Solent Half, 2019

I ran this race twice, back in 2006 and 2007, but memories of it were a bit hazy.  I was full of anticipation and excitement about this one, as I had a proper mission... our good friend Becky was looking for a sub 1 hour 30 minute time to qualify for the London marathon championships, and she had asked me to be her pacer.  I was really excited at the prospect of being part of such a glorious achievement, but also just a little bit scared of fluffing my lines... being a pacer is a proper responsibility.

After a glorious and slightly relentless few weeks of late warmth and sunshine, the day dawned wet after a night of thunderstorms.  The lovely Mrs S and I arrived at the intriguingly-named Gang Warily Sports Centre near Fawley in damp conditions and met up with various Romsey and OS runners in a loud and rather claustrophobic gym hall.  Becky and I agree that I'd keep bang on a 4:10 min/km (which would get us home in sub-1:30) so she had a benchmark to chase if it got tough.

It poured outside for the half hour before the 10am start, but by the time we were ushered outside it was just a drizzle.  Everyone was grimacing a bit as rain landed on bare shoulders (the field was predominately club runners, so a lot of singlets were on display). Vicki, the race director, gave a briefing that no one had a hope of hearing, and we were off.

Becky went off at an ambitious pace around the playing field, and I caught up with her on the road. We'd agreed that to get under 1:30 we should be aiming for a 4:10 min/km pace, but we did the first km in 3:56. But once on the road we got settled into a decent pace.

Approaching Hill Top, the first significant apex of the route, we had an exciting encounter with a couple of loose donkeys, but otherwise it was steady going.  Onwards past Exbury and as the skies lightened we got great views of the Isle of Wight.  We were knocking out consistent 4:02 - 4:06 kms and as we went into the second half it became clear that we had built up time in hand and that we were in a strong position.

The last third has got some interesting hills before getting into the rather dull long drag on a main road back towards Fawley and the finish.  But by this stage Becky really had the bit between her teeth and we lifted the pace.  It was great fun.  And then into the sports field and the final push on the grass to the finish line.

1:25:56 - four minutes ahead of target!  Here are my stats.  It was an absolute pleasure and privilege to run this with Becky and witness a really technically accomplished and gutsy performance from one of Hampshire's best runners.  Just to prove the point, she was also second lady.  And later it transpired that not only had the lovely Mrs S knocked 3  minutes off her half marathon PB, but Becky, Liz and Mrs S had scooped the third female team prize.  Hats off to the ladies!

All smiles from Romsey

Hursley 10k, 2019

This race is a perennial favourite. Yes, it does get a bit over-excited in its over-use of glitzy bet-you're-as-excited-as-we-are communications, but that doesn't detract from a friendly local race with a cracking good chase around a forest. As usual, plenty of familiar faces were there - but what was unusual was the full-on heat of the day, already building by 10am.

As we set off, about 12 runners went decisively ahead, and I wondered whether I'd manage to keep my record of a top ten finish. I needn't have worried... into the third km we were into the woods and going uphill, where I took out about four runners in one go.

Soon after this I became aware of Matt Brown and David Currie ahead of me. I gradually pulled towards them, and spent a few minutes on their tail, happy to let them set the pace. With a couple of km to go, Matt was ushering me past him, and I left them both behind as we went through the final stages of the wood and then out on to the long avenue to the finish.

I was on my own, and I had to work hard to keep the pace up approaching the finish line. I heaved to the end and flopped down in the sunshine.  I was 6th place and 1st M50 in a time of 38:29... here are my stats.

With the Sleaths at the finish

Crafty Fox half, 2019

It all started so well. The start line had about a dozen fit-looking chaps ready on the front line. We started, and they all dropped back and I was leading after about 50 metres.

With Mark A and Susie P at the start

Unexpectedly ahead

This is a slightly unnerving place to be so soon in a race.  But on cue, a couple of minutes later a guy in blue cruised past me.  Great, I thought, someone to follow.

