Report by Mike Blenkinsop
The advent of the month of September is an indication that we are about to wave farewell to what has been a long hot summer and it also delivers the final race in the CARC traditional handicap series.The 6th race gives the runners a final chance to record a PB and to end the season in a blaze of glory – not a literal blaze of course as, despite the recent appearance of some long-forgotten mysterious wet stuff falling from the sky, Bircher Common still looked parched and thirsty. Our own resident fearless fireman Steve Partridge was on hand to deal with any possible emergency – he has had plenty of practice over the last few weeks.
An extraordinary night it turned out to be as 38 keen and agile runners lined up on the lower part of the common, with many of them still in with a chance of winning the series award. I remember from my dim and distant Sunday School days that one of the Bible’s 10 Commandments stated that “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s ass” or words to that effect, but handicap series competition rules make no mention of not coveting the highly prized Bryan Markham Trophy, which awaited the scorer of the least number of points throughout the series.
Karen Coffey was first away, running for the first time on this challenging course, and her debut proved to be a successful solo run as none of her rivals was able to chase her down. Karen must have been wondering when some of her fellow competitors would come galloping past, but it never happened and she was able to wave majestically to the applauding marshals and grazing sheep as she romped down from Oaker Coppice to register a comprehensive victory by the massive margin of 3 minutes. Coffey was the rich flavour of the evening as Adrian Coffey completed a family double by just squeaking a battling 2nd place. Adrian and a determined and gritty Dawn Hargadon were disputing the lead over each other as they charged down the final hill with neither prepared to surrender. This struggle continued all the way to the finish line with the final verdict being awarded to Adrian as he dipped, sprinter-like, at the line to knock over 2 minutes off his PB.
Many of the competitors were determined to leave their mark on the handicap series before it settles into hibernation. 9 PBs were recorded as well as 2 age-group records and a thrilling new course record set by Sam “the Jaguar” Juson. At the start line Sam has professed that he may not be pulling out all the stops as he is preparing for an important assault on the Berlin Marathon at the end of September. Never underestimate the tenacity or resolve of this young athlete, though. As he rounded the top of the common and embarked upon the descent, he realised that he could break the magical 20 minute barrier if he flew down the hill like the proverbial bat out of hell. Both Meatloaf and his grandad would have been proud of his spirited commitment as he broke his own course record and dipped under 20 minutes by an economical single second.
Sue “the Whippet” Wood yet again illustrated that she is enjoying a rich vein of form as she coasted round the testing course and sliced 41 seconds off her own FV70 record. Another runner enjoying a red hot streak of form is Steph ‘the Kestrel” King who flew rapidly home to claim another PB and the FV60 course record. Steph missed one race in this series, but she set a PB in each of the 5 races she completed.This notable achievement was surpassed by a dynamic Sam “the Harpoon” Harper who ran in every race in the series and recorded a PB on each occasion. I can’t recall anyone rivalling that standard of improvement in the whole history of the handicap series. Sam’s new PB, set this evening, now places her 3rd equal in the women’s rankings.
This final race in the series culminated in the award of the Bryan Markham Trophy. This is awarded as a result of the lowest total of points scored in the best 5 finishing places throughout the 6 race series. Lisa Juson was on hand to award her father’s trophy to the winner and the CARC Handicap Series 2026 champion to ………. Henry Eastman. Alas Henry was unable to run in the final race in the series, but his tally of 73 points in the first 5 races was good enough to give him the victory, with a resurgent Dave George in 2nd place on 79 points and the sprightly Sam Harper 3rd with 81 points.
The 2026 handicap series has proved to be an outstanding success with. I think, a total of 63 PBs registered. The award for the highlight(s) of the season must, however, go to the indomitable Sam Juson. Sam was only able to run in 2 of the races. He broke the magical 20 minute barrier on the Bircher Common course this evening and, way back in April, he dipped under 25 minutes at Leinthall Starkes – an achievement that us old timers believed to be way out of reach. Sam, surely, has placed himself in a seat of honour in the CARC Hall of Fame.
Many thanks to all the cheerful assistants and marshals who have helped throughout the series – your efforts are highly appreciated by everyone involved.
Henry may not have been present on the night but thanks to Eric and a bit of AI we do have a photo of him receiving the medal from Lisa!
