It is an indicator of how far the club has come in recent times that talk before the Midlands 12 stage relay in Sutton Park wasn't whether we'd make the top 25 teams and qualify for the Nationals, but just how much time and how many positions we could take from last year. Despite a couple of late withdrawals the team was pretty strong and we easily beat our 2008 time by three minutes and improved four places to 14th. The problem comes next year. Whilst there were a couple of teams just ahead, there was then a gap of a few minutes before we can contemplate competing with the likes of Cheltenham. But that must be the target and is attainable. Year on year improvement at these relays is a great barometer of the club's improvements. Can the team stay together and move forward? Difficult to say, there are issues, but only time will tell. I'll be too old and slow soon so other, younger guys can take my place. I take no great pleasure in still dragging my ageing limbs around, it's a young man's sport.
A quick shower then instead of heading for the M5 it was the M6/M1 for our rendezvous in London which we made just 10 minutes late. Despite a late night I managed a lonely, contemplative 23 miles next morning, just like the old days.
Picture depicts Solo the cat and my MG, both of which give the Wright family much pleasure in these difficult times.
Footnote on last week's Reading ½. Running Somewhere Else, the other running club in town, went up en masse to the event, hiring a bus and making a day of it. Their team spirit is fantastic and they all encourage each other. What a perfect set up: a running club based at a pub, that's my kind of club. No wonder the lovely Jacki, who has the dubious pleasure of cutting my hair (and a very fine job she does I hear you say) enjoys being part of their team. I'm tempted ...
