[Misc] What's your greatest personal sporting achievement or memory as a participant?

[loz]

Football:
players player of the season for my local mid Sussex div 3 team.
Being forced to play in goal me being 5 foot 6, saving a shot that after the game the ref and some players said it was the best save they had seen all season.

Cricket:
As mentioned my 92 ball 9 to draw a game coming into bat when 37 for 7.
Complete opposite 72 not out put into open to win a game before it started raining which it did as I walked off. ( my son not so impressed as he was next in bat )

Cycling,

The Cambridge 100 (very windy )
Off road South Downs way 55 miles ( cycling up to Firle beacon is probably the hardest thing I have ever done )

 

[Happy Exile]

I've run a few marathons in the UK and Europe, and done some open water triathlons too though not for a few years now, but my favourite memory is the Moyleman in 2018. For those who don't know it's a cross-country marathon around Lewes, the 26+ miles taking in several steep climbs, boggy muddy fields, slippery chalk etc. In 2018 it was close to being cancelled with snow on the ground, sub-zero temperatures, ice, and strong wind, with gusts at 40+mph particularly on the exposed stretch from Southease to Firle Beacon, and windchill taking those subzero temperatures to extremes.

I'd trained harder for it than I'd trained for anything before and agreed with my mate that even if the race was officially cancelled we'd still run the route together, but it went ahead, with around 250 of us running. After 24 miles or so I was on my own and coming down from Mount Caburn and could see no-one else in the fields or on the white icy hills, and had a strong sense of peace and that this was a moment to always remember. And despite the ridiculous weather, the exhaustion, the challenge of the whole thing, as I entered Lewes for the finish at Harveys Brewery between 4 and 5 hours after I'd started I didn't want it to end. Truly a sense of being part of something remarkable and unique. I've run it 4 times now and it's always a special event, but that one will never be matched.

Another special memory is my first marathon, which was London in 1993. Somewhere maybe around 20 miles in there was a tunnel, the only sound was the stickiness of people's trainers on the concrete as we'd run through a big Lucozade drink-station spillage. I was in the fancy dress stragglers at the 4h30m finish kind of pace, someone tried and failed to get a chant going of "if you're happy and you know it clap your hands" and then a bloke dressed as Pavarotti with speakers and a walkman hidden in his costume started playing Nessun Dorma. I don't reckon I'll ever forget that echoing around and the emotion brought on by the tiredness too. Epic. A couple of miles later my Mum called out from the crowd - she'd managed to get away from other responsibilities and travelled up to London, a 3 hour round trip, literally for the 30 seconds of seeing me go past to shout encouragement. Makes me emotional just remembering.

 

[Driver8]

Beating Mo Farah in the London Marathon. He gave up halfway.

 

[DJ NOBO]

Played in a charity game at oxford‘s Kassam stadium.
having mainly played small pitches for years I remember how difficult the basics of the game became on a big pitch in front of a couple of thousand people.
You wouldn’t want to be with me in the trenches based on that performance.

 

[Igzilla]

The first goal I scored for my middle school team. We were playing our deadly rivals from across the other side of the playing field. They had a corner and I stayed up on the halfway line (just in case, you know), keeping two of their defenders pinned to mark me. From the scramble in our penalty area, the ball got lumped up field towards me. I controlled it, spun and ran straight at the two defenders, slipping my way between them and carried on dribbling the ball towards their goal. Their goalie came out and I dribbled past him too and tapped the ball into the empty net. As I ran off towards the touchline arms aloft, I could see the few kids my from school that were watching going mental too - absolute limbs.

We lost 6-1.

 

[maltaseagull]

Playing 5 a side football in Saudi a team of 30+ Brits + 1 American versus super fit South Koreans .
We were losing and it was my turn to play in goal and was getting ribbed by the spectators.
We changed goalies and I was outfield. 1 pass run of for the return and hit the ball first time and buried it.
99 times out of 100 that would have flown over the bar .

