Wychavon Way ‘40’, Droitwich Spa to Broadway, 40 miles trail
Neil Corbiere exploded onto the ultra running scene with a resounding win of
the Wychavon Way 40. With no ultra running experience, knowledge of the
route or even trail shoes, Neil made a sensibly conservative start to the race,
slowly catching up the lead group and then pulling ahead in a group of three.
By the halfway check point, with twenty miles run but twenty more to do, Neil
discovered another tried and tested ultra running technique, i.e. not hanging
around eating and chatting but rather ‘take what you need and keep going’. As
a result of that and a significant section of road, he pulled away to spend the rest
of the race at the front. Like Neil, the other six members of our ever growing
ultra team, found the second half more of a test with steep climbs up into cloud
and biting winds on top of Bredon Hill and a final 7 mile fight to Broadway
slipping and sliding across sodden fields with muscle wrenching clods of mud
sticking to each foot. The conventional wisdom is that ultra running requires
more mental than physical strength and Neil clearly has what it takes.
By this time he was completely on his own, battling on, with a few navigational errors
adding barbed wire fences to the challenge, but finishing 12 minutes ahead of
the next runner and in a “very good” time for the course. Over two hours later
ultra experts Lara and Alan Thompson finished together with a very happy
Howard Ewan after reluctantly leaving a valiant Karen Higuera to struggle in
with a knee issue not far behind.
By the time Liza Darroch (supported by Rupert Chesmore) finished, having walked much of the second half, it was dark but, as the only 70+ (male or female) to tackle the event, and some two and a half hours ahead of the tail runners Liza, who like Neil, Howard and Karen was racing further than ever before, could count it as a job well done.
1 Neil Corbiere (Cirencester AC) 5.38.02
57 Lara Thompson 7.57.43
58 Alan Tompson 7.57.48
59 Howard Ewan 7.57.49
83 Karen Higuera 8.17.47
106 Liza Darroch 9.27.34
107 Rupert Chesmore 9.27.34
145 finished.
Parkruns, 5km trail
Runs of the week to Ollie Campbell’s repeated win and Nicola Denning’s
continued fight back to top form - both at Chippenham. Cirencester saw
thirteen club members this week with five (including two juniors) finishing in
the top ten. The senior McAdams tackled Pomphrey Hill while Jacob returned
to Slough and Rachel Jones ran in Minehead.
Cirencester AC finishers:
Cirencester: 3 Simon Campbell 21.00, 4 Leigh Guilbert 21.39, 7 Lee
Lawrence 21.52, 8 Sam Cook (J) 22.05, 9 Tom Prosser (J) 22.21, 28 Kate
Sackett 24.00, 29 Dorian Matts 24.03, 31 Gemma Lund 24.29, 60 Rachel
Ranger 26.54, 67 Brendan McCarthy 27.11, 70 Gary Wood 27.27, 154 Nina
Lawrence 34.50, 192 Pam Wheeler (sweeper) 54.54, 192 finished
Swindon: 266 Barbara Thomas 28.33, 388 David Moss 32.36, 586 finished
Chippenham: 1 Ollie Campbell 18.08, 21 Nicola Denning 22.16, 214 finished
Pomphrey Hill, Bristol: 81 Alan McAdam 25.23, 123 Rachel McAdam 27.08,
322 finished
Black Park, Slough: 15 Jacob McAdam 20.28, 677 finished
Minehead: 48 Rachel Jones 28.33, 125 finished
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