Last weekend (15th April) saw the 2023 edition of the National 12-Stage Road Relays, regarded by many British clubs as the Gold Ribbon event of the year because it offers the best opportunity to showcase a club's true depth of talent. Ben Pochee and his team had their sights firmly set on reclaiming the National title they last won in 2016 and to have the fastest B team in the country.
Two competitively selected squads of 12 Highgate Harrier men made the hallowed trip to Sutton Coldfield, brimming with confidence off the back of an excellent Southern 12-Stage performance, which included a 2nd place for the A team and an outstanding 6th place for the B team. Nevertheless, tensions and nerves were running high as rumours began circulating of confirmed sightings of Olympic athletes in the ranks of rival factions.
Leg 1: Taha Ghafari (A) and Sam Jinks (B).
Both Ghafari and Jinks set off with intent in the highly competitive (long) leg 1, running very fast opening miles up the hill in a pace led out by the 12:57 5K Olympian Marc Scott. In what must have been a painful last few miles, both rallied to record excellent times (Ghafari – 26:16 and = 4th fastest ever time by a Highgate Harrier & Jinks – 27:06).
Leg 2: Daniel Lewis (A) and Nick Jones (B).
Lewis ran an expertly controlled short leg to claw back no less than 7 spots, bringing the A team up to 6th place overall in 15:35. Lewis will almost certainly not mind me saying, though, that the limelight was stolen by Jones, who recorded a stonking 15:29, breaking the outright club record by 2 seconds and moving the club up 11 places to 17th.
Leg 3: Peter Chambers (A) and Harry Allan (B).
Highgate stalwart Chambers couldn’t have known his short leg record had just been taken down, but perhaps someone let him know on the course because he ran a storming 26:41, cementing his well-earned reputation as a metronomic time-trialing legend. Allan ran a respectable 28:21, bringing the team through in 27th.
Leg 4: Flurry Grierson (A) and Robbie Brown (B).
Tipped as the "Youngsters leg," our rising stars did not disappoint. GB Orienteer Grierson, who was a late call-up last year, ran another mature and rapid short leg (15:32) to push Highgate into 4th, as the team began getting a sniff of the medals. Incredibly, though, Brown took down the 45-minute-old short leg club record by a single second and recorded the 12th fastest short leg of the day, pushing the B team back into the top 20.
Leg 5: Jacob Allen (A) and Jack Steenson (B).
Allen, the 5k and 10k club record holder, struck fear into the hearts of all who recognized him as he stormed through the field to put Highgate into the lead in an exceptional 25:56, all while nursing a plantar niggle. Steenson put down a very controlled 27:49 to pass the baton over in 20th, as Southern teams began to realise our 12-stage performance was no fluke.
Leg 6: Alex Crossland (A) & Monte Watson (B).
Crossland had one job to do, get the baton round whilst maintaining the lead and the recently promoted B-teamer did just that in 15:39. Meanwhile Newcastle University student Watson ran a sterling 15:54 to gain 2 more places and confirming the future of Highgate Harriers is a bright one.
Leg 7: Roger Poolman (A) & Sean Renfer (B).
At the half-way point the main contenders were beginning to emerge and Highgate legend Poolman had the unenviable task of being chased down by Olympic Gold medallist Alex Yee of Kent. But Yee had to wait longer than he may have wanted because Poolman rolled back the years to record a brilliant 26:23 emphasising the importance of running your own race. B team Captain and mileage machine Renfer showed his strength to run 28:00 to hand over in 19th as the B team lead was stretched to over 6 minutes!
Leg 8: Charlie Haywood (A) & Farid Sousou (B).
After Kent had played an ace Highgate needed a man to steady the ship and who better than the highly experienced Charlie Haywood to do so. Haywood clocked a supreme 15:31 (=3rd fastest club all time) and made a well-needed 10 seconds on the lead. Late call up Sousou gave no impression he wasn’t already on the roster as he ran 17:30 to maintain the B teams top 20 position.
Leg 9: Alex Bampton (A) & Ash Harrell (B).
