Marathons:
On St Marth's Hill |
I waited 5 minutes at the aid station at the top trying all their squash and all the different kinds of biscuit that they had before heading off. The last 2 miles were really tough with a good mile uphill to the finish, desperately trying to get under 5 hours. Highlights - great views, getting spooked by witches in the woods, very good marshals and aid stops and nice goody bag.
Chris, Pam, me, Emma and Vicky from Sandhurst Joggers |
Half Marathons:
Burnham Beeches - 1:49:53:
A HM in mid-August? The potential for it to be a hot race had apparently been realized with a vengeance the previous year, and the field was down a lot this time. It was quite warm, so why I picked a hilly, hot HM for a PB attempt, in fact a sub-1:50 attempt, I don't know. That meant taking over 3 minutes off my previous best. I must have thought that doing a marathon had got my mind used to the idea of coping with pain so why not aim high? The course is 2 laps gaining height in steps up to 3miles, then a downhill mile followed by a couple more hills to the end of the lap. I had a plan to start steady and then pick up the pace on the second lap. The hills were hard and I was 20 or 30 secs down on plan going into the last 2 miles. The finish is in school grounds with a wicked drop from the croquet pitch to the rugby field (that kind of school) but I arrived there with no target runner to chase down. Fortunately Alfred and Elinor (my kids) were waiting for me and Alf ran round ahead on the infield shouting encouragement. I crossed the line hit the stop button, saw 1:49:59 on the timer and nearly collapsed. A very tough race - apparently I looked like a very salty sea dog afterwards - but nice countryside, finish area and stuff to do for the waiting family (they went swimming, lucky things). Only problem was a long walk back to the car park.
Other Highlights:
The Elstead Marathon - About 5.5miles cross country run around the village of Elstead near Farnham on a balmy Friday evening in July. The race takes in sandy trails, lovely views across heathland, woodland and included extra hazards in the form of a horse, a gate to climb, a ploughed field and a river to cross. An absolute gem of a run and with a finish area with a good barbecue, a WI cake stall and a decent pub this all makes for the perfect running experience. Forget the race time - you get the results "eventually" and they might look something like what your Garmin said you got, but then again they might not.
The Cabbage Patch 10 - 1:19:03. I wanted to do this race as I had never done a 10miler and it was one that Paula Fudge (our greatest female runner at Frimley Lodge parkrun) had won in her heyday as an elite GB runner. So, a run with good history. You run each side of the river Thames between Twickenham and Richmond. The bits alongside the river are really nice, the bits in housing estates not so much. It's pretty flat of course, with the Hampton Wick and Richmond bridges being the only "hills". I went out with a plan to do sub-80mins and just managed it with a dash over the last mile to get 1:19.
FLP Rio Moment - Getting photo-bombed by little old lady in the Canal Cafe |
Mortimer 10k and Julian Farrell 10k - I did the usual Yateley 10k series and Woodland 5 cross country runs over the summer and had a couple of autumn 10ks booked to take advantage of the after-effects of marathon training. Mortimer was 2 weeks after the Pilgrim and I did the children's 3k run with Alf and Elinor before running the 10k. Mortimer is a really well run event with a lot of entertainment for the family, good parking and a nice hilly route - actually a monster hill from 7.5 to 8.5k. Still got a 10k PB, so the kids run must have been a good warm up. Julian Farrell 10k is run by Camberley Athletics club and basically consists of one enormous hill with a few undulations at he start and end. I got to the top with Ray from SJ and we stuck together for the descent and most of the run in, but I managed to stretch away over the last 1km. A good challenging local road race with good support from the local clubs. Brought my 10k PB down to 47:38.
Here are the Lowlights of 2013:
You would expect that any list of lowlights for a runner would just be a list of injuries and you would be mostly right. This year it wasn't Achilles strains, but left plantar fascia (just prior to London) and a right calf strain (just after Portsmouth) that set me back a bit. But neither really stopped me from running for more than a week. I have to lay praise at the door of Abby Fudge's treatment room at Reform and Renew Osteopathy for keeping me going as I stepped up to greater distances. I am sure I must have the tightest, knottiest calf muscles she has ever seen. She has the thumbs of an angel and works miracles with them.
Medal haul up to the Farnham Pilgrim |
Of course, I don't include the London Marathon in this list, as it is just about the greatest road race experience you can ever have. On that last positive note, we say goodbye to a great 2013 and catch up next time with 2014. Onwards and Upwards.....
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