Brilliant run mate! I might have to try the dragonfly’s for XC if I get selected for intercounties! Loved the video, especially the guy you did a post race interview with!! 😂
@@BenIsRunning yeah hit a bit of a plateau last month , broke trough 3 days ago and today went awesome not sure what tomorrow brings only time will tell "dark voice over voice"
Hi Ben, well raced. Just a tip, but make sure you take the spikes out the same day otherwise they will rust in place and you won’t be able to swap them out. I’m telling you this from personal experience as my current spikes are currently welded into my shoes!!
the race at the start looks like absolute carnage. coming 8th place was amazing. what an improvement from last time when you didnt have those spikes. also agree 100% scrubdaddy is the best to clean shoes
Afternoon Ben. It was nice to meet you briefly on Saturday. (Simon Haigh, Orion Harriers) Tough conditions on Saturday but a good turnout. Enjoy your content and thanks for posting. Regards Simon.
Congratulations Ben on a great run. Fingers crossed will see you at the Inter County championship. Will be keeping the fingers crossed you get a call up. I managed to grab a Suffolk qualification which I was very pleased with. Enjoy the videos as always.
I think you do more races than I do training runs 😂 Well done mate. My 6 year old daughter was asking me about those running spikes you were using. She didn't think they'd be much good on concrete 😂
Really enjoyed this Ben and congratulations on your race, i love x country and this took me back to when i ran in the southern counties and nationals in the 70s !!! I watch a lot of racing from the usa too and their courses are so tame compared to uk x country, many are run in road shoes, your race certainly had it all, do hope you get your county vest and smiling at the end does not mean you havent given your all, !! keep smiling
That would be painful for sure! I was completely new to the whole spike xc thing but 15mm is pretty standard for conditions like we had over the weekend. Top 6 qualified :)
It might be better get some cheap XC spikes. They have a more robust upper as well as having a bit of give in the spikes to allow for some movement. You can wear XC spikes on the track, but not usually advised to wear track spikes on XC.
Wore my brand new dragonflies to the southern XC champs yesterday and managed to bend a spike so much that it also ripped the sprocket out of the sole…. may try my luck and request get a replacement pair but probably unlikely. Shame, as they’re awesome shoes on and off track.
I haven't raced XC this season yet and was surprised to hear from my club mate that a lot of people are now wearing Dragonflys on muddy courses. I can't imagine you get much benefit from the foam and plate and there not the most durable shoe. Even for a standard XC spike you'll be lucky to get more than 1 season out of them.
They are actually really comfortable. People like the softer landing on the foam. I think its the same thing that happened on the road. First people sniff at the price and the extra foam but when you try them yourself its hard not to like them. People get used to them on the track and then dont want to wear there old xc spikes I guess.
Cannot understand "racing" according to heart rate. Surely in a race you are competing against other runners. If you can't win the race you try and beat as many of the other runners as humanly possible. Man against man, win or die etc. etc. This is surely even more true in a X country race where effort levels are going to vary enormously depending on the underfoot conditions , incline/decline etc. You said that you knew you were comfortable at 175/6 bpm - but surely the whole idea of racing is to get into uncomfortable situations? To push harder than your comfort levels?
Good fun Ben but Mark is correct you could have finished higher if you did not limit yourself to a certain amount of heart rate.physiological near the end of you upped your heart rate you would not have a heart attack. I think you could javelin at least 3o secs quicker if you disregarded your heart rate in the last mile at least
i’m sorry to say but it doesn’t look like you were trying hard enough there at the end of a race especially at cross country you should basically should be collapsing at the end but i do love your vids and thanks for liking and replying to my last comment
You’re always worth standing in the rain for 😂 also who else thinks I should start taking requests on what colours to paint his toe nails???
I was about to comment on his lovely nails 😄
Orange to match the beanie would be good😁
Classic! I've always been partial to metallic gold.
Brilliant run mate! I might have to try the dragonfly’s for XC if I get selected for intercounties! Loved the video, especially the guy you did a post race interview with!! 😂
They were the dream. I doubt they made any performance advantages but it sure made me feel fast :) Yeah he's alright I suppose!
