The first (Physical) CC6 of 2021

After the disappointing end to this year’s RR10 it was good to get an early CC6 in the diary. There seemed to be numerous other races on today (London marathon, Clarendon marathon, Basingstoke Half etc) and with a fuel crisis in full flow I anticipated a smaller turnout than usual.

Phil and I set off from Winchester thinking we were the only Wessex representatives, a nice drive into the New Forest and an easy to find race venue. The parking was a bit bumpy but otherwise all was good.

There had been a ban on inserting anything into the ground so a lack of club spinners / flags made for a slightly subdued atmosphere. Some cattle and a few ponies cheered us up though. It was pretty quiet with perhaps only two hundred runners present. A nice surprise was Mike turning up and Derek too (although not running today).

The course was the most benign I have seen at a CC6. The weather was perfect, cool but sunny with a light breeze. Despite heavy rain the day before the ground was pretty dry and the race was ran on firm paths – no puddles and not a drop of mud in sight. A few hills were thrown in but even these were pretty mild.

Phil and Mike ran well, pleased with their pacing during the race and finishing in the top third. I got stuck a little at the start but plodded around – very pleased that I got a ‘good running Wessex’ rather than being mistaken for Lordshill.

A finish order of Phil, Mike and Nigel. A shame we didn’t get four out for a proper team result but excellent cakes provided at the end.

Next race November 14th.

Results http://www.cc6.co.uk/