XC – Race 1 at Forceleap Farm

Sunday 1st November was a misty Autumn morning for the first race of the 2026/27 season. 

It turned out that Forceleap Farm was bumpier & hillier than predicted, providing a more challenging, and naturally a more satisfying XC course, than expected.

It was a great turnout, with 21 Juniors.  I’m sure they enjoyed the team atmosphere of running with their teammates.   The age categories means that one runner may be 2 years older than the next, so the absolute finishing positions aren’t that helpful, but the competition does provides a useful benchmark to see how each Harrier improves over the season. 

A special shout out to Martha (U14G) & Will (reserve U14B) who’ve been invited to represent Oxfordshire in the Intercounty champs later this month.

For the senior Harriers we had 11 men and 7 women running on Sunday, a solid start to the season.  With more Harriers expected for the December race at Finmere, it provides a great foundation for the season.

It was great to see familiar faces of those Harriers who enjoy the XC season. 

A huge welcome to Nicky, Kate, Gokul and Rick who ran their first XC ever (or at least since school!) 

Mia’s speedy start will certainly have rattled some of the other front-runners.

It was wonderful to see Patsy complete her return to XC following the surgery on her foot.  We especially enjoyed the chocolate snacks!

Provisional results attached.  I’m chasing one missing result.  Please let me know if you spot any other issues?