My legs felt surprisingly okay after yesterdays Endurer Dash race, and after a breakfast of porridge and bananas, and a quick play on the foam roller, my sister picked me up and we were off to Ashbourne. It was pretty chilly and misty at 8am in Belper, so I put a tech t-shirt on, beneath my running vest, but when we arrived in Ashbourne it was a little warmer so I removed the t-shirt and went for Team Derby Runner vest and running shorts. It was a bit chilly but better to be a little too cold than too hot. Once in the sports hall i put my timing chip on and pinned my number to my vest. It was great catching up with fellow TDR members and chatting about races and running in general.
The coach trip from Ashbourne to Parsley Hay was great fun, it was like going on a school trip, everyone chatted and excited (and nervous) I was very happy to be sat next to Richard who just chatted away and and made the journey fly by, and didn't give me anytime to worry about my first half marathon. Even though i have ran a longer race, and ran over 13 miles in training, I was still intimidated by a half marathon, so it was great that my sister wanted me to run with her as she was equally apprehensive, and likes to chat while she runs.
From the start we set off at a very steady pace, and let streams of other runners pass us by. This was agonizing. My competitiveness hates it when anyone overtakes me but I soon settled and let them wash past without wishing the shoe eating fairies would strike them down. I was also distracted from fantasizing about the downfall of my fellow runners by the stunning scenery. Green fields and pockets of trees, alongside miles of Derbyshire's famous dry stone walls. The mile markers seemed to come an go pretty quickly and it wasn't too long before we had reached the 3 mile mark and the first of the water stations. A couple glasses of water while we walked through the drinking stations and it was back up to pace.
The second quarter of the course and we had hit a nice pace and the runners had thinned out and we swapped places with other runners at a similar pace. It was a little frustrating running at a slower pace than usual so I occasionally stopped to pickup litter or take a photo, and then would sprint to catch up up with Sheena. At the 6 mile (ish) water station I took advantage of a the fig rolls and washed them down with water. We're pretty much half way and the legs, lungs and spirit are still doing well. If was hard to get back into a run after walking through the water station but it only took 30 seconds to get back up to rhythm. The third quarter of the course was a bit of a slog but we managed to pass a few runners who had slowed to a walking pace.
At the 9 mile (ish) water station it was more about jelly babies. With only 4 miles to go we pressed on, safe in the knowledge we would finish and we would complete a half marathon. This felt great. with a couple of miles to go we had an energy gel each, and mine was really kicking in after about 5 minutes. My knee was starting to get sore, and I warned my sister I was going to leave her at mile 12 and stretch my legs out and go for a fast finish. A combination of jelly babies, energy gel, and a 12 mile warm up, made the giant vibrant yellow board with a simple "12 Mile" a very welcome sign. "See you at the fiiiiinnnnniiiisshhhhhhhh...."
I was off. Running as fast as I could, I even caught up with a couple on bikes and managed to pass them as they slowed to get round a barrier. This was great fun, the runners I passed gave me great encouragement, and support which just made me try and run harder, as I reached the 500 meter mark I saw a large crowd gathered and thought that was the finish line but they cheered and shouted, "not far to go". As i turned the final bend, I could see the finish. There was a lady in orange about 20 meters from the line, and I was about 80 meters away. Pah. I'll never overtake her. Fuck It. I'll give it a go. I broke into a full sprint which took even me by surprise. I managed to sneak past the lady in orange just before the timing mats. I suddenly realized that half marathon finish lines are a little short for sprint finishes and only just stopped in front of the marshals handing out medals and collecting timing chips. Tired and buzzing from the sprint I wondered back up the course to cheer my sister on and the runners who had spurred me on over the last 13.1 miles.
http://www.nice-work.org.uk/
Time 2:15:14
The coach trip from Ashbourne to Parsley Hay was great fun, it was like going on a school trip, everyone chatted and excited (and nervous) I was very happy to be sat next to Richard who just chatted away and and made the journey fly by, and didn't give me anytime to worry about my first half marathon. Even though i have ran a longer race, and ran over 13 miles in training, I was still intimidated by a half marathon, so it was great that my sister wanted me to run with her as she was equally apprehensive, and likes to chat while she runs.
From the start we set off at a very steady pace, and let streams of other runners pass us by. This was agonizing. My competitiveness hates it when anyone overtakes me but I soon settled and let them wash past without wishing the shoe eating fairies would strike them down. I was also distracted from fantasizing about the downfall of my fellow runners by the stunning scenery. Green fields and pockets of trees, alongside miles of Derbyshire's famous dry stone walls. The mile markers seemed to come an go pretty quickly and it wasn't too long before we had reached the 3 mile mark and the first of the water stations. A couple glasses of water while we walked through the drinking stations and it was back up to pace.
The second quarter of the course and we had hit a nice pace and the runners had thinned out and we swapped places with other runners at a similar pace. It was a little frustrating running at a slower pace than usual so I occasionally stopped to pickup litter or take a photo, and then would sprint to catch up up with Sheena. At the 6 mile (ish) water station I took advantage of a the fig rolls and washed them down with water. We're pretty much half way and the legs, lungs and spirit are still doing well. If was hard to get back into a run after walking through the water station but it only took 30 seconds to get back up to rhythm. The third quarter of the course was a bit of a slog but we managed to pass a few runners who had slowed to a walking pace.
At the 9 mile (ish) water station it was more about jelly babies. With only 4 miles to go we pressed on, safe in the knowledge we would finish and we would complete a half marathon. This felt great. with a couple of miles to go we had an energy gel each, and mine was really kicking in after about 5 minutes. My knee was starting to get sore, and I warned my sister I was going to leave her at mile 12 and stretch my legs out and go for a fast finish. A combination of jelly babies, energy gel, and a 12 mile warm up, made the giant vibrant yellow board with a simple "12 Mile" a very welcome sign. "See you at the fiiiiinnnnniiiisshhhhhhhh...."I was off. Running as fast as I could, I even caught up with a couple on bikes and managed to pass them as they slowed to get round a barrier. This was great fun, the runners I passed gave me great encouragement, and support which just made me try and run harder, as I reached the 500 meter mark I saw a large crowd gathered and thought that was the finish line but they cheered and shouted, "not far to go". As i turned the final bend, I could see the finish. There was a lady in orange about 20 meters from the line, and I was about 80 meters away. Pah. I'll never overtake her. Fuck It. I'll give it a go. I broke into a full sprint which took even me by surprise. I managed to sneak past the lady in orange just before the timing mats. I suddenly realized that half marathon finish lines are a little short for sprint finishes and only just stopped in front of the marshals handing out medals and collecting timing chips. Tired and buzzing from the sprint I wondered back up the course to cheer my sister on and the runners who had spurred me on over the last 13.1 miles.
http://www.nice-work.org.uk/
Time 2:15:14
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