Harder, Better, Faster, Longer

To set the mood, grab every torch in your house, shine them from above your head & pretend you're Kanye West at Glastonbury.....

A week that saw me run harder than I have for a long time. A race experience that couldn't have gone better, or faster. Then I finished the week by running even longer than previously. Whether stronger can also be shoehorned into this awful intro I'm not sure, although it probably applies to both my mental & physical state at the moment.

Yateley 10k

The Yateley 10k had been on my radar for June. Working down in Hampshire for a day or two a week was starting to hurt my training & I was looking for races or organised runs to give me something to do with my evenings. I’d missed the cut off for the June race & joined my colleague Kendra at her track night with Bracknell Forest Runners instead. We’d agreed to run the next one & it was part of a whole list of events I’d been given to consider.

After registering I persuaded Sean that a trip out of South London for an evening 10k was a good idea, to which he agreed & signed up as well. He wasn’t really sure what his plan for the race was, so when I mentioned targeting 50 & he could pace me if he fancied, he did indeed fancy an easy (ish) run for him.

Sean is responsible for my introduction to parkrun back in 2010 & as a result surely accountable for everything else that has followed! We’ve rarely run together though. He’s considerably faster than me so the only times I can recall were for his & Emily’s parkrun celebration last year & some sprints in Battersea Park many years ago. There was also an occasion at Gunpowder parkrun where we ran together for a moment, only for me to overtake him & claim my only finish ahead of him (he was having a bad day, we both got beasted by brother John with all of his youthful exuberance anyway).

Evening running is something I struggle to get on with. Being on the road at 6am & I’m fine. Trying to run after a day of work is something I have to adapt to. My performance is usually hampered by what I’ve consumed during the day, so if I know I’m running I have to make a mental note to lay off the fizzy drinks, eat with a bit more thought in general. I’m certainly eating better, avoiding stodge at lunch (& in general) has left me feeling less sluggish. Not opting for a Coke during the day is more difficult as it’s my only source of caffeine, I might have to develop a taste for coffee instead. Not a problem for Sean who sticks too fingers up to WADA & downs a double Espresso before a run, no wonder he was so chatty!

I picked Sean up from Fleet station & made the simple drive to Yateley, forgetting to make a note of where the hire car of the week had been parked! I can tell how I feel about a race by what my nerves are like. At the Stort 10 three days previously I’d almost forgotten to make a toilet visit beforehand. On this occasion I was queuing repeatedly, checking kit constantly, feeling phantom stones in my shoes, finding non existent injuries, high pitched hellos, chatting away at speed. I’d managed to avoid the warm up by queuing for one of the bouncy castlesque porta loos so Sean & I had a brief run around the school field. 

The nerves made sense, this race & my performance mattered to me, it was a key indicator to how my pace was looking for a PB attempt at Pride in August.

I was also trying something new. I’d been paced previously & found that having my own Garmin meant that I’d still be double checking. On this occasion I wanted to place all my trust in Sean, handing over my Garmin to him. I was running naked (no tech, not no clothes, no one needs that) & my instruction was to not tell me splits, just whether we were over or under target. This made Sean a little bit uncomfortable, but I didn’t need the numbers in my head, the over thinker in me would only consume energy.  Not only did he have my watch, he’d banned me from running with a bottle, telling me it was time to ditch the comfort blanket. I’ve run a few times recently without it, but not at pace or for this distance.

He already had my tech, now Sean wanted to throw my bottle into the tennis courts

The target was 50:00, a simple 5:00/km pace. I felt this would be a push as my best parkrun performance this year is a 24:58. My HBO time was a pleasing mid 52, but I didn’t know how realistic the target was. I’d also told Sean that my PB was 48:20 (4:50/km) & that this could be a secondary aim if my pace was surprisingly good.

My mind was clear, all I had to do was run fast. Observing a narrow first couple of hundred metres I tried to take an outside line & knew that Sean would catch up with me if he couldn't weave through.

The race itself was painful. I’d rested up on Monday & Tuesday. Combined with some physio work on the Tuesday evening to loosen up my calves I found myself in pain from about 1500m into the race! The uphill start was a killer for both Achilles. I should perhaps have asked Sean for his perspective of pacing me, I get the impression I was like the whiny kid that doesn't want to eat his greens!

The pain only abated once we’d got the nice downhill after 3km done. Sean telling me to enjoy the downhill didn't really help as it hurt! Once both Achilles calmed down it was time to get some numb feet for a few km. This can be a regular occurrence for me & normally flexing the toes for a bit will clear it up. Conscious that we were under target I started to think this might be a bigger issue & that the numbness was a sure sign I was just about to faceplant, the pace must be overcooking me.

Sean was performing his role perfectly, letting me know if we were over or under, telling me to focus on his heels if I flagged behind slightly. At one point I asked him what target we were under, he told me the first one but not the margin. I was told off for thanking marshals, he’d be doing that on my behalf to conserve my energy!!

At 8km the course started to climb again, not significantly but enough for me to tighten up a bit. By now I was convinced that I was turning a shade of purple, the silver lining being that the finish was in a school field so an air ambulance would be able to come & get me easily! It wasn’t until we got past the final climb in the tenth kilometre that Sean revealed a sub 49 was on the cards. Hopefully this was the espresso going to his head as I swear in my slightly weary mind I swear I heard him say sub 49……..

My usual sprint finish was not really going to happen, everything hurt, that finish line could not come soon enough. Sean carried on talking to me right to the end, urging me to be strong, drive my arms, preferably not collapse etc. That race clock definitely looked wrong as I passed it, how unfortunate that it would fail, or be counting slowly or something.

Little did I know that until I tightened up at 8km when the course started to ramp up again that he’d told a little white lie. We were on target to challenge my PB for the majority of the run. As I came to a very abrupt halt upon crossing the line Sean was there to prop me up, kind of handy as my legs were all kinds of funky for a moment. A quick check of the Garmin gave some unexpected news:

Watch time: 48:53, chip time: 48:52

One of us was feeling it a bit more than the other.....

Medal & water claimed & we wandered back towards the final turn to wait for Kendra & Callum to finish. I think shock might be an appropriate word. I couldn't quite comprehend the result & even after a high five to Callum & catching them at the end of the finish funnel a few minutes later Kendra commented that I had a beaming smile. I have no idea if this was the case, it might have just been that I had no real control over my face following the exertions of the run!

Needing some support to stand

We grabbed our kit, said hellos, & goodbyes to folks, took photos & started wandering in the direction of where we thought the soccer mom mobile I’d been given for the week was parked. It was later than expected & Sean wanted to head back into London rather than eat so I dropped him at the station & headed into Fleet to search for food. A chippy came into view & before my weary mind could work out whether that was a wise idea I’d parked up & was wandering in. A detour on the way home for some ice (2kg of sweetcorn!) & I was soon back at the hotel. The food was tepid, a bit grim, but in many ways exactly what I needed!

