This is two races in a row that our dear Secretary has wielded his executive power and forced an underlying to write the race. IMPEACH! IMPEACH!
Old County Tops is a pairs race and starts and finishes in Great Langdale and — according to the website — “visits the three high points of the old counties of Cumberland, Westmorland and Lancashire, these being Helvellyn, Scafell Pike and Coniston Old Man”. These being very tall. These being very far away from each other. These basically requiring 3000ft ascents and descents each. These being very unlike Cambridgeshite [sp?] countryside.
I had teamed up with Duncan Coombs, one of the Edinburgh expats down in Cambridge for a wee run around. I spotted 2 other Carnethy teams: the aforementioned autocrat, John Ryan with Alex McVey; and, Craig and Kate.
Duncan and I cruised up the Helvellyn and casually leapfrogged our way to 2nd. Then, well, it all went downhill with the downhill. We crawled across the line in 6th in the end after a) shamefully attempting to climb Dow Crag instead of old man; b) Duncan trusting my “direct route off Scafell Pike” ; c) being overtaken by two teams in one of the only road running sections of the race. Must run more roads.
I believe John attempted to get Alex to make hush money payments mid-run, which slowed them down a bit. Between them, Craig and Kate had claimed to have only ran 7 miles this year, but I haven’t seen the results to see if that winter base was enough to multiply their yearly mileage by 11.
Iain Whiteside