Events 54 and 55 - Catching Up
Event 54 on the evening of Thursday 30th June was the 'Near as damn it 10k' or the 'Informal 10k' organised by South London Harriers and held on part of the North Downs near Coulsdon. It only cost £4 to enter - a bargain. Mr H kindly drove me there as the trains are so unpredictable lately. (Mustn't get controversial...) What I didn't realise was that the race was well over 10k and more like cross country. Most of the runners were male and most were pretty speedy. I was quite pleased to come 102nd out of 127 runners but David laughed when I told him. Surprised to see so many Horley Harriers taking part led, as ever, by the shy and retiring Ben Short, pictured below. He came 5th! Well done, Ben.
I heard there was a local Fun Run in Horsted Keynes the following evening, Friday the 1st July. Rupert, my neighbour, knew all about it so I persuaded him to join me as he knew the way and I would give him a lift. This was a real village event with children's races, a barbecue and the local vicar on the PA. It was a bit embarrassing to be honest as virtually everyone else there was from the village. The adults' race, about four and a half miles long, cost £6 to enter and attracted a field of less than twenty runners. I counted two other women.
The bonus was the course was great. A really lovely on and off road route with a fair bit of mud, but not too much, and a couple of gentle inclines. Fearing I would get lost, as there were hardly any marshals, I stayed close to the runner ahead of me and we finished together (see pic of my new friend below). This run would be so popular if the organisation was sharpened up (there was no timing) but I think the organiser, Lisa, wants to keep the event low key.
Please note I received a medal for third lady (see earlier race stats). So pleased to add another event to my tally.