You're my favourite RUclipsr honestly your videos always cheer me up! Thank you for your content!
Appreciate that Hannah! Thank you for watching
Always look forward to watching your videos ben!
Thank you :)
Aww yisss . Sit back and relax whilst watching you do the hard work.. this is the best
Thank you Fabian! Hope your training is going well in the new year :)
@@BenIsRunning yeah hit a bit of a plateau last month , broke trough 3 days ago and today went awesome not sure what tomorrow brings only time will tell "dark voice over voice"
Love the content just cleaned my spikes find it so satisfying thanks for starting with that
It took me longer to clean than it did race in them ahah :)
Hi Ben, well raced. Just a tip, but make sure you take the spikes out the same day otherwise they will rust in place and you won’t be able to swap them out. I’m telling you this from personal experience as my current spikes are currently welded into my shoes!!
Great tip thankyou! I was also advised to use Vaseline when putting them in…certainly wouldn’t want to run on the track in 15mm’s 😂
Yeh always put Vaseline in there . I have never had this issue so long as I always put Vaseline when screwing the spikes in
There's nothing better than sitting down and watching your new vids!
Love that 👊🏻👊🏻
the race at the start looks like absolute carnage. coming 8th place was amazing. what an improvement from last time when you didnt have those spikes. also agree 100% scrubdaddy is the best to clean shoes
Thanks Brad! This start was actually fairly tame compared to some :) it certainly made a difference, felt much more confident
Nice Ben! I'll be running in the U17 inter-counties in Leicester on the 12th March for Oxfordshire. Hope to see you there!
Congratulations on getting a spot! Hopefully I’ll see you there :)
Good race.congratulation for top 10 finish.
Here in Uganda we are preparing for national x country on 12 Feb 2022
Thank you wanok! Are you racing?
Afternoon Ben. It was nice to meet you briefly on Saturday. (Simon Haigh, Orion Harriers) Tough conditions on Saturday but a good turnout. Enjoy your content and thanks for posting. Regards Simon.
Likewise Simon! Hope you had a good race 👊🏻
green toenail polish?? always love the vids (procrastinating over uni work!)
And purple on the other! Don’t like to miss out on a good pamper session:)
Congratulations Ben on a great run. Fingers crossed will see you at the Inter County championship. Will be keeping the fingers crossed you get a call up.
I managed to grab a Suffolk qualification which I was very pleased with.
Enjoy the videos as always.
Great job jack! Hopefully see you there if not next year :)
Great vid Ben. I also came 8th in the Surrey x country championships u17. Those spikes are looking fresh! May get a pair for track season.
Great result Stephen! On the track they are the dream :)
I think you do more races than I do training runs 😂 Well done mate. My 6 year old daughter was asking me about those running spikes you were using. She didn't think they'd be much good on concrete 😂
Thanks Mark. I sure do love a race thats for sure. There was a concrete bridge we had to go over which sure made for an interesting experience
Nice work on the result! I love watching UK cross country. Sideways rain and inches mud are what dreams are made of!
Thanks for the shoe cleaning tips! 👊🏼👊🏼
No problem jack 🤙🏼
Really enjoyed this Ben and congratulations on your race, i love x country and this took me back to when i ran in the southern counties and nationals in the 70s !!! I watch a lot of racing from the usa too and their courses are so tame compared to uk x country, many are run in road shoes, your race certainly had it all, do hope you get your county vest and smiling at the end does not mean you havent given your all, !! keep smiling
8th place well done in such conditions! I was waiting to see other sliding down that hill as more runners were going past good to stay up.
I’ve got another race in a few days time.. hope to get just as good of a result as you!
Best of luck Elliott!
Those spikes are dangerously long. Imagine racking someone's calves in them... cheeky 7th place win for the guaranteed qualification
That would be painful for sure! I was completely new to the whole spike xc thing but 15mm is pretty standard for conditions like we had over the weekend. Top 6 qualified :)
Love the content Ben! Keep up the awesome work!
Thank you josh :)
I qualified for the inter counties cross country, would be great to see you there
Congrats Luke! 🤞🏻🤞🏻🤞🏻
Always making my day:)keep it up mate
It might be better get some cheap XC spikes. They have a more robust upper as well as having a bit of give in the spikes to allow for some movement. You can wear XC spikes on the track, but not usually advised to wear track spikes on XC.
