Whilst some athletes headed to the glamour of Milan and the snowy slopes of Cortina for the 2026 Winter Olympics, the Hay Hotfooters XC team headed to Rotherwas, on the outskirts of Hereford, for the final race of the winter series, hosted by Hereford Triathlon Club.
Rotherwas is a course that divides opinion; a Marmite course. Some love it, others… love it less. You see, it’s flat and open - a distinct contrast from the other courses this season. Those who enjoy running fast whilst holding a steady pace tend to love it. But those who seek the natural changes of pace, the exertion that hills bring followed by a fast downhill, tend to… love it less.
Then there’s the matter of being able to see who’s in front and who’s behind for much of the race, as well as the possibility of being lapped. Some find this motivating.
The weather, by this winter’s standards, was absolutely glorious. We were treated to conditions that were merely miserable, grey and wet-ish rather than solid, torrential, unrelenting rain.
From a club perspective, we were able to field both a men’s and a women’s team, which gave a strong finish to the season. There were some cracking individual performances too. Phil, for example, has been pretty much unstoppable this winter and continued that form again here.
Post-race cake was, as ever, both welcome and of high quality — everyone’s favourite part of cross country culture. Thank you to Hereford Couriers Running Club for such generous hosting.
In a slightly less well-organised moment (unbecoming of Hay Hotfooters) we may have missed the medal ceremony, having decided, post-race, amongst ourselves, that the presentations would take place at the start of the summer series. Perhaps surprisingly, this was despite heavy speculation that we may have a couple of medal winners this season, though confirmation is still pending. Updates to follow.
Looking back over the winter series, it’s been another season of mud, cold, rain, hills, flat, sweat and great company — which is really what cross country is all about. A highlight of the season has to be our trip to the glorious Gregynog Hall in the north of our county.
Before long we’ll be lining up for the summer series, when the conversation will shift seamlessly from mud and rain to heat, sun and how firm the ground is. Runners, it turns out, are remarkably adaptable when it comes to finding something weather-related to complain about.
And while the athletes in Milan and Cortina may have the mountains, the snow and the glamour - we’ll always have cake.