Bampton found himself sandwiched between multiple Olympians as he gave chase to Paul Pollock (Kent AC) and was being hunted by the likes of Andy Butchart (Central AC), Dewi Griffiths (Swansea) and National XC champion James Kingston. Despite being passed late by Butchart who went on to split the fastest lap of the day he minimised losses to Pollock keeping the time off the front to 40 seconds. Meanwhile cross fit fanatic, National xc relay silver medallist and comeback hero Harrell ran a very tasty 27:21 keeping the B team in 20th place.
Author’s note: I think I speak for the entire team when I say that the level of Highgate support in even the most desolate points of the race was phenomenal. Whether it was Noady’s ‘Tour-esque’ chalk graffiti, Mark and Dave’s obsessive time-gap shouts or Ben and Barney’s earth-shattering vocal range. There wasn’t a single moment I felt alone on that run and we are extremely lucky to have such dedicated coaches and support in our corner, our vision is your vision, and for that we thank you.
Leg 10: Rob Wilson (A) & Ross Dunsmore (B).
Highgate Harriers highly respected captain and veteran of the sport Wilson was a safe pair of hands when needed most as he fearlessly squared up to Kent and Central AC’s fastest short legs of the day (Ross Braden and Hamish Hickey). Wilson ran his fastest ever short leg to stop the clock at 15:34, a mere minute off the front. Meanwhile, second late call up Dunsmore ran a very solid 17:04 to maintain position between Midlands bronze medalists Western Tempo and Belgrave Harriers.
Leg 11: Alex Lepretre (A) & Lewis Greaves (B).
25 % of the Highgate A team was an Alex. But there’s only one Al Lepretre. Highgate needed something special and Lepretre delivered with a brilliantly timed effort to break his own club record in a remarkable 25:21 and the 4th fastest leg of the day. Jamie Crowe of Central ran a near equally superb leg to take the lead, but Kent’s lead in the English championships was down to a mere second. Resident Highgate graphic designer and publicist Greaves ran a cool 28:50 to again maintain 20th position for the B team.
Leg 12: Robel Bahelbi (A) & Jack Bailey (B).
It was always going to be Robel to finish the job, Met League xc superstar and one of just 3 from the team to have been in the winning road relay squad from 2016. Vet 45 Chris Greenwood of Kent ran an extremely respectable leg, but Robel bided his time and took 13 seconds out of Greenwood to finish in 15.35 and with it, taking the English National 12-Stage title for Highgate. The 12 eventually finished just 44s behind a formidable Central AC side for British Silver medals. If that wasn’t reward enough though, Bailey (16:37) took the B team to unchartered territory placing us an outright 21st British team in the country nearly 8 minutes clear of Kent B demonstrating the unrivalled depth of talent Highgate possesses.
Then just like that it was all over. The A team had ran a new club record (and 2nd fastest ever) total time of 4:10:38 and in doing so had become National champions again. Speak to anyone on the team though and they will tell you the same thing. Next year we will be back to challenge for the British title and to break that tape once more. For now though, another young Pochee has his bath back. Up. The. Gate.
Team manager Ben Pochee had the following words:
“Over 50 Highgate men ran as part of our 2023 National 12 Stage campaign, and many more contributed in other ways. From the four teams of 12 at the South of England champs to the two teams that qualified and competed with such distinction at Sutton Park National Champs.
The seemingly opposed goals of embracing fierce competition for places and yet utter commitment to each other underpins our success.
We broke the course record, we were the fastest English team in recent years and we definitively have the quickest B team by a country mile. But more than that, we had a shared journey, weeks of sweet anticipation, a bubbling broth of 1879 camaraderie, and complete audio visual supporting ownership of Sutton Park, this was another Highgate 12 Stage memory for a lifetime and this was our club at its very best.”
While A Team Captain Wilson added: “Although we may not have crossed the line first in the British Champs – hats off to Central AC – our collective performance, from both A and B teams must go down as the greatest demonstration of first-class distance running strength-in-depth in the club’s proud history. Taking the English title was just rewards for our 12 A Team men. There’s no doubt in my mind that the collectivism that we’ve nurtured from the second our 2022 campaign ended played out on the roads of Sutton Park. There wasn’t a sub-par run to be seen, each man focused, committed, and delivered a performance at the upper end of collective expectations. We’ll enjoy this year’s success before regrouping to go again and strive for one better in 2024.”