CUHH v Thames Hare and Hounds 2008
Cambridge dominate battle of Hare & Hounds
By James Chettle
The Cambridge version of the Hare & Hounds dominated their London counterparts, Thames Hare & Hounds, to record two impressive victories at Wimbledon Common on Saturday. The race, held in atrocious rain and wind-swept conditions, was especially notable as the fifth victory at that venue for Cambridge's Paolo Natali, of which two had come in Varsity Matches.
The Cambridge women, facing minimal opposition from Thames, took a 1-2-3 finish over the shorter four mile course, with Naomi Taschimowitz leading home Polly Keen and Jane Mackey.
The Cambridge men, up against more complete opposition from the world's oldest running club, also managed to gain the top three places with Natali leading home James Kelly and Tim Pattison. Finishing almost fifty seconds ahead, Natali could only respond that the course was 'too muddy to run fast today'. A pack of five Thames runners, broken up only by Will Mackay and Robin Brown, briefly put the overall outcome in some doubt, before being laid to rest by the arrival en masse of six more Cambridge runners.
With this same course hosting the two Blues' teams a month from now, the race may have provided several runners with some important experience of running the course. The ferocious wind that penetrated the muddy butts and open fields certainly provided an imposing challenge. However, the notorious waterjump, absent from this race, will be there in December to give them and their Oxford counterparts a cold awakening.
Our thanks go to Thames for hosting such a fantastic event, and in particular to their pioneers for braving the elements for several hours.