I have quite a few friends that had already taken part in the Longrun Parkrun and this Saturday my lovely Saturday running partner Ali gave me leave to take part. No amount of cajoling was going to persuade Ali to join me but as she is recovering from a chest infection she really needed to be resting.
I was very nervous on my way into town. Does anybody else worry about silly things like will there be a parking spot? I don't know why I let these small things get the better of me. Oh and will there be a loo? No of course not, and I wont need one anyway so stop adding to unnecessary and pointless stress.
Where do I go and where is the start? Strangely enough it will be where all the other people are heading and surely there will be marshals to ask.
As usual I quickly found people I know and we had a natter. We were called together for the usual info about Parkrunning and for a plea for volunteers to help out. Just over 200 of us headed to the start and I placed myself somewhere in the middle of the pack, on the track, no grass for me thank you. After a bottleneck right at the beginning of the run we soon spread out and the proper athletes could be seen streaking ahead. I was determined to put in as much effort as I could muster but it took a while to get my breathing under control. I hadn't run since the 10K and I was expecting this to be fairly easy. It wasn't.
We had been warned about MUD on the course and I was trotting along thinking the middling sized puddles I was jumping and dodging were fine but then I came to the MUDDY section. It was possible to see that this part of the track is in fact grass however all signs of grass was quickly disappearing under a sea of gloopy mud. I don't do MUD. I hate MUD. It squelched into my trainers. I ploughed on, literally and was very glad to get back onto terra firmer. It's not just the revoltingness of MUD that I dislike it's also that one slip and I would be on my backside, my balance being what it is cannot be relied upon to aid with such disasters. Plus my coccyx would not survive another fall.
I was so pleased to see Ali waiting on the bend that signaled the start of the second lap. I thrust my jacket at her whilst fumbling in the pocket to get my barcode. No barcode = no time. Onto the second lap. Having to lap is not my idea of fun at all and just as I got into my stride my loose lace called for attention. I knew I was putting in some good effort because as I came back up to continue running I had a dizzy. For the next few minutes this took my mind of the pain of running whilst I pondered over the dizzy spell and prayed it wouldn't develop into anything more sinister.
I took right to the edge of the slippy section in the hope of getting some grip on the mangled grass. This second lap hurt. It was hard. I was seriously wondering why on earth I do this running malarky. I so wanted to walk. I didn't walk. I kept going, I couldn't catch anybody, I couldn't overtake. Not strictly true, I did pass a few parents with their young children but they quickly regained their places ahead of me. I don't think I managed to pass anybody the whole way round!
Finally the end was nigh, sprint finish? Not today, not an ounce of anything left in the tank. So Mr Higham I must have put in all the effort on the run? I joined the queue with my number, 168 out of 200 or so. Ali came to my side and congratulated me. I felt sick. I vowed never to do another run again.
I had no idea the lovely Mrs Higham was behind me, and she joined Ali and me as we were talking to her family. If only I had known she was there I could have run with her. The best bit for me about Parkruns is the lovely table of stats they produce. I could be pleased to say I came thirteenth for my age group however I have no idea how many of us were in that age group! I also know that I ran at 49% for my age, not quite sure how this works but I know I was in a fairly good place on the table but there is room for improvement.
Driving home and I had already changed my mind about running again. Of course I will. I've even volunteered to sort the number counters after a parkrun next month! Will I get Ali to join me? Of course I will!
Sunday 20 October 2013
Saturday 5 October 2013
Taunton 10K 2013
Last Sunday I took part in the Taunton 10K race. Leading up to the day my training had not gone as well as I had hoped. Work had been (and continues to be) incredibly busy and finding the energy to run had been hard. Come the morning I was very jittery, I only wanted to get round in a decent time and without walking.
I met friends, some taking part and others giving plenty of encouragement. My photo was taken several times and thankfully a pre race happy picture graced the pages of our local gazette later in the week. I had words with my journalist friend Phil taking him to task about his tweet of 'less fit' entrants finishing within 90 minutes. I reminded him about age, length of leg, experience al causes for those of us at the back of the pack to finish more slowly, and I'm sure all of those finishing ahead of me must be fitter than me but the use of the word 'less' made me feel somewhat inferior.
Fi left me and her sister Sarah somewhere in the middle of the 650 entrants so that she could find her speedier running partners. Excellent weather conditions removed my usual problem of jacket or no jacket and before I knew it we were off. My first kilometer went very well and turned out to be my fastest for the course. I knew I was going faster than my normal plod as my breathing was coming in gasps. Sarah was gradually moving ahead of me and I was on my own.
Along South Road a friendly cyclist with camera made himself known, a photographer FB friend that I had not met before. Clayton followed me around the course and took some pleasing shots. Most of the time he snapped me on an uphill and the resulting pictures looks like I'm posing for an action shot but I don't actually look like I'm moving! Never once did it look like both my feet left the ground at the same time unlike the fab shot he captured of the winner Luke Scott. How he gets his feet that high off the ground I just don't know!
