Apparently it's nearly 3 weeks since I ran the Percy Pud - how time flies! I've been busy, and I've not always been in the right head space to write a review. In a lull amid the pre-Christmas frantic rush though I have found time to put my thoughts on the race into words.
I've been aware of the Percy Pud for a while, being a long standing fixture in Sheffield organised the the Steel City Striders - in fact this year was the 25th anniversary of the first running of the event. Last year the event was on the first weekend after I had moved back to Sheffield, and starting as it does in Loxley it's practically on my doorstep, just over 2km away. I ran my first parkrun that weekend but already had a desire to run the Percy Pud, so you could say this marked the culmination of an amazing first year in running.
I'd run the return leg along Loxley Road a few times, as I would often go out along Loxley Valley Trail and back on the road after the slog up Stacey Bank, but one Thursday lunchtime decided to recce the whole route, so ran from my house to the start, did the full course, and then ran all the way back, making it a nice 14km run. Obviously the roads were open so I was only on the pavement, and there was a lot of wet leaf fall, but it was good to get a feel for the route. I found the outbound Loxely Road stint really hard work as it's uphill and undulating, but then I really enjoyed the road around the back of the reservoir out to The Plough and back despite quite a headwind, and Loxley Road return was the old familiar route.
When I entered I decided I was going to aim for sub 50 minutes, having run 50:01 at my first 10k in May, so submitted an estimated finish time of 49:49. Come the day of the race I met up with Andy, Liz and Kelly G and we made our way to the start area. It dawned on me I had to walk a long way down and was surprisingly near the front, positioning myself between the 50 minute and 45 minute pacers. After the usual standing around for a bit a horn sounded and we were off. I started my watch as we headed under the arch and ran with the pack, jostling for space a little but nowhere near as bad as Amsterdam.
The start was fast, I was happy. I was passing people, I was keeping up with the 45 minute pacer. This was good, I was really enjoying myself! But still, this first bit was my least favourite and there are 10 of these kilometre things to do so don't get carried away. I'd been working on my cadence and technique, so I was trying to bear that in mind keeping my pace high while ensuring that I felt my heart rate and breathing were under control and not at the ragged edge. The first KM went quickly in 4:24, the second even faster in 4:16, and I was at the dam wall - the bad bit was done!
I'd noticed on the first leg that not everyone was using the hills - this is Sheffield, surely everyone has had plenty of practice - but this meant that I was overtaking all over the place on the short sharp downhill segments and still absolutely loving it. OK, settle in for the mid section. Eyes on the prize, don't blow it all early, keep that breathing in check. We were being encouraged over to the left hand side of the road by now to make space for the returning runners, and the KMs kept falling - 4:24, 4:46, still amazingly good times for me and still WELL on target. Just after the 4km mark I saw the pace car, followed shortly by a few lone runners before the pack came past. Tricky hairpin turnaround at the 5km mark, take a gel on board before the water stop, and it's homeward bound.
Not long after turning I heard Andy shouting encouragement as he headed towards the turnaround, and shortly after I spotted Kelly G and Liz, returning the encouragement to them. Everyone was looking good. My legs were not tiring and the pace was holding high, before I knew it I was at the dam wall and knew that once I had the small climb out the way I could push for the finish. 2km to go and I was beginning to feel it, but I could see the 45 minute pacer in the distance and slowly but surely I was gaining on him.
Drive up the hills, use the downhills for speed, inching ever closer. With the finish almost in sight I passed him just as he was telling those around him they were well on course to hit 45 minutes, and then the finish line appeared and I could see the clock - gun time was on 44:50 and that was it, I started sprinting for the line. I crossed on a gun time of around 45:03 so was confident I had smashed my target and finished under 45:00. I felt weirdly emotional at this point - happy and yet really close to tears.
I collected my t-shirt and Christmas Pudding, got a drink of water, and headed up to see the others finish. Andy had already crossed the line by the time I got there, and I saw Kelly G and Liz finish. My Chip Time in the official results came through as 44:31, utterly blown away with that. Turns out we all had a really good race:
Me: 44:31
Andy: 47:17
Kelly G: 49:43
Liz: 55:21
And we weren't the only ones - the male and female course records both fell (there was a £1000 prize for each of these) with the Male winner being Andy Heyes in 29:42 and the overall second place finisher was Scottish Olympian Eillish McColgan in 32:23 - breaking her own record from last year and setting the second fastest 10k in the country this year. The first quickest? Her performance at Leeds Abbey Dash. Hmm, seems a fast race... maybe next year?
I've just run my first Half Marathon. 12 months ago I couldn't even run 5k reliably, it's been quite a journey. This particular event happened because back in April Kelly D signed up for the full Amsterdam Marathon and when I commented on how much I love The Netherlands he replied with a link to the Half Marathon. Oh. With Liz and Andy on board as well for the half we booked flights and hotels, the commenced our training plans. My training plan went well, I didn't always have time to follow it, but I got some decent distances in and Endomondo was telling me that based on my Cooper Tests I should be able to do it in under 2 hours, then 1:50, then 1:45 - needless to say I was terrified!
After my last training I run I decided that my goal was simply going to be under 2 hours, and on a good day if I could handle a pace of 5:25-5:30 min/km I Should be able to nip comfortably underneath that. Before I knew it race weekend was upon us, and we flew out to Schiphol on Friday. After checking in at our hotel we took a quick tram trip into the middle of Amsterdam and had a mooch around while looking for some food. Somehow we managed to avoid all the roads full of restaurants but we eventually tucked in to an Italian then had a couple of beers before returning to the hotel for some much needed sleep.
