With its change of date to the middle of June The Cotswold Hilly 100 Relay should have been renamed the Hot Hot Hot Hilly Hundred! (Or maybe as one of the team described it, the "Horrible! Horrible! Horrible!" Hilly Hundred!)
Hot and humid right from the start, this year's race tested the mettle of the runners like never before - but our Northbrook Men were not found wanting! Tried and tested in the fiery furnace, every one of them emerged a hero!! OK, so that might sound a little over the top! It's just a race after all, but that's how it felt as the Andrew family followed the race in support of the runners, and I thought I'd write a brief report of our day, so that you too might share in the pride we felt and hail the conquering heroes!!
My apologies to the first three runners for missing their runs as we didn't arrive until the end of Leg 3 (Paul scheduled to run Leg 4!) but Bob Adams, who was there from the off lending his support, will tell you how well they ran with difficult conditions even in the early stages!!
Pete Austin was our man on Leg 1. It was already unexpectedly hot by the 7am start, and hotting up still further for Howard Anderson on Leg 2 and Tony Hoy on Leg 3. The race is already a challenging one, without the added difficulty of the heat, but those three set out their stall and laid a good foundation for the rest of the team to build on.
We had a bit of a scare when we arrived at the end of Leg 3, hearing other clubs discussing Northbrook's 'no show' at the start of the race! Then we realised that they were talking about our Ladies' team and our 'B' Team who, disappointingly, didn't make it!! Our remaining team were there all right and already making their presence felt. We also heard the news that Leamington, who had been in the lead, had gone off course and were now in last place in the 'A' team competition!! Tony on the other hand was right on course and he finished strongly, handing the baton over to Paul with Northbrook in 5th place. Kenilworth were in the lead followed by Stratford, Bromsgrove & Redditch and Ilkeston.
Paul soon caught the Ilkeston runner, having a great start to the infamous Leg 4, but after about 3 miles it was clear that something was drastically wrong!! He was clearly suffering and it looked as though he would have to pull out!! Cap'n Nathan, who had joined us in support, prepared to take over in case the worst happened, but that would have meant Northbrook's part in the main competition was over and so Paul battled on, slowing down a great deal but determined to finish! Strangely he rallied in the last mile and even passed two teams on the final hill!! Stratford and Bromsgrove runners were clearly both suffering from the heat - and the hills!! (The Bromsgrove runner was in quite a state!!) Paul, on the other hand, had an impressive finish to a difficult Leg!!
Mark took the baton with Northbrook now in second place! Bromsgrove gave chase and their runner was closing in the early stages but Mark was having none of it and by half way he had pulled out 600 metres on him! Bob Adams was with us until part way into Leg 5 and then he went home for a well deserved lunch after 'doing his bit' in support of the team for the first half of the race. Mark forged ever onward, handing over to Richard Vaughan with our team in a great position!!
By the end of his leg Mark was at least 4 minutes ahead of next runner, but 4 minutes behind Kenilworth. Rich took the baton with the sun right overhead!! (Mad Dogs and Northbrook Men?!!!) Leamington had done well, making up ground over the last two legs and their runner passed Bromsgrove early in Leg 6. The heat was intense!! Tar was melting on the roads, (my shoes were sticking to it in places!!), and it was difficult enough being out on the road in support without having to run as well!!! Despite this, Rich was really shifting on this undulating, rather than hilly Leg! And still it was getting hotter!! This was a particularly scenic Leg if you could admire the views! There were a few main road crossings but support was now building up! Mick O'Shea and his clan had arrived, (he was off next on Leg 7), and Mark, Nathan & Emma and the Andrew crew were leapfrogging ahead of each other to keep our man on the right road, as well as watered and cooled down.
Although he slowed in the last mile Rich made it to the handover, but then promptly collapsed with heat exhaustion!!! He gave us all a worrying few minutes before he regained what was left of his senses and we could see he was OK! Once again it was loyalty to the team that had carried him through!! As he said, if it hadn't been a relay he would have lay down under a hedge somewhere and waited to be picked up!!! (There were a few others that would have gladly joined him too!!!)