Yateley performance

Club

Over the course of Thursday & Friday the inevitable happened. I've joked about becoming a Bishop's Stortford Running Club member by osmosis over the past few months. Nearly half of the parkrun core team are members, Paul has be working on me since the day he joined as a Run Director, though as club vice chair he kind of has to! Hatfield Forest sees a huge level of participation at the parkrun from BSRC & the friendships I've already formed were reeling me in. 
After the Stortford 10 I'd been approached for some feedback given my work with parkrun & casually mentioned I'd happily assist with future events in any capacity. It seemed logical that given I enjoy the time I spend with Stortford, my intention to return regularly after my move to MK & my offer of help that the next step would be to fill in the forms & hand over some cash. 
The decision is also a selfish one. Given my current form & with Berlin 11 weeks away I want to cash in, make sure the best possible Chris is on the start line on Sept 27th. I'm really happy with my training, but feel some incremental gains can be made. I've always believed that surrounding yourself with better people leads you to improvement, that's why I'm keen to ask advice. I might not always take it on board, but knowing what and why others have done something helps me. So be it intervals, tempo runs, company on long runs, I know that joining BSRC will only make me better, I'm already better for the time I've spent with the guys so far.

Run Commute

The tube was out of action for the day as I headed into town on the train. I’d ditched the hire car as originally I had London meetings scheduled. My best option was to run back from Westminster to Liverpool St & in my mind the most logical route along South Bank seemed like a good idea.

Within 10 minutes as I was realising the folly of my decision making. Progress was near impossible, sunshine, tourists & added to the usual mix, commuters were making even the wide passes of South Bank impossible. I took a right through a food court & found myself running in parallel, only to be thwarted by road works.

The entire run was a farce, all I succeeded in doing was claiming some commuters not paying attention & taking my blood pressure to levels that probably weren't wise. These were junk miles. I didn't want to be running, the strike had forced my hand when what I really needed was rest.

The Downside

Friday wasn't a particularly fun day. Having ridden the high of my Yateley performance all the way through Thursday I hadn't quite considered the trough that would follow the peak. Perhaps it was because the peak was particularly high. Kendra had mentioned my smile was beaming when we wandered to the finish area to congratulate Callum. I'd put this down to being so knackered that I had no control over my face! Apparently not though as Thursday was a breeze, I felt good throughout the day (excluding the run commute). The confidence from the performance left me feeling exceedingly positive. 
Quite what had happened by Friday morning I'm not sure. Maybe I slept badly, I certainly woke up cranky! My mood wasn't improved by heading into work without breakfast. Perhaps it was an impending deadline at work. Whatever it was I needed to try and lift myself, throwing John Grant's GMF as I walked to the station. I've found myself drawn to the wit and humour he brings to music & Greatest Mother F seemingly lists all of my traits. The song is meant to celebrate these supposed weaknesses and one rather cathartic, introspective instagram post later and I was feeling a bit better. By the time I'd made it into the office my friends had lifted my spirits. My Yateley finishing photo providing the inspiration for a comparison to a leek & some Rambo Photoshop work from Len! If I smiled when running I'd provide no humour for my friends!!!
The thing I took away from Friday, once I'd got my work done and had a chance to relax is that I need to find a way to keep the over thinking to environments where it helps me, such as work, parkrun planning etc. Of course if I could switch it off that easily I'd have done so by now! Those Mindfulness books (yes I even overthought that enough to buy two) need to stop gathering dust!

parkrun

It appears that our event at Hatfield Forest is going through the terrible teens phase. I've seen other local events struggle for volunteers as they progress out of the initial honeymoon period. It doesn't help that as a single lap event in a forest we are quite heavy on our roster. I'm quite envious right now of events such as Black Park, when I visited the briefing was simple, no marshals, follow the signs! 

Saturday’s roster saw over half of our roles covered by the core team. Originally I was due to run & target a course PB. Once I realised that the 20 miler the day after was the true priority I dropped the run & added myself to the roster, covering off 6 different roles: Setup, Volunteer Co-Ordinator (mentoring a new core team member), Marshal, Photographer, Barcode Scanning & Close Down. Our team had papered over the cracks in our roster.

I had the monthly Sweatshop announcement to do & then I was on the bike to my marshal point. Yes, back on the bike, wisely or not it made sense & I took it easy, I couldn't afford another fall. 

Ready to marshal & encourage

Taking photos from my early in the course marshal point I was soon able to ride back, collecting signs & at the finish line with plenty of time to test out the scanners.

First timer’s briefing is still my favourite volunteering role, I really enjoy welcoming people to parkrun for the first time, as well as saying hello to tourists. I’m also enjoying barcode scanning role. I like to add the personal touch, reading names off of the barcodes as the runners come in & congratulate runners on their performances. It gives me a chance to chat to our participants that some roles don’t always allow for, a chance to get to get to know more people.

Refreshingly we had a whole army of volunteers for close down & were packed away for 10:15, a new record for us for around 45 minutes. I’ve updated our technical maps in the past fortnight & to see the operation be so slick was very pleasing. If only results were so easy! Our usual pub location was closed, Karl left the stopwatches & scanners in the forest & we had to head into Stortford for another pub with wi-fi. Processing seemed to be easy, not too much correction was required, a nice easy demo to Simon from our core team. The moment we went to confirm we hit IT issues & a quick check with my fellow EDs told me there was a central IT issue.

We parked the results & I headed across to Chelmsford, this time to successfully meet up with Monty for his birthday (I’d made a trip on Friday night, neglecting to check the location was the same, it wasn’t they were in London!). The beer festival was a great choice in the sunshine & Monty was on good form. I was able to sample a couple of halves & a selection box of food from the Japanese stand (predictable). After a few hours of being fried in the sunshine I needed to get some shade & rehydrate.

Beer fest sunshine

I’d tuned back into the Ashes for the drive home & the limp Australians didn’t even have the courtesy to wait until I’d parked & turned on the TV before crumbling to defeat. As I have day 5 tickets for Lords I’d appreciate some rain at some point as it appears neither team are keen on applying themselves! The evening was stupidly warm & I didn’t fancy eating, 20 miles in the morning meant that I had to, throwing together some pasta, veg, halloumi & pancetta.

All that was left for the day was a bath to convince my body it was time to sleep, sorting out my running kit & to set the alarm for 0430.

Long Run

As expected, I wasn’t overly amenable to the half four in the morning alarm call. My plan was simple. Get out the front door for 0500, run 20 miles to get me back home for around half eight, half an hour to an hour to sort myself out, then onto London for Hyper Japan.

The whole premise behind an autumn marathon was that the summer would afford me more time to train, an opportunity for longer days & sunrise runs. If the sun did rise on Sunday it certainly wasn’t in Essex as I peeked through the curtains to a wall of grey. This didn’t help to persuade me out the door, the boot sequence seemed to be stuck in procrastination mode. Not really having a route planned wasn’t helping. Opening up Like the Wind #5 & finding an article called Sabotage by Mirka Markkula probably didn’t help in terms of getting me out the door either. Reading it might have brought tears (LTW has a worryingly high ratio of tear jerking stories), but it also brought focus. A lot has changed for me in the past year & there is always a tendency to regress to my old self, be it self-defence or fear of failure. This quote at the end sums up precisely the attitude needed & any self-doubt of whether I could run 20 miles was parked.