A slow start to Saturday and we went to the race expo, collected our numbers and event t-shirts and countless flyers for other European marathons, and went to hunt pancakes. Or attempted to - getting a tram was hard enough with them being full to capacity, and then the one we did manage to catch broke down half way to the centre, so lunch was instead in a very nice cafe before catching a different tram to the centre where Liz and Kelly went to the Body Worlds exhibition while Andy and I chilled out on the harbour where we were treated to the sight of the Stad Amsterdam sailing past. we headed back in to the centre searching for poffertjes but were again defeated and after trying and failing to meet up with Liz and Kelly we went to the tram stop, only to see them glide by on the tram when the driver didn't bother letting us on. Cue a long wait while the next one was overloaded and no more came for an age, but we eventually made it back to the hotel for dinner.
And then it was race day. Kelly was up and off early to do the full marathon while the rest of us had breakfast in the hotel, avidly refreshing the live timing, pleased to see Kelly making really good progress in the marathon. Final preparations were made while watching footage of the elite runners on TV, then we made our way to the stadium for the start. This was my first experience of a mass start event on such a scale, but I'd followed my hydration strategy, got my gels in my running belt, and hat against the sun. Ah yes, the sun. I'd been looking forward to an autumnal race, possibly even with some light drizzle, but as the race day got closer the forecast had been getting warmer and warmer and by this point there were official temperature warnings from the event organisers as it was over 20 degrees in full sun.
We saw crowds beginning to move so headed to the starting pens, found pour spaces, then stood and waited. And waited. There were at least three full pens in front of us, and with over 15,000 runners it took quite some time before we could even see the start line, never mind cross it, but eventually the moment came. I had done as best a recce of the route as I could on Google Maps in advance, but with so many people that didn't help for most of the course, though there were major landmarks I had memorised. The first 5km or so went in a blur as I found space to run in and soaked up the atmosphere - live DJs, samba and drum bands, great signs such as "I'm Very Impressed" and a man singing "You'll Never Walk Alone" in an operatic style from the top floor of his house. The first major landmark on my mental list was at the end of this section where you run up the start of the A2 motorway before turning off immediately on the first exit, heading into an industrial area where the first refreshment station was located. I grabbed an Isostar drink without stopping, and after throwing half of it on my face I mastered the art of drinking while running.
My pace up to the end of k6 was good, sometimes hitting as fast as 5:09/km but never feeling too fast and I thought I was in for a really good chance of smashing my goal. On the hot back straights of the industrial area I was trying to maintain around 5:25/km, building a cushion to my goal time and always keeping an eye on the overall average pace - knowing I needed to keep this under 5:40/km. I could feel the neat getting to me at this point though, so decided to relax a little until the next water station where I would take a gel and cool down, my pace dropping into the 5:30s - still the right side of goal though. Don't overcook it, you've got to finish the race and you are not even half way yet. At the 10km water stop I realised I had not disabled auto pause on my watch - damn, I no longer have my easy ready reckoner so I need to account for that. Added mental load I really didn't need. At this stop I accidentally washed my gel down with Isostar not water, so was still feeling rather thirsty - I took several sponges and soaked myself to try and help with cooling. All this meant that I had a rather slow KM here.
From this point it just felt really hard. The field was getting more bunched and not less bunched, I was finding it hard to get the space I wanted to run at a comfortable pace, and ended up having to run at someone else's pace and I think this took more energy than running at the pace I wanted to. I kept looking for space and using it, but constant changing speed and direction was really wearing. The course felt narrow, and elbows were jostling - other runners were clearly feeling this too as I heard a lot of frustration around me. I was still carving through the field, but it felt like I was overtaking people who were clearly aiming for a slower pace than me which didn't make sense given the starting pen system. Splits were 5:38, 5:45, 5:52, 6:16 - it was getting away from me. In this time I had re-hydrated, getting the hang of water stops better now, and had stuffed a sponge under my running hat - which really helped with the cooling.
Out the corner of my eye I caught sight of a windmill and I knew where I was again - running along the canal I was basically on the home straight with just over 7 km to go. Another gel on board, washed down with water this time, and the course opened up a little. The crowds were also filling out a bit now and bizarrely I got a massive boost from river traffic encouraging us with their boat horns. I gave a person dressed as a lion a massive flying high five, looked at my watch, and saw I was still within pace - I'd mentally adjusted my target to 5:37 to offset auto pause and I was on a course average of 5:36 at this pace. I couldn't get my pace to stick for the next couple of kilometers, I was still failing to hit target. For the 17th kilometre I forced myself to pick up the pace and keep it high for the full km, and I think this tactic saved my race. Soon we were in the Vondelpark and I knew I just had to keep going. 5:37 race average on the watch, if that dropped to 5:38 I was going to have to throw everything at it and damn the consequences.
In the park I spotted a collapsed runner receiving treatment from medics and signalled those behind me to move over, and made it out of the park on the run towards the stadium, constantly checking my watch. Suddenly I could hear sirens behind me, it sounded like the were on the course, and soon the police outriders came through. Everyone was great, moving to the sides and shouting ahead to warn fellow runners, but suddenly a marshal was stopping all runners on the right hand side to allow the ambulance to turn off the course - obviously not what anyone wanted, but the health of people who are suffering is much more important. As soon as the ambulance had cleared the junction I sprinted to catch the crowd I was running with, catching the marshal by surprise and he had to jump out of my way. OK, I recovered that hurdle, and I can almost smell the stadium.
That's the 20 km arch! 1.1 km to go. Come on Martin, pick up the pace, you can do this.
