Nine Team Kennet athletes took part in the Berkshire Cross Country Championships at Dinton Pastures, near Reading. It was a lovely day for XC racing with clear skies, sunshine and perfect temperature.
The course was very interesting, with an inner loop that was very twisty and turney with a few up and down sections over a mound in the middle of the field. The outer loop was much straighter and flatter, allowing a faster pace, with a straight and downhill finish. Conditions were perfect with the course mostly being soft grass, without too much mud or boggy conditions.
The Under-13 Girls (3.2k) had a great day with Ella Larkin finishing in 3rd place (just loosing out on 2nd in the last few meters). This secures Ella a place in the Berkshire team for the Inter-Counties Championship in March.
Tilly Clare finished in 9th place, improving on her performance from last year and securing 1st reserve slot for the Berkshire team. Next, in 11th was Quinn Joyce, also putting in a great performance and securing a reserve slot. Darcy Claridge finished in an excellent 13th place, only a couple of seconds behind Quinn and the 12th place runner.
With the first three athletes home counting as a team, Team Kennet secured a silver medal in the Under-13 Girls competition. Bracknell AC were the winners and Maidenhead AC were in third.
In the Under-13 Boys (3.2km) race, Team Kennet had two athletes competing. In a very strong field, Josh Bailey secured 25th place and Josh Kuijten finished in 28th.
Reuben Kuijten competed in the Under-15 Boys (4.7km) race, which was another strong field, securing a finish in 23rd place.
Finally, in the Masters (9.6km) race, Bart Kuijten finished in an excellent 9th position, with Chris Turner securing a 27th place finish.
