Races
Races signed up for:
Bupa Great South Run – 24 October 2010
Races been and gone:
Bupa London 10,000 – 31 May 2010
Missed
Bupa Great Capital Run – 13 September 2009
I wanted to try a Great Run event as I was thinking of entering the Great North Run for 2010 and wanted to see how well organised it was. After the hassle that was the British 10k, I was wary of doing another big event. As it turned out, the Great Capital Run (a 5k through London’s Regent’s Park) was a great experience and one I hope to do again in future years.
I pushed the pace for this one as it was mostly flat and I knew I was in for a good time. Finished in 27:17, placing 186th out of 802 women (779/1722 overall).
A good route, easy baggage drop, staggered starts, chip timing, plenty of water and Powerade, medal and a technical t-shirt (which was worn on the day as part of the Ashes themed competition) made it a relaxed and comfortable day. Also, my first run with friends, which made it even better. Full race report here.
Technical T-Shirt from the Great Capital Run
Lichfield 10k – 6 September 2009
I signed up for this event back in June, knowing I’d want something to train for after the main race of the year was over. This was a much smaller race, with only 777 finishers, hosted by Lichfield Running Club.
Water station at 5.5km. Attempting to sip whilst still running...and losing most of it. Photo (c) Martin Sutton.
The event was well organised, very friendly and marshalled by helpful and encouraging people. There seemed to be relatively more club runners than my previous two events but they were still largely outnumbered by unattached locals.
The challenging hills made it interesting and very different to the British 10k, and despite this I was only 12 seconds slower. My official gun time was 1:00:03 but my Garmin showed 10.05km in 59:26, which I was happy with and looking forward to beating next year! I placed 158th out of 281 women (590th overall).
The free massage at the end was a nice addition before the walk home, and the goody bag with water, fruit and Tracker bars was much more useful than the stuff I received from the British 10k. There was no medal but the event t-shirt is pretty good, despite the sponsor’s logo being as big as the name of the race. The fact that all pre-registered runners had their name printed on the back made it that much more meaningful. Read the full race report here.
What looks like a HRM output is actually the Lichfield skyline.
asics British 10k London Run – 12 July 2009
After the success of the adidas 5k in 2008 I knew I wanted to do another event, but couldn’t ask people to sponsor me for the same distance, so set about training for a 10k. I got my bond place in the asics British 10k via LupusUK and managed to raise £570.05 for the charity.
Crossing Westminster Bridge
27,000 runners and 10.3km later I cross the finish line in 59:14. Soaring temperatures and a shortage of water made it slightly harder but still enjoyable. I didn’t see either of the two bands play but spectators were plentiful, and very encouraging towards the end of the 7th km. The sheer number of people, particularly those that didn’t know (or care) to move to one side when walking, has made me reconsider doing such a big event again. There were also some organisational issues which should have been taken care of and it left me slightly disappointed. Full race report can be found here.
T shirts had to be ordered through the post, and cost £18. I ordered mine 3 days after the race and, 2 angry letters and 5 months later, I got a refund and a letter saying they’d run out of shirts. There was still a finishers medal and a handful of free (and rather naff) samples in a goody bag at the end.
*Medal picture coming soon*
adidas Women’s 5K Challenge – 7 September 2008
I decided in January 2008 that I wanted to run a road race – just to see what it was like. I had a look around and decided on the adidas Women’s 5k Challenge. I got my place nice and early, picked a charity to run for and set about training for it. I already knew I would be able to finish the 5km in a reasonable time, having been running for nearly 18 months, so instead set myself a goal of finishing in 30 minutes.
As it turned out, I managed to finish around the 29 minute mark, in slight rain but high spirits, having rasied £362.50 for the RNIB.
Just a few hundred meters from the finish line
The race was well organised, though being my first event I don’t have a whole lot to compare it to. Starting at around 10am with a group of overly enthusiastic warm up girls, (thankfully) minor queues and enough free bottled water to end droughts in Africa, the crowd was infectiously enthusiastic. If I made one mistake it was starting too far back in the pack (about half way) as I spent the first km picking my way around joggers and walkers.
After the finish line I was greeted with a goody bag containing a myriad of free samples, some actually usefull adidas gear, a medal and a race t shirt.
Free race shirt, surprisingly not made by adidas
