South Downs Way 50

7 Things I learned at the 2013 South Downs Way 50:

1. Centurion Running have set the standard for ultra distance races
The organisation was like a hot knife through butter: amazing race marking; fantastic aid stations with all the food, drink and high-fiving encouragement you need to have a good race.  They also kept everyone safe in difficult conditions.  Worth every penny of the entry.

2. If you're going to have a song stuck in your head for 8 hours it might as well be a catchy hip hop song about charity shops
I'm goin' pop some tags/only got $20 in my pocket...

3. The hardest miles in an ultra aren't always at the end.
Miles 16-26 were definitely the hardest of the race for me.  This was the point where the weather started to turn, fatigue started to set in and my knee started hurting.  A runner, who went on to be the first lady, caught me at this point and was running at a super consistent pace.  I decided to try and match this and that got me through to the next aid station.  The next 24 miles, despite the weather, felt a lot better. 

4. Coffee flavoured gels are not tasty.
But hey, free gels at aid stations- what-cha-going-to-do?  Chocolate and raspberry were nicer.

5. The weather in April can be changeable.
The first 16 miles were pretty warm and at times sunny, but then came the wind, and then the rain and then the cloud and the next thing you know you're running 30 miles in a storm.

6. Races have a required kit list for a reason.
When I splashed out on a Montane Minimus to make sure I had a light weight waterproof (with taped seams) to meet the requirements of the kit list, part of me thought- is this really necessary?  It was really necessary.

7. Whilst it's a bit sad to have a running blog and use it to subtly boast about your running achievements, I'm well chuffed to run my first 50 miler in 8:24:40 and finish in 10th place.
Just sayin...    

Cambridge Boundary Run 2013 & Fell running in the Pennines

The Cambridge Boundary Run is a marathon distance tour of the outskirts of the city via road, path, field, and bridge. Whilst flat the (unmarshalled) road crossings, gates and styles combined with the variety of surfaces and small number of water stations mean its not a pb course.  What you do however get for a bargin 10 quid entry is a well marked course, a great (although low key) atmosphere and the chance to take part in an even that's been going for over 50 years.
 
Going into the race I had mixed expectations. Part of me saw it as a training race for the upcoming SDW50; but at the same time I also wanted to run a marathon at a reasonable effort and get a good time and position.
 
What I ended up with was probably a mixture of the two. The first half I ran with my friend Tim who was running the half and paced me perfectly to mile 11 at 3:15 marathon pace before he sped up for the finish of his race. I felt good into the second half keeping the pace consistent but around the 18 mile mark things started to slow down and my target finishing time was recalculated in my mind to 3:20 and then 3:30. It didn't get to the point I had to walk or that i wasn't enjoying myself but it was clear I didn't have the miles in my legs to keep up the pace. In the end I finished in 3:32:55 and inside the top 25- I think I can live with that.

I think if I learnt anything from Cambridge it's two things: 

First off, however many marathons or ultramarathons you run (I'm up to 9 now), you have to respect the distance- somehow I'm always surprised about how much harder it is to run after 20 miles than it is after 10.  

Running is best with mud and hills.   As it happens I've just got back from holiday in the Pennines where in pretty snowy conditions I got to go out on three great runs up and around Cross Fell.  Deep snow meant I never made it to the top of Cross Fell, but got to put in some great miles up and down the trails, across rivers, through bogs and down long snowy descents.  

Cross Country 2012/13

Cross country is great- isn't it?  The mud, the hills, the competition, the elbows, the spikes - the coming together of folk who love to run to slug it out across a muddy field in the depths of winter. 

For some reason before I joined a running club I was never that sure about xc- yes I liked running trail and off road races but somehow xc, with its club only status, running spikes and multiple laps seemed just too associated with track athletics.  But I was wrong and it's now a big component of my running year- and the 2012/13 season saw me run in 3 Surrey League matches, the Surrey Championships and the National Championships.  I'm not going to go into detail on how I ran, aside from I ran them all as hard as I could, enjoyed myself and as is the case with the level of cross country competition found myself often in the later half of the field.

The Nationals however need a special mention.  Last year after the amazing experience that was Parliament Hill I knew, wherever it would be the next year, I wanted to run it again.  This resolution was tested when they announced Sunderland would be the 2013 host- but non the less 6 plucky runners from the club agreed to join me up north and with that we had a team.

On paper the Sunderland course is probably quicker than Parliament hill, but on paper you don't have calf deep mud for 95% of the course.  It was a pretty epic experience- definitely the hardest xc match to date- but as much as it hurt there's nothing like pelting it down a hill, through a bog and then out the other side.

Can't wait for the 2013/14 season (but in the mean time there's the small matter of the Cambridge Boundary Marathon next week and the SDW50 in April)

New years day parkrun loop

To mark the new year I combined three of my favourite running activities:

1) parkrun
2) long runs
3) pointless challenges.

I left the house just after 8 and ran the 5 and a bit miles to Lloyd Park in Croydon ready for the 9 o'clock parkrun.  After a very muddy but enjoyable 5k (21:49, 4th), I jogged the sububan 2 miles to Roundshaw parkrun  for the 10 o'clock event.  Another soggy 5k later (22:22, 12th) I was ready for the 3 and half miles home, rounding off a nice morning out of 17 miles of running.  A good start to the year, the start of my ultra training for SDW50 and some speed work ahead of cross country next week (for which the sliding round has inspired me to buy some spikes).  A proper multi-tasking run.

