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I've seen it all before - April 10, 2006
Well, I think my 146th race for a Belgrave team was the one in which I felt the widest range of emotions… And one thing I do know – I’ve seen it all before. Do you recognize these words from the pen of the team manager?: “It was very quiet inside the Belgrave tent for a while. The shock of having the prize snatched away was stunning. But this group of runners is much more than a team. There is a feeling for each other that rival clubs do not see when they look at Belgrave from the outside. Spencer Barden was soon upbeat: ‘Don’t worry. Next year we’ll do it.’ ”
The words come from ARM’s report of the epic National 12 of 2001 – of which ‘relic Wardy’ survives. [Wardy said that day he’d fancy 20 runs at this great event… Well - he’s six for six. Surely he can’t be serious!] Was Spen deluded with his optimistic chirrup? Er, not really, when you consider we won the next year by 6-and-a-half minutes, and then in 2003 as well. We’ve been through this before boys, and our average age has markedly dropped as well (27 years and four months in 2001, 25 years and one month in 2006). And both Tim and I like to think of ourselves as a young 32!
Far more good has come out of Saturday than bad: our young lions have been given a healthy dose of reality – success in events like this don’t come easy, first you must pay your dues. The “National 12” has its credibility and charisma back, as it attracted masses of good runners and six fine squads. Newham were more than good value for their win – that was a fantastic team – congratulations.
Here are my top five reflections on the day:
1) 1) Alan and I kneeling by the recorders hut like two earnest schoolboys trying to crack a riddle on a treasure hunt. There were less than two minutes to the gun and we were desperately trying to reselect our team and construct a running order.
“What letter comes after E in the alphabet?”
“H”
“Are you sure?”
“Yep, no, maybe G.”
“Ok cool.”
“Put in Willis there…no O’Connell…no Willis…no O’Connell…” [They ended up firing identical times!]
“Put Blackledge on 8,” I’d gabble.
“No way man – he doesn’t move.”
“Put me on 11,” I’d suggest.
“But you’re going short!”
“Yes, yes, but I might be going long.”
“Put Gauson on 4.”
“Which one?”
“The tall one with the curly reddish hair.”
“Darren!?”
“No! Kris.”
“Can’t, he’s just eaten…”
And on and on it went. I admit it, both of our fried little minds were in meltdown.
1) 2) The look on my chum and training partner Stuart Major’s face at prize-giving. Stui has trained week in, week out for a day like this since the mid-to-late 1980s. He’s run 17 of the last 18 National cross champs and has won scores of races. Nobody deserves his medal more. Having barely run a session in five weeks due to a virus, he ran his stage on memory. “I’ve never seen one of these before!” he said, as he gazed at his nugget of gold. Marvellous.
2) 3) Mo Farah’s stage. The look of heartbreak on his face as he just failed to catch Spen at the National 6 in ’01 is embedded in my memory palace. He just stood there afterwards, completely drained, despairing and shell-shocked. I also recall an unfit Mo fighting like a tiger at the Southern 6 in ’02 – he was on the verge of collapse that day too – but slow down? Never! His triumphant tour on Saturday was five long years in the making. “Looks like he’s out for a training spin,” said the spectators on the first rise.” “Yep, I don’t think he’s taking today too seriously,” said another. “He’s not even running in a straight line…” I desperately wanted to believe these scraps from the peanut gallery – but deep down I knew we were dead.
3) 4) The Blackledge-Roscoe duel on stage 12 was run between two hugely consistent and dedicated runners. Martin Roscoe has been in the scoring six for Leeds in every single one of the last nine National cross-champs, during which time they’ve been a cut above everyone else. Tremendously tough, he enjoys legendary status in Northern club athletics. Over 7 miles of Parly Hill bog, I think I know who I’d back… but over the macadam of Sutton Park, Jon’s lithe stride was just too fluent – his nerve, as ever, ice cool.
4) 5) A tie for the Bel man-of-the-match between DA’s excruciating turn, and Paul’s selfless and cheerful demeanour at being given the hammer blow news. If one has to take around 5,000 strides on a long stage, Danders must have died 2,500 times on his bad leg. And does Paul merely cruise round for the B’s? No! he runs at 95% and hoists them a dozen or so places up the field… Belgrave couldn’t wish for two finer elder statesmen in their squad.
A solid season
So mission 5-6 is over and if we look at my dispatch from September 7, it goes down as a solid season – three titles. But the club is in even better shape than when we set out seven months ago, and it won’t be easy to wait until September to do it all over again. Meanwhile, have a great summer everyone, and thanks for the memories.