Simon had mentioned running through to Stortford, Spellbrook & then some country lanes whilst at parkrun on Saturday. Without a recce beforehand I checked his Strava for the route, it was agreeable with my distance goal, as long as I didn’t get lost.

It was half five before I got out the front door & headed south. I fancied a different route into Stortford so took on the long climb into Birchanger that would bring me out at the eastern side of town.

As I made my way out of Birchanger I noticed a Bridleway sign. Perhaps this was the route to Hatfield Forest I’d been trying to find. One way to find out I guessed so turned away from my almost planned route. Crossing over the M11 & then under the A120 appeared to confirm this was indeed what I was looking for. To my surprise there was a cycle track running parallel to the old A120, something I’d been blissfully unaware in all of my journeys along the road.

Soon I was in the forest & lost for the first time during the run. It would be a myth that I know the forest well. I know a few 5km runs around the forest very well & the routes needed to get to parts of these routes. The rest of the 1,000 or so acres is all guess work. I was trying to feel my way through the forest in order to get to the start area for parkrun, deciding that a freedom run of 5km would be a nice addition to my route.

I felt I was heading south but that was more instinct than any kind of applied knowledge, it turns out that a lot of the forest appears the same when you’re scrambling around trying to find something. At one point I thought I’d found the ride between 1.5 – 2km on our summer route, only to find a gate at the end. I was getting frustrated, lost & now I might be at a dead end. I went through the gate, turned to my left & noticed something, the bridge from our summer course. 

No longer lost I made my way along the estate road & to the start / finish area. After my first gel I was beginning the summer course. This was the first time I was trying the forest in road shoes & I was pleasantly surprised at the traction I had, even with the rainfall over the morning. We advise runners that trail shoes are the best, but I had no problems on this occasion, albeit at a far slower pace than I’d normally try to navigate around the course.

Another gel taken on & I was finding my way out of the forest, using a route much more familiar to the eastern edge of the forest. From there I was turning west onto the Flitch Way & hoping to find my way into Bishop’s Stortford. This would be easier said than done as I had no clue where the Flitch ended or the alternative routes. With 10 miles clocked I felt fantastic & decided it was time to turn on the iPod.

The Flitch was perfect foil for me, flat & straight, I was able to open the legs up a little bit after the cross country around the forest. I just had to be wary around dogs, one seemed very keen to run with me so I waited for the owner to get them to obey before running once more. As I passed over a road leading to Hallingbury the route seemed to get a great deal narrower & then to an abrupt halt. There was a bridge but it lead to nowhere & appeared not safe for human consumption. For some reason I tried to ease myself down the drop off to my left, which on damp ground & in road shoes was silly, although I made it through unscathed. I followed the field & found myself at the M11 / A120 roundabout, not really an ideal running route, even at 7am! I looped back on myself, heading down the Hallingbury Road, realising the Flitch was a dead end & in search of an alternative.

A footpath soon appeared & as it was pointing to the west I decided to wing it & see where it would take me. A kilometre or so of farm fields was entertaining, though I got the impression I was lost once more. I still had the option to turn back & head through to Birchanger, but part of me wanted to find the right route. As I climbed the left hand side of a large field I could see the M11 running parallel to my right. There appeared to be no bridges, I knew there must be a route across but how far south would I have to run?

Out of the corner of my eye I spotted what might be a tunnel. Aware that having broken my glasses at Yateley my eyes might be deceiving me, I decided to take the conveniently positioned right turn through the field to get closer. Was this the nirvana I sought or a mirage resulting from an overdose on High 5 energy gels?

As it came further into view it certainly appeared to be a portal back to the promised land west of the M11. I had to work to get there though, running through an unkempt area of foliage. I’m not going to lie, there was a bit of excitement once I was sure this tunnel was indeed real! I paused for a photo & then made my way further west, where someone had kindly actually bothered to sign post the route! Farm fields changed to a golf course, but as I didn’t have a Pringle sweater to hand I carried on, finding tarmac for the first time in a while.

There really was light at the end of this

I had no idea where in Stortford I was, but a suspicion that I was close to the BSRC clubhouse. I was now into the final 10k, knowing that I’d want to be crossing the A120 back towards Stansted with around 4km left to go. Returning to pavement & tarmac certainly helped my rhythm, despite being out beyond my usual half marathon comfort zone I found my pace getting better.

After enjoying a downhill of Beldams Lane I decided to head towards the town centre, running through it & onto Rye Street for a nice loop to take me towards home. My fuelling had been decent, the first two High 5 gels had been added to with Nakd Cola Raisins at 19km, one further gel at 23km (ish) & a packet of the Honey Stinger pink lemonade chews in the 27^th kilometre. These were more agreeable earlier on in previous runs, something I should take into account for future long runs. I had plenty more options available should I find myself in trouble as I crossed the A120 & into the 30^th kilometre of a run for the first time.

Distance wise it looked like I would be slightly over, by virtue of my getting lost adventures, so I’d be taking the main road all the way home, without deviation. One thing that has made my running infinitely better was the move to Stansted back in 2011. Sitting on top of a hill, there is no way I can avoid them. This has its advantages, but on this occasion it meant that I had three moderate climbs separating me from home. The first took me past the Birchanger turning & as it flattened I reminded myself of what lay ahead.

After the second there was at least a nice downhill & my legs felt decent enough to stretch out a bit. I had just over a kilometre to go & attacked the final hill. All that lay ahead of me now was a flat, arrow straight pavement before the final approach to home. I let the legs go, they’d done their job now, what, if anything was left. With the last corner navigated my watched did its usual attention seeking routine at the end of a kilometre, 5:37 pace. I afforded myself a smile & some anglo saxon words, easing off as the house came into view.

32.11km, 3:19:34 @ 6:13/km pace.

Breakdown of the run

First 10k – 1:03:33 @ 6:21/km

Second 10k – 1:01:45 @ 6:10/km

Third 10k – 1:01:11 @ 6:07/km

Could I have run further? Probably, but I had run to a goal & that had been achieved. I had fuel left in the tank, something that was very reassuring. Upon finishing I was acutely aware that the increase in mileage had added some aches & pains that were not normally present. Both hamstrings were tight, something I’ve only ever experienced during lap 5 at Endure, so I’m pretty certain this is fatigue related.

Taking the running shoes off was hard work, supported by the kitchen units as I famed lack of flexibility plummeted to new depths! I was quick to source water & a glass of milk, poor planning on my part meant none of the chocolate variety was available! I took a photo. It’s not the prettiest photo, I'm dripping with sweat, but I'm happy, elated in fact. Just because I believed in myself beforehand didn't mean the performance itself wasn't a surprise.

This is a smile, honest.

After some time on the foam roller it was time to try & get myself into London for Hyper Japan. We’d already put back our meeting time by half an hour based on the length of my run & in the end it was a rush to even make it out the door, without breakfast, that would surely be a sensible idea…..

