cross liveden On a misty & frosty January morning the Burnham Joggers held their annual 10k run, not as cold as the famed ‘brass monkeys’ one but daunting nevertheless. Assembling for the race there is a veritable fashion parade of the ‘gear’ with colours (this year neon & pink being ‘in’) and hats being the ‘must haves’. Trail shoes were very de rigeur with colours almost being strong enough to blind fellow competitors – as the images show. After the race, mud had dulled even the brightest! After a display of warming up exercises to counter the late start the runners were off, twice round the loop, going up (3) hill & down dale. The Cliveden Cross Country is 6 miles of scenic but testing terrain in the beautiful grounds of Cliveden House. By kind permission of the National Trust, Cliveden House, Taplow, Bucks, SL6 0JA Welcome to another post-Christmas test of endurance and fitness at Cliveden presented by kind permission of the National Trust. In the past the race has always been held between Boxing Day and New Year’s Day, but due to the extending opening dates of the grounds by The National Trust to the public we now have a small window available to us in the New Year. Therefore the first opportunity to hold the event is Sunday 4 January. Therefore time to let the Christmas turkey go down before you take advantage of the interesting landscapes and enormous potential of Cliveden - 3 steep hills, long paths along the Thames escarpment, back along the riverbank as well as both grassy avenues and gravel paths through rhododendrons and woodland. Dogs are only permitted in the woods, and therefore cannot take part in the race. The Cliveden run has taken place for over 30 years following a very similar format, only the routes used have changed according to the requirements of the Estate. Because the National Trust have a long term plan for improvements to the Estate including the pathways and gardens we have been asked not to allow the use of spikes.