New Shoes...

2012; the year that was...

Stats for the year:

Total miles: 1347.9
Total no. of runs: 174
Average distance: 7.75
Average weekly distance: 25.9
No. of races (including xc and parkrun): 23

So then, the last run of the year is over and the stats are in.  Compared to last year I've done slightly less miles over slightly more runs bringing my average distance down from 8.3 to 7.75- but training wise its really been quite a similar year.  I think the non-racing highlight was over the summer where I took advantage of the light evenings and ran a lot of trail miles after work.

Race wise, there are a few highlights that particularly standout.  The National Cross Country Championships at Parliament Hill has to be the most unique start to a race I have taken part in- as over 1500 runners surged up Parliament Hill.  As much as I love the longer stuff cross country does have a special place in my running heart and you don't get a better xc race than the nationals.   The Olmpicnic ultramarathon was definitely my best race of the year both in terms of enjoying the race its self and my performance- it was one of those days where you can feel the training paying off as I started another steep ascent of Box Hill. 

Looking ahead to 2013 the year starts with cross country matches in January and February (including the nationals up in Sunderland), amongst this I need to start ratcheting up the miles ahead of some solid training in late Feb/early March and the South Downs Way 50 in April.  After this I have no particular plans; depending on how I feel after SDW50 I think I'll either have a crack at some more ultras or maybe for a change concentrate on running something shorter as fast as I can.

Happy New Year.

"Winning"

This December I've been making a vested effort to haul myself out of bed on a Saturday morning to make it down to a parkrun; and despite the inclement weather I've parkrun'd 3 weeks in a row (Roundshaw, Nonsuch, Roundshaw).  I realise this is what some people do every week of the year, but for me this is somewhat of a record.

Roundshaw Downs is probably my favourite parkrun in the area I've done.  It's got a great atmosphere, a hill and a tendency to be muddy.  I think that's what your after on a Saturday morning.  What is also interesting is that Roundshaw tends to not extract the fastest runners- possible because its far from a PB course.  This means that for runner like me, who like a good muddy hill, it means that finishing in the top 5 is a regular occurance.  First place, however, until recently has always alluded me.

This most recent Saturdays was what you might call a 'perfect storm' for a potential win at Roundshaw.  It was pissing it down and blowing a gale- the perfect weather to keep those lily livered fast runners at home! 

There were only 40 or so at the start and a small group of 5 or so set off from the front.  About half way round the first lap I was in third and as we approached the start of the second lap the guy who was winning pulled out (stomach issues) and I passed the guy in second.  I was now in first place- which came with it a feeling of elation (Yeah! I'm first) and fear (the metaphorical hear to the other runners hounds).  I dug in, ran through the middle of every puddle to keep some kind of racing line, and somehow managed to hold on to this position to win my first ever parkrun.

Now I know that every race has to be taken in context, and winning a parkrun on a wet morning the Saturday before Christmas is very much a context that needs to be taken into account-  but it sod it, it was great!

But do not fear, there's little likelihood of me getting too big for my boots, cross country season starts back up in January where it is always a battle to keep up with the middle of the pack let alone the front! 

Pirie 10

The Pirie 10 is a two lap cross country race in Farthing Downs near Coulsdon.  Farthing Downs is where I head out for many of my long runs and is a stunning piece of undulating downland that I've always thought would be a good place to have a race.  As it happens the South London Harriers, based in Coulsdon think so as well and have been running a number of races on the downs for a long time.

Race day prep didn't exactly go to plan.  A late bus meant that I missed a connection and arrived just after 10 giving me 20 minutes to register, get changed, pin my number to my shirt and complete the 5 minute up hill jog to the start line.  I made it there just as they announced the 5 minute warning.  In some ways this was a blessing as it was not a day to be hanging around in the cold.

The course basically goes gradually up for the first mile or so, followed by a descent, a mile or so on the flat.  After this you climb out of the valley and then it undulates, but manly downhill back to the start for lap 2.  It's mainly footpaths with one pretty muddy section through a field.  There was a heavy frost so in the shade there was a nice glint to the ground in the winter sun.

Due to the cold, the ground was frozen solid which made for fast conditions compared to the mudfest of recent running.  I was felling pretty good and after the initial miles settled into a good pace with a few runners around me.  I competed lap 1 in about 33:30 which was faster than I imagined and started to worry it would all go wrong on lap 2.  Luckily however there was a Collingwood runner who was hanging on the whole way round lap 2- and with inter-club rivalry in mind I couldn't let him pass me!  Somehow I managed to finish in 1:07:03- getting my self 26th place and a new PB for the distance.

The Pirie is a really good, grass routes, club organised race.  No bells or whistles just honest hard running on great trails with tea and cake afterwards.  I am definitely going to try and enter some of their other races on the downs, which include a midweek 10k series over the summer and a 5 miler in October.

In other news I have a target race for 2013; the Centurion South Downs Way 50.  From now till Christmas I'm just going to enjoy running the odd park run and whatever training I feel like.  In the new year the training proper starts...