Race Date: Wednesday 5th July 2023
Race Report by: Adrian Good

The Roche Abbey Dash is a mixed trail 5 mile race organised by Maltby RC and it was the 5th race in the KMR series 2023.

The race is an out and back starting in a field in the middle of Maltby and heading to Historical and picturesque ruins of Roche Abbey.

The collection of numbers took place in the Catholic Club in Maltby then it was down a little lane, into a field for the start.

We started by running up to the top of the field then we had a choice of queuing to get through a Kissing gate or running a few extra steps around a tree. I chose the tree route, it was then into the woods which was slightly downhill to start with, so I settled into a steady pace.

The paths continued until we reached a road called Gypsy Lane which was a sharp downhill section of the route, once we reached the bottom we turned left into the grounds of Roche Abbey.

We ran around the ruins which were lovely and very picturesque, I did contemplate stopping for a selfie but resisted the temptations 😂.

We went through kissing gates and across a few bridges. By this time the leaders where heading home, which was quite tricky as the paths were not very wide. They became even narrower as we reached the turning point, which was basically just a steward that you ran around.

On the way back was when a real battle emerged for me, a lady from Retford RC passed me and we kept passing each other all the way to the finish.

There was a slight twist on the way back, instead of running back passed the ruins we were sent down another path, which led to stepping stones which we had to cross, round a lake and then headed for the exit out of the Abbey.

It was at this point I realised that we would probably have to run back up Gypsy Lane and I wasn’t sure that my already tired legs could handle that. Luckily we reached the lane and were ushered straight across the road into the woods. My joy was short lived though, as we ran around the bend we were greeted by an all mighty steep, muddy climb. At this point I walked up the hill, spotting the lady from Retford RC just ahead. I managed to close the gap on her to a few meters. Again it was the choice of the gate or tree option so I knew the finish was nearby. I upped my speed and passed the lady just before the gate with my trademark sprint finish down the grassy hill to the end.

I did go to the lady after and said “I’m sorry but I do love a sprint finish” she was fine and said she enjoyed the race between us.

Then it was back to the club for a pint and a chip butty.

I thought I was the only strider there but after seeing the results I realised Martin who I had chatted to before and after the race was also a strider (need club colours Martin) 😂.

127 ran on the day. The first person home was Matthew Daly of Worksop Harriers in 31:52 and the first lady was Catherine Eddison of Rotherham Harriers 35:22.

Striders results: