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<\/a>\nReport by Julian Boon. \u00a0It was a beautiful day for a run: sunny & dry but with a cooling breeze to keep us from overheating. The race started with a mile climb up a green lane which got progressively steeper & rockier before leveling out on tarmac. \u00a0Mark Mathews\u00a0was first to the top as usual but I was chasing hard & passed him as we cornered a farm & began a stony descent which leveled out to a shady dirt path by a pleasant brook. The paths were busy with horse riders & cyclists but everyone seemed happy to share with the 150 or so runners blasting past. The water station at 4 miles was a little congested & Mark missed it due to a party of horses who were a bit startled. This was bad luck as the only other water was at 11 miles! We then climbed again on a muddy track through pleasant woodland before coming out onto a grassy common. I’d gained several more places on the climb and was feeling great but then I went wrong as the 3 guys in front all took a left down a narrow path following a passing jogger & I went after them. By the time we’d realised our error & climbed back up to the path all those runners I’d passed were just ahead & I’d lost my mojo. Half a mile of climbing later I regained my composure & powered past them one by one up the next big climb to the highest point in the Mendips. We then followed a rocky path to some masts before a quick descent on the tarmac to the only road section till the final 400yds. We soon turned right off this along a trail which turned into a grassy path with some sudden rocky descents before coming to the main road & water stop. 2 cups of much needed water & a snack later we climbed a steep rocky hill through hazel trees before heading along a grassy track, through a couple of fields & then a steep descent of a mile or more which varied between green lane, rocky gully, grassy track & then road (with a gate to negotiate between each) before a sprint to the finish back at the school. I finished 18th in 1:59:50. Mark was second FoDAC in 2:05, Simon Dimmer (carrying his full food ration for next months MDS) was 3rd 10 minutes or so later & Graham James snuck in just under 2 and a half hrs at 2:29. We then enjoyed tea in our souvenir mugs with a selection of delicious homemade cakes. The men’s race was won by Tom Lowe in 1:35:50 & the women’s race by Chrissie Wellington in 1:45:39 (both professional triathletes at Iron Man distance!)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The four amigos representing FoDAC at the inaugural Big Cheese around Cheddar: a 15 mile multi-terrain race. Report by Julian Boon. \u00a0It was a beautiful day for a run: sunny & dry but with a cooling breeze to keep us … Continue reading