YOU. CAN. DO. THIS.
For the first time in over 10 km I was back under (revised) target pace, running at 5:30/km. The finish is rather special, taking in 200 metres of the track inside the 1928 Amsterdam Olympic Stadium - running on the soft track felt so good on the feet after 13 miles of pavement pounding and although I had no sprint left in me I upped the pace as best I could, dropping to 5:12/km. Finally over the line as fast as I could (there was quite a traffic jam ahead of me) and I stopped my watch showing less than 2 hours, letting out a guttural roar of "yeeeaahhhhss!". Keeping walking, breathing, I nearly stopped on the grass but I knew all water was outside the stadium so I went through medal collection, and feeling rather spent in the hot queue was desperate to get out, but I was doing OK.. I got my phone out and already had a text message confirming my time - 1:59:49 - that 17th kilometre decision had made the race for me!
I got out the stadium and consumed half a banana, a bottle of energy drink, and a cup of water, then went to get my medal engraved - despite fears this may be a time consuming experience which risked delaying our flight it was a model of efficiency, and I was soon heading back in to the stands to join Kelly who had been watching us finish. I chatted for a while as I recovered, then went to reclaim my bag - on the way out I met Andy up to join Kelly after he had finished not far behind me, and in a fit of good timing as I returned with my bag I saw Liz walking towards the stadium exit. While she queued to get out I had a quick wash down (I was organised and had a damp flannel in my bag) and switched running shirt.
We met up with Liz at medal engraving and after a bit more resting on the banks of another canal we headed to the metro to get back to the hotel, change into something more suitable, and head to the airport. We had yet another pancake related failure as the pancake oven was broken in the cafe we headed to but thankfully on the way back down to the station for a rather dreary sounding Burger King we saw another place, grabbed a table, and tucked in to some much needed refreshment.
Boarding the plane the cabin crew congratulated us (yes, we were still wearing event t shirts and medals) and it was a stress free trip back to Manchester (where everything was closed, turned off, or broken) and a train back to Sheffield, finally getting to bed around 1am.
So what next? I was thinking about whether a marathon would be achievable next, but after Sunday I am not so sure; that was really hard work and I don't know if I am up to doubling the distance yet. My plan would have been to enter York next year which gives me nearly 12 months to train, but right now I am thinking about being more conservative and in all likelyhood the Sheffield Half will be the next road race for me apart from the Percy Pud, after a bit of a trail running fix of course. Mind you, it's possible all this will change if Kelly decides to enter a race in another country I want to visit (*ahem* - although it's a pricey one)
A while back one of our circle of running friends pointed out the Greno Chase - a 5k road race just up the road from us on a Friday evening? Sounds ideal! This year it also didn't clash with Tramlines so it was easier to get people to sign up, even if some were reluctant... We ended up with 4 of us in Team Monkey Business - Me, Andy, Kelly and Liz.
As the event drew closer the thought of doing a 5k race after a hard week of work seemed much less sensible, especially as 3 of us had found this to be the week where Half Marathon training plans had us doing Cooper Tests which are never pleasant, and there had also been the regular climbing sessions in the evenings including a trip outdoors. Some last minute frantic planning on Thursday evening saw the important parts arranged - the logistics of how to get beer and meat to Andy's for a post run barbecue. Come Friday and we headed up to Andy's got changed, and walked up to the start. There were many complaints about sore legs, and much discussion of how slow we were all expecting to go, but registration was swift and soon we were avoiding the communal warm up - I never saw it actually happen, so maybe everyone had the same idea.
The course is a relatively simple one, being a triangular circuit, 2 laps starting and finishing midway up one of the straights. From my brief attempt to study the course it looked like 2 sides were uphill, and one downhill, so my aim was to take it steady on the hills and belt it down the last side, though I was also hoping to get an average pace of between 4:30/km and 4:45/km.
Soon it was in to the pen ready for the start and after a few announcements we had a 10 second countdown and we were off. Now my experience of mass start events has been Hillsborough Parkrun, so I was expecting a bit of a shuffle until people spread out and then having to pick up the pace to make up for it. This didn't happen, the start was ultra fast and I got swept up in it, my last comment to Liz before leaving her to run her own race was along the lines of "B****y Hell, that was a fast start!".
Uphill out of the park and we turn right along Main Street, the crowds were out in force and it was a fantastic feeling to be running on a closed road with people on all sides cheering us on. A sharp left on to Stephen Lane at one of the many pubs on the route saw us hit with a bit more of a climb, and I was continuing to overtake people here and worrying that I was overcooking it as there was a fair way to go before the downhill. I'd caught Andy up by this point, and we kept trading positions for most of the race - he was gaining on me uphill, I was pelting past him on the downhills initially then he caught me, and then I'd pull away again.
As we climbed out of Greno, I saw the downhill start much earlier than I expected and I picked up pace towards the corner and took it fast before belting down the hill and taking kilometre 2 in 4 minutes dead - fastest ever km for me. Dropping back in to Grenoside we pass the Cow and Calf, loads of kids were lining the route holding hands pout for a high five so of course I indulged, indeed I tried to get everyone I could on the race - absolutely loved the community support. Onto what in my head was the Main Straight the uphill started again, very gently at first but slowly increasing. The crowds were growing again, loads of cheering, and passing the start/finish there was water on hand but I didn't feel I needed it at that point, and I was running too hard to take it on board again.
