Roman Road Run 2006
By Owain Bristow
When one envisages a roman road, a long, flat and hard surface springs to mind. Maybe this was what the route south of Cambridge originally looked like, but time and a lack of proper upkeep since 410 AD seems to have taken its toll. The large turnout of Cambridge, Thames and Cheshire runners were treated to 9.5 miles of seriously undulating terrain that, in an Escher-like fashion, appeared to consist of many more ups than downs. And not even a passing chariot in site to flag down for a lift!
A cool wind was blowing as the Group One runners went to the start. They were given ten minutes to get away and then the next pack set off in hot pursuit. Another ten minutes went by and Group Three got going and then finally the last group began the run, perhaps more eager to tear up the ground than take in the breathtaking countryside views.
The route was simplicity in itself thanks to the wonders of gromas and the Latin desire to go places as fast as possible. This sentiment was shared by many of the participants in the run, especially Mark Coley who held the lead for the first mile, enjoying marvellously sunny conditions.
At the sharp end of proceedings, ex-Blues runner and alumni Sophie Wood stormed down the final stretch of tarmac to finish as fastest woman. Her time of 58:56 was the fastest in recent memory and bettered by only nine of the men. New Club Captain Claire Day (62:18) was the next nippiest home, improving by over nine minutes on last year. Our resident long distance expert Silke Pichler completed the top trio finishing in 65:42. All in all there was an excellent depth in the quality of times run. Tricia Peters would have been third last year, but 71:28 was only good enough for ninth this time around!
On the men's side, Ben Hope and Owain Bristow matched each other stride for stride until around the thirty-five minute mark. At this point Owain heard Ben mouth the words "my gut!" and didn't see him again after that. If you want to know more about this exciting issue check out Paula Radcliffe's autobiography! Owain came home in 51:11, just managing to get the better of Yogi in the final stretch. Diarmuid O'Seaghdha, Marathon Secretary elect, got back next in 52:56 and promptly declared himself to be in a euphoric state. Even seven hours later at the party this mood seemed unabated. Matt Sims (53:58) improved on his previous best time by several minutes to take third. In the rematch of the Club Captains, Oxford's Paddy Wallace came out on top this time in 55:06, no doubt helped by the fact that on this particular course if you went straight on, you couldn't be wrong (unless you ignored the pedestrian bridge and ventured onto the A-road). All credit to Paddy though, clearly living with Messrs Bishop and Moreau has been of great benefit: he was a decurion's troupe faster than last year. Retiring Cambridge Captain Si Rutherford shrugged off injury problems to get back to the bus a minute behind in 56:11.
The run was a fitting end to another successful year of Hare and Hounds action, providing a real opportunity for a complete cross section of the club to get in the mix, all the way from EZ to Varsity. It also served as a great build up to the much-anticipated Annual Dinner...
Thanks must go to Catharine Wood and Aidan Brown for doing the starting and finishing admin and to James Gill and Richard Lebon for standing in strategic positions to offer much-needed support and course length advice. Anyone else who I was too tired/fired to register deserves thanks as well. As Ben Hope would say, you're all legends!