COTSWOLD HILLY 100 – SUNDAY 20th May 2007

The Full Nine Yards from Mick Andrew.

The "B" Race Teams Line Up at 6am
A chilly, dry spring morning gathered around the American fountain in Stratford for Ilkeston Running Club's 3rd attempt at the Hilly 100 Relay race. The forecast for the day was good and the stillness of the air lead to expectation that maybe we could go 1 better than last years second place in the 6.am starting 'B' race. Team support was provided at this unearthly hour by club chair Mick Andrew who through injury was disappointingly unable to take part although set himself the unenviable challenge of cycling the 100 miles in support of the team. His rucksack laden with gallons of water, dry clothes and snacks to keep him and the team going throughout the next 12 hours and Carol Sharratt and her trusty Skoda with bikes hanging off the rear bumper.

Leg 1 10.1 miles 1:12:21 Rob Sharratt
With that in mind team captain Rob Sharratt bid farewell to his wife and loyal supporter Carol and set off along the roads out of Stratford and into the rolling hills of the Cotswolds. Along the straight road the runners quickly found their rhythm and Rob settled into a group of 3 runners averaging a respectable sub 7 minute mile pace. As we meandered through some fabulous villages around the outskirts of Stratford the group fragmented and Rob sensibly held his pace and sat 50 metres behind the 3rd place runner. After quick refreshment Rob was starting to feel the pace and found the last 3 miles beginning to hurt especially the long drag up what was the first appreciable hill of the day. The sharp decent on the other side gave little respite and Rob's lead over the 5th place team was slowly being eaten away. Having been caught in the last mile Rob renowned finishing burst meant he handed over the batten still in a respectable 4th place and a massive improvement on last years time (72.21).

Leg 2 10.2 miles 1:10:48 Steve Chamberlain
Seeing the awe inspiring finish of Mr Sharratt, Steve Chamberlain set off like an Olympic sprinter quickly pulling away from the 5th place runner to put any ideas he had of catching him to bed. His smooth action and long stride made what was one of the more testing legs look easy. We were joined on this leg by Carol on bike support and were often left trailing in Steve's wake as he powered on up the more demanding of climbs. It is obvious the extra mileage Steve is running these days has improved his overall stamina as he finished the leg in an inspirational (70.48).

Leg 3 10.0 miles 1:09:19 Simon Davis
Passing on the baton to the second of our trio of cycling specialists running his longest race distance of the season so far, Simon (or Di as Rob was constantly referring to him) Davis. Substance over style is probably the kindest way of describing his unique, but obviously very effective, running style. Despite giving me the slip at the start of this leg, after I took a wrong turn in the fast flying downhill opening mile of this leg, I circled back and finally caught up with Simon as we were passing through some of the most scenic parts of the course, with some amazing views from the top of the climbs. The undulating nature of this leg meant little rest and the end couldn't come quickly enough as the energy was sapped by the long, grinding hills. Buoyed on by the welcome sight of another runner as he descended what was to be the last decent, which nearly allowed us to pass the first of the early starting teams within the first 30 miles, it was achieved in a fantastic sub 70 minute time of (69.19).

Leg 4 (10.1 miles) 1.09.15 – Tony Donaldson
That honour was left to Tony Donaldson early on the 4th and most arduous leg of the event. He quickly closed the gap and ascended the first and steepest of the climbs so far. Cycling support was reduced to walking up the hill and catching up on the flipside, although young Steve having recovered from his previous running leg had jumped on this bike to show us how it should be done. Tony was in good spirits despite having missed a large proportion of critical training in the build up to this event due to a freak accident with his foot and a rusty nail, although the painkillers may have helped with the painful events that were to come. Having lured the runners into a false sense of security after the first climb the route was surprisingly flat and Tony made good progress catching the 3rd place runner at the bottom of what seemed to be the hill everybody had been talking about before hand (and we didn't know any better). Having slipped a gear I was reduced to walking again although the relief from sitting on the bike seat was quite welcome. Tony passes another of the early starting clubs and strode magnificently onward towards the summit secure in the knowledge that the end was in sight (or so he thought). A beautiful down hill gradient for both running and cycling met us on the other side of the hill as we descended into the valley of pain and misery. At about 8 miles the road started to climb and it climbed a bit more through open fields and then climbed some more through the trees and around the corner and on and on and on it went (you get the drift). Having used the opportunity to get ahead on the down hill, Tony was closing fast as he relished the task of taming the beast and strode home in an unbelievable (69.15).

