
A pb will do for me.
Well Pete, you must be pleased with 12th and a sub-50 time. A fine run with only some very strong runners ahead of you.
I was aiming for a solid run so target achieved there but also hoping to get within the hour again which I sadly missed by a minute. I'm not sure whether the route change of going over the top of the Devil's mouth had much effect on time (as the start had also moved). My stats on Strava were interesting. I had PRs on Cow ridge, the Haddon Hill section and the last 3 hills combined. So time was definitely lost on the descents and I can only put that down to lack of confidence/higher self preservation after last year's fall/injuries. Indeed, I lost 3 places on the final run in and was definitely taking it easy on that rocky path. The prior grassy gulley was fine though so something to build on.
Next race will probably be Wrekin by which time I'm hoping some personal issues may have been resolved and I'll have time to put some proper training in.
Pete Shakespeare - U/A
Going downhill fast
Good to see you Pete, and AnthonyKay too...
I treated it like a cross-country race, so it was foot on the gas from the off, and try not to let up.
Hit the top of the first climb alongside Pete Vale, which is an indication of how hard i was pushing.... inevitably, he eased away from me across the tops.
Must admit i was suffering by half way (as is the way in XC), but continued to push on as best i could, and only dropped one place in the 2nd half of the race, and that was on the final descent.
Knew i needed 5mins to get down from the final top, so despite the protestations of my legs, ran most of the final climb to give me a nice cushion for the final descent.
As you say Pete, the grassy gully descent wasn't too bad, but the first part of the valley path is lethal at speed.... crossed the line in 49:42 for a pb of around 50secs, and nearly a full 2mins quicker than last time i raced it.
I'm currently planning to do the Wrekin as i need a final counter in the Winter Series. However i'll most likely have the Midlands Road Relays the day before.... so i'll take a look at the Winter Series table , and if there's nothing to play for i may drop out of Wrekin.
Last edited by Travs; 04-03-2023 at 05:41 PM.
Well, that was a bit of a shock to the system, not having raced for nearly six months (the last three races that I have entered, I've been stymied by: a railway workers' strike; me having a cold; a race cancellation due to the RO having Long Covid). I was pleased to just get round; it wasn't about racing, just doing my best on a brutal course.
The excellent ground conditions and my new Walshes didn't prevent me taking the descents like a three-legged duck (that's a description that a club mate applied to my running style when I was a student, and it hasn't improved in the intervening forty years). My uphill was OK, but I wasn't passing other runners on the climbs. My calf and Achilles tendon held out; in fact, at the finish they felt better than they have done for the last week; but after more than three hours on trains on they way home, they weren't so good.
Unlike the Stretton Hills race, held on the same weekend last year, the Canter doesn't have any opportunities to include some extra climb and descent. So I did the extra vertical work on the cycle ride to Carding Mill from the Shrewsbury (Bayston Hill) Travelodge. I had planned a route keeping mostly to country lanes to the west of the A49, but keeping to low level. In typical fell runner's style, I just followed what seemed to be roads in the right direction. The road out of Stapleton started climbing oh so gently; but yes, those are the northern foothills of the Mynd up ahead. I did look at the map at the next junction; this was not my original intended route, but I carried on through Picklescott and up to the 340-metre contour, getting a good view of the latter parts of the Stretton Hills race route before descending to All Stretton.
In his lifetime he suffered from unreality, as do so many Englishmen.
Jorge Luis Borges
Oh Anthony, I have cycled all of those lanes and there are some brutal climbs, narrow passages and terrible road surfaces. There are easier though longer routes but all will entail a climb if you are to avoid the A49.
Pete Shakespeare - U/A
Going downhill fast
Yes, those dreadful road surfaces and the sharp bends meant that I couldn't get any speed, even on the downhills. But the cycle ride was a lovely start to the day. Last year, on my way to the Stretton Hills race, I kept mainly to the east of the A49, which was flatter.
Someone else who cycled to the race from Shrewsbury yesterday was Gill Evans, first W60, who came past me near the top of the descent from Haddon Hill and proceeded to gain more than a minute and a half on me from there to the finish.
In his lifetime he suffered from unreality, as do so many Englishmen.
Jorge Luis Borges
https://www.facebook.com/groups/271745919515681
Shropshire Winter League with one race to go. Sorry i can't seem to link the document without going through facebook...
Llani is heading the forum charge at the top end of the league table, and still an outside chance at taking 1st v60....
I've got a "race in hand" and an outside chance of making the top 10 overall, but won't get higher than 5th v40 unless Dom Jones fails to turn up to the final race... not being able to drop the Long Mynd Valleys champs race as a counter is going to be my downfall, costing me a good 20pts.
So it looks like i'm going to have to turn up to the Wrekin having done the Midlands Road Relays the day before, and see what i can do.
Last edited by Travs; 10-03-2023 at 09:39 AM.