 

[Greg Bobkin]

I've run a few marathons in the UK and Europe, and done some open water triathlons too though not for a few years now, but my favourite memory is the Moyleman in 2018. For those who don't know it's a cross-country marathon around Lewes, the 26+ miles taking in several steep climbs, boggy muddy fields, slippery chalk etc. In 2018 it was close to being cancelled with snow on the ground, sub-zero temperatures, ice, and strong wind, with gusts at 40+mph particularly on the exposed stretch from Southease to Firle Beacon, and windchill taking those subzero temperatures to extremes.

I'd trained harder for it than I'd trained for anything before and agreed with my mate that even if the race was officially cancelled we'd still run the route together, but it went ahead, with around 250 of us running. After 24 miles or so I was on my own and coming down from Mount Caburn and could see no-one else in the fields or on the white icy hills, and had a strong sense of peace and that this was a moment to always remember. And despite the ridiculous weather, the exhaustion, the challenge of the whole thing, as I entered Lewes for the finish at Harveys Brewery between 4 and 5 hours after I'd started I didn't want it to end. Truly a sense of being part of something remarkable and unique. I've run it 4 times now and it's always a special event, but that one will never be matched.

Another special memory is my first marathon, which was London in 1993. Somewhere maybe around 20 miles in there was a tunnel, the only sound was the stickiness of people's trainers on the concrete as we'd run through a big Lucozade drink-station spillage. I was in the fancy dress stragglers at the 4h30m finish kind of pace, someone tried and failed to get a chant going of "if you're happy and you know it clap your hands" and then a bloke dressed as Pavarotti with speakers and a walkman hidden in his costume started playing Nessun Dorma. I don't reckon I'll ever forget that echoing around and the emotion brought on by the tiredness too. Epic. A couple of miles later my Mum called out from the crowd - she'd managed to get away from other responsibilities and travelled up to London, a 3 hour round trip, literally for the 30 seconds of seeing me go past to shout encouragement. Makes me emotional just remembering.

Moyleman is my favourite race ever – and I was there in 2018 (as was @knocky1), what a year that was. It was my fifth time this year and I've loved seeing it grow into one of the most sought-after races around.

London was my first marathon too, in 2003 – and I feel you on the stickiness through that tunnel. Nothing like treading on a discarded bottle of Lucozade sport and it spashing onto your other leg!

 

[Albion my Albion]

Scoring 2 goals at the age of 12 against the best team in our area (Portage, Indiana) as determined by a poll of managers at the start of the season. We won the game 4-3. Good for the American audience. We were up 4- 1 in the second half in that game.

EDIT: Yes, SOCCER!!!

 

[Han Solo]

Achievement? I sat around in Sandviken/Gävle and got myself a UEFA B license that I haven't had all that much use of.

Coached two players who eventually went on to become semi professional players in the Swedish third tier. Main contribution both times was watching them be too good for us and advice them to go to a more serious club.

As a footballer I was a fat loud thug and a bang average player in a shite team until I ripped my ACL at 14. Very forgettable.

 

[aberllefenni]

U14 football at Fishersgate rec. Scored a double hat-trick, the only one I can remember was the last, a lob from the edge of the penalty area. We were something like 6-2 up at half time and won the game 9-8.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

I qualfied for. and ran. the Boston marathon. For those you do not know, you can only enter Boston with an age/sex related qualifying time. Other than this, f*** all.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

I once entered a BMX race...and came last. This is my finest cycling moment.

 

[Brian Munich]

In 2008 I beat Sonia O'Sullivan, the 1995 5K world champion, in a 10.5 mile competitive club race by about 30 seconds. She was about 38 at the time and retired from elite-level athletics, but I still felt as if I was somehow showing bad etiquette by overtaking her with about 2 miles to go

 

[Super Sub]

Football - Being offered school boy terms with a professional club

Golf - Being offered a Golf Scholarship in the States

Ended up not getting a career in either as I wouldn't commit to either sport 100%. How I wish I could go back in time

 

[marlowe]

..... The most beautiful girl in school even asked me for a touch of the trophy, and gave me a kiss on the cheek. It was a disney kids movie of a day, and naturally i still have the little individual trophy in my bedroom, i still daydream about it now some 35 years later (the most beautiful girl in school has since become a right minger, btw)

Is that a euphemism?
And given the fact she's now become a right minger I don't suppose you'd now want her anywhere near your "trophy".

