Page 72 - The KRH Year of 2023 (CREST Sharing)

72 The Regimental Journal of The King’s Royal Hussars
Cross Country
In the beginning was the word, and the word was SSM Green’s request to D Sqn Tp Ldrs to enter a Cross Country Team for an upcoming race in Oct 22. And so was birthed the KRH running team, an easy infancy that in the first season saw the Regiment win RAC XCountry Championships, LCpl Davidson took the trophy as fastest female at the Championships, and Tpr Hart was recognised as joint fastest U23 male runner in the British Army.
Keen as always to develop the RAC team, SCpl Aspland- Monger RHG/D had KRH runners in the snazzy RAC kit as often as possible – in bright RAC yellow, instantly recognisable at a distance, like nudists.
The UK South XCountry races peppered the season for those keener on dismounting than death. A long schlep to Braunton Burrows saw Lt Campbell, Tpr Hart, Cpl Clough and Tpr Verity compete over sand dunes against a backdrop of wind-scattered tents. More successfully the succeeding race in Tidworth, lengthened from 8km to 11km by a clueless route marker, saw Tpr Hart come 4th of 134 runners, and Lt Campbell and Cpl Border battle it out for 37th and 38th Place. On home turf, a gang of Tprs was brought as reinforcements with Tprs Lang, Stenner, and Cheke putting in a strong performance on famil- iar ground.
Late March 23 saw the KRH host and support a cracking week of running training organised by SCpl Aspland-Monger. Lectures on health and training followed by sprints or XCountry ses- sions culminated in the RAC Championships at Bulford on 23 March 23. Entering two teams, the KRH A Team of Lt Campbell, Lt Dempsey, Cpl Border, and Tprs Hart, Pompey and Roberts succeeded in battling the QDG into second place – their team captain, Lt Harry Swailes, was mollified with a great evening in the mess, having the good sense to bring his mess slippers “everywhere I go”. Further triumphs saw LCpl Davidson win the female category, and Tpr Hart win the U23 male category, only a day after winning the U23M category in the UK South Cross Country League season, a formidable achievement.
The UK South Cross Country League season came to an end for the Regiment in October; where six keen Hawks made their way to a very flat Lyneham course. Whilst the race saw a pecu- liar selection of trendy running shoes, Nike Air Max in one
instance, this did not deter the speed of our runners. A notable performance was Tpr Hart finishing second overall.
The season culminated with a fine crimson turnout at the RAC Cross Country Championships in Bovington; clenching 7th, 21st, 31st, 34th, 35th and 56th. The event embodied the spirit of the KRH Cross Country team: enthusiastic and willing to give anything a go, no matter how far away the course is! The team has grown from strength to strength in 2023 and there is no reason for this not to continue to occur into 2024.
Nothing left in the tank: Army U23 runner, Tpr Hart, sports crimson at the Fleet Half-Marathon
A special mention must go out to Tpr Hart who finished 2023
as the Army’s U23 number one runner.
HRFC
Victors of the RAC XCountry Championships, L-R: Tpr Verity, Lt Campbell, Tpr Ferguson, LCpl Davidson, Tpr Boakye, Tpr Belarbi, Cpl Border, Tpr Lang, Tpr Pompey, Tpr Roberts, Lt Dempsey, Tpr Hart