Boar's Head fell race

Yesterday was my first fell race in the colours of my new club - Pennine. Although I ran Shutlingsloe as a Pennine runner, I didn't have a vest, and I had pre-entered Wincle so ran it as a Fat Boy.

Fat Boys are my previous club, but they don't run many of the same races as I do (because I live the other side of the Peak). I would like to thank the Fat Boys for being so welcoming to Me and Mrs Noel over the years.

It seems I'm not big-chested enough to fit into a male medium vest, and there are too few scrawny men in Pennine to justify getting a batch of smalls. So we eventually decided on a lady's medium (thanks to Margaret and John for sorting that out). I was pleased that it didn't have any tassles or anything like that. It was also great to get people shouting "come on Pennine". Thanks to everyone giving encouragement on the course.

I've not run Boar's Head before as it clashes with Calver, which I've done a few times. I was delighted to find that it largely followed one of my old training runs from when I lived in Stockport. It was like a frantic, exhausted trip down memory lane with dozens of people chasing me.

The race is more fun than some races in that there are alternative lines to take. At one point, the field of runners in front of me split, leaving us with a confusing choice of who to follow. I followed the person directly in front of me (as I nearly always do) and I think I got it about right.

I'd tell you what time I finished in, but I'm watchless at the moment, so am waiting for the results to come out. I can then obsess over them, looking at who I would have beaten last year and who I should try to beat next year. Ah, the joys of fell running.