Lap two went much like lap one, though a little slower due to tiredness. Special recognition to the kids on the corner of Stephen Lane and Graven Close who were giving out drinks, I didn't need one but I thanked them anyway. I fought up the hill knowing where the downhill was again, and caught Andy up who was suffering a little, encouraging him on as the crest of the hill was in sight but I'm not sure he had anything left to reply with. I took the downhill as fast as I dared, conscious of the fact I still had to drag myself up Main Street to get to the finish. I found myself being chased up the road by a double decker bus which had decided it was time to move regardless of the fact the race was still underway but I wasn't going to get out of it's way. Before I knew it I was turning in to the park, Kelly already finished cheering me on. I had nothing left to go any faster so when someone came storming past me all I could do was congratulate them and cheer them over as I followed them home.
Over the line, stop the watch, grab a medal, look at my time. Watch says 21:15 at 4:38/km average pace - fantastic! That would have been a 5k PB if it had been 500 metres longer. As I grabbed a bottle of water and walked to meet Kelly I saw Andy running home not 30 seconds behind me and so shouted him home, then it was a sit down and short wait for Liz to come through, entering the finish straight at speed and soon over the line. Official results are not yet in, but looking at a handy Strava Segment results for us are as follows:
Kelly - 17:56
Me - 20:33
Andy - 21:03
Liz - 25:25
Fantastic times for all of us given it was a Friday evening and we were all grumbling beforehand. I really enjoyed my first road race on closed roads with big crowds, and will be looking for more of them as the energy of the crowd was a great motivator.
Once we had all cooled down a touch it was time for the walk back down the hill to Andy's for beer and bbq. Half way down the hill we were all getting chilly, so by the time we were changed and sat outside many blankets were required, some rain turned up too but we persisted and had a very enjoyable evening before heading inside to catch up on the Tour de France. Next running event? Looks like being a 15k run to the pub in August for Kelly's birthday.
EDIT: Results are no up, 40th out of 129 for me which I am really pleased with. Kudos to Kelly for his 9th place finish!
So, having done the White Peak Trail last month it was only rational to enter the Dark Peak Trail too. Described on the event info page as "A longer trail running event on the footpaths, tracks and trails within the ‘grittier/higher level’ surroundings of the Northern/Dark Peak District" it sounded interesting, and I signed up the day after the White Peak Run in a bout of post race enthusiasm. As the race got closer I studied the race profile more, and realised it was 2km of relatively flat trail, 6km of relentless climbing to gain 261m, then 2km steep downhill and back on the same 2km trail as we set off on. Target time for a Silver band finish was 1h05m - 1h20m which means a pace of 6:40min/km to 5:45min/km, looking at that hill I figured a gold was not going to be achievable but a silver should be comfortable.
Race week approached and I had not got a decent run in for a while but managed to stretch my legs on a 10k hitting a pace of 5:49min/km (on the flat) which gave me confidence for the race. Also in this week I received a message from Kelly D asking if I had space in the van for the trip over to Hayfield. I assumed he had a friend looking for a lift over but no, he had decided this event would make a perfect taper run for him in advance of the Round Sheffield Run. Kelly is quite a bit faster than me but as he was tapering opted to run with me, so we discussed strategy and went for a fairly simple one - try and run the flat bit on the start at around 5:30min/km then see what the hell brings - slow up, fast down - then once back on the trail give it all you've got left. The other thing the week before the race brought us was hot weather, and I was praying for it to break at the weekend, I would even have welcomed rain.
That didn't happen. We left Sheffield bright and early on Sunday morning and you could already feel the heat in the sun. By the time we got to Hayfield at 8:30 it was already scorching. We got registered and sorted race numbers etc, then watched the long course starters depart and listened to their briefings - extra water stations had been added, conditions were dry and dusty. As expected kit rules were restricted, this time I did opt to leave my waterproofs behind but still took my pack for water supplies, having been cunning and frozen the bladder before setting off. Waiting for the start it was beautifully cold against my park, I shall be repeating that idea.
Time for the off! As it is a dibber timed race there is no mass start, people instead starting on an individual time. Previously I have ended up right at the start of my wave as other racers seemed to be reticent, but on this occasion there were many eager racers jostling to start and we ended up several people back. The first 200m were quite narrow and twisty, dropping down steps and over a single file bridge before going up the steps on the other side, through a housing estate, and then on to the trail proper. This meant that pace was very low and as I run to an average pace for the current km I was trying to get back in to the target zone when Kelly pointed out we were going much faster than planned (his Fenix 5 is better at instantaneous pace than my Forerunner 405) and we were running under 5:00min/km. It felt good, so we agreed to try and stay just above 5 minutes. The trail was wide, smooth and flat and well shaded by mature trees - this was feeling OK! Kilometre 1 went in 5:26, k2 in 4:57.
Across a road at the split point we had been well briefed on, then we take a sharp left and start the climb. A brief flat road section at the top and we reached a switchback where we also had to stop at the checkpoint to dib in, sapping all momentum. This was the start of the hill proper as we took on Over Hill Road. We soon climbed out of the trees and into searing heat, slogging up the road. There were many many false summits, and it seemed to go on forever. It was feeling OK though and and we were actually maintaining a decent pace, between 6 and 7 minutes per km. I was taking on water in small sips all the way up, and at some point I decided to take on a WiggleMocha caffeine gel but the running was so hard I couldn't stomach eating anything. Eventually I managed to find a bit flat enough that I could take it on and wash it down, and on we went. After the face I discovered that at some point on this climb my heart rate hit 198bpm which is the highest I have ever pushed it in a race.