Leg 5 10.5 miles 1:18:56 -Darren Holloway
Passing the batten on to Darren Holloway, who had on the 2 previous occasions ran the killer 4th leg in magnificent times, he showed us what he can do on the more horizontal than vertical (although slightly long) 5th leg. He sped off down the road at an incredible pace and was quickly eating away at the distance to the 2nd place runner. A rather less than spectacular route, this per functionary section of the course meant we were almost at half way and made those watching wondering if we had better let Darren run the rest of the way round as he flew by sedentary opposition. Up to second but Darren wasn't going to give up that easily and being able to see the lead runner in the distance seemed to spur him on to even greater things and the only thing that stopped him catching was the end of his 10.5 miles which he had accomplished in a mind blowing (64.15).

Leg 6 10.3 miles 1:03:13 John Henshaw
Big John Henshaw was passed the honours to carry the baton around the 6th leg. This leg being familiar to John having ran it in the blistering heat of 2005, he new the pitfalls of starting too fast on a course with a difficult end climb. Having pulled back the extra distance needed to another early team runner John ran sensibly with company for 3-4 of the early miles before striding past on yet another of those testing climbs. John even resisted the temptation of the watery pit stop he frequented the last time he passed through the village at 8 miles, however the opposition were not to give up without a fight and a game of cat and mouse ensued over the next 5 miles before finally getting away on the final climb to the change over point. John marched in to the changeover in (73.13).

Leg 7 10.0 miles 1:04:22 Richard Simms
The big guns were out on the 7th leg with the running machine that is Richard Simms (Simmo to those who know him well). With his legendary lack of sense of direction the team captain and support team were quickly by his side to guide him through the tricky opening few turns of this leg. By now the hills on the course for the cycling support had become a little easier with longer more shallow gradients, which suited bikes, better, replacing the steep climbs of the earlier legs. Although there was still plenty of them on this leg, especially in the middle 5 miles. The route on this leg was probably the worst under foot on the whole course with shale and potholes making Richard choose his route wisely and often making him check his stride. He quickly closed down and passed another of the early risers and was left to race against himself until the latter stages when a target was finally identified but again too late to pass before relinquishing the baton. However the effort spurred Richard on to a faultless (64.22) despite upsetting a few of the drivers on the main road as he headed head long into Moreton in the Marsh, rather than using the unkempt path.

Leg 8 9.8 miles 1:12:12 Steve Blackshaw
Steve Blackshaw was there to take over the running and he quickly passed not 1 but 2 of the 5 am starters in the first flat mile. A long climb then followed which despite the offer of a lift home, I managed to fight back the inner demons and resist and surmounted the hill. Steve manfully strode on up knowing of the wonderful decent which was to follow. It seemed to meander effortlessly down and made this leg probably the best to cycle. Having touched on the edge of yet another beautiful village we quickly found ourselves down some quite country roads so typical of the second 50 miles of the race. Thankfully Steve had remembered the end of this course fairly well as he encouraged me to hurry along to the change over point as we ate up the miles so quickly finishing in (72.12).

Leg 9 10.0 miles 1:07:37 - Paul Coe
Hilly 100 virgin Paul Coe was on the next gruelling leg. A real punisher for the calf's not so much for the 2 miles of climb in the first 3 miles but the rapid decent on the other side which many a downhill ski would have had difficulty negotiation. Paul seemed to relish the hill and was still in fine fettle as the route meandered past the cricket club, with applause ringing around. The crowds were starting to grow as the big guns were starting to make inroads into our lead and they had large support teams and numerous cars, which made some of the change over points and passing places a little congested. Paul efforts to keep in front of them were dashed in the last mile as the lead team from the A race inched slowly past. Having given so much to stay ahead the end mile was tough but he brought the baton safely through in a quite remarkable (67.37).

Leg 10 10.1 miles 1:08:28 John Queenan
So it was all down to the master of the final leg, John Queenan to bring home the bacon. A bit of banter with the competing teams had obviously put the bit well and truly between his teeth as he set off like a rocket, passing the 2nd place A team runner like he was running through treacle. John ploughed down the main road to the beautiful village of Loxley. He turned right turn off the main road and beginning the climb, John was undeterred and raced up the hill, leaving the cycling support team for dust and a desire for prawn crackers (ask Rob for an explanation). Having spent the next 2 miles trying to claw back the deficit to supply John with liquid refreshment he notched off the miles waiting for the turn that signalled the long run for home. The support from the road side was strong and very welcome which encouraged John to raise his game once again and running 3 minutes faster than last year to finish in 68.28 and bringing the team in to the car park of Stratford Cricket Club over 10 minutes quicker for a new IRC p.b. of 11 hrs 31min 50 secs.

SUMMARY
2nd place in the 6am Race
11 hrs 31min 50 secs
Another 2nd place achievement, but major improvements from all the team setting new standards that are going to be hard to emulate. Well done to all those who ran and the supporters from Ilkeston, i.e Carol and Dr.Rowan Langton and the others teams involved that make this such a fabulous event. Bring on 2008.