How Can 50 Years Have Gone By ...?

[MalcolmW]

How can 50 years have gone by since my first victory in a club race? After four and a half years of training I had only ever won local schools' events, but that all changed with the first track race of 1966 on 23rd April. Running at my home track (I was born in the maternity home which overlooked the site of the track in Warrington's Victoria Park) I reduced my 880yards best from 2:03.1 to 2:01.8. More than that, however, I always looked (and felt) in charge of the race, taking the lead just after halfway as I sensed the pace was dropping, to win from John Temperton of Airedale and Keith Burrell of Liverpool H. A friendship with "Temps" began that day, and he has gone on to be the main administrator of Northern Athletics. Burrell had been a local rival for years, with a pretty even record between us. Last I heard of him he was a fireman on Merseyside, from where a younger colleague emerged to be a 2 hr 9 min 8 sec Marathon runner.

[Spider]

What would your 880yard time be now Malc?

[MalcolmW]

What would your 880yard time be now Malc?

 

I doubt I could break 3 minutes even if my knees held out.

[MalcolmW]

31st May 1966.

After a weekend in London watching the inter-Counties Championships at White City (and training at Watford on the Sunday, whenthere was no competition) I travelled up from St Pancras to Sheffield for the Junior 880 Yards in the Sheffield Sports on the (not quite Bank Holiday) Tuesday.

To my disappointment the referee decided that there were too many runners for one race (and no prospect of fitting heats and final into the programme), and so the field should be split into two races, with prizes awarded to the 3 fastest times.

I was drawn in the first race, and running to set a target for others. The early pace was slow, so I took the lead passing 440 in 58 seconds. On the second lap I was picked off by Rob Hazelwood (Yorkshire Junior Mile champion from 1965) but , 2:00.5 was another personal best. It was no surprise that I came fourth overall on times, so not collecting a prize. At least a leading coach (who had never previously spoken to me) told me I had run the optimum race in the circumstances.

[no balls]

Malcolm is on the Singapore slings early

[Sweep]

Fascinating stuff

[little whitt]

big well done

[MalcolmW]

5 July 1966

After several of mile races I returned to the half-mile with a junior race at a Stretford Tuesday Evening meeting. The track had only opened in 1964, but was beginning to build a reputation a fast one for middle distance events.

The Staffordshire junior champion, Chris Moreton, led at a very fast pace. He was preparing for the English Schools Championshios where, in 3 days time he would face heats with only heat winners and fastest losers to qualify, so he needed to be able to handle a hot pace. His coach was standing on the infield and (illegally) encouraged him with a shout of "confidence, Chris".

Now in future years I would have been happy to maybe come up to his shoulder to undermine his confidence, but here I was, newly competitive at this level, annoyed at the coaching from the infield and fuelled on testosterone. So I did the unlikely (bordering on impossible), and forced myself past him to lead at the bell in 55 seconds (at a time when my best 440 time was only 54.1). Moreton swept past me late in the back straight and finished in 1:56.0. Inevitably I faded over the last 220 and crossed the line in second place in 2:00.4, to knock another tenth of my personal best time despite an outrageous early pace.

Stretford Tuesday Evening meeting have become legendary, and nowadays feature athletes from the length and breadth of the country. I've certainly seen competitors from Aberdeen and Exeter, as well as overseas entrants from all corners of Ireland, plus Norway and Iceland.

[bgoefc]

5 July 1966

After several of mile races I returned to the half-mile with a junior race at a Stretford Tuesday Evening meeting. The track had only opened in 1964, but was beginning to build a reputation a fast one for middle distance events.

The Staffordshire junior champion, Chris Moreton, led at a very fast pace. He was preparing for the English Schools Championshios where, in 3 days time he would face heats with only heat winners and fastest losers to qualify, so he needed to be able to handle a hot pace. His coach was standing on the infield and (illegally) encouraged him with a shout of "confidence, Chris".

Now in future years I would have been happy to maybe come up to his shoulder to undermine his confidence, but here I was, newly competitive at this level, annoyed at the coaching from the infield and fuelled on testosterone. So I did the unlikely (bordering on impossible), and forced myself past him to lead at the bell in 55 seconds (at a time when my best 440 time was only 54.1). Moreton swept past me late in the back straight and finished in 1:56.0. Inevitably I faded over the last 220 and crossed the line in second place in 2:00.4, to knock another tenth of my personal best time despite an outrageous early pace.

Stretford Tuesday Evening meeting have become legendary, and nowadays feature athletes from the length and breadth of the country. I've certainly seen competitors from Aberdeen and Exeter, as well as overseas entrants from all corners of Ireland, plus Norway and Iceland.

Pissed on white wine, sat on my sunbed in 37C heat  on our last day here, Malc, I love you!

