Sunday 17 June 2007

Trail Race Round a Stately Home

Rob and Rick did another race this morning - a 6km trail race around the grounds of Castle Howard, the other side of York. There was a 10km race as well, but they picked the 6km because they'd only ever run on the road before and they weren't sure how hilly the course would be. Turns out it was the right decision, because the ground was fairly soft and muddy due to all the rain that had fallen over the past few days, and there were a couple of 'killer hills' along the way. Having said that, Rick managed a great time of 28:55 and Rob came not far behind at 32:28 - three and a half minutes under his target time, so he was really pleased. Here they are before the race - wearing matching tops was definitely not planned; they both bought a running top not knowing that the other had bought the same one...

The fact that the race was near York meant that we travelled there last night, and Rob & Rick stayed in a B&B nearby while I stayed with my sister in York. She very kindly drove us to the race this morning, getting up at 7am on a Sunday to do so. We had a great morning watching the race - and there was also a 1,000m dash for under-12s, which was great to watch. The winner finished in around 3 minutes (!), and there were 150 or so children behind him, some as young as 2 or 3 running round with their parents, who all thoroughly enjoyed themselves. The weather was perfect for running - cool but not cold, cloudy and overcast but not raining. And considering it was teeming down with rain when we arrived in York yesterday, the weather this morning could have been a lot less kind.

On the subject of running, Rob took me out for a 3km run yesterday morning. I don't think I've ever been running on the road (other than to catch the bus - I don't think that counts), and the last time I ran round a track was probably at school, so about 15 years ago. It was SO much harder than the cross-trainer! Apparently I fared better than Rob did the first time he ran on the road - he started walking earlier on than I did - but I haven't been so out of breath as that for a long, long time. I'm going to keep at it, though - my first goal is to do the whole distance without having to walk, then I'll increase the distance then the speed. Here goes...

2 comments:

Jill Fosness said...

What, no aluminum foil wrap this time? Congrats to Rob for kicking bum at yet another race!

Julia said...

Just think, if Rob & Rick had started their running careers at 2 or 3 years old, like the kids at Castle Howard, they might have got round the course in half the time! So might you, if you'd had energetic parents to run with you...
Well done to you all, anyway, and to Jen for getting up at the crack of dawn on a Sunday to be your chauffeuse!