Quotes of the Run

“The Bridge, f*** yes!” – Realising I was no longer lost within Hatfield Forest

Bit of a fist pump – Finding my way into the tunnel underneath the M11

“Just two hills left” – Approaching Stansted, 31^st km

“You sick f***” – A 32^nd km clocked at 5:37 as I ran down my road towards home (not at my most articulate)

Hyper Japan

I’d always somehow missed previous incarnations of Hyper Japan. This time it was “bigger & better” than ever having moved to the o2. With a trip to Japan less than six months away Burak & I were keen to visit. After my 3 hour plus run I was looking to consume every bit of sushi on offer!

In an attempt to be sensible I decided to drive down to Redbridge & take the tube in, feeling that spending a day drinking when already in a massive calorie deficit might not be a good idea. The half hour drive was already causing runger, an emergency Orange Lucozade & White Chocolate KitKat purchase was required before I hopped (well limped like the giant cockroach in Men in Black) onto a train. Only after inhaling the chocolate in record time did I realise I had a Nakd bar in my pocked, for this specific purpose!!!

Once at the o2 the underwhelming nature of Hyper Japan began. Despite having tickets we had to queue to swap these to wristbands & the operation was not entirely slick. The exhibition itself was spread out over a few areas & didn’t feel that special. There were plenty of stalls, but apart from the gaming section nothing appeared to have a theme. The food court was a let-down, half a dozen stalls at best & a sushi van elsewhere offering Maki rolls.

Only a bit of sushi

After a few expensive sweet purchases, a trek to a retro gaming lounge (that really wasn’t worth it), a Kirin & a wander around the Nintendo exhibit we’d had enough, opting for Five Guys for some fuel. Maybe my expectations were too high, it just felt like a slightly disparate jumble sale at times though. The only thing it did do was confirm we’ll be spending a lot of Yen on KitKats! Rum & Raisin was particularly good!

Expecting to bring about this much back from the Japan trip

Mario touched us inappropriately!

The Conclusion

I don’t think I could have asked for a better week in terms of performance. The pace shown at eley still perplexes me slightly given the dearth of speed work I've done of late. I'm already signed up to return in August & the aim is to target 48:00 alongside Kendra & potentially Cindy from BFR. Sean is meant to be pacing us, though at the time of writing he hasn't got an entry. Now that I know the route I'm confident I can squeeze a bit more performance out, looking at my stats, I didn't cash in enough on the downhill 4th km. 

I've also dared to dream ahead of the Pride 10k in August. On a far flatter course than Yateley I'm going to target a 47:00. I believe I can better my PB. I'm going to try & stretch what is possible even further. Last year's Pride performance saw a 1:50 improvement, so I'm going to test myself with an ambitious target for this specific race. Even if I fall short, it has potentially to be a big PB. Yateley has shown me to trust how you are running.

As for the long run, I really enjoyed it. Enjoyment isn't usually a term associated with running for over three hours, but I came home smiling. I ran smiling as well. I got lost, I smiled, I got lost again, I smiled. I found some tarmac, I smiled some more. Even after a very good 18 mile run a fortnight previously I'd prepared myself for coming unstuck, potentially hitting the wall. Instead I found myself running stronger & faster as the run went on.

Physically I feel pretty good a few days removed, mentally I know what I'm capable of. A repeat performance would give me 70 minutes to finish the remaining 10k in Berlin. With a potential three 20 milers left in my training plan Given how well this run & the rest of my training has gone, it is tempting to set a new target for the marathon. You might think after the bold Pride 10k idea I'd agree, but for the marathon I want to be sensible.

More importantly, I don't want to cross the line feeling disappointed. I could change my goal to a sub 4:15 or 4:10. Who knows, I might even cross the line with that kind of time. That isn't the aim though. I chose a sub 4:30 target from day one of the plan & I'm not going to deviate. This goal needs to be achievable & if I divert my attention to something faster I run the risk of failure. The ultimate achievement is to finish, by setting a realistic time target I have every opportunity to be crossing the line with a smile.

Triple Bling Weekend

Strap yourselves in for one massive blog post folks, I could easily chop this into sizeable chunks, but given the gargantuan effort of the last week, it makes sense to keep it all together. The past week has been one of the most fun I've experienced, hard work throughout, but I wouldn't swap it for anything. The weekend especially left me with such a euphoric runner's high that it seems weird even writing about it now, a day removed with a slightly more melancholic outlook.
Whilst BBQing yesterday we were asked by a non running friend if running was fun. Sometimes fun is the wrong word, there are times when it is just about perfect though.

Making a change

Who'd have thought that a Vauxhall Astra might provide the inspiration I needed to make another change to my lifestyle. I'm spending a fair amount of time on the road at the moment & over the course of a 6 hour combined journey I found myself losing focus. As the M25 crawled delightfully on my way home I stopped off at my usual halfway point, the megalith Sainsbury's / M&S in London Colney. Normally when I head in, I pick up some chocolate & a sugary drink in an effort to wake myself up a bit, then get back on the road. Ok so on this occasion I still picked up a Toffee Kitkat (who wouldn't?), but I also picked up something that would change the course for the rest of the week.
I was due to work early for the rest of the week & leaving at twenty past six normally means that breakfast will be either a banana (unlikely), oatmeal & raisin cookies (more likely) or pain au chocolat (very likely) for the rest of the week, or a combination of the three. As my journey to Berlin continues & life itself is taking me in a completely new direction, I've started to look at myself a bit more objectively & think more about what I do & perhaps sometimes why. One conclusion I'm starting to make is that I have an unhealthy relationship with food. I don't eat big at meals, but I snack or at least I call it snacking, perhaps at times it is more of a binge. I'm also aware that I might be being overly harsh on myself, I do plenty of exercise these days so the occasional reward isn't to be condemned. I suspect the shitty past eight months have been a contributing factor, stress, anxiety & depression can manifest in different ways, some starve, some consume. I feel I've left the darkness behind me, got my head around everything now & feel in the best condition mentally I've been for a good time.
With this in mind, it was time to acknowledge that my snacking is more by way of habit currently & that I just needed to break the cycle. So rewinding back, my horde from Sainsbury's included a melon, some grapes & a pineapple. Once the M25 had released me from hire car mediocrity I was soon home & rather than let these items gather dust & rot away I chopped them all up & packed them into boxes. The idea being that I'd take some into work every morning, alongside a yoghurt (and not a Cadbury's Buttons one), removing the temptation & expense of a pain au chocolate.

Normally I only opt for chocolate covered fruit

Sure it is a minor change, but as someone that usually views fruit as the work of voodoo, one that is far healthier long term & might have a benefit in the short term as well. I'm also trying to remove that mid afternoon chocolate bar from habit, another baby step. As Monday moved into Tuesday I was sceptical that either would finish the week.....

To the forest

Core team member Paul had missed our summer route launch as a shortage of volunteers at our neighbouring in Harlow meant that he parachuted in to take on Timekeeping duties. I'm hoping he doesn't think the cost of the helicopter hire will be covered by our donation pot! We arranged to meet on Tuesday evening so that we could cover a lap of the summer route to run through the marshalling positions & cover off any other questions he had.
My walk home from the station an hour beforehand had involved hale stones, wind, flash flooding & by the time I was home I had to peel clothes off. The next hour involved rain checking constantly, even on the journey home there was another deluge. Thankfully for the run itself the sun came out nicely & the rain stayed away as we took on the Forest at an easy pace. It was good to catch up with Paul & discuss marathon plans. He was keen to know what my plan entailed & the thinking behind it, whilst I was equally keen to get his thoughts on his London experience & what lessons he'd learnt.
Soon we'd chatted our way round the route & onward back to the car park. I was genuinely pleased to be feeling no after effects from the long run on Sunday.

