Kate Ellis and I arrived in the little village of Mobberley on a sunny Tuesday in early May in good time to collect our race numbers, secured a few weeks earlier just moments before the race sold out, as evidenced by my race number being 399 out of the possible 400! The route for this 5 mile race organised by Wilmslow Running Club is, quite literally, round the runway at Manchester Airport. Planes were landing as we followed lanes, paths and trails around the airport’s perimeter fence. The route was a bit muddy in parts and it was easy to be distracted by the planes and end up splashing through big puddles whilst running along – my shoes and socks were in a bit of a mess by the finish. Quite a few sections were footpaths right next to the runway fence - the runway almost in touching distance. After about 3 miles of running around the runway, we then ran down a steep-ish path, turned a sharp corner and entered the River Bollin tunnel, following a riverside. Adjusting to the semi-darkness was a bit of a challenge but not too tricky. The tunnel takes you right under the runway and the sound of a plane landing right above your heads was probably the loudest noise experienced in a race, although not much louder the Tower Bridge on London Marathon day. Back out into daylight and it was time to run/walk back up to runway level, the steepest incline of the race but over in less than a minute, and head to the finish. I enjoyed this race for lots of different reasons… the new location, the low-key organisation, the chance to chat with people from lots of different running clubs, the off-road route, stretching my legs in a sprint finish, the lovely sunny evening. And of course, the planes. How often am I going to run through a tunnel with a plane landing right above my head? Hopefully a few more of us will manage to get a place next year. It's well worth the trip. |
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