A big day of racing yesterday – Brighton, Zurich, Paris marathons and many other besides. And the warmest day of the year so far to boot. There’s always that element of risk with spring marathons – having trained through the worst of the winter, with frozen toes and numb fingers, suddenly the temperatures peak and it feels like running in a sauna. Here’s to hoping that everyone tackling 26.2 yesterday had a good run, and a very large refreshing drink afterwards.
Talking of which, for the third weekend in a row I found myself going home from a race with my arms full – this time, quite literally. Yesterday I ran the Fullers Towpath 10 after a 5 mile warm up, and not only finished second and won some cash but also a crate of beer. I reckon that carrying that thing back to my friend’s car definitely constituted a quite serious strength training session – rare is the long distance runner with any significant arm strength and I am certainly no exception!
This is a fantastic race which I can highly recommend, having done it a few times before. For your £17 entry fee you get great organisation, lovely cheery marshals, a nice early start – a huge bonus yesterday – a lovely route along the Thames, and a commemorative pint glass. 10 milers are my favourite distance to race, and I’m really pleased that they seem to making a bit of a comeback. Even more pleased to accidentally (I hadn’t reset my watch from the 5 miles before) clock up a 10 mile PB. I don’t think I’ve ever said this before any marathon, and I hope it’s not tempting fate, but you know what? I am really looking forward to London …
So, tell me all about your weekend running. With so many friends racing, it was hard to keep track, but a special congratulations to Cat who smashed her PB in Zurich and got a London championship spot for next year into the bargain.
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