Review of 2009 Kenilworth Half Marathon

by Mark Coyle

If you can’t enjoy running on such a glorious early autumn day as the one that greeted our arrival in Kenilworth for the Warwickshire town’s annual half marathon, then frankly, you never will. I haven’t run the Kenilworth Half for a few years but it remains undoubtedly one of the little gems of the local running circuit, a well managed half that many a bigger event would do well to emulate. Boasting great facilities – changing rooms, showers, pre-race massage, bag storage – its route sends you out around a leafy, expertly marshalled, course to a well organised finish. Throw in a decent goody bag – as goody bags go -, a medal and a tee and you have a good value event that does the good people of Kenilworth Runners much credit.  Which makes it all the more puzzling as to why race numbers were well down on recent times? Barely 550 souls toed the line for the 10 am start which was a surprise given that the race normally sells out its allocated 700 spaces weeks in advance, this year you could actually enter on race day morning.

This is why I found myself in Tracey’s car at 8:30 a.m. roaring through the heart of the sleepy Warwickshire town frantically searching for one of its car parks – now buried under a new Waitrose, none of yer Aldi round ‘ere – concerned that she might miss the 9.a.m cut off point for entrants “on the day”. A friendly local pointed us in the direction of Fishpond’s Lane and we arrived at the small sports hall to find Tall Paul and his better half D.I. “Ello, Ello Ello, what’s all this then?” Gordon already in bleary eyed situ. Having got herself in, Tracey filled the pre-race void entertaining us with her new ipod shuffle and its universal fitting ear phones which - surprise, surprise - don’t actually fit her ears. Disgruntled she wedged it back into her bag. I don‘t know what she was moaning about personally. Running a half marathon is tough enough, listening to the likes of Take That, Robbie Williams and Wet Wet Wet while doing so must contravene some UN human rights mandate surely.

As more and more Sphinx guys arrived talk naturally gravitated toward The Paul Kenning London Marathon now sponsored by Virgin as news circulated that Darren Handley had secured a place in the general ballot with the lucky few. Lord knows how the Paul Kenning London Marathon sponsored by Virgin Committee organise the ballot but you’d think the big man – who must be on the committee judging by his 100% attendance – would arrange it so that his good lady at the very least might get a sniff of a place. No chance. And as for this years “Better Luck Next Year” magazine that dropped on Lorraine’s door mat, well, let’s just say it found its way – unopened - into her recycling bin in a PB time. All of which wasn’t enough to keep me out of the firing line either having somehow been pulled out of the general ballot for the second time in three years.

As Tall Paul and I pleaded for clemency more and more Sphinx bods continued to arrive until it seemed like the iconic blue and yellow vest filled a sizeable corner of the hall. The club’s Half Marathon Handicap trophy was up for grabs and with the annual presentation night on the horizon – Friday 13th November - 22 yellow and blue hopefuls were gunning for presentation night glory. With ten minutes to start time we meandered outside for our pre-race warm up routines. It was at this point that Mitch Timms blew any lingering chance of a PB by trawling the rails of the “Sale” items laid out by the local running store. As the klaxon signalled the start of the race I heard a totally distracted Mitch ask the shop owner;

“Hey mate, have you got this in extra large? Only I like ‘em baggy”

The race meandered through the Hyacinth Bouquet Estate then snaked out into open countryside before settling down into shaded country lanes flanked by thick hedgerows which offered fleeting glimpses of neatly cultivated Warwickshire farm land. Which is more or less what you would expect to see given it was a race through the Warwickshire countryside. The weather was perfect, still, with very pleasant autumn sunshine warming our limbs as we climbed the first of a number of awkward rises that peppered this undulating route. A series of well manned and well organised water stations came and went and still the undulations rolled in. At about halfway I remembered a conversation I had with Tall Paul back in the sports hall prior to the race.

“Which is the toughest race Coyley, this one or Cov?” He asked

“Cov” I answered emphatically

Now, I wasn’t so sure. We were at half way and I was hard pushed to remember a flat element of any significance and as we turned for home the annoying series of niggly little rises continued culminating in the sharp climb at around the twelve mile point which signalled the decent into the estate and the home strait that leads back to the start.

Granted it’s been four or five years since I last ran the Kenilworth Half but my memory – clearly distorted by time.. and age - was of a much flatter route and I was much relived to finally turn into the car park and complete the stretch of grass that brought you to the finish where Jackie Bagley thrust the Coombe 8 miler entry form into my sweaty hand.

“Do you fancy doing an eight miler?” She beamed

“Can I get me breath back first?” I managed to gasp.

I collected my goody bag… and my faculties before joining the assembled Sphinx finishers and cheered in every blue and yellow vest as they hove into view before returning to the hall for a quick shower a cuppa and a nice bit of well earned cake. To those of you who know them Pauline and Tom Dable and Colin Underhill all send their regards.

 11th  Ashley Miles        1.20.39 	
 22nd  Pete Fahy           1.24.28 	 
 43rd  Justin Smith        1.28.19 	
 46th  Bryan Pears         1.29.05 	
 57th  Kev Naughton        1.30.53 	
 59th  Darron Handley      1.31.00 	
 69th  Steve Court         1.31.54 	
 90th  Ian Gower           1.34.14 	
127th  Mark Coyle          1.38.35 	
183rd  Barry Burrows       1.43.35 	
186th  Andy Norton         1.43.50	
195th  Alan Patrick        1.44.34
220th  Mitch Timms         1.46.54
240th  Tall Paul           1.48.33
321st  Tom Marchi          1.55.38
322nd  Bob Torley          1.55.47
324th  Danielle Stevenson  1.55.58
330th  Jackie Timms        1.56.09
371st  Lorraine Gordon     2.02.10
398th  Mary Bench          2.06.20
399th  Tracey Higgins      2.06.24
429th  Laura Jones         2.13.31