RR10: Manor Farm

Manor Farm Country Park is a beautiful spot on the Hamble Valley.  It was a sunny evening and there was a busy turnout - so much so that parking proved a challenge for many. I arrived unusually early (for me) having arrived off the train from London at Southampton Parkway a few minutes earlier, and changed out of my suit while cars cruised around forlornly looking for spaces.

What a great course! The first section was very technical; a narrow wiggly path through thick woods with twists, turns, branches and roots all over the place.  Then onto more open terrain where I overtook a few runners but was conscious that I was working hard - in fact, right at the top of my threshold.  Then down onto the edge of the Hamble river and finally a murderous, terrible hill towards the finish.  I lost a couple of places here, not least to Mark Causebrook, whom I'd overtaken earlier, and I collapsed in exhaustion at the finish.  I was as wiped out as I have been for a long time.

The result - 23rd place which is bang in the middle of my range this season.  Here are the results so far.

The 2013 bike ride

On Saturday my friend Paul and I cycled 211 km through Hampshire, Wiltshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire.  Here's the route:

We set off at 5am in glorious early morning sunshine, and arrived back home at 5pm after an excellent but quite challenging ride.

Here are the stats:
Distance: 211.93 km
Travelling time: 9:35:25
Average speed: 22.1 km/h
Max speed: 61.9 km/h

Here's a profile of the route:

The hardest bit was heading south and immediately encountering Blowingstone Hill... and from there it was almost all in to the teeth of a brisk south-westerly wind.  It got easier on the big descent from Coombe Gibbet!

A fabulous day out!

RR10: Alver Valley

It was the first time I'd done this course.  It's a long journey to a spot between Lee-on-the-Solent and Gosport; not easy to get to in the evening rush hour and on top of that it was an uninviting day; drizzly and windy.

I dithered a bit about whether to go, but I was swayed by the thought that if the turnout was lower then I had better chance of a good result.  Having arrived at the venue cutting the timings a bit fine, off we went around Alver Park.  It's a curious place; partly wetland nature reserve, partly an infilled landfill site, and there was something quite atmospheric about the bleak and slightly salty seaside air blowing around this rather blasted but verdant landscape. 

We criss-crossed the southern part of this area until I lost all sense of the route, and it was only the strong wind that helped provide any sense of direction.  Mist and drizzle were everywhere.  I ran well, and was pleased to overtake Mark Causebrook from Hardley who had beaten me at Stoney Cross.  However, I found the last little lap adjacent to the finish line a struggle.  With no runners close by in front or behind I nodded off a bit and was beaten in the final metres by David Coak from Eastleigh.

Final result: 17th place, which was excellent, although buoyed by reduced numbers.  That puts me in 14th place in the overall standings to date.

Romsey Beer Race

Yesterday I ran the Romsey Beer Race.  It's a 5-mile course around the lanes of Braishfield, and at the end they give you a pint of beer and a slice of cake.  How cool is that?

The weather is doing that rare and wonderful British thing - settled summer weather with warmth and sunshine all round.  The whole event had a lovely atmosphere and was wreathed in gorgeous early-summer colours.

I made an effort to set off at a sensible pace.  A slight drag uphill for the first mile, where I glanced at my watch - 6:05.  Hmmm... that made sub-30 minutes seem a bit challenging.  The next mile was quicker with a gentle downhill component and I hit 2 miles at 11:40, making it a brisk 5:35 for the second mile.  I was paying less attention to the clock than to two familiar faces around me; Dan and Jim, who have been my main competitors in the RR10s this year.  I left Dan behind (turns out he had a cold) but at halfway I was tucked  behind three runners including Jim.

This little group pulled away in the second lap, especially when we caught up with the tail end of lap 1 runners and it became harder to concentrate on the competition.  The last km or so was hard work with no one close in front or behind.  I was thrilled to finish in 29:46, nicely under the 30 barrier.

A super morning out.  The beer and cake were both delicious!