Race - Mountain Trail is off (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Race - Mountain Trail is off

9:26am Saturday 13th September 2008 in Sport By Gazette Sports

THE Lake District Mountain Trial due to be held on Sunday has been cancelled, despite a valiant bid by the organisers to save it.

Heavy and persistent rain had already meant the loss of the original field from which the event was due to start and finish opposite the Woolpack in Eskdale.

Event organiser Ali Bramall secured the Eskdale Showfield, and anrraged with Simms coaches to bus the competitors to the start, but the weather forced another move and this timeit was decided to cancel.

Wendy Dodds, chairman of the Lake District Mountain Trial Association, said:"Independent of the logistics of moving 350 competitors by minibus up Eskdale and the parking challenge when cars could get stuck in a waterlogged field, we were faced with potentially dangerous river crossings when out on the fells.

"With more rain to come and the safety of our competitors being paramount, a reluctant decision was made last night to cancel the event - the first time in the event's history going back to 1952."

She pledged that the Trail would be organiser again next year.

SEDBERGH School will stage the English School Fell Running Championship on Sunday, September 28. The event takes place on the Howgill Fells and is still open to schools wishing to compete. There will be a series of races for Year 7, Years 8 and 9, Years 10 and 11 and Years 12 and 13 for both boys and girls. There will be a number of individual and team prizes for each age group along with an overall best school prize. The races start at 11am. For more information go to: www.fellrunner.org.uk/junior.