My lovely husband stood in his usual spots to cheer me on and to take some snaps himself. A lace problem when turning into Stoke Road had me stopping for a moment and my lovely friend Donna shouted words of encouragement and pleased me by saying I was nowhere near the back. Oh how that would soon change! Her lovely husband Andy was way ahead of me already.
I felt like my run was going well and thought I might be on for a good time. I managed to run the whole way and even picked up my pace in several places. Always dashed by an uphill that pace soon reverted to my normal plod. Through the back of Stoke I could see my Running Forever friend Pat, I think we were probably going at about the same pace but try as I might I just couldn't catch her. Out through Haydon, a stretch that seems to go on forever I was feeling good and was really looking forward to the last kilometer. Up over the M5 and a lovely downhill to stretch out those legs. Onto Chestnut Drive, this bit always catches me out, I always think I'm nearer the end than I am! People in the way, come on folks, there's a race going on, I nearly fell over a chap pushing a bike, how they cannot know they were all wandering in the middle of a race I'll never know.
The home stretch, I heard cheering, I couldn't make out the time on the clock, I heard Laura shouting, her husband finished way ahead of me! I made out the time, I was slow, I was so so disappointed. Oh well, sprint finish if you please, I love to sprint finish and by gum sprint I did!
Fi met me at the line, she did it in less than the hour, I am so pleased for her. Her sister also also made the hour. Even in my wildest dreams I will never make it in under an hour! My time was not my fastest, nor my slowest but I am disappointed. Three minutes slower than last year.
For about three days after I was convinced that enough is enough and that I would never do this run again. But Fi had reminded me of a plan for us to do the Taunton half marathon next April so my thinking cap is on. I was quite demoralized after this run. I need to get quicker. I need to run twice this distance. I need to be able to do this by April. I need a plan...
I met friends, some taking part and others giving plenty of encouragement. My photo was taken several times and thankfully a pre race happy picture graced the pages of our local gazette later in the week. I had words with my journalist friend Phil taking him to task about his tweet of 'less fit' entrants finishing within 90 minutes. I reminded him about age, length of leg, experience al causes for those of us at the back of the pack to finish more slowly, and I'm sure all of those finishing ahead of me must be fitter than me but the use of the word 'less' made me feel somewhat inferior.
Fi left me and her sister Sarah somewhere in the middle of the 650 entrants so that she could find her speedier running partners. Excellent weather conditions removed my usual problem of jacket or no jacket and before I knew it we were off. My first kilometer went very well and turned out to be my fastest for the course. I knew I was going faster than my normal plod as my breathing was coming in gasps. Sarah was gradually moving ahead of me and I was on my own.
Along South Road a friendly cyclist with camera made himself known, a photographer FB friend that I had not met before. Clayton followed me around the course and took some pleasing shots. Most of the time he snapped me on an uphill and the resulting pictures looks like I'm posing for an action shot but I don't actually look like I'm moving! Never once did it look like both my feet left the ground at the same time unlike the fab shot he captured of the winner Luke Scott. How he gets his feet that high off the ground I just don't know!
My lovely husband stood in his usual spots to cheer me on and to take some snaps himself. A lace problem when turning into Stoke Road had me stopping for a moment and my lovely friend Donna shouted words of encouragement and pleased me by saying I was nowhere near the back. Oh how that would soon change! Her lovely husband Andy was way ahead of me already.
I felt like my run was going well and thought I might be on for a good time. I managed to run the whole way and even picked up my pace in several places. Always dashed by an uphill that pace soon reverted to my normal plod. Through the back of Stoke I could see my Running Forever friend Pat, I think we were probably going at about the same pace but try as I might I just couldn't catch her. Out through Haydon, a stretch that seems to go on forever I was feeling good and was really looking forward to the last kilometer. Up over the M5 and a lovely downhill to stretch out those legs. Onto Chestnut Drive, this bit always catches me out, I always think I'm nearer the end than I am! People in the way, come on folks, there's a race going on, I nearly fell over a chap pushing a bike, how they cannot know they were all wandering in the middle of a race I'll never know.
The home stretch, I heard cheering, I couldn't make out the time on the clock, I heard Laura shouting, her husband finished way ahead of me! I made out the time, I was slow, I was so so disappointed. Oh well, sprint finish if you please, I love to sprint finish and by gum sprint I did!
Fi met me at the line, she did it in less than the hour, I am so pleased for her. Her sister also also made the hour. Even in my wildest dreams I will never make it in under an hour! My time was not my fastest, nor my slowest but I am disappointed. Three minutes slower than last year.
For about three days after I was convinced that enough is enough and that I would never do this run again. But Fi had reminded me of a plan for us to do the Taunton half marathon next April so my thinking cap is on. I was quite demoralized after this run. I need to get quicker. I need to run twice this distance. I need to be able to do this by April. I need a plan...
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