The fourth race in the Kent Fitness League 2018/19 Cross Country series took place near Deal on Sunday December 9th, writes Jim Knight. Twenty-seven Sevenoaks AC members made the long trip to join 339 runners on the start line of the wet and slippery 5-mile course which comprised two laps of the Betteshanger Country Park.
It was a record turnout for the club at this fixture (two years ago the club could only field a team of 4) and paid handsome dividends, with the team recording one of its best performances of the season.
The race winner was Jay Smith of Dartford Road Runners in 29 minutes 18 – a very fast time in the conditions.
Once again Darrell Smith led the Sevenoaks team home in 5th position (1st M50) in 31.34 and now leads the M50 class in the series. The other SAC men in the scoring team packed closely between 33 and 35 minutes, with Andrew Milne in 21st place, Jimmy George 29th, Mike Lochead 31st, Andy Ashlee 33rd, Jim Harness 39th, Ed Saunders 41st, and Dan Witt 51st.
The men's team were a close 2nd, behind Petts Wood Runners, and well ahead of 3rd placed Paddock Wood AC.
In the women's category, Becky Morrish of Paddock Wood AC had another fine run to win in 33.41, ahead of Renata McDowell of Deal Tri Club.
The Sevenoaks AC team was led by Marion van Lille in 16th place, followed by Heather Fitzmaurice 17th, Pauline Dalton 20th (2nd W50) and Amy Edwards 24th. Once again Bridgit Weekes ran well to come 2nd W60.
Although the Sevenoaks women's team came 5th, the strong performance by the men brought the combined team home in 2nd position on the day, and the club is in 2nd place in the series (ie. after four races, the women stand fourth, the men third and the combined team second).
The SAC results were:
| Ov Pos | Lg Pos | Runner | Age | Time | Club | Rating | # Races |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 5 | Darrell Smith | 51 | 31:34 | Sevenoaks AC | 98.20 | 11 |
| 22 | 21 | Andrew Milne | 36 | 33:42 | Sevenoaks AC | 90.99 | 19 |
| 31 | 29 | Jimmy George | 37 | 34:40 | Sevenoaks AC | 87.39 | 5 |
| 33 | 31 | Mike Lochead | 33 | 34:49 | Sevenoaks AC | 86.49 | 4 |
| 35 | 33 | Andy Ashlee | 49 | 34:56 | Sevenoaks AC | 85.59 | 26 |
| 41 | 39 | Jim Harness | 51 | 35:13 | Sevenoaks AC | 82.88 | 7 |
| 43 | 41 | Edmund Saunders | 36 | 35:17 | Sevenoaks AC | 81.98 | 8 |
| 54 | 51 | Daniel Witt | 43 | 35:52 | Sevenoaks AC | 77.48 | 49 |
| 73 | 68 | James Wright | 50 | 36:34 | Sevenoaks AC | 69.82 | 27 |
| 76 | 71 | John Stevens | 57 | 36:43 | Sevenoaks AC | 68.47 | 20 |
| 89 | 82 | James Baker | 54 | 37:25 | Sevenoaks AC | 63.51 | 20 |
| 94 | 85 | Jatinder Soomal | 36 | 37:51 | Sevenoaks AC | 62.16 | 4 |
| 121 | 16 | Marion Van Lille | 33 | 39:32 | Sevenoaks AC | 87.18 | 4 |
| 124 | 17 | Heather Fitzmaurice | 49 | 39:39 | Sevenoaks AC | 86.32 | 74 |
| 132 | 20 | Pauline Dalton | 54 | 39:55 | Sevenoaks AC | 83.76 | 43 |
| 144 | 24 | Amy Edwards | 39 | 41:10 | Sevenoaks AC | 80.34 | 2 |
| 145 | 25 | Diana Bryant | 44 | 41:14 | Sevenoaks AC | 79.49 | 4 |
| 167 | 136 | Andy Manning | 50 | 42:16 | Sevenoaks AC | 39.19 | 4 |
| 171 | 140 | Duncan Cochrane | 61 | 42:24 | Sevenoaks AC | 37.39 | 28 |
| 186 | 152 | Hugh Shewell | 29 | 43:05 | Sevenoaks AC | 31.98 | 18 |
| 195 | 38 | Nicki Thompson | 42 | 43:36 | Sevenoaks AC | 68.38 | 21 |
| 200 | 41 | Bridgit Weekes | 60 | 43:54 | Sevenoaks AC | 65.81 | 4 |
| 205 | 43 | Sarah Shewell | 59 | 44:15 | Sevenoaks AC | 64.10 | 106 |
| 233 | 56 | Paula George | 54 | 45:55 | Sevenoaks AC | 52.99 | 2 |
| 242 | 60 | Rhea Malkin | 33 | 46:39 | Sevenoaks AC | 49.57 | 3 |
| 246 | 183 | Duncan Warwick-Champion | 54 | 46:59 | Sevenoaks AC | 18.02 | 22 |
| 331 | 218 | James Fitzmaurice | 76 | 56:32 | Sevenoaks AC | 2.25 | 69 |
The full results are here. The next race is on 6th January at Nurstead Court, Meopham.