The Alphabet Challenge - April 2020  Boys V Girls

As the saying goes, there are only 30th days in April, but as our first full month in lockdown loomed, it seemed like it was going to be a very long month indeed. Fortunately, for EGRC runners our Chair Neil laid an alphabet challenge before us. The aim was to seek out something which represented a letter of the alphabet every day. Whilst this would be a team competition between the men and women I set myself the additional goal of searching out a letter for each of the 26 days. Never before have I run that many days consecutively. Would I make it all the way through with my legs still intact? 

I love running, but I also enjoyed the opportunity for a while not to be focusing on how fast or far I was going (especially as there were no races to prepare for anymore). Instead I took the opportunity to take the time to really look at my surroundings and observe things that I have never noticed before. Particularly over Easter when I wasn’t working, I was able to take a more leisurely approach to my runs in search of the next letter. This path I’ve never noticed before, where does that go? Could it possibly lead to an L that no-one else had spotted? Could it even produce that most elusive of all the letters, the much coveted X?

As sure as night follows day, towards the end of the month we approached ‘X’ and the promise of the mysterious additional test that Neil had promised us. As a backup I had spotted some grid markings in the currently deserted David Lloyd car park so had already decided to use those. Then, the day before it was revealed that there was the eXhilarating prospect of eXtra points on offer by finding one of ten strategically placed ‘X’s. The potential for extra eXcitement gave an eXceptional frisson to the day. Much needed as it turned out, because it was raining heavily in the morning and it was very tempting to stay indoors! However, I had a feeling there might be one under the underpass at the Dramway Roundabout. Full of anticipation I made my eXtremely drenched way there. Unfortunately, after scouring the walls, I couldn’t see an X anywhere. I was so disappointed. Then, ‘ah ha’, suddenly I spotted one, chalked high up on the grey wall, on a grey very day. I very nearly missed it, but delighted I hurriedly clambered up the rocky incline to take my selfie and claim a bonus point for the women’s team.

Some days, I had left things to chance, for others, I had a plan, scouring Google Maps the night or even days before for possible locations. I also took careful notice of my surroundings on every run. The cyclist that wondered why I was taking a selfie next to an unremarkable lamppost didn’t know that a) this was ‘Z’ day and b) about a week before I had spotted a ‘Zesk’ sticker on it (a beer I guessed). With Zs being at a premium, this was an opportunity I could not pass up! 

In the end I managed my goal of running every day, managing varying distances between 4 and 10 miles. Followed by a lot of yoga to stop me failing apart! Some days were easier than others, but always the thrill of chase and finding something possibly unique kept me going. I learnt a lot about the local area, trying different routes, running down paths I had not run down before, Where does this inauspicious looking path next to the landfill site go? Oh, Pucklechurch! Where does this Bridleway alongside the ring road path go? Oh, some beautiful houses and green spaces leading to Bromley Heath. What happens if I turn left after the Cottage Kennels instead of going straight on? Oh it’s picturesque Moorend, what a delight!

I was not the only one who relished this challenge. This was a task that members took to their hearts. I suspect the residents of Emersons Green, Lyde Green, Downend, Staple Hill, Warmley, Bitton, Fishponds, Eastville and Pucklechurch and beyond soon became used to the sight of runners taking random selfies next to road signs, car bumpers, pubs and frankly anything that didn’t move. What a funny bunch runners are! 

Not only that, as well as proving our expert knowledge of the alphabet, I think we all encountered an unexpected bonus. As I checked the #TeamEGRCpage throughout each day not only did I see where others had had gone and what they had found. I learnt a lot about other members of the club, put names to faces, got a sense of their personalities, their creativity, sense of humour and how they were feeling in these difficult times. This apparently modest challenge gave us all a chance to forget about the realities of the lockdown, creating a sense of adventure and appreciation of the simpler things in life which surround us. As it turned out, April wasn’t so bad after all.