Have I ever mentioned how awesome the forest is?

And another change

On Wednesday evening I found myself parking in a place that I never knew existed, ready to take on something completely new to me. Josie from Unique Running Results had chatted to me briefly during a visit to parkrun about a new group she was trying to establish in Little Canfield. The aim was not a beginner's running group, more of a tune up for those already running.
Wednesday evenings work nicely for me & the opportunity for some structured coaching appealed so after missing the first two weeks due to work commitments I found the community centre on a shiny new housing estate ready to try some tempo running. I've been a fan of speed work for a couple of years, so to have a coach alongside to add some structure to it was something I was looking forward to.
There were just two of us in the class & we headed down to the Flitch Way. I was introduced to some new dynamic warm ups & stretches. We soon started with some 300m tempo runs, broken up by an easy 300m & some rest. For once my efforts did not resemble an increasingly diminishing return, in fact my last tempo was the fastest. It certainly got my heart rate going up into the 170's!
After a warm down I was back in the car & heading home. I'd felt the benefit of pushing myself straight away & looked forward to making another return to the group in the future.

A good start to tempos

A Long Saturday Begins

I'm realising that once you're an Event Director, if you find yourself at your home event, no matter the situation you're never really off duty. Out setup was a bit frantic, it looks as though we need a bit more time to put the summer route together. I had a few announcements before the run briefing & true to form I managed to remember most of them, only to recall once the runners had started there was something else to mention!
The run started in an interesting manner as everyone filtered through the setup for the finish! The joke became that I'd bought a new notebook to the event for ED notes & that I'd have filled it by the end. The event got even more fun as our scanners both decided to fail at various points & I stepped in from another role to take over scanning. Thankfully we have some awesome volunteers & one of our regulars assisted once she'd finished running to ease the strain on Paul as the Run Director for the day.
As the clock moved closer to 10 I started to realise that we were getting close to an attendance record. When runners 186 & 187 entered the final field without the tail runner we knew that today was going to be something special. With the final figure taking us to 190, a new record over our inaugural by 2.
To be up & over our inaugural total in just week 10 is extraordinary. The efforts to down play our first event certainly contributed, but the continued success & intrigue in parkrun shows just how appealing a run around the forest is.
We'd expected results to be migraine inducing. To our surprise & relief we had the tidiest set of results seen in some time. We knew runner #5 was missing & after publishing the results we've been trying to reach out on social media channels to reunite this runner with his time.

The Dark Ox 10k

I got home just after midday, just over three hours until I would be picked up for a trip down into Dorset. I had time to get all of the kit I needed set out for the weekend, making for the obligatory photo.

For once, having lots of kit made the weekend easy

My weekend had been planned for a while. The HBO 10k is a permanent fixture on the Bank Holiday Monday & this year I'd opted for the Westminster Mile to occupy my Sunday.
So when fellow Um Bongoist Emily suggested White Star Running's inaugural Dark Ox on the Saturday night I tried to decline. I didn't want to hotel it as I needed to be in London so I was good thanks. But wait, we're heading there & back in a day, driving straight back once finished. No really, I'm good, the WSR races are mental, surely I should conserve energy. You can have a lift so that you don't need to put the Alfa through another Dorset trip. No I really am good, I mean this mile thing, I could break Steve Cram's record couldn't I?

Yeah, but have you seen the medal?

And with that I signed up. I'm like a running Golum, show me the shiny & I'll subject myself to silliness.

We arrived with plenty of time & that gave us the opportunity to chat with some of the WSR team, claim another Um Bongo member (another parkrun ED in the making, showing that we really are all a bit daft) & also chatted to the team behind the Nuclear Races, who for fun visit WSR to run all the events in a weekend.

There was no Congo flag, so Team Um Bongo adopted South Korea, and a new idea was formed....

I'd mentioned to WSR Supremo Andy about the glow in the dark face paint he'd mentioned on Facebook & it emerged just before the start so I distributed to the masses & we started making ourselves look even more silly. It turns out writing Team Um Bongo on your arms is beyond my skill set so I opted for smeared arms & a silly face (to which I then added face paint, yes readers I even beat you to that punchline). I then spotted some blue paint & quickly added a Hulk Hogan style moustache that will surpass any real facial hair I will ever attempt!

Emily decided against the gurning contest

Once everyone was gimmicked up with paint it was time for the race to start, which it did so accompanied by a drone filming for a WSR promo. You'd hope that the drone had returned to ground & not seen everyone miss the first turn & then the field being send back upon itself! This made for a funky few minutes as those who were at the front had to make their way through on narrow trails.
The three of us had originally intended to run together, but Paul soon got separated from us & it made more sense for him to head on at his own pace. The early introduction to the trails appeared to have claimed several runners & we'd been slowed to a stop for a couple of narrow passages in the opening kilometres. Soon we were on wider trails & this allowed the field to spread out & runners to get into a rhythm.
There were a few puddles & as they were early on I decided on avoiding them. For this I was teased in jest by some ladies in front of us, to which I pointed out that they'd also taken evasive action. I'm not sure my line of I'll run through the next puddle if you do really counts as a chat up line! No one said singledom after 15 years would be easy!

Nope, no idea either....

Just before 2km we had a descend that required some discipline to get down. I was just about managing with some sideways running when the angle seemed to get a bit steeper. There was potential for damage here as with the slight change I felt myself building too much momentum. I had to find a way to bail out here & thankfully at the bottom of the hill was another path. Knowing that I didn't have the knowledge or technique to halt my movements I instead embraced it & took off down the hill & used the other path like a Formula 1 driver uses a run off area when they over cook a corner.
With use of the other path I was able to turn myself around & wait for Emily to make a far more sensible descend, after which we took on the accompanying hill. Yep that's right. Descend straight into a climb, par for the course with White Star Running!!! This hill didn't see too bad, though by the top of it we agreed that we might have been better served by easing off on this one. Thankfully the prospect of further hills was easily predictable so we'd have a chance to test out that theory.
To be honest I'm probably all over the place in terms of what happened & at what point during the run. The whole experience was new, night trail running, reliant on my head torch for the first time was a fun one, though I doubt I could have chosen a tougher course to complete my night running initiation on!
The idea to use the buff to keep warm seemed like a good idea before the start. Within the first couple of clicks I was handing my water bottle to Emily so that I could move it up and use as a bandana, it was causing me to overheat whilst around my neck.
After a view of the golf course we were back into the woods & accompanied by the smell of wild garlic, something Emily had read or heard about beforehand. After a climb that required a walk rather than a run based on diminishing returns we were down to single file & getting accustomed to shouting ROOT to warn other runners behind of hazards. The root suggestion came from a runner behind us, both Emily & I were being a bit to vague or descriptive to be of much help to our fellow runners.
As 8km approached we were treated to what felt like a massive hill, a 50 metre climb that we chose to walk, there was nothing to gain here. This accounted for our slowest kilometre, 8:02 & my suggestion of finishing in just over the hour was very much looking like wishful thinking. The tactic was now very much in the format of the Larmer Tree Half, walk the uphill, run the rest, just with the added factor of darkness thrown into the mix. Another climb, just after 9km to overcome & then we ran the gentle incline back to the start / finish line. We knew it was approaching as you could hear people.
Soon we emerged into the field & like the perfect running partner I'm not I got finish line fever & strode out, apologising to Emily once more for my ungentlemanly conduct!!!!!

