Spitfire Scramble

16 July 2018 - By James Blackshaw

The Spitfire Scramble is a 24hr running event that takes part on the grounds of what used to be RAF Hornchurch, an airbase that was set-up with the sole intention of protecting London and Thames corridor. These days, the area has been given back to farming, but once a year several hundred runners descend upon it to complete as many laps of a 5.7 mile course as they can within a 24 hour period. There are different categories of entry, and the event allows for solo runners who intend to run on their own for the whole 24hrs, or relay teams, which can be pairs, teams of between 3 to 5 people, or teams of between 6 to 8 people.

WRC had previously entered a men’s team in back in 2016, bringing home 1^st place in the Male 3-5 category. Since that time the popularity of the event had grown considerably, with nearly four times as many runners taking part. Happily, the WRC interest has also grown, and this year we entered two teams of eight: A men’s team, captained by Marc Underdown, and based around the same runners that bought home gold back in 2016; and a mixed team, captained by Danny Connor.

The actual running was to begin at midday on the Saturday, but a WRC advance party arrived on Friday to set-up what would become known as ‘Witham World’. Centred around a large Gazebo, the WRC contingent created their own glampsite, with luxuries such as a changing tent, a gas hob for hot drinks, and a full-on sound system pumping out some high octane tunes.

By late morning on Saturday all the team members had arrived, and after some tactical discussion it was time to begin running. David Hunt and Matt Jordan were the first runners out, and it quickly became clear that the searing temperatures were going to make everyone’s first couple of laps very tough indeed. That said, David Hunt finished his lap and immediately asked if he could go out and run another one, as he had enjoyed the first one so much. He was refused this request, but as always, took it in good spirits and with a smile on his face.

I was the second runner out for my team, and immediately had to slow down from what I considered to be my goal pace, just so I could cope with the heat. The course itself wasn’t particularly tough; it was around 50/50 trail to path, and had enough variation to keep it interesting. There was a fair climb up to the five-mile marker, and if you had enough energy to lift your head up at this point you were treated to some spectacular views over London. There also was a mile or so of wooded trail, and though the canopy of the trees provided respite from the heat during the daytime laps, during the night laps this area would become treacherous.

The laps continued on, and by early evening everyone had successfully completed their first lap. Every member of both teams was working hard, and the score board proved it: the men were in second position in their category, and the mixed team were in fourth. The running was hard, but the atmosphere and banter around Witham World in between the laps was more than enough to lift everyone’s spirits.

At around 11:30pm, disaster struck. A Halstead runner came running over to Witham World to inform us that one of our team, Tracey Martin, had fallen in the woodland area, suffering a serious injury. A few of us went to the medical tent, and were told that a medical team had been dispatched and were treating Tracey for a suspected broken leg. Another member of the mixed team, Jo Smythe, went to her aid, and off they went to Queen’s Accident and Emergency department in Romford. Confident in the knowledge that Tracey was being well looked after, the rest of the team continued running on through the night, albeit taking a lot more care with their footing. I completed my third lap, had a quick glass of beer, and then hunkered down in my sleeping bag to grab few hours sleep. When I awoke at 4:00am, I was pleased to find that both Tracey and Jo had returned to the camp. Fortunately, Tracey had ‘only’ sprained her ankle rather than breaking anything, and though she was in some pain and on crutches, she was in good spirits.

At around 4:30am the sun began to reappear, and with it, the fantastic heat. Those running laps at this time of day were as much a sweaty mess as they had been when running at midday, such was the sun’s early morning ferocity. None the less, WRC kept striding on, maintaining good positions in the standings and keeping the spirits up. Runners were now completing what would be their last laps, and it was decided that the separate teams would join their last runner on the short stretch to the finish, whilst parading the almighty Witham Running Club flag high and proud.

And so it was, that just after midday on Sunday both the men’s and mixed teams trotted over the finish line, completing 35 laps and 29 laps respectively. Once again the men’s team had done fantastically, coming 3^rd out of 11 teams, and receiving a trophy for their efforts. The mixed team had also done very well, coming 7^th out of 49 teams.

Everything about the weekend was brilliantly organised, and not only from a race organisation point of view. On behalf of everybody, I would like to give a massive thanks to the key club members who made sure that everything about Witham World and the two teams ran extremely smoothly: Marc, Danny, James C, the Wallens – you’re all legends – thank you. Bearing in mind how successful this year was, I’m sure we’ll have a few teams back there next year, and there is definitely room for Witham World to expand…Witham Universe maybe? David Hunt enjoyed the event and the course so much that he said he’s going back next year to participate as a solo runner, so watch this space!