As we got higher we were treated to beautiful views over towards Manchester, and after about 25 minutes of hill we passed the drinks station, neglecting to stop as we both had ample water with us. Just up the road from here we turned hard left off the road and onto a trail. The gradient here ramped up significantly, hitting 20% at one point then settling back down to around 10%. At this point I was wiped out and had to resort to walking for a bit while my heart rate recovered, my breathing calmed down, and I lowered my body temperature. I was determined to start running again before we ticked over the 7km mark, and thankfully the gradient had calmed down by here. In the final push up the hill I decided that I wanted a Tour de France style summit marker at the top as a reward, and then over the crest of the hill appeared... a summit marker! I let out a laugh and relief flooded my body as we started on the downhill stretch. The terrain was still quite technical, far more reminiscent of the Langsett 10k than the White Peak Trail Run from last month, but we got some decent speed up.
With 2.5km left to go the trail joined a road again which made speed easier, and then it was down a narrow wooded track back into the blissful shade of the Sett Valley Trail. We tried to keep the pace high, accelerating past the 1km to go marker, and soon we could see trees and cars - the end was in sight. Spurred on by this we hopped back across the bridge and into the field, running fast for the line, stopping the clock at 1h13m - Silver it was! At this point I had nothing else on my mind than sitting in the shade and pulling my shoes off. The remaining water from my pack went over my head - ok it was warm from being against my back but that was lovely.
Duly cooled down we harvested the buffet, got our official results, and faffed around with the standard tasks of notifying friends we had finished safely and with a decent time, downloading and uploading GPS traces, and catching up on the activities of others as well as applauding racers over the line. We'd started in the first wave of the race but there were not many people back when we crossed the line, and few if any people overtook us once we hit the hill - surprisingly no-one overtook us while we were walking though maybe people had availed themselves of the drinks station. Eventually all runners were home, and we looked at the results. And then looked again. We'd finished 13th and 14th out of 83 runners, which was 4th and 5th in class (Male 17-39). I'm still blown away by this, it's my best race finish and I'm not sure how I did it but the official results confirm that I did.
We drove back to Sheffield for a delicious breakfast of bacon and eggs courtesy of Liz, and reflected on a brutally hard race on a scorching day - temperatures of over 30 degrees centigrade were recorded. So, what's next? An easier one this time, the Greno Chase but I do keep looking at the Accelerate Gritstone Series and especially the Salt Cellar Fell Race.
You may recall that we entered this race after the Langsett 10k in March, on something of an exercise fuelled adrenaline and endorphine high while recuperating in a coffee shop. Liz and I opted for the short course at 10.5km, and Kelly went for the longer course at 25.7km. Since then Andy and Paul have also signed up for the long course, so we decided to car share with the 5 of us to reduce costs and environmental impact of the journey over. With Andy starting at 9:10 we decided to get there nice and early, which meant an eye watering 5:45am alarm call for me to meet up with everyone and get in the car for 6:30. As it happens we had a nice smooth journey through the peaks and arrived in Ashbourne at 7:30 just as long course registration was opening, and with plenty of parking still available although rather frustratingly the machine didn't accept cards or new £1 coins, we weren't the only ones scrabbling around for change to make it work!
The long course runners got registered and we killed time until short registration opened at 8:45 with the standard routine of toilet breaks and kit changes, faffing with packs, taking jackets on and off, etc. Once again weather conditions were favourable with no rain forecast, minimal wind and high cloud keeping the sun under control, so kit rules were relaxed but I elected to run with a full pack anyway. Time passed swiftly though and soon Andy was on his way to the start. We followed shortly and were there in time to see him set off, and then 20 minutes later Kelly and Paul's start group were off and Liz and I had 10 minutes for final stretches and preparation before it was our turn to hit the trails.
The short course followed the Tissington Trail to begin with, diving immediately into a tunnel which was a rather surreal experience. The path is a very popular walking and cycling route and as such is wide and smooth, and being an old railway line it followed a very steady constant gradient apart from one dip where a bridge has been removed. We were going against the gradient so for around 4km we were doing a constant uphill at about 2% - not necessarily enough to really notice, but enough to make it feel harder than it should. We reached the checkpoint surprisingly quickly, turning off the trail at Fenny Bentley and headed towards Thorpe. It was nice to get off the trail and get some variety, and we got some very enthusiastic cheering from local children which kept us enthused.
Approaching the split where the long course runners head up towards Alstonefield through Dove Dale there was a 10% downhill which I couldn't resist, so I pegged it down the hill and then slowed to wait for Liz - at which point a passing runner assumed I had missed the long split :D. Leaving Thorpe we turned off the village roads and ran across fields towards the River Dove and I excitedly exclaimed "Proper Off Road!". I really enjoyed this part as it got a bit more technical with steep downhills on uneven ground, thick slippery mud, tree roots, and numerous gates, hurdles and styles. These slowed us down a bit, but by this point we were grateful of the break. Once the land levelled out a bit we decided to take it steady, knowing a hill was coming which we needed something in the bank for.
Coming towards Mapleton was the only time I we were confused about the route as the arrow pointed vaguely at a field, but thankfully there were some men metal detecting in the field who pointed us in the right direction and we soon spotted another blue on yellow arrow and knew we were going the right way. Across the road, down a track which initially looked like someone's drive, and there was the hill. Another great crowd out to cheer and support and all my plans of running up the hill with Liz were out of the window and off I went, trying to slow down to allow her to catch but by this point there was a lot of walking going on, some of whom were going faster than my running. The top didn't take too long to find, and a couple of lambs running side by side in front of us kicked us into gear and off we went again.
