So I am just one blog behind, but I thought I would write this one while it's still fresh in my memory! This particular run I was looking forward to! The last time we did it, a year ago, we did it in the March, and standing around drinking a glass of bubbly was a tad chilly! It was also the very first Ladies only race!
Our club had organised a coach for us ladies......would you believe it was organised in March and then they let us down only yesterday!! But DiscoRich rang around and managed to get us transport again from Billy Bus Hire! We all met at Petts Wood and then we piled on to the bus, there were only a few of us this time, I know some of my friends couldn't do it this year and it was just me and CaroleWithAnE who were the 'naughty' ones at the back of the bus! I am sure we will get them all singing on the way back with just the two of us!
The drive to the cyclepark was quick and we arrived safely. IllustriousLeader was there at the table ready to hand out our numbers, that's when we found out that there were only about 41 runners in this race! Now I thought it would be getting bigger from last year, especially as DiscoRich had moved it to the warmer month! I think next year, if we want to keep it as ladies only us ladies are going to have to promote, promote, promote! There were a couple of ladies with buggies as well, maybe we should get some of the mums that we know to come and join in! The route is fairly simple it's all on tarmac, yes there is a cheeky hill, which we have to run up 4 times! I don't know if I am in denial, but I am sure the hill didn't look as big as it did last year. But let me get to that in a min!
After collecting our number and writing our details on the back, the usual toilet break.....some were trying for the personal best of 4 toilet breaks before a race! Me, I could only manage the one! We still had about 20 minutes before the start when someone suggested doing a warm-up! I thought that was a pretty good idea! The music was playing, all the ladies were kind of moving to the music anyway so I took the lead in an attempt to do an Adele style warm-up! Do you think I could think of the warm up exercises that people do at events! Nope! Not one thing, apart from high-knees and some sort of side stepping and box stepping! Maybe next time I will be ready for it, try and write down a little routine and have it memorised if we don't have another taker for the lead role! This is me trying to look like a professional!
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| Me, a Leader? |
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| They were Following! |
We were called to the line then, water bottles by the start, then I went over to line up. DiscoRich gave a little speech, IllustriousLeader with her timer in one hand and clip board in the other! There was no chip timing this time, last year it took three days for the results to come out! At least DiscoRich and IllustriousLeader could collate everything quite quickly and then have the trophy presentations. I knew I wasn't going to get one of those! So, with a three, two, one! we were off. Even though I was in the front of the crowd (41 is a crowd when you're on a start line) I didn't stay at the front for very long! Before the long straight had finished the ladies race had stretched out, you could see who was going to win, by then I was at the back with another lady called Debbie! She is just coming back to running she had also done last years race too, but she said she hasn't really done anything since!
As you can imagine, being in June, Europe in the middle of a heatwave, we were enjoying some warm weather at last! We were all wondering when our summer was going to start! As we were running along, however, we were getting warmer and warmer. I was just plodding along chatting away with Debbie, by the time we had got around the first bend I became the last PWR, as Sara and her friend (who I have forgotten her name) passed by us. I am usually the last PWR to finish a race, why should this be any different! And besides that, there was one other lady behind us, just running along doing it for herself! Anyway, I just love the bling at the end, D.R. had kept the same design of the goddess Aphrodite, with just a slight change of colour to differentiate it from last years medal!
That hill, you know the one I mentioned earlier, well it came up! I looked at it and it just didn't look as foreboding as it did last year! This is me, the Old Girl, saying "This hill don't look that bad!" Of course this was only the first time running up it! I am sure when I get back to it for the second, third and fourth time there will be that magic button that makes the hill get steeper! The first time we ran walked up it, me and Debbie, but we were still getting warmed up (shhhh, I know it's extremely warm outside). A little further on Brian Page from SLGR was there with his camera, poised waiting for all the runners to come past. I decided to try and make sure that when he took a picture of me that I had 'air' under my shoes! He managed to get the shot too, look at this
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| Look at that air! |
It's just a pity that a look like a blob running along! Gotta try and do something! Anyway, we were nearly at the start line again, we had completed the first long lap. We had to do that again, and then two smaller laps after that! I stuck with Debbie on the second long lap as we chatted on the way around, we walked, we talked and we ran! We even ran up the hill on the second time, not letting it beat us. Our second lap was a tad slower than the first, even though it felt we were running faster! That hill seemed to have got steeper, but we ran up it, we were quite pleased with our selves! It's not easy running, I know I keep saying that, but it's true. Doing laps as well is pretty hard, so much easier to do one big loop than lots of laps! It's a good challenge though, knowing you have to get up that hill, will it beat you this time around?
At the top, big cheer from the marshal there and we headed for Brian again, still there with his camera. It was on this second lap that Debbie started to fall behind,
I deffo didn't get any faster than what we had been doing, you can clearly see the gap that was there at that point. Down the little hill, around the bend, then back up to the start finish line! At least I don't have to do the long lap again. I grabbed some water, poured some down my neck and the rest over the back of my neck to keep cool! Running past the start finish line towards DiscoRich, this time round I will be allowed to take the short route! "You've lost you running mate" He said to me, I took a quick look around to see how far she was behind me now. I didn't realise she was that far behind, but she was still going!
That blimmin hill! That Blimmin Hill! It was there again, "one more time over you" I said as I got to the top of it again, the smiling marshal there giving tons of praise and cheers! I was walking a bit more, "this lap will surely be slower" I thought. Then I realised, at least it's only the short laps now to do! I ran along the top towards Brian, this time I was photographed, with no smile, with no-one beside me! The full concentration of getting to the end of this run is written over my face.
One more lap to do, just one more lap to do! I could hear the runners and spectators again at the finish line, cheering on those just finishing. "That will be me after this lap" I thought. I grabbed some water from the table and again, swallowed some and poured some on the back of my neck!
I was so happy to be doing this last lap! Running by myself I was just thinking about how I came to be here. I was talking to Debbie earlier in the run about how I started running, doing the 5k Race for Life in London, in memory to my mum.Yup, that's it, my lovely mum, had she not gone to see Jesus, then I would still be a fat blob! Well, fatter blob, a fatter, lazy, non exercising blob!
That bloody hill again, it's there mocking me! To be honest, I don't remember if I had ran it or walked it, but all I could think of was "There, that's done" I was pleased to have that out of the way, no more running or walking up the hill, the hill that when I first saw it on this run, I thought, it was not as bad as I remembered from last year! It's good that runners have selective memory when it comes to routes and races, otherwise we may never try to beat our pbs!
Brian wasn't there on this last lap, it was just me, no camera was pointing at, no watching.
I couldn't see Debbie behind me, but I knew she wouldn't be that far behind. I ran around that last bend and the up the hill towards the Finish Line! This I will be able to finish! I was looking at my watch, I really wanted to get under 1 hour 9, because that was what I had at Eltham, I was going to have to do sprint finish if I wanted to do it! I kept looking at my time, "Come on Old Girl, you got this" It was pretty close, 1 hour 7 mins and 35 seconds I was still about 100-200 metres away, I could see them all, I could hear them all. "Don't look at your watch" I thought, "just go, just go! You can do this!" I crossed the line, I could see my watch saying 1 hour 8 minutes and 55 seconds. "Done It, done it" I thought, but then I couldn't switch my watch off as I saw it go into the 9th minute! Oh Darn it! And then, I accidentally turned it on for another couple of minutes as I walked over to where the Prosecco was being served! Oh well, I shall have to wait to see what the official results will be!
Running pictures are from Brian Page of SLGR
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