Hampshire Saucony 10k

Well with no marathons planned for this month I thought I would enter some 10k’s instead. The Hampshire 10k sponsored by Saucony is local to me and most important IT IS FLAT !!!! Not many of my races are flat, or even on tarmac, so this is a welcome change, plus I get to run and still be home in time for lunch.

So Gary Cook and I are pondering our times in the VW on the way to the Moutbatten Centre, I am thinking it’s a great day, the legs feel good (mine I mean, I didn’t feel Gary’s), I am race fit, there could be a PB in this one, briefly forgetting the fact that I spent most of Friday night and all of Saturday night being a wee bit tipsy and eating my own body wait in Quiche and Chinese.

Turning up at the track we are greeted with an array of sports events, there is a meet here on the same day which means only one thing .. competitive runners. We grab our numbers and stand out in the sun trying to spot people who we know we should be able to beat. After a nervous wait we reckon we can spot a few that we should be able to pick off, it always makes me feel better knowing that there is a good chance I won’t come last. I have made the mistake of picking out the older runners before, you know the ones that look like friendly Grandfolk but actually turn out to be made of pure muscle and sinew and invariably overtake you at mile 19 and disappear into the distance, only leaving behind a faint smell of Murray Mints and Golden Virginia.

The course is a good one too, incorporating two laps of the track then out for a lap next to the shoreline back for a half lap of the track again then off for a final lap around the lido, finishing back at the track in the final straight.

So we line up, bloody hell there are some good runners here, watches have been checked, GPS confirmed, I’m just waiting for the gun when a faint whiff of deep heat and Murray Mint distracts me, BANG, whatever wind was in me has escaped quickly, which jet propels me off to my first lap. I need to stick to 6 minute 30 second miles if I am going to hit my PB, first mile 6.32, second 6.42, I speed up as I now need to run faster and make up some time. I can see my fartlek victim about 100 yards in front to help me hit my time, as I reach his shoulder my watch bleeps and tells me I’m not going to hit my PB of 41.35, another poor mile at about 6.49 means the best I can hope for is a sub 42.30, however I have made up my mind I am going to beat this guy in the blue shirt who has stuck on my coat tails since I passed him. Running back onto the track the support is great, more events are still going off and families have lined the track in  the sunshine, the bounce of the rubber makes me stride longer and its off again onto the final lap. I pick off a few people that have gone off to fast and generally feel pretty good, then at mile 5 my stitch (which I have been nursing since mile 2) decides it wants to take over my ribs in a Mount Vesuvius of hurt. Blue shirt guy and white shirt guy whizz pass me here, I try to stay with them and I am pretty sure I whimpered out loud like an Chihuahua shot by a plastic sucker arrow. Around the last bend and onto the bouncy track, I summon up the last remaining bit of energy to muster a sprint finish, it feels like I have run into a stadium and everyone is watching the final event, 100 yards to go and I go past white shirt guy, there’s a shout of ‘come on Andy’ (cheers Craig) at 50 and I am on the shoulder of blue shirt guy, sprint sprint sprint sprint, …and …………. bugger he beat me, by one second.

So finishing in 42.12 wasn’t too bad and 40^th out of 132 runners, it was nice to run a short race for a change, Gary nearly run a PB and was only 17 seconds off.

Next one on Sunday, Marwell 10k, it’s a bit hilly, but as long as I can keep off the Quiche and Chinese I reckon I am in with a shout.