There were some nice downhills, and some steep downhills, and then a flight of steps - the last thing I wanted to see - but these led back on to the Tissington Trail which meant the end was in site. a 1km to go board confirmed this, and in no time we were back at the tunnel. Liz had suggested I go for it at this point, but I was happy running with her. As soon as I got in to the tunnel though I sped up. I really couldn't see anything, completely lost any point of reference, and just kept accelerating. It felt good! Bursting into sunlight I could see the finish line and decided that it was time for a sprint, full pelt over the line and stopping abruptly to dib in to the finish box. Watch time said 1:09 but I knew it was a little bit slower than this as I had heard it auto-pause at a few points. Liz was over the line a few seconds later, post run hug and congratulations, and we headed in to the hall.
Dark & White Events know how to treat runners right, and in the hall there were hot and cold drinks and all the foods you want after working hard - cake, crisps, biscuits and sausage rolls :) One of the great things with these events is the instant results, and I got my official time of 1:11:27 which put me in the Silver time band, exactly where I wanted to be.
A few stretches and a bit of refreshment later, we go outside and wait for the other runners to get back from their longer run. Kelly wasn't sure how he would do - he had been aiming for under 2h15 but has been suffering with a cold lately, but we expected him to come in between 2h15 and 2h30, with Andy likely to be around 3h based on past experience. Kelly was over the line first out of our group of runners on the long course, with a time of 2h27 but looking utterly destroyed by it. Just as he was about to head to the hall Paul turned up, so they went to refresh while we waited for Andy. At 12:09 we came around the corner, sprinting his heart out, and just crossing the line under the 3 hour mark at 2:58:34 which is no bad show.
After some more stretching, refreshing and cooling down it was time to head for home via a pub for lunch. We ended up at the Bentley Brook Inn for a very satisfying carvery and dessert before heading back home. The Official Results were already online by the time I looked, and have me at 47 out of 98 overall, and 9th out of 10 in my class. That'll do for me.
So, what's next? Well apparently the Dark Peak Trail Run hasn't sold out yet. Short course is 12km and I'd be up for that, I'll be running it on my own as the weekend after is the Round Sheffield Run and all my usual partners in crime are doing that, but I may well have signed up by the end of the day...
I signed up for this race in January, just after having done the Resolution Run as I had set myself the target of doing a 10k this year, and having discovered I could in fact run I figured I would try sooner rather than later. As it happens I have since done a 10k trail race in the Peaks and started running longer distances by myself, but this race was always going to be a significant one for me as it was a goal I had set myself.
I was initially looking to finish in under an hour and had no greater aspirations than that, but somehow in the intervening weeks I have signed up for the Amsterdam Half Marathon and figuring I'd do it properly I got an Endomondo Premium account so I could set up a training plan - but figured I'd use it to prep for this race too. Initially it was suggesting I could do about 56 minutes, until it had me do a Cooper Test at which point it dropped it to 53:00. Gulp. OK, well I guess it knows what it is doing, so I decided to try for that and for extra motivation set myself up a sponsorship page.
Come the weekend of the race I was planning on going for a swim Friday night and resting up for it, however the pool was closed after work so I came home and had a few beers, then off to bed. I woke up early and despite my better judgement decided to pop down to Hillsborough Parkrun and take it easy, treating it as a little bit of a warm up. Apparently taking it easy means matching my PB from last month's pacing event. Either a good omen or a sign I had pushed too hard and ruined my race...
I managed to have a relaxing Saturday after this and a decent nights sleep, and was up bright and early in the morning. OK, early. I wasn't feeling particularly bright. A spot of breakfast and a debate over clothing (I decided that as I was gunning for it I would go with shorts and t-shirt, wearing warmer clothes over the top) later and I was on the road. I got to Rother Valley at about 8am, 1h30 before race start and 15m before the advised arrival time, but registration was very efficient and I had my number within seconds.
I had a cup of coffee, wandered around looking at the wildlife for a bit, and chatted with some fellow early arrivals about the route, running in general, and how cold it was - I really wasn't relishing stripping off for the race. Eventually I decided that it was time to take a walk down to the main facilities to use proper toilets rather than queuing for the portaloos, and on the way back I got race ready, pinning my number (24, a nice low number given there were rumoured to be ~500 entrants) to my shirt from the Peakrunners Langsett 10 and attaching my chip to my shoe - first time in a chip timed race for me. Given it was still cold (although the sun was trying to break through) I decided to warm up with a slow jog around the top lake which got my muscles ready and built some warmth. By this point quite a crowd was gathering and impromptu warm ups were breaking out. I spotted the pacers and decided to sit somewhere between 55 and 55.
Before I knew it we were in the starting pen, and after a few announcements we moved down and we were off. Immediately after the start was a sharp right between the two lakes, which was a little congested, but I fell in to a nice pace in a bit of space, well within sight of the 50s pacers, and realised I was running at about 4:30 - too fast! I backed off a little and found a comfortable pace at around 5:08 and was within sight of the pacers still. I ended up passing them at one point and staying just in front of them until around the 3km marker, where my overall pace was showing 5:02 and they decided to pick their pace up slightly to ensure they came in at under 50:00. I reminded myself that I was running my own race and not theirs, but already in the back of my mind a voice was saying "maybe you can break 50:00!" - I decided to stay within sight of them if I could, and then try and pick the pace up in the 8th and 9th kilometers.
I took this before the race if you are wondering why the course is empty
Before I knew it we were passing the start/finish and getting much encouragement, if I had realised there was water on offer here before I got there I would probably have grabbed one but by the time I had thought about it I had passed them. At the 5km marker I decided to take on a gel to prevent me flagging - the pace was high and I didn't want to burn out, but at the same time I also decided to relax a little on this back straight as I knew I had just beaten my best ever 5km time and needed to hold some back for the finish - Ks 4 and 5 had been sub 5:00. Immediately I realised my pace had dropped too low as I was verging on 5:18 and despite that being my target pace before setting off by this point my brain had other ideas, so I kept the pace up in the five zeros.
