TAVISTOCK AC runners made the short trip to Exmouth on Sunday for the final fixture of the Westward Cross Country League. The Exmouth course always provides the potential for upsets with its tough, twisting, undulating nature, and Tavistock sought to take advantage. First race was the U13 girls with Rebecca Windemer making only her second appearance for the club, finishing a creditable 19th, and sparky Laura Aspen challenging throughout the race to finish in fourth. Next off were the U13 boys with Tom Lawson performing a tactically sound race and picking up third. Teammate Jake Rendle took a bad fall while in sixth, on the rutted course and required ambulance treatment. But Nick Champion in eighth and Matt McNamara-Waddington tenth completed the scoring to give the U13 boys? team victory on the day. As the races hotted up, so did the Tavistock performances and it was left to the experienced Richard Drage to take up the mantle. Running a measured race over the five-mile course, Drage used his tactical skills to great advantage and led the field home. The first Tavistock individual winner of a Westward League race for many a year, Drage was delighted. Following Drage home with an outstanding performance was new boy, Chris Champion in fourth, Adam Holland in sixth, Tony Symons eleventh, and Pete Bazley in 29th. So Tavistock had their first individual victory, but they did not have to wait long for their second. The ladies? race proved to be equally exciting. The experienced Tiverton athlete, Marion Blair led the early stages, but Tavistock?s Fiona Dunn tracked her closely. Midway through the second of the three-lap race Dunn put in a big surge to break Blair. Dunn then controlled the race from the front, and put in two more surges to make the gap decisive and claim a fantastic victory, for the race and the championship. With an outstanding performance by fast improving Angela Sykes and Carrie Lawson turning in a gutsy run, the ladies can be justly proud of their performance. Suzy Blandford in the U17 category battled gamely through to 23rd to complete the story. Tavistock AC had picked up just three individual medals in the overall league last season so they were delighted with this season?s improvement and resulting haul: U13 Boys: 3rd overall, Tom Lawson; Team 3rd. Senior women: 1st overall, Fiona Dunn; Vet 40 women, 2nd overall, Angela Sykes; Senior Women Team, 3rd overall. Senior men: 2nd overall, Richard Drage; Vet 40 men, 3rd overall, Tony Symons; Vet 45 men, 1st overall, Richard Drage; Vet 50 Men, 2nd overall, Robin Musgrave; Senior Men Team, 2nd overall. Tavistock AC cross-country team manager Martin Exley said: ?We knew from our victory in the Devon Championships the club was improving but the six individual medals and three team medals show Tavistock Athletic club is a force to be reckoned with across the south west.?