As we ran up the first hill, we started hitting gates that proved quite fiddly to open.  I made a bit of a meal of going through one, and bloke in blue was suddenly a good distance ahead.  Through some woods, out the other side and onto a long straight path at the top of a ridge.  I was comfortably in second place, with the sounds of closing gates receding behind me.

That was when it all went wrong.  I was looking closely at the next gate, trying to work out which side the latch was on, and II missed an arrow pointing left.  I went through the gate and carried on in a straight line, not worried that I couldn't see Mr Blue as a Land Rover was driving ahead of me and would have been blocking his view.  It was a steady downhill drop and I pushed on at a good pace, albeit feeling increasingly nervous that I hadn't seen any signs for a while. Eventually I reached a road and with no signs to be seen, I knew I'd gone very wrong.

Feeling very cross with myself, I tuned around and headed up the long drag to where I'd gone wrong.  By my calculations it was a 3.6km diversion with 80m of descent and then re-ascension.  I went through the gate, and joined a throng of runners on a narrow track.  I had a difficult job to maintain any kind of pace while I dodged and weaved around the runners ahead.

Over the next half an hour or so there was much leaping about on narrow tracks as I slowly moved up the field.  The runners ahead slowly thinned out, and as I took the long drag up to Bulbarrow I had to work noticeably harder to overtake others.

From Bulbarrow the views were huge and magnificent.  From here it was all downhill - over the downs, through a few rutted fields (thanks for the tip-off, Mrs S) and out on to a road from where I could see the finish.  I managed to reel in a couple more before leaving the road and pushing through the final fields to the finish line.

20 minutes behind schedule... sorry love!

The lovely Mrs S was looking very anxious, as I knew she would be - this had been a big incentive for me to push hard and prevent unnecessary worry.  For what it's worth, I finished my 26.95 km half marathon in 2:02:16 - here are my Garmin stats.

Honestly, what an eejit I'd been.

The Beast, 2019

The lovely Mrs S and I last ran this race in 2017 in awful conditions. This year was quite different - it was sunny and calm.  We arrived in good time, met a bunch of RRR friends and headed to the start line at the edge of the downs.

The start

We started by zig-zagging around the downs, and narrowly managed to avoid crossing paths with a herd of skittish horses.  Several folk had started way too fast, and I cruised past them over the first 15 mins.  There were some interesting cross-country sections and a few stiles, but nothing too technical at this stage.

Then out onto the coastal path, where the inclines and terrain started to get a lot more juicy.  There were a few sections where I had debate whether it was more efficient to walk or run, before rounding St Aldhelm's Head and encountering That Valley, where it was all about tentatively jogging down the stone steps and walking hard up the other side.  I arrived at the top satisfied that the tough hills were done, and cruised downhill past Chapman's Cove and on to the track that opens in to the road up to Kingston.

But this year's course was different.  We were routed off the road and back south to a gnarly hill called Houns-Tout Cliff. Dozens of steep steps left my legs all a-wobble, but I managed to overtake someone near the top.

Oh, those steps

Check out the cheeky unexpected Houns-Tout Cliff in km 15

It was then a flattish chase to the woods next to Kingston, then downhill through fields and then through a wonderfully technically wooded boardwalk section with crumbling stiles and limbo dancing branches.  The final section uphill over the downs was really tough, but I was rewarded by a final overtake in the final downhill hurtle to the finish field.  I heaved over the line in 6th place in 1:35:36, which was, rather bizarrely, identical to my time in 2017 on a shorter route but in worse conditions.  I was very chuffed to get the M50 award in a competitive field.  Here are my stats.

This is a really tough, well-organised and interesting race in a fabulous part of the world. Beastliness has never been such fun.

The arrival of Beauty...

...and The Beast

The Romsey ladies found the whole thing a hoot

I came away with some silverware

...and so did Abi, Sue and Hannah - the winning ladies' team