This was my first proper run in nearly two weeks, after suffering from a January bug that threw a great series of pestilences; fever, then a sore throat, then uncontrollable 50-a-day coughing fits and finally great hanky-filling quantities of dreadful orange-green slime. Despite being a wonderful patient, not running, or doing anything terribly interesting, was making me despair.
And then this morning the Lovely Mrs S and and I found ourselves in Broadlands park for the Romsey 5, a race I'd last done in 2016. Mrs S was also returning to racing after knee trouble, so we were both thrilled to be there. It was a mild morning, the sun was threatening to peep through, and the atmosphere was terrific.
A small warm-up confirmed that I remembered how to run (part of me was doubtful), and after saying hello to lots of familiar faces we were off.
I was a bit foolish. I had planned to go off nice and sensibly for the first mile, and take it from there. But no, I went off at a proper race pace, clocking my first km at 3:35, and found myself with Kath Bailey and Alan Graham, two of my adversaries. I stayed with them for the first two laps, but by 5k I was starting to lose it. My legs were fine, but my poor lungs were struggling to keep up and I panted for the remainder of the race, hanging on by my fingernails.
In 2016 I had had a great finish, taking Kath out in the final furlong. This time, both Alan and Kath were some way ahead, and I heaved over the line in 30:24.
What a terrific local race! 900 runners, very efficient and friendly organisation, super atmosphere.
This was not a great performance. I had set off fast and steadily deteriorated over the 5 miles, finishing around 70 seconds slower than last time. But I was delighted. In the context of the the last awful 2 weeks, it was wonderful to get my legs, lungs and heart moving again. Spring is in the air, and the game's afoot.
Sunday, 28 January 2018
Sunday, 14 January 2018
George Skeates Stockbridge XC
Third race of the weekend!
There was a good RRR crowd in Stockbridge town hall. Outside it was a cool 5 degrees but very calm. It was a very laid-back start - with just a few words we were ushered on to the high street and given the nod.
I found the first four hundred metres tough going with heavy legs. We went up the hill past Test Valley school and then on to trails.... and I relaxed into it as we continued uphill, enjoying the sensation of the open air and the chalk landscape. Neil Jennings was already well ahead by now.
Parts of the course were familiar but much of it was new. It was wonderfully peaceful, and the course was superbly signposted. We went through a wood with twisty turns everywhere which was a lot of fun. It was dry underfoot and good firm going - a bit of a novelty.
At 8km I crested the biggest hill (112m), after which it was a long downhill and almost dead flat for the final 3k. A dash down the high street, and I finished in third place, two and a half minutes behind Neil. Here are my stats.
This is a fabulous local event - informal, low-key but really well thought through. We'll be back for sure!
There was a good RRR crowd in Stockbridge town hall. Outside it was a cool 5 degrees but very calm. It was a very laid-back start - with just a few words we were ushered on to the high street and given the nod.
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| The Romsey gang |
I found the first four hundred metres tough going with heavy legs. We went up the hill past Test Valley school and then on to trails.... and I relaxed into it as we continued uphill, enjoying the sensation of the open air and the chalk landscape. Neil Jennings was already well ahead by now.
Parts of the course were familiar but much of it was new. It was wonderfully peaceful, and the course was superbly signposted. We went through a wood with twisty turns everywhere which was a lot of fun. It was dry underfoot and good firm going - a bit of a novelty.
At 8km I crested the biggest hill (112m), after which it was a long downhill and almost dead flat for the final 3k. A dash down the high street, and I finished in third place, two and a half minutes behind Neil. Here are my stats.
This is a fabulous local event - informal, low-key but really well thought through. We'll be back for sure!
Hants XC league: Reading
This was race number two of a rather bonkers weekend.
I had run Southampton parkrun in the morning in a rather lacklustre 18:50, having found it difficult to get going on a cold morning. Back home, we made a late decision to bomb up to Reading for the cross-country. When we turned, Becky from RRR was there, having already done her race.
I wanted to get a top 100 position. We set off around the park. In my mind it was a huge playing field but it was actually quite undulating, and the hill in the middle was really severe. I was wearing fell shoes - my spikes need a bit of glue - but they weren't ideal and I reckon I lost several seconds in the slippery patches.
I felt I got the pacing about right, and I pushed hard all the way round. In the final stage I knew someone was closing in on me. The lovely Mrs S and Becky were yelling as I pushed hard for the finish, but Patrick Stumpf from Lordshill sprinted past me just ahead of the line.
80th place - I was very happy with that. Here are my stats.
I had run Southampton parkrun in the morning in a rather lacklustre 18:50, having found it difficult to get going on a cold morning. Back home, we made a late decision to bomb up to Reading for the cross-country. When we turned, Becky from RRR was there, having already done her race.
I wanted to get a top 100 position. We set off around the park. In my mind it was a huge playing field but it was actually quite undulating, and the hill in the middle was really severe. I was wearing fell shoes - my spikes need a bit of glue - but they weren't ideal and I reckon I lost several seconds in the slippery patches.
I felt I got the pacing about right, and I pushed hard all the way round. In the final stage I knew someone was closing in on me. The lovely Mrs S and Becky were yelling as I pushed hard for the finish, but Patrick Stumpf from Lordshill sprinted past me just ahead of the line.
80th place - I was very happy with that. Here are my stats.
Tuesday, 2 January 2018
2017 review
What a fantastic year it's been! Two things in particular have made 2017 so memorable and successful:
1 - The lovely Mrs S took up racing. What was once a rather indulgent weekend activity has now become a regular - in fact the default - combined sporting highlight of the week, which has taken us to smashing locations far and wide. I've simply done a lot more racing in a year than I ever have done before. Thank you, my love, for making running great again!
