Doing the double.

The week between Christmas and New Year is always a strange one.  Days spent wondering what day of the week it is, staring into the fridge trying to work out what to feed the children as it surely can't be healthy for them to eat chocolate for breakfast, lunch and supper.  We have had the added drama this week of my mother in law being taken ill.  A massive stroke on Monday evening.  This has resulted in even more confusion about days of the week.

Running has, as so often, given me time to get away from it all.  Time to process ideas and think through plans.  It also helps to counter the excesses of the Christmas period.  Some people claim that a good run will get rid of a hangover.   I've never found this to be the case but I keep on trying.  

After an excellent night, which took in a 50th birthday party and then dinner with friends and rather a lot of alcohol, the idea of getting up to run seemed slightly less appealing than it had done when I had made my plans earlier in the day.  Husbando needed to pop into the antique fair at Winchester, so we'd do Winchester parkrun and then, because we could we'd go on to Southampton parkrun at 10.30am.  Husbando had run neither before, and Southampton would be a new one for me.  Luckily I sorted out my kit before going out for the night - trail shoes for Winchester and road shoes for Southampton, and clean socks just in case.   I slept in the car on the way there… I did not feel at my best… I wondered if I could volunteer as tail runner, but if I did that we might not have time for the drive between the two locations.  Strangely it didn't occur to me not to run!  

Winchester is three laps of playing fields.  It could be a fast course but, while the weather was infinitely better than last New Year's Day, it was still muddy and the course is predominantly on grass.  As we set off I remarked to Husbando that I didn't like running on grass.  'Well run on the mud then!' was the witty reply from another runner.  It felt like hard work.  My head was pounding, my stomach felt queasy and there was mud EVERYWHERE I looked!  I chatted to a runner as we struggled around the fields - I think he was one of the run directors, and watched as Husbando got further and further and further ahead of me!  I slid across the line in 25:20, got my barcode scanned, used the loos and then we got in the car and on to the M3.  

Parking at Southampton Common was straightforward and free!  I always panic about parking at new events so it is always a relief to find a space.  We walked to the start with one of the volunteers - a throng of runners, many covered in mud splatters from other local parkruns, were all making their way to the start.  I bumped into friends I have made at running events last year, which was lovely.  

After the run brief we found ourselves at the very back of the field.  This was a bit of a mistake as it took a long time to get up to a comfortable running pace.  Husbando ran with me most of the time and we chatted as we ran, both of us agreeing that it was a lovely course.  All on tarmac and a bit like an Escher painting in that we seemed to go downhill a lot more than we ran uphill.  In fact I barely noticed the uphill on the second lap.  I was beginning to feel a little more human and wishing that I could do this run some justice.  No matter - the joy of parkrun is that I can come back another time and have another go.  I haven't set myself an impossible target to beat - 24.59.  And the cafe looks nice too - but it was closed today, so a return visit is a must in 2015.

Thank you to all the volunteers, both those standing around in the cold and wind today and all the behind the scenes people who do some sort of technical wizardry that makes the results appear.  Happy New Year, may your parkruns always be full of friendship and your running shoes always dry. 

Winchester inaugural parkrun

A new parkrun in the area, or even not quite in the area, is always a good excuse to catch up with old friends and make new ones.  So when the long awaited Winchester parkrun announced that it was starting today I checked my diary (although what else I could possibly be doing on a Saturday morning I can't think) and made plans accordingly.   It was, in fact, open morning at my younger children's school but, as two of the children were happy to go along on their own, I decided that my presence was not required.

I roped in two friends, who blame me for their parkrun addiction, and we set off with my youngest boy.      After arriving and parking in the leisure centre car park we were soon catching up with runners we knew from other parkruns.  Basingstoke parkrun seemed to have dispatched a huge contingent of runners, many resplendent in Chineham Park Running Club shirts,  Frimley Lodge, Alice Holt, Newbury, Poole and Andover parkrun were also well represented.  There were probably many other parkruns represented, and some famous parkrun faces I didn't spot.

The route is flatter than a flat thing that has been throughly ironed, but it has over 40 corners!  Some of them are very tight, including a U-turn that could become 'interesting' in muddy weather.  As there are three laps this needs negotiating 3 times.  There are also 6 river crossings, willow trees, ducks and an awful lot of grass.  There is a weeny bit of tarmac, but the rest is grass playing fields all the way.  This had the effect of taking my back to my school days when we were made to run around the school fields.  There was a river crossing involved in that run too - we called it 'The Jordan' - and I hated running round those bloody fields!

I had intended to run with my boy, but a friend with a pushchair promised to keep an eye on him.  I was wearing layers as the weather was chilly and I had intended to jog slowly round, but there was no time to change, so after the pre-run briefing I set off.  Soon after the start I stopped to check that a boy who had tripped over was OK, I felt guilty about not running with my own boy - but he doesn't like running the whole 5k with me, and I don't really enjoy running quite as slowly as he does.  With all hope of a cracking time out of the window I carried on at a slightly gentler pace.  The marshals who directed us around the twisty course today were excellent, cheerful and encouraging, taking charge of stray jumpers (my son's) and just making the run much more enjoyable.

I crossed the line in 22mins 18seconds - I knew that something wasn't quite right!  I hadn't run anywhere near hard enough to clock that time, moments later I realised that the distance recorded on my Garmin was 2.9 miles so the course was a 5th of a mile short of the magic 3mile/5k.  What had happened?  It seems that the event director had moved the course markers slightly to accommodate the large field (280 runners) today.  This, amplified over 3 laps, meant that the distance overall was too short.  Some magic formula was applied to the results though and times were adjusted.  While it would be lovely to have recorded a 58 second 5k PB it would not have been a real PB and I'd always have known that!  My actual time went down as 24.13 - much more realistic given the pace I ran at!