Once I hit the 8km marker I kicked back up to a sub 5:00 pace, and watched my overall pace hover around 5:00. This time on passing the start/finish I did grab a bottle of water from the ambulance crew watching over us, depositing it in a pile of others shortly after. The idea of throwing bottles aside carelessly when running seems fundamentally wrong to me, but you can't carry the extra weight and so at least if there is an obvious zone to discard of waste it makes the clean up afterwards easier. 9km was within site and I was picking the pace up again, the closer I got to the finish line the faster I was going and I was jostling for position with someone but really close to running on empty and let them have the place. Over the line and I stop my watch - 50:04 with a recorded distance of 10:04, I had smashed my target but had I done enough to get a finish time starting with a 4?
I was presented with a medal by a lovely chap who thanked me for supporting Neurocare (first medal!) and picked up a goody bag and can of Irn Bru before collapsing on the grass to relax, refresh, and let friends know how I had done.
I took the opportunity to upload my run too, noting that it gave me a distance of 10.0km at 4:59...
Once I had gained my breath again I cheered runners over the line, then went and got my warm clothes on. When I came back I discovered that I could get my time on the spot: Chip Time was 50:01 on the official results - so close to breaking that 50 minutes mark, but I can't feel bad about that as I SMASHED my target and exceeded my more recent stretch goal. I decided to hang around for the 5k as well - for one thing getting out the park would be hard whilst people were still running and I didn't want to get stuck in traffic for the Wednesday game when I got home. I was glad I did as there was a fantastic atmosphere, lots of fancy dress and kids running, everyone having fun and giving it their best.
All in all it was a really well organised yet relaxed event, the combination of the 10k and 5k meant there was something for everyone and it seemed that people were having fun - even those who did the 10 and the 5. Best of all it was all for a great cause - Neurocare are raising money to keep the ROSA Robot in Sheffield to improve the quality of neurosurgery provided. The ROSA robot assists in cranial surgery procedures such as those used to treat Epilepsy, improving precision and allowing patients who couldn't otherwise be treated to receive the opportunity for a better quality of life. If you have the means, please consider donating to the cause.
With that done it's time for a rest and a curry. Next up in 2 weeks it's a similar distance but completely different terrain as I tackle the White Peak Trail Run - there won't be on PBs here, I'm just going to enjoy the Peak District :)
I wasn't going to be free on the weekend of April 1st but plans changed and I found myself available. The first thing I did? Scan Si Entries Event List for a running event. I spotted Trail Run Series #2 and when I saw it was in Bradfield my mind was pretty much made up - it's less than 5 miles from my house and highly likely that at some point I will run there from my house, especially given the presence of the Old Horns Inn at High Bradfield. It's also just over the Peak District boundary, reminding myself I live so close to such a beautiful place.
There was a choice of a routes - a 14k run around three reservoirs (Agden, Dale Dike and Damflask) or the 5.5k which went around Damflask on the last part of the 14k route. I was in two minds about which to do as the 14k was really appealing but two things swung it for me - none of my usual running friends were free to join me for it and Hillsborough Parkrun were having a pacing event the day before, so I signed up for the 5.5k in the end. This race had a compulsory kit list which included the following:
Running shoes that in the organiser’s opinion are fully suitable for the type of off-road terrain to be encountered (NB no flat soled shoes allowed).
Waterproof jacket
Windproof leg cover
Other waterproof & warm body cover appropriate for the prevailing weather conditions.
Sufficient coins for telephone calls or a mobile phone.
This meant a little bit of shopping, and I am planning an update on kit at some point in the future to cover this so I shall not go in to great detail here. The weekend of the race drew near and I was getting excited both by this and the Hillsborough Parkrun pacing event which went really well (I finished in 25:29 with an average pace of 5:05/km) and gave me the confidence I needed; The race has timing awards which for men were Gold sub 0:26 Silver 0:26 – 0:30 Bronze 0:30+. Gold was not within reach of me as it would need a pace of 4:44/km but I could get in the Silver bracket as long as I was under 5:27/km
The day dawned clear and dry with some breaks in the cloud, and I set off for Bradfield with plenty of time as I wanted to get parked. I registered and due to the fine weather the kit list was relaxed to little more than a windproof top, but I decided to still run with my bag as practice for some longer trail runs I plan on doing. I had time to kill before my start time so I did some warm up laps of the cricket pitch (hey, I am taking this seriously) before walking over to the start, scoping the course a little while chatting with some fellow runners. Competitors on the 14k were already coming past us at this point, having started earlier with the idea that the finishes were vaguely synchronised. We had the race briefing and an introduction to the sports dibber system being used for timing here, and then we were started one at a time. Somehow I ended up at the front of the line...
Dibber in the box, watch started, and off I go, just as another 14k runner came round the corner. I decided to go for a fast start so that I had something in the bank should I flag later, and soon overtook a slightly surprised looking man who was already 2/3s of the way in to his run. First km down in 4:47 - fantastic, but I worry I am going slightly too fast now and back off to a 5:00 for the second km. By this point the dam wall which marks the end of the reservoir and the turning back point was well in site. I was slowing by this point, probably having cooked it a little in my pelt down the western bank of the reservoir but I was having fun.
