Race report by Lucy Broom.

The South Cheshire 20 is described as a ‘frequently hilly 20 mile loop of mainly country lanes, through the rural villages of Weston, Englesea Brook, Betley, Wrinehill, Shraleybrook, Audley, Barthomley, Weston and back to Shavington’.

Having failed to find a do-able 20 mile race ahead of Manchester in April; I was keen to do one in my build up to Abingdon in October. There aren’t many 20 milers to choose from around our region, with a couple of the stalwarts now discontinued. I thought I had done this race before but had no memory of it until I arrived and recognised Shavington Leisure Centre (race HQ). A quick google of the race on the way home and I happened upon my race report from 2021: it was a hot day, but I enjoyed the race!

The decision to ‘run or not run’ was made on the Saturday afternoon, due to a horribly painful tooth abscess that week, making sleeping, and eating solid food a challenge. On Thursday, the idea of moving my head around for 20 miles seemed impossible; but by Saturday, with 3 days of antibiotics in my system, I felt well enough to give it a go.

I drove over with HRRC friends Cal and Fran; and on arrival, found fellow strider, Harriet Davies. Harriet had had a relaxed start, having chosen to stay over the night before. Driving over on the day is do-able, but does mean a very early start for a 9am race! Parking is at the leisure centre, and there is usually ample. A last minute problem this year meant that the cars just after us were being sent elsewhere; but luckily, we got one of the last spots.

I ran the first mile or two chatting with Harriet but soon decided the pace might not be sustainable for me and let her go. There were 5 water stations on the course, offering cups of water (and gels at 2 of them, but these never materialised). Paper cups are obviously preferable to plastic bottles, but minimal compared to what I would usually take in on a long run, and so I decided to walk at each station, and get 2 cups of water fully down each time. The weather was good – warmish and humid but with no sun and some welcome rain towards the end.

I really enjoyed the race (again!). It wasn’t my quickest 20 mile, but I felt physically strong and mentally upbeat from start to finish. I managed to tuck in behind a small group for the first few miles, but lost them mid-way when I slowed; only to catch them again towards the end and scalp them all, which was nice! A 20 mile race can be a lonely affair, and the marshal support becomes really important. The marshals were wonderful – encouraging and enthusiastic, and really made the event. The race is tough, with relentless hills. Bizarrely, for a hill-hater, I really didn’t mind them; I think because I stopped thinking about pace and just focused on trucking up them and enjoying coasting back down.

I never saw Harriet again – she sustained her pace and had a fantastic first 20 mile race. She later emailed me: “I was very pleasantly surprised by how well Cheshire went. I had a bit of calf cramp for the last couple of miles but otherwise felt strong and it gave me a massive confidence boost for Malaga”. Cal, Fran and I all came in within a few minutes of each other. We were all pleased with how our races went, and Cal was first FV50. By the time we finished though, the pleasant rain had turned into a monsoon, and we were soaked through. Tough conditions for all the runners still out on the course.

I would absolutely recommend this race as a marathon tune up. Good organisation and communication, lovely marshals, open but quiet roads, pretty but challenging course, good facilities with changing room and showers (if only we’d bought towels!). The race director even responded personally and apologetically to my feedback about the gels, which I thought was a lovely touch.

Striders Results: