County Relays - Past!

With the County Relays this week end at Posties Park, it is kind of interesting to look back a couple of years. We have probably won the championships - certainly the senior men's race - more than any other club in the county since they were started in the 1940's.

In 2003 - five years ago - the Under 13 Girls won their race with Leanne Meldrum, Aimee Pratt and Nicola Angus being the runners involved. The boys team of Johnathan Farrell, David Brown and Craig Graham were second to West Dunbarton and the Senior Men were also second with Brian Gallagher (14:12), Michael Diver (13:52), Mark Rudzinski (13:04) and John Hanratty (14:25) making up the team. The second team of Derrek Halpin, John McArthur, Bobby Young and Pete Cartwright was seventh with the third team of Robert Allison, Douglas McDonald, Brian Edridge and Peter Rudzinski, thirteenth. The fourth team was sixteenth and included Peter Halpin, Cliff Brown, Gerry Kane and Steve Pitt of Dumbarton who made up the team.

Ten years ago in 1998, the relays were run on the Braidfield Farm course - much heavier than the Garscube trails used five years later. The local papers only printed the Senior Men's results so that is all I have to hand. The team won with James Austin (15:07) handed over a 20 second lead to Allan Adams (14:25) who stetched it to over 90 seconds. Then Billy Jenkins went off the trail adding about 600 yards to the distance and slowed to (17:56) but still gave Ian Murphy a lead. Ian ran a time of 14:22 to extend the lead and give the club victory. The Vicky Parl protest on the grounds that Jenkins had run too far thus rendering CH liable to disqualification cut no ice with the judges and the medals were awarded. The second team of John Hanratty (4th), Jim Shields (6th), Bobby Young (the fastest M50 time of the day) and Brian Edridge was seventh. The third team of Cliff Brown, Robert Rosborough junior, Robert Rosborough senior and Peter Rudzinski was 11th and the fourth team of Lawrie Pearson, John McArthur, Phil Dolan and Charlie McIntosh was 13th.

This week we should see good performances in all age groups and if individuals can be picked out then Peter Bowman, Tony Dolan, David Brown among the boys and Diane Nicolson, Kirsty Alexander, Chloe Wright and Rachel Busby should be among the best of some very good girls competing.