The first blast of the ref’s whistle, the ceremonial first pitch, the first spreadsheet; they all share the same mixed emotion of excitement and hope for the season ahead, that will no doubt be doused with a cold shower of reality at some point (such is the life of a Preston fan..). However, despite the less than pleasant weather on Sunday, the spirits of the travelling band of Striders were not dampened, as they descended (or should that be ascended?!) on Huddersfield 10K for the first race of this year’s Road Race Championship. With a pretty tough course on offer, as well as challenging conditions, it soon became clear that some were still feeling effects of a very festive break since the end of least season. There were more than a few utterances of foul language between gasping breaths as the hills took the toll. Not that I’m speaking from personal experience of course.

The Premiership  could very well be a very tasty affair again, as last season’s runner up Joe not only took 20 points, but also was the first runner home overall. He wasn’t the only Strider to have a good day at the office as Liam Walker finished 2nd overall, a slim 13 seconds behind Joe. It looks like Phil (not present on the day due to post-Brexit Dronfield border control issues), will have a real challenge on his hands to repeat last year’s success. Elsewhere, the Cooper twins Jonathan & Phil, managed to avoid doing barrel rolls down the slippy descents to score solidly on their first efforts, while the trio of the newly promoted Dave, Jordan and Ade also gave a good account of themselves.