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| New bit of bling.... |
The weather was cool with high cloud and hazy sunshine for Sunday's 10 mile Championship race at Thirsk. This was the race that was cancelled last November due to icy conditions, so all the trophies and T-shirts are dated 2010. It was the flattest course I've raced on for quite some time, possibly years, and I'd quite forgotten how to handle it. Apart from a slight incline over a railway bridge the rest was flat as the proverbial pancake. With almost 800 runners crammed into a narrow road for the Start I lined up as close to the front as I dared so as not to be held up. As a result I got carried away a bit fast, for me, averaging 7.41 over the first four miles. Inevitably, the old legs started to seize up and with the exception of another 7.41 for the sixth mile all the rest were in the 8's with an inexcusable 9.06 for the 8th mile. I finished 455th of 741 runners in 80.29 (chip time), fast enough to take the MV75 title in the Yorkshire Veterans Championship. That time also takes me top of the
MV75 10 mile Rankings for 2011 though there are nine months left for someone to topple me.
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| ....and a new T-shirt |
I was a bit miffed about the lack of category prizes in the North of England Championship race that finished at MV70 and LV70. Considering pre-entries closed before race date, organisers knew full well there were runners in the MV75 and MV80 categories and, to my mind, should have catered for them in this prestigious event. They were even mean enough to limit prizes to the first two in the MV70 category (which was effectively three categories in one) as opposed to first three places in all the others. Anyhow, so far as I'm concerned I was 1st MV75 in the Northern Championship - albeit unofficially - along with the remarkable John Johnson of St Theresa's who turned out to prove he was best MV80 in the north. We train hard for these events and at our end of the age scale need all the encouragement we can get rather than being dismissed as eccentric old fuddy-duddies! Rant over.
With limited training my wonderful partner and I both found this race particularly hard and returned home somewhat drained. Unlike the incredible
Runningbear (1st lady in 58.38) who, along with her speedy partner (a PB of 58.01), chose to celebrate their victories at a local hostelry, we retired to bed early after our Sunday roast and a rather nice bottle of wine..
Today, I was back out running on the moor with the whirling plovers and warbling curlews for company whilst my wonderful partner somehow found energy for a bit of cavorting - aka Scottish country dancing. Roll on next weekend's 10K at Arkendale - I think!
Full results
here:
Well done - that's a brilliant time for sure - I don't know how you manage to keep going so well all year round, while I definitely lag badly in the first few months of the year.
ReplyDeleteWell done, great result, I had to give it a miss. but I'll be somewhere behind you at Arkendale on Sunday
ReplyDeleteWow! Such an amazing time, I'd be over the moon with that, well done! :)
ReplyDeleteWell done on a super time and ranking position. It's certainly proof that running keeps you young in mind and body. It's an injustice not to give you a category prize in the Northern Champs with that effort though.
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