Roman Road Run 2007
By Jason Wong
We assembled at the track on the morning of 17 March 2007, past and present CUH&H greats amongst us, waiting for the bus that would take us to the start of the last race of the CUH&H cross country season at the end of Michaelmas term: The Roman Road Run. Unlike previous races, the atmosphere of this one is more relaxed, the course longer, and the terrain more uneven. Covering almost 10 miles, and going in a more or less straight line, it was a run that accommodated all abilities: those who wanted to race it as well as those who wanted to cruise at a steady pace.
The first and second groups started within ten minutes of each other, setting off at various paces as they pounded over the track laid over two millenia ago by an ancient civilization. The skies were uncharacteristically clear and sunny for that time of year and the first of the thin lines of Light Blues started to form as it made its way home to Cambridge. Neither the distance nor the gradients between Horseheath and Cambridge held much of a challenge for Polly Keen as she swiftly reduced both to a point in about 65 minutes. Helen Mort set off strong and held a good pace throughout. Her fell running experience in the rugged north showed as she made the uneven terrain and gentle slopes of the East Anglian landscape look easy.
Almost as soon as the dust had settled from the previous two packs of Hare and Hounds, the third and fourth groups gathered in the narrow hedged lane for a dash to the finish. One could sense the competitive animalism. They were almost pawing at the ground, raring to chase down their 'prey' who'd set off before them in ten-minute intervals. All were a little concerned that the start might be delayed by the starter tying his laces, but Aidan's laces held firm and the swiftest of the Hounds were unleashed on the B of the Beep. The fleet footed were held in check for the first 50m by the narrow, rutted, horse trodden path. Snarling-wolf-in-Easter-Bunny-clothing Rich Mathie became ensnared by an overhanging bramble and momentarily lost his ear. As the track widened to reveal a vast undulating expanse of merry England, and the full force of a head wind was felt, Owain notched up a gear or two and blasted away from the pack. He was not alone in the ferocity of his charge. Ex-captain Daz Talbot, marathon secretary Diarmuid O'Sheagdha and newly appointed secretary John Redshaw kept him company. As they raced each other and formed the forward attacking group, ex captains Nick Altmann and Dave Barker led a second group to close the gap. At the next hill Nick Altmann's speedy pedigree was on full display, catching John Redshaw, while Owain began to pull away from Daz. As legs began to tire in the battle against the wind and the ever deeper ruts in the dry mud, Jose Prieto made use of his strength and sensible start to gradually pick away at the field to soon have his eyes on John Redshaw. Slightly further back Rich Mathie was making up for lost ground after having retrieved his ears, and clawed his way back into the race passing Tim Taylor and Matt Sims, the latter having gone over to the Dark Blue side.
Past and present CUH&H greats Julia Bleasdale, Super Sophie and Claire Day ran a strong race to finish first in 62:12, second in 62:48, and fourth in 65:04 respectively for the women. Starting in different groups, many times Blue Claire and fresher Blue Polly were within two seconds of each other.
Owain's pace was unrelenting and, as he began to pick his way through the thin lines of Light Blues past Wandlebury, it dawned on the others that he was on a mission of his own. The 8th place Varsity finisher stormed through the finish line a good two minutes ahead of Daz in an impressive time of 52:35 considering the testing wind. Diarmuid showed his London Marathon preparations were going well with 3rd place, only 30 secs behind Daz. John Redshaw's fifth place run of 57:49 was also another impressive performance from the year's top male fresher, this being the longest race of his running career thus far.
We got back to the track, elated more than exhausted, and this time looking forward to the next big event of the day: the CUH&H Annual Dinner.