Check out the stats... I've done:
2 - I turned 50 and joined a whole new age category! A year ago I set a target of getting 3 M50 category wins before the year was out - but I ended up with 11 (out of 13 races since my birthday). Crikey. This won't be sustainable for long, particularly as others turn 50 and become the new babies of the cohort, but I've enjoyed a real purple patch over the last 4 months.
Highlights of the year:
Targets for this year:
1 - The lovely Mrs S took up racing. What was once a rather indulgent weekend activity has now become a regular - in fact the default - combined sporting highlight of the week, which has taken us to smashing locations far and wide. I've simply done a lot more racing in a year than I ever have done before. Thank you, my love, for making running great again!
Check out the stats... I've done:
- 26 public races (8 in 2016)
- 2 county cross-country events (0)
- 8 RR10s (7)
- 30 parkruns (17)
- 1 civil service event (1)
2 - I turned 50 and joined a whole new age category! A year ago I set a target of getting 3 M50 category wins before the year was out - but I ended up with 11 (out of 13 races since my birthday). Crikey. This won't be sustainable for long, particularly as others turn 50 and become the new babies of the cohort, but I've enjoyed a real purple patch over the last 4 months.
Highlights of the year:
- West Wight 3 Hills - beautiful scenery, low-key club race, a lovely day out
- Hoppit Half - a full-on heatwave, and possibly the most broken I've ever been after a race
- Bridport Half - immense Dorset scenery, with a great chase to second place
- Clarendon Marathon - the big one; it never disappoints; this time a great RRR social occasion
- Stinger: A most surprising win!
- Dorset CTS 10k: A madly exciting chase over huge hills
Targets for this year:
- Keep healthy and injury-free
- Get top M50 spot for 50% of races
- London marathon sub 3 hours, and as a stretch target beat 2:53:20, which was Andrew Trigg's time in the Abingdon marathon in 2012, when he was 50.
Monday, 1 January 2018
Gut Buster 2017
This race is celebrated for its muddiness, and it's been pouring with rain on and off ever since Christmas. As we drove up to the park & ride outside Reading, we passed countless sodden fields under dark grey skies. This was going to be muddy, for sure.
The double-decker shuttle bus took us to a farm right out in the sticks, somewhere between Basingstoke and Reading. The farmyard was a friendly, well-organised but slightly chaotic scene, with a crush of hundreds of excited people. We met Matt Pillinger from OS - it was his first time at this race too.
The Lovely Mrs S was supporting, still in knee recovery mode. The three of us ambled over to the start line, where we ended up having a 15-minute wait (we missed the race briefing) until the hordes joined us for a slightly late start.
I didn't much enjoy the first couple of miles. Over the last few days I've felt like I've been fighting a bug, and I didn't hae much oomph at the off. But over time I felt myself relaxing into the pace and my enregy levels were OK.
It was, naturally, really wet, muddy and slippy. The roads (about a third of the course) had lots of splashy puddles, while the tracks and field margins were squelchy and often waterlogged. Picking the optimum path was vital. I spent much of the first half tussling with Patrick Connors from Itchen Spitfires, who went for the shortest route outside the Roman walls at Silchester and took a hilarious tumble on a camber.
In the second half we were much more spread out. I was feeling good, and enjoyed all the splashing about. Twice we caught up with the 10k runners, which meant switching from relatively pristine mud to well-trodden morass.
And this is what the finish was all about. I could hear the noise from the farm as we circled around and for the last time joined in with the 10k-ers. A couple of soggy field margins and then the final hurrah - two ploughed fields, thoroughly churned; a real heaving effort to run over, with the added challenge of dodging and overtaking the groups of slower runners ahead. I gave it everything.
I finished in 1:11:41, which I think put me in 9th place. The timing chip had come loose from my show in the final stages. I didn't feel it was my best performance, but this was a friendly and well-organised event on fabulously raw countryside, and a terrific way to conclude the racing year.
The double-decker shuttle bus took us to a farm right out in the sticks, somewhere between Basingstoke and Reading. The farmyard was a friendly, well-organised but slightly chaotic scene, with a crush of hundreds of excited people. We met Matt Pillinger from OS - it was his first time at this race too.
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| With Matt at the farmyard |
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| The start |
I didn't much enjoy the first couple of miles. Over the last few days I've felt like I've been fighting a bug, and I didn't hae much oomph at the off. But over time I felt myself relaxing into the pace and my enregy levels were OK.
It was, naturally, really wet, muddy and slippy. The roads (about a third of the course) had lots of splashy puddles, while the tracks and field margins were squelchy and often waterlogged. Picking the optimum path was vital. I spent much of the first half tussling with Patrick Connors from Itchen Spitfires, who went for the shortest route outside the Roman walls at Silchester and took a hilarious tumble on a camber.
 |
| Most of the roads were like this. Patrick Connors is right on my tail. |
In the second half we were much more spread out. I was feeling good, and enjoyed all the splashing about. Twice we caught up with the 10k runners, which meant switching from relatively pristine mud to well-trodden morass.
And this is what the finish was all about. I could hear the noise from the farm as we circled around and for the last time joined in with the 10k-ers. A couple of soggy field margins and then the final hurrah - two ploughed fields, thoroughly churned; a real heaving effort to run over, with the added challenge of dodging and overtaking the groups of slower runners ahead. I gave it everything.
 |
| All the fun of the field |
I finished in 1:11:41, which I think put me in 9th place. The timing chip had come loose from my show in the final stages. I didn't feel it was my best performance, but this was a friendly and well-organised event on fabulously raw countryside, and a terrific way to conclude the racing year.
 |
| Muddy, guts busted, but still smiling |
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