Post run, with the bandana in tow I was like a trail running Hulk Hogan

Once over the line at an unofficial 1:12:59 we were reunited with Paul who had potentially achieved a top ten finish with a mid 52 (did I mention this was with a broken toe).
We picked up our luminous race t-shirt & glow in the dark medal & made our way back to the car. It was time to clean up a bit before the three hour journey back home. We'd stop for food somewhere en route & in order to appear slightly normal I suspected the bright blue moustache might have to go. Of course if I had planned ahead I might have a towel available to me. Instead I had to innovate & for once I was happy for sweating profusely during the run & christened my new Um Bongo t-shirt by wiping the face paint from my face!

Awesome Run Bling

After a celebratory Gu chocolate milk shared between us it was back into Emily's car & time to head north. We made quite the sight when we arrived at Fleet M3 services for about the best food we could manage at midnight, McD's. We weren't the only Dark Ox survivors there! I opted for my usual combo of 6 nuggets & a cheeseburger chaser. It was grim, but when laced with plenty of BBQ sauce it was at least effective! The guys dropped me off just before 2am & I could have easily Flair flopped into bed! Before I did that I had a quick scan of train times & set an alarm, for this was just chapter one of this weekend's story.

Dirty Food. Mmmmmmmmm dirty food.

Our next visit to a White Star Running event is for the Dorset Invader Half on July 18th. I've been assured (or potentially lied to) that it's completely flat & all on fresh asphalt. What I do know for a fact is that the medal is a Roman Shield, 4 inches by 3 inches!!! If I keep doing WSR events then I'm going to need more physio work on my neck!
I cannot recommend WSR events enough. In a world of homogeneous races that could take place anywhere, the guys at WSR stand out. They go the extra mile to put as much enjoyment & humour into some truly brutal courses as they can, rewarding you with awesome post race goodies & exceptional medals. I'm expecting the Dorset Invader to be the toughest weekend of the marathon plan, it could also be the most fun.

Westminster Mile

Thankfully my body clock's penchant for half five wake ups did not interfere with the need for a few more hours ahead of race 2 of TBW. I didn't make it all the way until 9am, but did get myself around six hours & enough time to scan through the test match highlights before driving down to Stortford to pick up a train into London.
Green Park is easy to get to when everything runs to plan & that is precisely what happened on Sunday, leaving me with at least an hour to kill before the parkrun wave started. I think this was the first race I'd be attending without anyone alongside so I wandered the park & dozed in the sun listening to podcasts to pass the time. On a lap of the park I spotted fellow parkrun tourist Steve Stockwell (copy7t on Twitter). He's now part of the core team at Dartford & on a slight hiatus from touring whilst the event establishes itself. We swapped parkrun stories & I thanked him for the advanced warning that Dartford was cancelled at the start of the month, leading to my Lullingstone visit.
After a toilet visit I found it was time to drop my bag off & make my way to the start. I still had plenty of time to go & spotted parkrun's Mr 500 Darren Wood, taking an opportunity to shake his hand. A remarkable achievement that he modestly puts down to being in the right place at the right time. A pat on the back from parkrun founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt as he passed me & after a slight wait for the Sweatshop wave to clear ahead of us I took an opportunity to take in the surroundings.
I spotted another parkrun tourist Mike Bristow (urglecom on Twitter) & checked in with him following his Run Director debut the day previously. He's seen me tweet about the fun we'd had the day previously, being on the other side of the fence certainly increases the sympathy you have for other events when you hear of their issues.

parkrun wave starting to fill up

For the last few minutes I kept myself to myself, focusing on getting loose, running a mile would be a new experience for me. My only strategy was to hammer it, assume 100% fitness & treat it like the first third of a parkrun. Put everything in & see just what was possible.
There is a kind of unadulterated joy about running such a short distance. I knew that I could run as close to my limit as possible, just let the legs go & to hell with the consequences. What was the point in holding back, the opportunity to run a timed mile is a rare one.
After the first corner a steel band was on hand, cranking out Whitney Houston's I Wanna Dance with Somebody, an interesting adaptation! I found myself in a decent rhythm, not that my Strava output suggests this. The first km was completed in 4:33 & with the finish just a corner away I carried on pushing, dropping the pace down to 4:12/km as I crossed the line in 7:13.
I chatted briefly in the finish area with Paul Sinton-Hewitt, extending the invite to Hatfield Forest & thanking him for parkrun & the enjoyment it brings, quite how this came across with the post mile recovery I'll have no idea, but as parkrun has been around for over a decade I'm sure he's used to dealing with barely coherent runners!
I spotted Mike once more & chatted on the way back through goody bag & luggage pick up. He did the honours with the obligatory Buckingham Palace photo & we agreed that visiting each other's events would be forthcoming. After chatting to a Fulham Palace based tourist I got myself changed into slightly more normal attire & headed out of Green Park.

Apparently the Queen was watching all races intently

I was very satisfied with my time, knowing I'd pushed myself as far as I could at present. My fastest 5k sits at 23:08 & this measures up very nicely with that, though there is no chance I could sustain this pace over triple the distance. I'm tempted to pay Chelmsford parkrun a visit as that would give me a fair impression of where I stand in terms of speed at the moment.
I had a mere 4 hours to get home & turned around back out to the Forest so wanted to find food as quickly as possibly before heading out of London. I'd made my mind up to visit either Jamie Oliver's Hot Dog stand or wrap heaven at Jumbo Eats, both near Piccadilly Circus. As I wandered in that direction I had a light bulb moment, just before the hot dog place was the Japan Centre. That was the decision made then & I picked up a salmon sashimi & rice bowl for consumption on the train home & treated myself to a big platter of random sushi for the evening.

