DRXCL - Leicester

In 1987 I was on the board of Ivanhoe Runners and as a club we thought we needed a little more competitive focus and I found myself tasked with looking at new leagues. At the time Todays Runner magazine was trying to sort a National cross country competition between what you might call new wave clubs of the time. The idea of this league was to give the none elite the chance to run in a semi competitive competition with runners of a similar standard.

There was one league mentioned in the magazine in existence locally that was based in the Nottingham/Derby area, I approached them and was eventually fobbed off with the excuse that their computer system could not handle a new club. The magazine also offered help to anybody that wanted to start a new league so I took on the challenge, after lots of phone calls pre mobile days  I finally got a meeting together between 4 clubs Ivanhoe, Shepshed, Rolls Royce and Littleover. The first event was held at The Malt Shovel Inn Worthington on 10th January 1988 and had 74 finishers we held three more events that season and sent a mixed team of Rolls Royce men and Shepshed ladies to the first final at Holme Pierrepont.

The 1988/89 season was when the first new club joined the league Coalville Harriers and we got to the dizzy heights of five clubs

Over the years I have got more involved and have organised eight National Finals the biggest of which was at Hermitage Leisure Centre in the late 90's. Sadly numbers fell because the magazine folded and there has not been a National Final since 2011.