Yvette Baker Trophy/Shield team and individual results
course results
course splits
Organiser Nicky Hart, Planner Simon Brister,
Controller Dave Chaffey
I
want to thank all the volunteer helpers from DVO and beyond for their great
support and commitment, ensuring a safe and enjoyable day for over 250
competitors - of all ages from 3 to 90. Everyone was stoical about the
heat but I’m going to risk being invidious by singling out Di Blount and
Hilary Spencer, marshalls at the road crossing on the
longer courses. My sincere thanks to all.
Nicky
I hope you enjoyed your run or walk despite it being the
hottest day of the year so far. I heard some requests for a drinks station, not
something we considered! There were more retirals than usual and times were
generally slower compared to previous events on the area, with courses of a
similar distance/climb, so it seems the heat did have an effect. Later starters
had higher temperatures, but the tracks through the grass became very distinct.
It was Simon's first event planning and it seemed from the feedback that people
enjoyed the courses, so congratulations to Simon and thanks to him for
improving the quality of the courses through nettle clearance and litter
picking. Thanks also to John Duckworth for putting out controls on the
shorter courses on the morning since the risk of cow control vandalism
meant we couldn't put out as many as normal on the previous day. Thanks also to
Nicky for organising with her calm, diligent approach.
It was my first event controlling, since I prefer to plan, so we were pleased
there weren't any major errors although we have learned quite a few things we
would do differently next time thanks to feedback.
Thanks, Dave
Firstly, I
want to say of all a big thank you to a number of
people who have helped me enormously in my first event as planner. Quite
a tough one to start with.
Without the
tireless help and patience from the controller Dave Chaffey and considerable
help from Jane Kayley-Burgess who acted as my mentor throughout I could not
have planned the courses which I hope you enjoyed. Thanks too to John Duckworth
for being there to help get controls out very early. Of course, there are
too many other volunteers who helped on the day (in exceedingly hot conditions)
for me to thank individually – but ‘thank you all’.
Putting an
event on in an area which includes Carsington Pastures (an area that altogether
has 176 pits – according to the evidence at the Miner’s Arms in the
village) and which is used by both sheep and more particularly cattle is
challenging. The cows were generally young timid ones but unfortunately
inquisitive. I hope you didn’t find them troublesome. They like
chewing the kites and trashing controls so this meant that putting out controls
very late on Saturday and very early today. My apologies to those of you
who felt some of the controls were too deep in pits, but it was felt necessary
to put them up in a way that didn't attract too much bovine attention.
It is a
pleasure to be able to use Harboro’ Rocks for
the longer courses and our use of the rocks is somewhat curtailed by the
establishment of the Darley Dale clay pigeon shoot. They were due to have this
Sunday as a competition day but after discussions they kindly moved that event
to the Saturday and thus remove the risk of any competitors being sprinkled
with lead shot.
It certainly
made the event tough on one of the hottest days of the year. In
retrospect I think that bringing the event forward a couple of months before
the cattle are ‘turned out’ may be a lesson for the future.
I hope you
found it and enjoyable is somewhat challenging day.
Simon Brister
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