I had a good run at the Thropton show race at Rothbury a fortnight ago. It was back to the old course and the course had a bit of everything. I took a way a bottle of frothing ale for my top 10 finish (right enough, there were only 30 or so that ran). At last, a first v60! Its taken long enough...
After an easy week of doing not very much, I grasped the chance to have another go at the Yetholm Shepherds race, part of the Yetholm Show. You might recall last year I took a rather different approach wandering up the first hill with my camera before losing my footing in the stream crossing and taking a fully body dip. The saturated camera was a binned afterwards. Cheap entertainment for the locals and Les, the organiser of the race is now using the clip of my immersion to drum up interest.
This year there was no bloated field that comes with a Scottish Champs Counter. There was, however, no shortage of rain with 4 inches falling over 48 hours. As I drove northward it got steadily wetter and the roads were a bit tricky after Wooler. There was also no stream crossing in the race programme, the burn having more water than it knew what to do with and was in full spate. So, instead, it was the bridge crossing. Ironically, it was so wet, we might as well have gone for a dip. It was £6 to get into the show and another £5 for the race. Around 42 had turned out including a good dozen of youngsters from the village. They were apparently going by the name of the Lochtower Harriers. We warmed up and I noted Brian Marshall and Colin Donnelly. 6.5km and 1000ft of ascent lay in wait. Two short but respectable Cheviot hills. We were set off by Les and my plan was to stick to Donnelly for as long as possible. At the top of the first hill, Venchan Hill I was with Marshall with Donnelly (CD) around 15 seconds ahead. Marshalls long legs put 10 second me at the bottom of the hill and I was on my own but driving hard. I tried to focus and ignore the oversized cabbages, overpriced burger vans and best dog in show as we went through the fairground for the first time. At the end of the show field another bloke was coming back to me. He was in a cap and baggy t shirt. I stuck to my task and used him as a target up Stearough. I put him right as he began to deviate in the mist that clung to the top of the hill and I suggested that the marshall moved down abit into the foggy dip.
It was time for the descent after the short run along the ridge and I caught baggy t shirt man, but he was a member of the Lochtower Brethern and had the advantage of youth over my experience and my lead was short lived once we were off the hill. He took 10 seconds out of me at the line. No matter, 40 minutes, 8th overall and a solid performance. Norhams McCall and North Shields Hemy were a good 2 or 3 minutes behind. I changed in the tent and after a chat with CD, I had a wander through the tent village, nothing much attracting me to part with my money other than a plate of chips and greasy burger and a cuppa.
