mud,glorious mud.............................

Mud , glorious mud...there's nothing quite like it for a Sunday afternoon

After a bright and sunny Saturday, the heavens decided to open on Sunday 13th February for the staging of the Westward Cross Country League at Parke Estate in Bovey Tracey. From the early hours the rain poured down and eventually eased off to the odd spot by the time the first race went off. The Teignbridge Trotters hosted the event and the strong band of eager marshals spurring on the runners with positive encouragement and their Yellow bibs showed up well around the course. Some of them ended up splashed with mud too as the runners ran past.

The senior and Veteran Ladies(including the under 17 men and ladies) course was 5000metres and included 2 laps up a very steep incline into the woodland and along a deep rutted track which was full of brown mud and stones. The conditions where atrocious and the field was water-logged. A merry band of 6 hardy trottettees took on the brutal challenge and all completed the course.Tracey Elphick brought the ladies home in 24.13 and in 24th postion. Next came Sarah Schutte in 26.29, followed by her friend Mary Goulden in 28.28.Just behind her was Sharon Bowman (fizz) 28.32 and right on her heels was Debbie Clark (pocket Rocket) in 28.33.Then right behind her was Tina Caunter in 29.00.

The senior and Veteran men's course took them on 3 whole laps of the estate and covered 9300 metres.7 trotter men decided to run this course.Leading the Trotter men was Daryl(tarquin)Milford and even without his baseball cap on he came 26th in a good time of 41.06.Next was S.Barker in 46.08,John Crocker in 47.47,Gary Clark ,running his first cross country in the royal blue vest, in 48.07.Then it was a fight for the next trotter place with Craig Churchill just beating Nathan Elphick by less than a minute in 48.58 and 49.34 respectively. Peter Aston put in a sterling effort in his 1st race back after surgery last year on his leg with a time of 55.40.

PHOTOS-TOP-The girls all muddy after the Bovey Cross Country MIDDLE-John Crocker pushes on.BOTTOM-Pete Aston shows grit and determination in the final few metres

Article and photos by Sharon (Fizz)Bowman