Might have overdosed on sushi. Still no idea what some of them were

Oh hello again Forest

After a quick spin of Stortford to pick up BBQ essentials (had kind of forgotten charcoal up to that point) I found myself with a bit of time at home to start tidying up ahead of guests arriving on the Monday. My pile of filing had gotten so large that one of the cats had chosen to sit on it. With the cricket on the TV I felt this was a perfect opportunity to watch a bit of the action & make a start on sorting paperwork. Topper felt he could assist as well, laying across me or on various piles, I suspect that as a cat he's not completely aware that his assistance might be viewed as a hindrance!
It was soon time to head across to Hatfield Forest & give the proposed special event alternative route a spin. I was met by fellow RD Paul, Simon & Amy who are also heavily involved with the volunteering side of HFPR.
After our walk the week previously I'd made a couple of adjustments virtually to the route in order to get the distance spot on without the need for every decreasing circles in the finish field. Now the route follows a familiar start that is used for all of our courses, keeping a nice bit of consistency.
Some nice easy running was all I could muster & I felt like I was holding everyone back, but they were kind enough to stick to my very gentle trot.
The route was well received by all & finishes in a nice style around the big tree in Shell House car park. I think our runners will like it a lot & if it provides us with another option then in the long term the extra work will be worth it.
I asked the guys for their thoughts on my Saucony Kinvara's as we debriefed in the car park after the run. My fear is that despite only 350km in them, their lightness combined with my heaviness has brought them to the end of their useful life. They were fine on the mile earlier in the day, but the long run of a fortnight previous had been a painful experience. My suspicions were confirmed, neither Paul or Simon would run in the shoe in the state it is now, so it looks like my super fast & light shoes are heading for retirement. Turns out I'd picked up the Mizuno's just in time & I'll now think about my trainer strategy before introducing another pair as Berlin grows ever closer.
Once home, I found that I was well & truly knackered. I struggled my way through the funky sushi platter, a combination of eyes being bigger than stomach & tiredness. I realised I could achieve nothing with the evening, ran & bath & took an early night. I could tidy up in the morning, rest was a priority.

Hatfield Broad Oak 10k

I was up at around quarter past six & the decision made the evening before to take an early night was immediately vindicated as I had some energy! A quick double take of the mirror & I realised that I had quite an awesome bed hair mohawk. I'm not quite ready to unleash that kind of look on the public but it did give me a giggle.
The early start also gave me a good two & half hours to tidy the house & get the pulled pork for the BBQ into the slow cooker. I achieved most of what I needed to before leaving the house & also ensured I'd packed my flip flops for the post race so that my feet could get some air.
One thing I didn't check was the weather forecast beforehand, presuming it would be warm & cloudy like the past couple of days. As I loaded up the Alfa I was oblivious to the slightly sinister clouds & more concerned with getting the right tunes on! Music has been a constant throughout life (listening, I have bugger all talent) & after the performances so far over the weekend I was in a really positive mood so wanted something to reflect this. I flicked through the selection of CDs in the Alfa (2003 tech at it's finest) & found the perfect bit of pre race funk....

Playing today on Radio Alfa....

As I got into Takeley I realised that in the car ahead were Jim & Katrina who helped get the parkrun off the ground. I was suddenly self conscious, hopefully they'd not spotted me enjoying the music a bit too much!
I followed them into Broad Oak & we chatted briefly, Katrina was coerced into taking the big parkrun photo in exchange for an ice cream. In my brief tenure as an ED I'm learning that bribery can work wonders!
Emily & Paul had spotted me & we wandered around the village to acquaint ourselves with the new start / finish locations before heading onto the village green. Suddenly I noticed the difference between this & previous years. I now recognised far more people from the parkrun & made an effort to say hello & wish folks well in the upcoming race. We visited the t-shirt table to ask for a sneak peak of the this years colour, a slightly blue grey, very similar to my Stockholm Half shirt from 2012. The quality of the print appeared to have been improved & the event emblem was now the sole feature of the front, with sponsors on the back. We enquired about the medals & were told that they were just for the kids race, this was confusing as we were sure they'd been some special 30th anniversary bling advertised. After a brief joke about leaving it was time to focus on getting race ready. Toilet, car to drop stuff, warm up, toilet, line up for the start. The provision and / or positioning of the toilets could do with a a bit more thought. I think the number of portaloos was similar to previous years, but they were previously supplemented by the village hall. There were queues, but then that is also a good way to kill 10 minutes before the race begins.

Team Um Bongo pre race

I had no real plan going into this race. I knew that I wasn't in PB form & lined up in the 55 minute pen with the idea that if I can hang onto that pace for as long as possible then with a perceived slower course I'd be relatively happy with that kind of time. Alec made his way further forward, he'd be looking for a sub 50. Paul stayed by Emily's side, looking to run an easy 55 with her as well, though both weren't feeling 100% after the marathon the week previously, Paul's toe breaking yoga exploits & the brutality of the Dark Ox (at least they'd not run twice since then).

Reservoir Dogs style....

The crowd lurched forward a couple of times as the timing pens closed up with the race start imminent. In previous years the start had been loud & clear, I think they'd even been a PA system blasting Chariots of Fire or something to add to the race start atmosphere. This time around there didn't appear to be that luxury, but given the movement of those ahead the race appeared to have started.

Suspect my race pace might have been improved by performance enhancing hair....

The course layout intrigued me. The old figure of 8 still existed but was being run in a different order, the smaller loop first, then a reverse of the larger loop, guaranteeing a nice downhill finish. This would also remove the biting uphill finish of old & the congestion around the village hall that was becoming a bit too much in the past couple of years. The question remained, how would this change the race itself, I was sceptical about the five minutes slower statement.
I started pretty much bang on target pace with a 5:28 kilometre, following with a 5:34 on the drag of a climb out of the village. This used to be the 6.5 to 8km climb & was always the lowest point in the race for me previously. Here the pace was still good & having a start of a race atmosphere certainly appeared to help me. I was making progress through the field & knew that I had some shade (not really a factor today) & downhill to follow. In the early stages of the race my competitor chip felt like it was rubbing & having seen the damage done to a fellow runner a month previously I was determined not to look down just in case I was slowly shredding my own ankle.
I caught up with HFPR super marshal Andrea & paced with her for a little while. She was handicapped with the lurgy & implored me to carry on & not let her slow me down. With the course flattening out & my rhythm feeling pretty good I took her advice, said goodbye & got my head down.
A third km of 5:12 & a 5:22 to follow surpassed my expectations. It was ok though, to get to half way I had to climb what used to be the finish & then head up into the village itself. Descending past where the finish used to be my right shoulder was becoming next to useless. It felt a bit dodgy during a pre race warm up, here it was being of no help. I dropped it to my side to see if not using at all would alleviate the issue.
That was pointless though as you need to use your damn arms! Despite the discomfort, Vicky from Harlow parkrun was at the top of the hill to support us & I made a point to head across & high five (left arm), my attempts to mask the pain with a smile appear to have failed spectacularly given the resulting photo! My high five claimed another victim, I really should have forewarned Vicky that you have to really commit when offering me a high five, my enthusiasm for a mid run high five is similar to that of Todd from Scrubs.
I knew that as the pain wasn't in my legs & directly stopping me running that I just had to carry on regardless & the crowd support was actually lifting my performance with a 5th kilometre of 5:06. I threw some water over myself at the aid station, hoping the cool water might have some benefit to the shoulder & begun the gentle climb out of the village as the bigger loop begun. Halfway through in 26:47, under target for a 55 minute run.