The eastern bank wasn't as smooth and free flowing as the western bank, being more twisty and undulating. This slowed me a little more, so having the fast start behind me was looking good as it kept my overall pace on target. As I pushed on I saw Chris Meads out taking the official photos for the event which spurred me on to push harder again - I even managed a "Thank You" as I passed him - and the effort clearly paid off as he caught this shot of me which for 4km in I think is looking rather good.
The end was in sight now and when I hit the road again I knew I was getting close and started pushing harder, before giving it my all to get across the final field and over the line. 28:24 on the watch and thanks to the official results being compiled live on the day I got confirmation pretty much straight away. After a sit down and some stretches (And a quick text to let people know how I had done) it was back in to the hall for some much needed refreshment.
I hung around for a while watching people finish, my favourite moment being when a man came over the line to the cheering of his young daughter exclaiming "Daddy daddy daddy!" excitedly, as soon as he had stopped and reality caught up with him he turned to her to be greeted with "Daddy I missed you!" - a really touching moment which warmed my sentimental heart. Once all the short course runners were over the line I headed home, and reflected on the fact I had run that at a 5:10/km pace, something which only a few months ago was unthinkable for me. I finished 4th of 6 in my class (Male 17 - 39) and 12th out of 36 overall for the 5.5k course which astounded me, and I comfortably got my silver. I want to do a 5k at under 5:00/km now, but next year if I do this again I will be doing the long course. Next up for me at present is the Neurocare Head Start 10k at Rother Valley where I want to be under 1:00:00 and am currently planning on trying to pace at around 5:40/km which should see me come in at between 00:56 and 0:57
My first foray into trail running. I am not really sure how I got in to this - I signed up in January off the back of the Resolution Run which had an unexpected muddy uphill at a time when I had never run 10k and my target for the YEAR was to do a 10k.
My plan for this was to run with Liz, and this time actually stick to it - it was new territory for both of us. Kelly was on the same course this time, but likely to be going much faster than us as was Andy who had joined us for this one. On the day were we both uncertain about what faced us, Liz somewhat apprehensive about the hills and me again being annoyingly perky (hey, it's a skill!). We somehow managed to bag the last space in the Langsett car park, and appreciated the warmth of the barn for registration and the inevitable hanging around.
And then we were off. Fairly standard gravel trails to begin with, my legs were really not ready for this but we were doing a nice steady pace and just covered the distance. After the first kilometre it started to get interesting, hit a very steep downhill where fear of (a) knackering my knees and (b) falling over and suffering severe injury meant I took it gently and slowed down. And then it was 2.5k of uphill which was really rather hard going, some were walking but I didn't want to stop running in case I struggled to get going again - this wasn't really a problem as I was going the same speed as walkers.
Once the uphill slog had finished we were up on top of the moors, and running through glorious mud. It was wet, it was slippery, it was sticky, it was GREAT FUN! At one point I lost my feet and ended up face to face with the stuff but picked myself up and carried on. People fell from time to time and those around them always made sure they were ok and encouraged them to keep going, really was a fantastic atmosphere. We eventually found a downhill stretch that wasn't muddy, but it was so rocky that you had to watch every step and couldn't really let go and fly.
At one point we passed a marshal who gave a reassuring "It's all downhill from here... Well, almost"; at the bottom where we rejoined the reservoir we discovered why he added the caveat as we ran in to the woods and while watching out for roots zigzagged uphill again before finding the road and stretching our legs a bit and getting the pace back up to sub 6:00/km. Crossing the dam was particularly refreshing before a final cruel uphill to the finish where Andy and Kelly were there to shout "encouragement".
Over the line, official result 1:15.55 (60th out of 79). Two slices of cake and a cup of coffee while we wait for the prizegiving, then off in hunt of breakfast. We manage a cup of coffee in Stocksbridge but are too late for lard so head off again, but not before signing up for the White Peak Trail Run in May - did I mention this was addictive? Still needing breakfast we went to our favourite post Parkrun haunt - the wonderful Pie Parlour Sheffield to finish our recovery.
This was a really great event organised by Peakrunners, I'll be back next year and am on the lookout for other events by them - really tempted by the Dambuster 10 but I am not free that weekend.
My first running race. Well, my first running race since school where they were mandatory and I did everything I could to get out of it. Some things change - I was here voluntarily and was annoyingly perky with it - and some things don't - scrabbling around for safety pins.
This seemed a great way to start the year - a nice flat 6km run in Rother Valley Country Park and the promise of cake or fruit (cake, obviously) at the finish line. Kelly was off on the long course, 12km up the sides of the hills around the park, whereas Liz and I were on the loop around the lakes - or so we thought.
Come the start of the race I set off ar too fast as I still hadn't learnt the art of pacing, running at sub 5:00/km, looked back to see where Liz was as my plan had been to run with her, when we see a sign pointing right. Straight up a slippery muddy bank I passed people who were basically going backwards as they were in the wrong shoes, and just kept driving up the hill. We then hit a long downhill, looped around some twisty bits near the railway, then hit the track around the lakes. I was running under 5:40/km here and feeling good, picked up a couple on the same pace as me and called out the distance to them as we went as they were running free. Approaching the line I was nearly beat and waved them past before sprinting for the finish when I saw it, overtaking someone who had passed me on the way down the hill, and nearly planting my face in the mud as the grass was surprisingly slippery.
And that was it, first race finished in 33:29 (Official Results: 33:27.4, 5th out of 34). I cheered Liz over the line then we stretched out while waiting for Kelly and saw him over the line too, at which point we went for our cake before heading to Depot for breakfast (post race lard is half the reason I do this). Of course, talk turned to what comes next...