Edited July 5, 2016 by bgoefc

[MalcolmW]

16 July 1966

Stretford Pageant Meeting

Junior 880 yards

 

There was a large field, mostly locals from Sale Harriers or "M&D" (Manchester Lads Club), plus some Waterloo Harriers from Crosby. Clear favourite was Trevor Dean of Sale, who had 4 weeks earlier won the Lancashire Schools Mile at Farnworth (in which I had finished third in a pb of 4:30.6).

I ran second to Dean early on, but then the pace slowed and I got boxed in, and dropped to fifth. I moved back up to second by the bell in 62.8, and passed Dean to gain the inside on the bend and then eased  to 660 yards before making a flat-out effort. Dean came past early in the home straight but I held on quite well with a 57.4 second lap to finish runner-up in a pb of 2:00.2, behind Dean's 1:59.5.

So I had now run 2:00.4 off a 55.0 first lap, and 2:00.2 off a 62.8. Clearly a reasonable opener of 58/59 should see me finish under 2 minutes....

[Sweep]

I can't wait for the full autobiography, it's going to be a thriller

[Mounts Kipper]

I can't wait for the full autobiography, it's going to be a thriller

I'm quite enjoying these snippets.????

[jayjayoghani]

Do you still run Malc?

[Spider]

I'm quite enjoying these snippets.????

Me too

 

And Sweep, be patient. I reckon this is ramping up towards a blood and guts thriller where we find out Malc was snapped up by MI5 and sent off round the world as a spy.

 

Expect steamy romps on deserted running tracks in the Far East and shoot outs on the streets of African towns as he helps fight and dislodge despots.

 

C'mon Malc.

[Sweep]

Spider, I also feel that's where it's leading. Something big and very interesting is coming......I reckon he bummed Zola Budd in the early 80s (she was barefoot obvs)

Edited July 16, 2016 by Sweep

[Spider]

I reckon Malc was on the balcony of the Iranian embassy

[Whites man]

I reckon Malc blacked up and won 2 Olympic golds competing under the alias Daley Thompson in the early 80's.

[Spider]

I reckon Malc blacked up and won 2 Olympic golds competing under the alias Daley Thompson in the early 80's.

????????????????

 

Malcolm X

Edited July 16, 2016 by Spider

[Boby Brno]

Can't wait for the 30th July. Some people are on the pitch, they think it's all over .........

[MalcolmW]

Do you still run Malc?

 

 

What would your 880yard time be now Malc?

 

 

 

I doubt I could break 3 minutes even if my knees held out.

 

[tarian1979]

Love reading this thread

[MalcolmW]

Me too

 

And Sweep, be patient. I reckon this is ramping up towards a blood and guts thriller where we find out Malc was snapped up by MI5 and sent off round the world as a spy.

 

Expect steamy romps on deserted running tracks in the Far East and shoot outs on the streets of African towns as he helps fight and dislodge despots.

 

C'mon Malc.

 

All I can say is that a Government Agency has recently provided me with a stapler (with 6mm ammunition) and a pocket book and pen.

A follow-up visit has been arranged.

 

 

 

I reckon Malc was on the balcony of the Iranian embassy

 

That played a bigger part in my life than you might expect.

A mate was supposed to pick me up after a 3-day walk, but he was transfixed by the siege on the news programme and arrived at the designated pub an hour late. By then I had asked a young lady out who subsequently became my wife, from whom I am now amicably separated. I promise that never again will I have Guinness for breakfast.

[Spider]

All I can say is that a Government Agency has recently provided me with a stapler (with 6mm ammunition) and a pocket book and pen.

A follow-up visit has been arranged.

 

 

 

 

That played a bigger part in my life than you might expect.

A mate was supposed to pick me up after a 3-day walk, but he was transfixed by the siege on the news programme and arrived at the designated pub an hour late. By then I had asked a young lady out who subsequently became my wife, from whom I am now amicably separated. I promise that never again will I have Guinness for breakfast.

????????????

 

You spooks certainly know how to cover your tracks!

[MalcolmW]

Wednesday 20 July

Warrington AC club championships

Junior 880 yards

 

This was a low-key race, the moreso since my age-group rivals were missing for various reasons and I was running against lads 2 or 3 years younger than me. Tim Gregory (then a slip of a youth at Lymm GS, and now a fat semi-retired solicitor in the Huddersfield area) set the early pace. As I felt the pace beginning to slow I took the lead after 200 yards and kept rolling to reach 440 yards in 59 seconds. I went on to win easily in 1:59.2, with Tim a distant second.

 

Later I scored my only ever steeplechase victory, in the junior 1000m steeplechase. Second in that race was Mike Driscoll, then just ending his fourth year as a pupil at St Johns RC Secondary Modern - he has recently retired after 19 years as a University Vice-Chancellor. But my abiding memory of him is going to his house a mile up the road from mine, and meeting his family. His Irish mother (like his two sisters) was a nurse, but his father's English was beyond my comprehension. He was a foreman of a team of navvies building motorways and all the men he worked with were Irish, so he had never modified his extreme Galway accent.

[DazBob]

Needless to say though, you had the last laugh.