Like many others, I found my weekend running plans disrupted by the weather – I was planning to do the new Fulham 10k race but alongside multiple other events, it was postponed due to the conditions. Others, that is, on the road – as the Tweet below shows, the England Schools XC event had a nice spin on that ‘Snowflake’ insult …
Of course, in a way it’s easier for an XC event. Most of those kids would be running on spikes, on ground that’s uneven anyway and unlikely to be slippery in the same way that a non-gritted road or icy pavement can get. Not to say they aren’t hardcore and brilliant, obviously, but many of them will actually be more experienced at such conditions than, for example, someone attempting their very first half marathon.
I actually felt sorry for race organisers – they were damned if they did cancel and (potentially) damned if they didn’t. Fulham 10k got grief for cancelling on Friday (“too early!”) and Reading for doing so on the day (“too late!”). When you sign up to the race, it’s there in the T&Cs that the organisers may have to cancel if conditions are potentially dangerous – or words to that effect. And what disgruntled runners must bear in mind is that those conditions aren’t just for the runners – who can at least warm up – but also for the volunteers who turn out for hour after hour and stand around in freezing weather to marshal or help out. The cut off time for Reading half is four hours. Would you want to be standing still at a road junction in yesterday’s arctic winds for – adding on getting into place and other duties – upwards of six hours?
At any rate, my cancelled race allowed me to meet up with friends and do some miles in an utterly beautiful Richmond Park. So cold that I tried my friend Sarah’s excellent double-bluff strategy, and despite wonderful scenes of deer grazing in snow, only managed to get my frozen hands to take one picture (see above).
So, over to you – how was your weekend running? I really felt for all those spring marathoners yesterday – those a few weeks away from London or Brighton or Madrid having to do 20+ miles in those conditions. Hats (or buffs) off to all of you – if you can cope with that weather, race day will be a breeze …
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