Winner Wicks keeps his eyes on the pies

FLADBURY may be a small village, but it is famous for pies and the 5.5 off-road Pie Race offered the competitors a chance to earn them.

What should have been a fairly straightforward trail run along the banks of the Avon was turned into an endurance race by continuous driving rain, and Stratford AC’s Neil Wicks was delighted to be the overall winner and receive the largest pie of the night.

Wicks finished in a time of 36.17, a full minute-and-a-half clear of second place and not surprisingly said he thought it was a great event. Lisa Dallison was the next Stratford runner home, finishing a very strong 27th place overall and fifth female in 48.24.

Close behind was Sarah Odell, who was suffering both with the conditions and a cold, in 33rd and seventh female in 50.15.

The final Stratford AC runner was Chris Seeney (72nd, 58.25), who also surmounted the challenge to claim the reward of a pie.