After, and to be honest what was not the best week ever I wanted to blast out a fast parkrun & kick those head demons into touch. My `warm up` run was good - 3 laps of the Frimley Lodge parkrun course - a progressive 4.65M (8:45/m, 8:36/m, 8:32/m, 8:23/m, 5:15/m (8:06/m) ). I started the parkrun well - maybe a bit too fast but as I ran along the canal & just before where you turn off the canal I indicated to the Marshal that I was pulling out and stopped just past him. My mind was not into it, thinking about too much stuff - all pretty much negative. And that was that - my 1st DNF. I couldn`t really face the `walk of shame` so I jogged along the canal up the stairs and back along the road to start got changed & that was it.
Sunday was a trip down to safe ground for the Salisbury Half Marathon but more importantly it was a different day.
This was always going to be an easy, medium length run in a nice area on a different course (& cheap too at £14.00). I collected Dave at 7:30 am and drove the familiar route down the M3 & A303. We got there early, collected numbers & had a cup of tea. The great thing with the Salisbury races is that the parking right right opposite the start at the Fire Station. We had only taken a quick peak at the course - 1st few miles were the same as the last few miles with a loop in between the two & a hill somewhere around the 5 mile mark. After a quick short warm up, we made our way to the back of the starting area and after the race briefing off we went..
The 1st mile marker seemed to come around really quite quickly - I checked the garmin - 9:33/m. This was normal as Dave is almost always runs a progressive race. Even at this early stage it was just nice to run somewhere different, Miles 2, 3 & 4 came around - we kept the pace fairly steady. Mile 5 was nice as it was where the hill was - we kept the pace in-line with the pace of the race. Even coming down the hill at mile 6 it was constant - a couple of runners past us here. At this point it was almost the turn for home - it felt good, we wee still passing people (inc a group of ramblers that almost formed a road block !!). Upper, Middle & Lower Woodford was a pretty part of the course.
It was around this point (9M) that an elderly gentleman from Andover AC came past us (we had gone past him a few miles back - it`s the Club vest thing) & saw him race off into the distance - well till the next turn in the road anyway !. We carried on and soon enough we joined back the early part of the course - and we had picked up the pace which was nice. As we saw the Fire Station we remembered that we had to run past & around the field !!
Well what a cruel, cruel finish that was - you see the finishing gantry and heard the cheers so you naturally sped up - then run past the finish (well run past the side of it anyway).....round the corner, down a lane, down a track, then unto a field, around a corner, along the river, run along the far side of the cark parking area & around the last corner & under gantry.
Finished in 1:57:40 - and despite a few last speedy miles thrown in we never did quite catch that chap from Andover AC (Later stalked as a V70 runner).
An event well worth running up for, the goody bag was good too - which included a Buff (I`ve never received a Buff before as a race memento)
Split Summary
====
1) - 1m - 9:33(9:33/m) - 127cal
2) - 1m - 8:51(8:51/m) - 128cal
3) - 1m - 9:13(9:13/m) - 131cal
4) - 1m - 9:06(9:06/m) - 130cal
5) - 1m - 9:02(9:02/m) - 131cal
6) - 1m - 9:11(9:11/m) - 130cal
7) - 1m - 8:43(8:43/m) - 132cal
8) - 1m - 8:47(8:47/m) - 130cal
9) - 1m - 8:54(8:54/m) - 130cal
10) - 1m - 9:01(9:01/m) - 132cal
11) - 1m - 8:45(8:45/m) - 130cal
12) - 1m - 8:37(8:37/m) - 129cal
13) - 1m - 8:16(8:16/m) - 130cal
14) - 0.21m - 1:41(8:07/m) - 26cal
Other news - I`ve posted off my entry form the Sunrise To Sunset Challenge on the 27th December (Start time 08:20 to 16:01 around a 0.84M course) plus entries for the Thunder Run 24 open soon........
Next up - An easy week, then the Amsterdam Marathon on the 16th with the Club & Running Crazy. Bring on the snow !!!
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