 

[RandyWanger]

Cycling, there's quite a few but the ones that stand out are:

London/Essex 100 mile (with no training, not ridden in months, recently turned 40 excuses etc etc etc)
Chamonix - Barrage d'Émosson - Chamonix
Chamonix - Hôtel du Col de la Forclaz - Chamonix
Morzine - Col de la Ramaz - Morzine

Mountain Biking:
Megavalanche x2
KOM on the Les Gets red DH track under the Chavannes Express chair lift in Les Gets for the summer of 2012

Snowboarding:
Grand Couloir in Courchevel
Spanky's Ladder in Whistler
Bombing Mont Fort in Verbier at 121.8KM/H

 

[dazzer6666]

I've run a few marathons in the UK and Europe, and done some open water triathlons too though not for a few years now, but my favourite memory is the Moyleman in 2018. For those who don't know it's a cross-country marathon around Lewes, the 26+ miles taking in several steep climbs, boggy muddy fields, slippery chalk etc. In 2018 it was close to being cancelled with snow on the ground, sub-zero temperatures, ice, and strong wind, with gusts at 40+mph particularly on the exposed stretch from Southease to Firle Beacon, and windchill taking those subzero temperatures to extremes.

I'd trained harder for it than I'd trained for anything before and agreed with my mate that even if the race was officially cancelled we'd still run the route together, but it went ahead, with around 250 of us running. After 24 miles or so I was on my own and coming down from Mount Caburn and could see no-one else in the fields or on the white icy hills, and had a strong sense of peace and that this was a moment to always remember. And despite the ridiculous weather, the exhaustion, the challenge of the whole thing, as I entered Lewes for the finish at Harveys Brewery between 4 and 5 hours after I'd started I didn't want it to end. Truly a sense of being part of something remarkable and unique. I've run it 4 times now and it's always a special event, but that one will never be matched.

Another special memory is my first marathon, which was London in 1993. Somewhere maybe around 20 miles in there was a tunnel, the only sound was the stickiness of people's trainers on the concrete as we'd run through a big Lucozade drink-station spillage. I was in the fancy dress stragglers at the 4h30m finish kind of pace, someone tried and failed to get a chant going of "if you're happy and you know it clap your hands" and then a bloke dressed as Pavarotti with speakers and a walkman hidden in his costume started playing Nessun Dorma. I don't reckon I'll ever forget that echoing around and the emotion brought on by the tiredness too. Epic. A couple of miles later my Mum called out from the crowd - she'd managed to get away from other responsibilities and travelled up to London, a 3 hour round trip, literally for the 30 seconds of seeing me go past to shout encouragement. Makes me emotional just remembering.

I did the very first Moyleman, it's a brilliant event. I've had that kind of zen/sense of peace thing in races a few times too - most vivid was on the South Downs Way 50 miler when I was above Alfriston (so not too far to go). I'd expected to be walking along slowly by then but I was still running at a decent pace, the sun was getting low but a beautiful orange and like you I was on my own.

I also know that tunnel on the London marathon (it's just after you pass the Tower of London).....as well as the lucozade sticky carpet, it always has a line of blokes p*ssing up against the wall out of sight of spectators

 

[Diablo]

Not coming last in the cross country run at school.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

800m at Falmer School sports day circa 1977. The school's fastest girl runner - Nicola something? - set off like a rocket and was way ahead after the first lap.

I wasn't much of a runner, but I was a 'training every day before school' swimmer, so had the stamina.

Slowly but surely, I closed the gap and sailed past her on the final bend, as did my friend Alison Oliver to take 1st and 2nd for Lancaster House.

Remember that every time walking past the school field on the way to the Amex.

Don't sell yourself short @Lush. Many of us remember that time you came a valiant second in the Mark McGhee drinking competition

 

[marlowe]

My mum once volunteered to help serve the sandwiches for my school for an inter-school cricket match.

I've no idea why cos I wasn't even playing or even ever in the team cos I was shit. All the other "catering mums" were there because their sons were actually in the team.

I think she had to field a few "so which one's your son?" type questions, which was the nearest I ever got to "fielding" in a competitive cricket match.