Dominic Shields

I started running seriously in 2005 because my then girlfriend was a runner, did the usual London Marathon thing and joined a conventional running club (San Domenico). I ran the standard Machen Mountain and Pentyrch Hill Races that everyone did but a few of the lunchtime runners in work were proper fell runners and urged me repeatedly to try the South Wales Winter Series so I did my first one - Winter Sugar Loaf in late Oct 2009 and proceeded to do most of them for most of the next 10 years.

Somewhere along the line Andy Blackmore persuaded me into being one of the Winter Series organisers (principally results co-ordinator). It appears to be fashionable to view 'committee members' in the same light as the Soviet Union Politburo - well if they were there unpaid because nobody else would then fair play.

I used to be someone who got into 'streaks' - 50 consecutive Gwent League races, almost 50 consecutive Rose Inn races, 20-odd SSAFA 5Ks, over 550 Cardiff parkruns - various injuries has made me try to avoid getting into these any more. I suppose I can think of two bits of individual stupidity:

1. (I think 2009). Sunday : London Marathon, Tuesday : Pentyrch Hill Race, Wednesday : Welsh Masters Track & Field meeting (I did every race - slowly).
2. Possibly 2010. Saturday 9 AM Cardiff parkrun, Saturday 2PM Garth Winter Series race, Sunday 10 AM Merthyr Mawr Christmas Pudding Race (rescheduled), Sunday 3 PM Cardiff Cross Challenge XC at Bute Park.

Alex Donald of Welsh Athletics once interviewed me after the now forgotten Cardiff Bay 5 miler, he introduced me to the crowd as 'Local Running Personality Dominic', I think that is a fair summary of my actual running talent. However I am one of a select bunch that has done the downhill of the Pen Y Fan race and come back again.