Yes i would agree. If conditions are drier however i think dragonflys would be hard to beat :)
I think rubber solled shoes are the best
Are you going to do the National XC Ben?
I was at that race but didn't manage to spot you.
How did you find that massive downhill part?
Congrats on you win! It certainly was stretchy with that fallen tree! Bit dangerous if you ask me :)
Top run, are the spike fittings universal? Where did you get the longer studs from?
I believe so yes! Just got these from Amazon
Ben, have you ever thought of buying a boot buddy. I've bought one recently and I have to say it's a great bit of kit for cleaning your trainers 👍🏻
What spikes have you got in the dragonfly's mate, i have northern cross country on the 29th and need a pair of 15'mms for the dragonflys.
Just the 2017 Champion Tom Firth!
I've done the inter counties in the under 13's and the under 15's and it's top 8 that get in so you're all good, solid race.
Thanks Evan! It’s not an automatic spot at the senior level so will have to wait for the Essex running board to make there selection :)
@@BenIsRunning fair enough
@@optimalsolution5389 🤞🏻🤞🏻🤞🏻
Wore my brand new dragonflies to the southern XC champs yesterday and managed to bend a spike so much that it also ripped the sprocket out of the sole…. may try my luck and request get a replacement pair but probably unlikely. Shame, as they’re awesome shoes on and off track.
Those spikes r scary damn imagine someone steps on ur foot in those just gonna make a hole in their foot bro 💀
Loving the toe nail polish 😁
Thank you 💅
Hey Ben! So do you prefer the dragonfly over the inov8 for cross country?
Well done Ben! 👏👏👏
Wat were the on running shoes u were wearing and do u find them good pre race or easy run
They are the on cloudstratus and yes a great shoe for warm ups. I’ve made a few videos on that shoe which may be of interest :)
Good effort on that race!
Essex vest? 👀would be very good if you got one.
🤞🏻🤞🏻🤞🏻
I haven't raced XC this season yet and was surprised to hear from my club mate that a lot of people are now wearing Dragonflys on muddy courses. I can't imagine you get much benefit from the foam and plate and there not the most durable shoe. Even for a standard XC spike you'll be lucky to get more than 1 season out of them.
They are actually really comfortable. People like the softer landing on the foam. I think its the same thing that happened on the road. First people sniff at the price and the extra foam but when you try them yourself its hard not to like them. People get used to them on the track and then dont want to wear there old xc spikes I guess.
That looked horrible…great run Ben
It was brutal! Some of the hills were so boggy it felt like I was getting nowhere
@@BenIsRunning any ‘you’ve been framed ‘ clips of anyone slipping over…£250
@@ThatRunningGuy unfortunately not! Some people certainly were close! I fell over in the warm up 😂😂
Where did you get the long spikes
Cannot understand "racing" according to heart rate. Surely in a race you are competing against other runners. If you can't win the race you try and beat as many of the other runners as humanly possible. Man against man, win or die etc. etc. This is surely even more true in a X country race where effort levels are going to vary enormously depending on the underfoot conditions , incline/decline etc. You said that you knew you were comfortable at 175/6 bpm - but surely the whole idea of racing is to get into uncomfortable situations? To push harder than your comfort levels?
Good fun Ben but Mark is correct you could have finished higher if you did not limit yourself to a certain amount of heart rate.physiological near the end of you upped your heart rate you would not have a heart attack. I think you could javelin at least 3o secs quicker if you disregarded your heart rate in the last mile at least
i’m sorry to say but it doesn’t look like you were trying hard enough there at the end of a race especially at cross country you should basically should be collapsing at the end but i do love your vids and thanks for liking and replying to my last comment
I guess i must make it look easy ;) I certainly was jelly legged in the finishing tunnel aha :)
:D
Are we going to discuss the painted toe nails?
Not my colour 😂
@@BenIsRunning does the paint increase speed?
Lol the Xc look is so 80’s not sure why
you need a boot buddy!
I got my scrub daddy aha!