IT HAD TO HAPPEN .......................................SOMETIME ...................

Over the Easter holiday I decided to get back on track with my running having been in the doldrums for way to long and compete in the Tour of the Fylde Marathon, 4 races over 4 consecutive days starting with a 10k and finishing with a 10miler with a 4mile beach race and a 6mile X-country squeezed inbetween.

If you thought the weather was bad at home you should have been in Blackpool, on the sea front at 6pm on the 20th. The weather was so bad the course had to be altered as the conditions were so bad. I managed a time of 42 50, not bad as the wind buffeted me for half the race. It was also milestone for me in my running career as after nearly five years racing I got my very FIRST soaking in a race, I was sodden, saturated, lets hope it takes another 5years before I race in atrocious weather like we had that night.

Day 2 was at the beach at St Annes, no rain, just a raging wind and a drop of hail, again the course had to be altered due to this northerly as we would have been sandblasted to bits had we ran into the wind on the beach, so it was a double lapper with the strong wind in our faces on the road and a tail wind on our backs along the beach. I got a time of 26 24 again I was pleased with my effort considering the dreadful conditions.

Day 3 was a 6mile X- country, still a wind today but not as bad, no rain or hail so things were looking promising, this was a 4 lapper and I must say a quite a sapper. I set off fast-ish and finished slow-ish ,the tour now taking its toll on me, managed a 42 07, three races in the bag with just a 10 miler the following day.

Day 4 dawned, snow over the hills of rivington didn't look to good ,nor the biting wind, I shuddered to think what conditions would be like for my 10 miler in Fleetwood. The weather was crisp in Fleetwood, the sort of wind with a chill factor that would freeze an eskimo in 5minutes flat. The sea was pounding against the sea wall, the wind had made sand dunes over part of the coarse and I had to get out of my car in half an hour and race. The holiday makers in Blackpool down the coast would have heard the gun go off at 11am as the wind was howling in that direction, so I was now off on my last leg of the tour. It was a two lapper , again I had a fight with the wind , felt like two steps forward one back. I finished tired and battered, but with a smile on my face and a time of 1hr 13, because the elements did their best to spoil this tour and it came a poor second.

My thanks go to the organisers Mr and Mrs Lewis McAndrew who organised the event on their own, they marked out the courses, set the races off, stood in the awful conditions to get our times at the finish and raised money for the British Red Cross.

Looking back at the tour the highlight had to be getting my first race soaking , as my heading says it had to happen ...............sometime ............... lol

dave pearson

Rivington Pike fell race 22nd March 2008

70 Mick Green V40 22:43
101 Pete Hopley V40 23:47
111 Duncan Crompton V40 24:17
208 Allan Jones V60 28:12
283 Mark Smith 35:14

Haigh Hall Relays

Overall

13 Lostock Ac 'A' 1:33:32
Also 3rd VETS team

Keith Thomas (14) 22:55
Mick Green (13) 22:42
Pete Hopley (12) 23:41
Stewart Jones (13) 24:14


25 Lostock Ac 'B' 1:46:03

Duncn Crompton (27) 26:44
Dave Clemence (26) 25:26
Dave Pearson (25) 28:08
Derek Lord (25) 25:45


Fastest of all legs

7 Mick Green Lostock Ac A 22:42
10 Keith Thomas Lostock Ac A 22:55

Half Tour of Pendle

6 Michael Green 01:15:22
73 Peter Hopley 01:29:23
113 Adrian Hope 01:35:26
133 Aidrian Roberts 01:39:35
142 Geof Sale 01:42:18
160 Mark Shuttleworth 01:45:33
164 Allan Jones 01:47:02