Midland Counties Road Relay September 22nd 2012

Dear Blog,

Have you heard that the Midland Counties have decided to cancel this year’s September Road Relays because of difficulties caused by the recent outbreak of e-coli in the area with the rumour that Sutton Park is the source of the problem. Now the interesting question is … will the clubs just roll over and accept the decision or will the more enterprising clubs in the Midlands area seek permission to run as guests in other area championships??? Will any club do a ‘Universities’ whereby, last year, the Universities Cross Country Championships to be held in snowy Scotland was cancelled at the last minute because of the weather conditions but many universities acted unilaterally, and held an unofficial Championships at the venues anyway!!!! Perhaps there will be a last minute appeal to Draycote Water aka Seven Trent Water Authority, to use their pathway around the Reservoir for a last minute ad hoc event?? The course and facilities are used for races a couple of times each year so it is a proven event venue.

The Coventry City Council Red Can brigand have just passed at the end of my driveway on their annual hole search. The council are paranoid about the public taking out a legal claim against them on Health and Safety grounds. Just like parents, making a claim against a school for injury caused by Health and Safety issues, the Council seems to pay up rather than them call a parents’ bluff and go through the court process; so it is with the Red Can brigand ….. the Coventry Half Marathon is nearly upon us, so the council do a quality repair on every hole, crack, cranny and dint they can find on the course. A team go out to inspect the course with their spray cans firing away here, there and anywhere, followed in the next week with the Blackstuff Boys. While all the rest of the citizens of Coventry continue to moan about the state of the roads and about the state of the pavements, those of us who live on the Coventry Half Marathon course know full well that we will have the luxury of an annual update and upgrade of our little bit of tarmac. Not just major pot holes, but every tiny indentation in the road surface is nicely smoothed over. The moral being that a petition should be raised by the Lady Godiva citizens to demand that the council have a different course for their Half Marathon every year!!!

                                                     Colin