Mick had a complicated start to his Leg, and with a collapsed Richard taking all the support team's attention, it was a good job that the O'Shea family were there to get him through the first few twists and turns!! Mick had a flying start, and he didn't let up from beginning to end, having what was certainly a strong contender for run of the day!! In the last mile he felt like he was hanging on by his fingernails, and the two mile long straight road to the finish in Moreton in the Marsh must have seemed never ending, but still he pressed on!! Here there was a gathering of the clan with yet more Northbrook supporters joining in the support! The Club spirit really building in the last few legs!
As Richard Ansell took over for Leg 8 a few clouds were gathering, and for a few miles it seemed to be cooling down ever so slightly!! (Either we'd had too much sun ourselves or were getting used to it!! I don't know which!!) Rich gave a good solid performance, never letting up for an instant - closing the 2:45 gap on Leamington, and finally overtaking them in the closing stages! The look on the faces of the Leamington supporters was a picture as 'our man' came into view instead of theirs at the changeover!! A huge shock for Leamington, delighted surprise for Northbrook!!
Stuart took up the gauntlet with a 15 second lead over Leamington, but it was a difficult position for both runners to be in with the temptation to go too fast in the early stages very strong!! Stuart pulled steadily away in first mile, increasing the gap to 26 seconds. There were more panoramic views to be enjoyed on this Leg but I don't know if Stuart was enjoying them at all, as the heat took its toll and he was overtaken on the long downhill track, his opponent pulling ahead and finishing 2:26 in front! Kenilworth was by now about 15 minutes in front! Surely too much even for our great leader to overcome?!!
No pressure but... Cap'n Nathan took up the baton for the 'glory leg' in third place!! All Northbrook eyes on him, wondering what he could do!! He had been out in the sun for hours now, supporting the team, and we were a bit concerned that it might have taken its toll!! (Not exactly good race preparation!) But we needn't have worried. He had been taking on plenty of water and staying out of the sun wherever possible and it paid dividends! Nathan had a terrific run, overtaking Leamington in the first mile and pulling steadily away, with a strong run that saw him steadily closing the gap on Kenilworth even though it seemed an impossible task to close the gap altogether!
In the last 2 miles news reached us, (from Fraser and his Mum), that the Kenilworth runner had collapsed during last mile of this leg and had been taken to hospital!! We were shocked and saddened by this, but it meant that we were in the lead!!! And in the lead was where we stayed thanks to our Captain's efforts. I have to say that a finish in a car park was a bit of an anti-climax after 100 miles!! (The race used to finish with a run round a field, a fanfare & a loudspeaker announcement with supporters gathered outside the Clubhouse to welcome runners in!!) But what the heck!! We didn't care!! We were the WINNERS!!! For the second year in succession - and over 40 minutes ahead of the second placed team, Leamington - Northbrook AC had won the Cotswold Hilly 100 Relay!! Way to go, Northbrook!!
Despite some people thinking that perhaps we had won it 'by default' with Kenilworth not actually finishing the race, I say not a bit of it!! Our ten runners had 'done the biz' for sure! Each one had fought the conditions and the course, (and themselves come to that!), and to a man they were not found wanting!! Any one of them could have given up along the way!! Our supporters too, helped make sure that no one got lost, and that the runners got enough water and moral support to keep them going!! Our captain needs a special mention here too - not just for the sterling work he put in on the day, both running and supporting - but also for all the work he put into the thankless task of arranging the teams in the first place with all that involves. No, it was a team effort and a team triumph!! Well-done Northbrook!!
It was a great day! Hot, Humid, Hilly, Horrible and Heroic! But great to be a part of!! If you missed it this year, make sure that you are there next year! I'm sure we can get three teams out next time, together with loads of supporters and make it an even better day! It says on the trophy that it is awarded to 'celebrate the true spirit of running' and I say, "Hear! Hear!"
Joan Andrew.