Spectacles fail river crossing

Press, 11 June 1987, Page 5

Spectacles fail river crossing

By

DAVID CLARKSON

Iron-willed Robin Judkins took to the Avon River yesterday but his spectacles — familiar from hundreds of fruit juice commercials — did not see him through.

It took a council workman in waders to retrieve the glasses and restore them to the hirsute face of the Coast to Coast race organiser. The aquatic episode began during an Bkm lunchtime circuit of Hagley Park and Mona Vale by four runners.

As the group pounded Park Terrace, one of them quipped that Mr Judkin’s Coast to Coast experience should mean he could run across the river. Mr Judkins promptly did. while his companions stood frozen in amazement by the man’s audacity. One of the runners, Mr Mike Pope, said Mr Judkins successfully traversed the waist-deep stream, but his spectacles did not

Mr Judkins tried to find them, but soon discovered that glass and water and

weed do mix, very well. His glasses stubbornly refused to show themselves until a group of council workmen from nearby had executed a 15minute search and rescue pattern in the riverbed. 4 Mr Judkins was soaked through but continued on with the group to finish the run.

In Christchurch in June, that can hardly be good for you.