After catching my breath, stripping off one of my layers and having a quick chat at the finish, I set off on another lap with the boy.  I quite like this warm down lap with him, I get to chat to other runners and encourage them on (and talk to some of the faster runners who are warming down too), my contrary child always manages to put on an impressive burst of speed as the finish funnel looms closer - despite having whinged about tired legs minutes beforehand!

After scanning of barcodes and retrieval of bags we made our way to the cafe at the sports centre for the most important bit of parkrun - coffee!  It never fails to amaze, or maybe that should be dismay, me that sports centre cafes provide such unhealthy food, and that chocolate vending machines are to be found at every corner.  Surely they should be promoting healthy eating rather than peddling high fat, processed food at every opportunity?  That said, the coffee was good and the company better!  I caught up briefly with old friends who used to run at Basingstoke and a runner I met at Abingdon last week.  I have met so many new friends through parkrun, and now regularly see an old friend (now she has given in to my relentless parkrun evangelism, accepting that the only way to get me to shut up about it was to turn up on a Saturday morning).  Plans were made for future parkrun jaunts.  Where will we go next week?  Who is going to the inaugural Queen Elizabeth parkrun?  Can we cope with the hills there after the flatness of Winchester?  Who knows where we'll end up - better watch this space to find out!

Thank you to all of the team who made today's run possible.  Here's to many more successful Winchester parkruns!

Here comes the sun!

What glorious weather for running!  First run of the year where I was glad I'd remembered my shades!

Ignoring the fact that all race organisers send out blurb saying 'At risk of death, excommunication and forfeiture of all Nectar points you have earned and will ever earn in the future do not run if you have had a cough, cold, renal failure, transplant surgery or amputation in the week prior to race day' I decided that having been given the number 69 I had to run this race!  Who knows how long it will be before I ever get this number again?

The starting area  for the Winchester 10k could hardly be more scenic, but the organisation was not great.  There were 6 ladies' loos available - and these were in the Winchester Leisure Centre so I can't think that the regular Sunday morning gym users and swimmers were too pleased by the influx of lycra clad women  all desperate to use the loos within a 10 minute window!  You cannot have too many ladies' loos.  Organisers would do well to think of a number and then double it!

The start line itself had the normal 'Start here if your finishing time will be....'  These started at 30-32 minutes and finished at 40 minutes!  Never in a million years will I finish a 10k in 40 minutes.  Great way to make those of us who run primarily for health, fitness and enjoyment feel like we are part of the race!  Still, it was pleasant to stand in the sun for a change, rather than shivering, as we waiting for the off.  The race was advertised as being 'chip timed' so I wasn't too worried about where I stood at this point.  I did that daft thing of looking at the people I was standing with and trying to gauge how fast they would be - was I in the right place, would they leave me standing?

I was vaguely aware that the race had started - a couple of whistles and a surge forwards.  I shuffled with around 1000 other people over the line, and as I crossed it I realised that there was no timing mat at the starting line.  Why hadn't I noticed this as I made my way to the start? Why hadn't I made sure I was nearer the front of the pack?  Why do race organisers advertise a race as 'chip timed' when they don't have the facilities to record the starting time of each runner as they pass the start as well as the finish?

Crossing the start line was slow going, hampered by a 90º left turn over a narrow bridge.  Those of you who were at school with me will remember the bridge over the Jordan - the bridge today was a similar width to that  - tricky to get hundreds of runners over that at any more than a bimble!    From there it seemed as though it was uphill most of the way!

I'd run a slow parkrun yesterday and am generally not running well due to poor health and too much food, so I wasn't holding out great hopes for today.  Just as well really.   The hill at about 2 miles in was tough - I saw a lot of walkers, but my downfall was at the bottom of the downhill afterwards.  We'd been running down a residential street and all the runners were still quite closely bunched.  I was following the runners in front of me, so when they veered left  over a grassy verge so did I.  What I didn't see, until too late, was the 4' drop!  The guys in front of me leapt down it, I tumbled!  No damage was done, except to my dignity!   I didn't stop at the one water station, but do remember thinking that there weren't many people there to hand out water.

The roads we were running on weren't closed, and it did seem quite busy with traffic at times.  I pulled out to overtake and heard the blast of a horn, so thought better of it!  The 'incline' from 3 to 4.5 miles was interminable!  Again, lots of walkers here, but I just plodded on, slowly but surely getting closer to the finish.  

Finishing was great.  I was so relieved to see the finish line and claim my medal!   Great to meet up with fellow runners after the race and discuss war stories!  Well done to those who managed a new personal best today.  To say that I am envious is an understatement, but I am still pleased for you too! 

 

My 'official' time is shown above.  A bit naff, but I had said I'd be happy with anything under 54 minutes, and my watch (start pressed as I crossed the start line and again at the finish) shows a minute less than that.  I am very happy with the positions (hmm, should I say that when my bib number was 69?) so all in all, it was worth getting out of bed for!

My intended diet, started after seeing photos of me at parkrun yesterday (and no, I will not provide a link to that) took an immediate hit when I met Husbando and friends for lunch!  I think I can give myself a pat on the back for giving away about a third of my pizza, but I did make vast inroads into a bottle of Shiraz.

Ah well, diet starts tomorrow!  Will be interesting to see if weight loss results in faster times.  Physics says it should!