Approaching 5km (we started downhill), was not in a happy place

We'd be climbing until the 8km marker & it was the 6th kilometre where I started to feel the post village atmosphere malaise. The pace slowed down, well reverted back to the target pace of 5:30. It was between 6 & 7km that Paul passed me, approaching with the Um Bongo theme (he's made it his mission to memorise the whole thing before Endure 24) & after a brief chat leaving me to it having been let off the leash by Emily at halfway.
Jim had come into view, giving me some focus. I find I run better when I identify other runners & attempt to match or surpass them & this was no different. The fatigue of the weekend's efforts was starting to manifest in my legs & the water bottle was limited to one arm now, but cardio seemed fine & the mind was fully engaged. I'd hazard a guess that this was the best I'd felt whilst running this year. I had no time pressure, easy 6 minute clicks would get me home within target time & my ailments were manageable.
I slowly started to reel Jim in, with a 5:24 followed by a 5:13 8th kilometre. At around 8 I drew level, just as he was looking to tail off to the side & walk for a moment. I caught him at just the right time & urged him to stick with me, encouraging him that he was on for a great time & we could run this in together. I knew that the course was going to favour us shortly & Jim found his groove again. We chatted for a bit to pass the time before the final push, the conversation providing a distraction from a marshal imploring us there was just a km left (try 1.5) & that I was slowly taking us through the gears.
As we finally did pass that last kilometre marker the descend got even more favourable & I decided it was time to give it everything. It was time for one final push & my pace dropped down below the 5 minute mark for the first time in the race. Weirdly I found myself tearing up a little on the downhill, I'd like to think this was just a cross wind & my sheer speed rattling my eyes around a bit too much. In truth I think there was a bit of elation at how well the run had gone & a realisation that it would have been Dad's 61st birthday.
I'd started running on May 25th 2010, bizarrely not realising it was his birthday until after the first run, it was all a happy coincidence. Back in the here & now I found myself storming to the finish line. I was smiling as I approaching, at least I thought I was until Vicky saw me & shouted at me to try smiling, I suspect I was pulling my usual race photo face! I tried even harder to smile & got ready for a finishing pose, only to realise there wasn't a photographer! Jim followed momentarily afterwards, using the large hole I was punching in the air to good effect!
I was slightly flummoxed by the time on my Garmin, only to then have it confirmed by the official results. 52:37!!!! This mean a return in 25:50 & a massive negative split!
Post race there was a bit of a queue to get through t-shirts, water & oranges, I cooled down a bit too much in a sweaty vest, not overly ideal. Despite the huge amount of space now available, this wasn't quite as slick as it could have been. This was the first year of the new finish area though & teething troubles are natural. It made a huge amount of sense to move & once the t-shirt was collected there was plenty of space to mill about & catch up with other runners.

Post run smiles

There was indeed no medal & it appears this is due to a communication issue. The HBO 10k is all kinds of awesome, but communication isn't their strongest suit. I spent 3 months prior to the event trying to contact them to head down to the parkrun to promote & recruit runners and / or volunteers & got a reply only for my response to hit a postmaster fail. I think the changes they've made this year made a lot of sense & with further thought will improve the racing experiences. As for the medal itself, I counted the t-shirt as my run bling.
I was euphoric with my time & was eager to hear how everyone else had got on. Paul had gone on to catch up with Alec & give him the boost he needed to get a sub 50. Emily wasn't far behind me with a mid 53, shelving all of her ailments once more to deliver a very solid time. Everyone seemed to be happy with their results & the consensus was that the course definitely wasn't a whole five minutes slower.

A justified reward

We made our way to the car park in order to get layered up, then took on the obligatory post race ice cream. We had time to complete a lap of the village festival before heading back to the ice cream van for our Hatfield Forest parkrunners photo. At quarter to one we had assembled 30 of us (another 5 were stuck in the burger van queue) & quickly posed in our post race shirts before everyone escaped for the warmth of their cars or the pub. Lot's of post race smiles in between the shivers!
With the photo done it was time to head home & get the BBQ stuff ready.

Hatfield Forest parkrunners post race photo

Post Run BBQ

For the past 5 years my HBO visit has been combined with a bank holiday BBQ to follow in the afternoon. Just because I was flying solo this year didn't mean that the BBQ would be scuppered. Emily & Paul were heading back to assist, Suz & Matt also showed up in advance to help with any preparation. Vicky also turned her one functioning hand post high five to put a salad together. With some funky music in the background it was like a BBQ sweatshop! In truth, without their support I'd have probably still been preparing stuff into the evening, I was perhaps a bit too ambitious!!

Post BBQ refreshments

We might have also over delivered on the food front, meaning I have a week of leftovers to look forward to! I now need to ask Suz what her marinade recipes are as I gave her carte blanche to use anything in the kitchen & she created two amazing mixes to accompany the BBQ cornflake chicken.
As was apparent during the HBO, the sun had decided not to shine upon us on this bank holiday so Paul & Matt stayed outside on BBQ duty whilst everyone else enjoyed some relative warmth inside.
To enjoy some great food alongside friends, old & new really put a cherry on top of what had been an awesome weekend. In the background the England team even won a game of cricket, you couldn't make this stuff up!

No need to cook for a week, or two, or three....

The Conclusion Part One

A weekend that surpassed all of my expectations. The Dark Ox was even tougher than I thought & the sense of achievement in finishing irrespective of the time is something I'd have struggled to contend with even a year ago.
My performance over the mile was far better than I could have imagined. Running free can be hugely empowering. I had no idea how fast I could be, now I'm intrigued to see how much faster I could be!
As for the HBO, it remains my favourite event in the running year. This year added a whole new dimension in terms of engagement & I think it positively reflected in my performance. Not sure my mega quiff was quite so performance enhancing, it was certainly a bit more aerodynamic!
Mentally I feel I'm in a good place at the moment. Good might even be an understatement, I have a confidence with my running & around running that I've not experienced before. I might have had quicker races but I'm not sure that I've had a better race than Monday's 10k. My positivity got me through the physical pains along the way, teaching me that winning the mental battle will get me across the line in Berlin. It's as if after five years the penny has finally dropped & in answer to the question posed earlier, running is indeed fun.

The Conclusion Part Two

I couldn't have asked for a more enjoyable weekend. To do something you enjoy & share it with friends is something special. The past year hasn't been the kindest, but I'm rebuilding & I've discovered that by approaching things with a more positive outlook you in turn open up more opportunities.
Don't worry, I'm not going to become all preachy, my inner cynic still exists! Sometimes life takes a different course & now that my head has got round that I'm embracing the change.
Before, during & after the race on Monday I realised just how awesome being a parkrun Event Director is. In ten short weeks we've seen a community start to build, you start to notice regulars, regulars start to notice other regulars & suddenly you realise just how great that is.
Len & Gerry had touched upon the positives from the role. On Monday I got to see the happiness others had from their results, having an interest in how they performed & feeling pride in their achievements. As we got ready for the photo it astounded me that in such a short space of time we already had the community that every parkrun aspires to achieve. Over the course of Monday, even as we moved away from the event & the photo made it onto Facebook & folks start tagging themselves you realise that not only do you think there might be a community, but others want to be part of that community. When I was spluttering incoherently to Paul Sinton-Hewitt the day prior, this is what I was trying to thank him for, but then again, he probably knew that. As my chat with Len shows, being an ED is awesome, you could be one too.

Len & I get very deep with some of our chats

Well done for getting to the end, sadly there is no prize.........

Oh alright then, you can have a prize