English Schools Cross Country Championships

Photographic Quiz.

 

Photo number:- one

Question:-  A murderer's victim lived in the third house on the right, but what did a Godiva Harrier do in the road about two weeks before the murder was committed? Who was the murderer and why has he been in the news last week?

Dear Blog,

                  Interestingly, last week I was shown an England School Cross Country Championships programmes when the event was held at the Woodlands Comprehensive School in Coventry. It was part of an interview for my ongoing research  into 'The History of Coventry Godiva Harriers and Other Clubs in the City over the last 140 years'. The year of the programme was 1963. the month March. I started running in October 1962 in response to advice given by the Head of Sixth Form at my school concerning techniques for getting into University. I remember going out for a run on Boxing Day and had only climbed about two miles up onto the moor when it was clear than the intensity of the driving snow was creating conditions which were far from usual. Common sense prevailed and I aborted the session to turn back home struggling in the quickly drifting snow. It was March 3rd when I next saw green grass when I ran in the National Cross Country Championships in Cambridge for my club, Bingley Harriers. I was in the upper sixth at the time and had run the Craven Schools Championships and qualified for the Yorkshire School championship event which I think was held on terraced sports school fields in Mexborough. The winter was extremely bad and the school field was sheet ice making the small climb from one pitch to the next totally impossible for those without spiked running shoes. My parents could not afford to spend money on spikes and I ran in my school pumps spending the entire race slipping, sliding and skidding on the icy surface. Needless to say I did not qualify for the English Schools Championships when I should have easily made the team!!!

I looked through the programme and was most surprised to find my name listed in the Yorkshire team!!! Here comes the rub ..... being new to the sport I was unfamiliar with the procedures, added to which my Grammar School was interested exclusively in rugby and did cross country running only when the pitches were frozen and unplayable! The few of us (5 max)  had to badger the teacher to enter us for the occasional race. So was I in the Yorkshire team or not??? Was the school sent information about my selection or not???? Should they have told me and didn't bother???? Will I ever know???? Was my name there in the programme just as a filler to make up the numbers????

I shall tell you more about my experience of sixth form life next time if I remember Blog.

                                                   Colin