The weather and the location provided an excellent finale for the PECO Cross Country series. Roundhay Park was bathed in February sunshine as the committed competitors lined up for their respective races. What better way to spend Valentine’s Day, than a run around in the sunshine?
The courses were all firm and included at least one sharp hill. The firm nature of the courses marked a sharp contrast to others in the series that have been varying types of mud bath.
The junior 1 mile race involved one bite of the sharp climb and a lap of Soldiers field. The field itself had a deceptive downhill gradient on the way out and its equally deceptive uphill gradient on the way back. The sting in the tail was then the uphill finish, making sprints a real challenge. The junior 2 mile race comprised two laps including 2 climbs of the hill and; the all-important uphill finish.
Meanwhile the senior race was unusual this season in that the men and women set off at the same time. The downhill start ensured some thinning out of runners before the bend and the solo climb up the now well-trodden steep hill. Competitors were then treated to an adventure round the park with views of both of the lakes and run through the woods. An excellent course with a bit of everything for the seasoned cross-country runner.
This being the finale, team Wharfedale were out in force to consolidate their positions in the final table. It’s been a great cross-country series for the club and some real team spirit has been shown and maintained throughout the season. Notable individual and team results are shown below.
| Senior Men | Category | Cat pos | Time | ||
| 5 | Jack | Smith | MSEN | 5 | 28:59:00 |
| 7 | Harry | Holmes | MSEN | 7 | 29:33:00 |
| 8 | Sam | Watson | MSEN | 8 | 29:36:00 |
| 9 | Christian | Holmes | M40 | 1 | 29:49:00 |
| 10 | Lee | Athersmith | MSEN | 9 | 29:49:00 |
| 16 | Nick | Charlesworth | M45 | 1 | 30:21:00 |
| 19 | Marc | Sennett | MSEN | 16 | 30:29:00 |
| 21 | Paul | Crabtree | M45 | 2 | 30:51:00 |
| 22 | David | Kirkham | MSEN | 18 | 30:55:00 |
| 30 | Neil | Eccles | M45 | 3 | 31:28:00 |
| 39 | Dave | McGuire | M45 | 5 | 32:06:00 |
| 191 | Steve | Milner | M50 | 22 | 38:15:00 |
| 203 | Andy | Holden | M50 | 25 | 38:40:00 |
| 292 | Roger | Hall | M65 | 6 | 45:20:00 |
| 1st Team | |||||
| Senior Ladies | |||||
| 37 | Katherine | Kirkham | F35 | 9 | 39:24:00 |
| 38 | Jennifer | Battersby | F40 | 7 | 39:31:00 |
| 48 | Katie | Weatherby | FSEN | 24 | 40:19:00 |
| 57 | Lynn | Whittaker | F50 | 4 | 41:34:00 |
| 64 | Emma | Dodd | FSEN | 28 | 42:09:00 |
| 79 | Anne | Milner | F45 | 6 | 43:08:00 |
| 123 | Su | Thompson | F45 | 15 | 47:13:00 |
| 127 | Anne | Handley | F50 | 13 | 47:31:00 |
| 139 | Sarah | Charlesworth | F35 | 31 | 48:17:00 |
| 1st team ( 2nd division) | |||||
| Junior 2 mile | |||||
| 2 | Sam | Smith | B7-9 | 2 | 12:42 |
| 4 | Alexander | Thompson | B7-9 | 4 | 12:59 |
| 5 | Jack | Muir | B7-9 | 5 | 13:11 |
| 14 | Logan | Hargreaves | B7-9 | 8 | 14:08 |
| Junior 1 mile | |||||
| 13 | George | Milner | B4-6 | 10 | 08:58 |
| 23 | Eibhlis | Price | G4-6 | 9 | 09:29 |
| 34 | Hattie | Bishop | G4-6 | 15 | 09:58 |