Thirsk 10 - A Race From A Race Course - 30th November 2008

Decided to do the Thirsk 10 today having pre-entered a few weeks before. Arrived at Thirsk at my usual 1 hour before the race start and parked up in the grassy car park, which was approximately 400 yards from the race course itself. I didn't start to warm up straight away and walked to the main area where the main bulk of runners were gathered, then started to have a banter with the Rothwell crowd. They had hired a coach for all their runners. With about 30 minutes to go I started to do a jog round and warm up, mainly to see the other runners, see who is there and have a chat if I saw anybody I knew.



All of us(the runners) made our way to the start. When we walked up to the start I had the awful feeling it was going to be off road -not a good idea in racing flats. They were some familiar faces at the front, with Ian fisher(Otley), Darren Bilton(Leeds), Matt Pearson(Holmfirth) and Stephen Hepples(Loftus and Whitby). Also Paul Marchant(Rothwell) who seems to be improving in leaps and bounds. I glanced round again and saw Julian Mawson(Otley), I then knew that this was going to be a gritty race, whether I like it or not. Julian is not at his best, but he is good at long distance and usually does well over the longer courses. We have had some running tussles in the past and our current form shows we are fairly well matched. We always shake hands and have a chat whoever wins.



When the race started, as expected, the fast lads showed no mercy and set off at blistering pace. Very soon a chasing group developed consisting of me, Craig Keedy(S.T.A.C), Kevin Ogden(Spen), Will Kerr(St Bedes), Julian Mawson(Otley) and Tony Hazell(Horsforth),
plus another two unknown runners. The pace felt comfortable and glancing at my garmin we seemed to be averaging about 5-23 per mile pace. From an early point I decided to lead the group, mainly because it felt comfortable, and I wanted to open a gap between me and the other Spen runner(Kevin Ogden). I Was also Aware Tony Hazell was in my catorgory(Over 40). This group kept together for around 7 miles to just before the turn round point, where we 'met' the front runners coming the other way. Leading was Stephen Hepples with Matt Pearson, Ian Fisher, Darren Bilton following on. I was expecting Ian to be in the lead, closely followed by Darren Bilton. I now know Ian was suffering from a cold the last week, so as to be expected he was not in peak form. The trouble with colds is they don't always show as runny nose, cough etc. They can affect any part, and you may feel fine... until you start running hard of course. They can also linger longer than you think(I speak from experience on this one). Our group kept together for a further mile and then a keithley and Craven runner(I think) put in a burst and broke away, chased by Craig Keedy and Julian. I didn't have the legs to get them, but I did start to pull Julian back towards the finish. Will Kerr put in his usual sprint finish to pip me at the end. I finished in 57-27, which was my fastest time for a few years. Not bad, 2nd over 40, 2nd only to the famous Darren Bilton!! Went to collect my prize and re-fuelled on 2 cups of pea and ham soup and 2 egg and cress sandwiches.

Abbey Dash 23rd November 2008

Wasn't feeling too good about doing the Abbey Dash today. Weather forcast was atrocious but in the end was not too bad. Managed to just dip under the 35 minute mark(if chip time counts that is). Legs felt alot better after recent weight training on them at the local gym.

Miserable Months Ahead - 6th November 2008

It's this time of year that really sorts out dedicated runners from the fun and recreational runners. On these cold, wet and dark mornings the need to pound pavements gets pushed down the prioity list.

My milage is usually consistent all year round, mainly due to me running to work and back. I sometimes do an extended run on the way back to make the milage for the day around 11 miles. I usually do this around 3 or 4 times per week.

Dissapointed to note that I missed out on the Brass Monkey run this year. Having done this run in 2004, I really fancied another go at it as it is fast and flat, although it can be very windy at that time of year.

Guy Fawkes 10 Another race missed - 2nd November 2008.

Was hoping to do the Guy fawkes 10 mile at Ripley(Harrogate) today. Logged onto the Nidd Valley Road Runners site last night and found out the race is full!! I have done this race on and off for the last 10 years at least. I wish there was someone to blame, but really there isn't... I should have pre-entered plain and simple. It is a consequence of the modern age i.e online entering and the ease of availability of entry forms(down loading e.t.c).

Not to be too dis - heartened, I decided to go to the local Gym and do some weights and treadmill work instead. It is the first time I have been to that gym, even though it is a mere 10 minutes walk from home. It is that sort of gym that resembles a torture chamber -just the sort of gym I like. Did some leg curls, squats and some upper body work. I will see how I feel tomorrow, that is always a good indicator of what you have put in.