reports

The 2014 Watford Half was held in glorious sunshine although there was evidence of the previous week's foul weather in a couple of spectacular water hazards out on the course, much to the despite of anyone who'd plumped for new shoes.

It is probably fair to say that Parliament Hill has never proved such a tough course as it did for the Southern Counties cross-country championships on Saturday. Not only was the mud somehow muddier than before, the hills somehow hillier, but the latter stages of the Senior Men's race was further insulted by a thunder storm the like of which makes Lear's heath scene look like a summer picnic. The Wessex King himself, disguised as a Barnet AC Vet, was brave enough to take what was coming to him. But where was the Fool?

This weekend saw a large contingent of Heathsiders at the first race of the 2014 Rob Jackson Road Race Championships, the Fred Hughes 10 mile race in St Albans.  We had 34 Heathside finishers and returned home with the second men's team prize and first male vets.  Elsewhere Julia and Tom took part in a tough challenge in Anglesey, covering ultra distances in deep mud  - perhaps taking their Met League training for Wormwood Scrubs to extremes.  

Seemingly unable to grasp the concept of a New Year break, lots of Heathsiders were in action over the last week or so. We had splendid turnouts at the Serpentine New Years Day 10k and Mornington Chasers Winter series (see results below). There was a random assortment of other races and some of you were good enough to submit accounts of. In the spirit of 'citizen journalism', I've copied and pasted them below and hereby claim all the credit. DM

After an autumn cross-country season of fine weather and firm courses, the Met League finally got wet and muddy on us this weekend: the course at Ally Pally was ugly enough to start with and wasn't improved by being cut up by several hundred runners in cross country spikes. The dreaded hill was as steep as our worst memories, the downhill sections as treacherous: just what we all needed for a really testing afternoon. Getting covered in mud was never meant to be so much fun.

It was a quiet weekend for Heathsiders racewise ( a different story at the Raglan knees up ) with the Southern Counties Masters cross country the main event.  There was a half marathon in Delhi from Tom Bedwell and closer to home a PB for Phil Wright in a floodlit 10k in Gravesend.