ARNCLIFFE FETE 4...............3RD TIME RUNNING.

 I could tell Pat was working herself up to ask a really special favour of me Friday morning.  She finally plucked up courage and came straight out with it..... eventually!
  "You know we are really short in the shop with staff on holiday, don't you.  Well, I was just wondering....... if you would mind ........going to........ Tesco for me?!   Supermarket shopping!!!!!!    Yes, OK, I said.
 I fitted in the traumatic, once a year,  experience after an easy 4 mile run around just "one res" (I'm having an easy week remember?)  then did a short shift in the shop from 4 to 6.30.
 So by 7 last night I was looking forward to watching the London Athletics Grand Prix and seeing how the Euro medallists would fare against world class opposition.  I have always said Team GB will struggle in London 2012 and that view wasn't  really altered by Barcelona.  Last night only confirmed that with several mediocre performances.   Idowu, Lewis-Francis, Rimmer etc. say no more:   and I would just love to know how much further than 1500 metres Lisa Dobrisky runs in lane 2 or 3 the whole way when she races.
  However, on a  positive note, both Sale Harriers  I noticed ran solidly.  Stuart Stokes ran a season's best in the 3K chase of 8.33 and Niall Brooks clung on well at the back in the Rimmer's 800 running 1.47.41.

  From the running business point of view naturally we look at who is "sponsoring" who.   Nike's purple
athletes  marginally more prominent that the signal blue of adidas.  The larger than normal swoosh very significant on the Nike.  The larger than normal Trefoil significant on the adidas.   But no such exposure for SAUCONY.
 One of the hurdlers  was seen wearing a Saucony crop top, no problem,  but in Mo Farah's race  it would appear that at least 3 Saucony sponsored athletes had had black tape stuck over the Saucony logo. Some "jobs worth"? or failure to check IAAF logo size rules  by the American brand? 
  It was a shame for Saucony  as they are producing some good spikes and backing up this up with good support for track athletes. Like Wallace Spearman  shown here, whose "speedsuit" was in evidence!
  It happened to Fastrax at the English Schools one year.  I'd gone along to watch, looking forward to seeing all the vests we had been sending out being proudly worn by competitors of the various counties. You can imagine my reaction when I started to see one vest after another with white tape covering the Fastrax logo. 
It didn't take long to find the officials who were "condemning" the vests as "illegal".   I pointed out that the size of the Fastrax logo had been carefully calculated and passed as OK. They stopped.
  It's Arncliffe Fete 4 today, Saturday.  A race I've run for the last couple of years.  I could go up the Dales and try to win one of my own Complete Runner vouchers  or  do the race I've been planning for the Great Warford 10 mile. Just the early journey to Cheshire putting me off. 
  I know some reading this would say .  No problem.  Run both.   Today's only 4 miles. Tomorrow could be a fast long run,  at worse.  Now that's a thought.  
                            I'll just check first if Pat wants me to go to Tesco again instead.

                               ARNCLIFFE FETE 4

 This race, based in the picturesque Yorkshire Dales village of Arncliffe is such a "cosy" low key event.  So late morning I decided to go up, run it and see how  I could run compared with last year. Given that last year I was recovering from my " car cleaning"  back injury,  an improvement should have been easily possible; but then again I would be a year older? 
  It was great to see so many familiar faces and it made for a bit of  a party atmosphere.   This was the first race I've run in the county where I live all year!? Several people commented on how "thin" I looked.   I'd have rather heard them say  how well I looked, but there you go!  I think people get used to seeing old runners they  have not seen for a while, who have put a lot of weight on or was it the new Saucony Amppro tights!  I've just weighed myself and at 9st 10 I'm as heavy as I ever get, having had an easy week.  Anyway back to the race.....
  118 set off at 1.30 p.m. into a north easterly breeze.   4 minutes down the road and a gap of 50 metres had opened up and my wind cover had gone.   First incline and a group of 6 came back immediately to me and only 2 of them hung on.  At 2 mile they went off the back leaving me to target other fast starting runners up the road.  I managed to pick off a few more but the white vest with maroon and amber bands of fellow M60 Tom Robertshaw (Lancaster) was never in sight.  He beat me very easily by nearly 2 minutes in 25.28 (31st)  So no category win; having to settle for  second. 
  On the positive side I did run 1.37 faster than 2009; so going up the Dales proved a useful exercise.  27.22 on this undulating circuit.   Well below 7 min. mileing.
The race was won by  Alan Buckley of Leeds City who ran 20.29 with Sarah Jarvis of Bingley (check out http://www.adventuresofrunningbear.blogspot.com/) well clear,  running 23.40; partner Marc Teasey continuing to show excellent form with 23.14.  Good to share tea and cake with them afterwards.  Well done, Sarah and Marc.
  Good to see Gordon Booth turning out ( check out http://www.oldrunningfox.blogspot.com/) who as an M75 ran an amazing 32.49.  Sorry we didn't meet for a chat, Gordon! Perhaps see you at Burnsall next week.
  It's 8.45 now.  Eaten early for once.  Enjoyed a Budweiser Budvar and a nice glass of Shiraz with
the meal. I shall not be getting up at 6.30 to journey over to Cheshire for the Great Warford 10.
                       Pat says thank God for that as she pours another glass of red.
                                                            Will be enjoying a nice lie in!