THE annual all-age cross-country Yacht Handicap at Loughton Athletics Club saw Oliver Fernandez cross the line first in the three kilometre race.

Eighteen members took part in this club event, with the idea that handicapper George Richardson would engineer a close finish.

Oliver, who had a handicap of five minutes, still managed to leave the rest of the field behind in a time of 11 minutes and 41 seconds.

While Oliver's handicap may not have been enough, the next ten runners all came home with in seconds of each other, with Paulette Regan just pipping Gwen Harwood for second place.

While some of the club's runners found 3k a short sprint and decided to go off for a long training run, there were however those who thought returning to bed was a much better option.

November 30, 2001 10:53