On Sunday 13th I ran the Bristol HM in 2:22:22 – that’s a lot of two’s. Some say that was a magical thing. Meant to be. It was ten minutes slower than my 2014 time due to injury but ten minutes faster than my first time in 2013 when I first started running. During my magic third Bristol HM I didn’t get a PB. ITB strain still worried me so I kept an even pace that day. Instead of focusing on speed I focused on form making sure I ran strong. I did however learn a few things.
- Pork and Pepper Stir Fry is sufficient carbo loading the night before.
- A whole pack of Crunch Creams is also sufficient although probably not necessary.
- Always wake up early enough to allow time for Bristol transport. Sunday’s are the worst let alone on a race day when diversions are ripe.
- Do the crazy warm up at the start with Heart FM. It included “The Bolt” move from the Championships. We should, at this point, all know what that looks like.
- Recruit boyfriend Steven to produce a two hour playlist of solid industrial music to keep up the beat. Those drum bands are only in random sections for half a miles worth of hearing. Something needs to keep you going around that.
- Always have a drink with you. I forgot and needed to pop into Tesco quickly.
- When chatting with your running friends at their bag drop off actually bother to find out where yours is so you don’t have to dash there.
- When injured – next time remember the damn KTape!
- My bum bag tries to be a waist bag causing friction and half my race photos show me trying to pull the thing down which looks suspicious on camera.
- Even though it is September the weather will always be iffy at best.
- The local crowds shout of ‘Go Bristol! Go Bristol and West’ is the best ever confidence boost.
- Orange High Five Energy Gel tastes of ass. As does the lemon one.
- High Five Energy Gel’s are also not Energy Drinks. NB: this is something the race organisers actually need to learn as the sign proclaimed they were Energy Drinks. There is nothing Drinkable about them.
- The cobbles around Queen Square at mile ten are insane. Cobbles after ten miles is like a blister ninja waiting to happen.
- Compared to the 10K it is not a flat course. The section leading up from Castle Park is brutal. It’s Bristol. Of course it isn’t flat.
- Being a local just because you know where the Finish line is (BUT IT’S OVER THERE JUST OVER THAT BRIDGE WHAAAAAT) doesn’t mean that you can get to it that way during an HM. You’ve got to snake around Broadmead first.
- Always leave room for a Sprint Finish so you can beat at least a few people running to the Finish line for that ego boost. It also makes the spectators believe you ran that way the whole time I think.
- When Morris who won the HM adds you as a friend because your coach is a mutual you extend a greeting hoping they enjoyed the race – even if they were 1 hour 22 minutes ish faster than you.
- When you wake up the next day you will be ITB injury free. Our legs will be reborn afresh. This bits actually true although I’m not sue how that happened and may not be a good idea for people to try in force.
Nineteen things is quite a lot. I wanted to do something other than “race day, woke up, race happened, recovered this way” so hope the format change was enjoyable. 2014 and 2013 are available in the history if you want to check out detailed reports of previous years. I wanted to do something fun with a race that will probably be on the calendar until my legs drop off.
Happy Running!
xxx
Eleanor
Here starts the sixteen week training plan for the Portsmouth Harbour Ultra 50k.
t to start it with a new pair of Saucony Ladies Guide 8 shoes from Up and Running in Bristol on North View. The shoes are shiny and pretty. Note; they are also not ridiculously pink or anything like that. I was advised by the assistant that the soles on my old Mizuno’s had run down to nothing after a year and a half of wear. They lasted a over 700 miles in their defense. Pretty sure I’d be a bit worn down after that too.
I really have an obsession with running from one place to another and on Sunday morning I followed the signs for Heytesbury for my 5k. Not much there apart from a lovely river, a church and a friendly cyclist that said ‘good morning,’ on her way through. I thought of the meme I saw recently on Facebook that states, ‘You know you’re a runner when you look at the miles on a sign and say I can run that.’
goodies were Fudge bars, Freddos, and Bourbon bisccuits. Also that really gross coconut water. I finished in 58:30:00 so not a PB but considering how horrible I was feeling I’m surprised I did that well. Still a sub 60 Liam reminded me helpfully. Anna finished in 1:10 minutes. It’s all about personal achievements and limits and I think we both felt pretty victorious to have got through it!
ent back home to change and then I took the family out for a recovery lunch at Giraffe were I promptly downed a Mango Mama smoothie and a devoured half Piri Piri Chicken with skin on Fries. Holly was given a half dozen Giraffe’s in different colours by the waitress so as far as she was concerned it was a successful day. For desert we ventured to Krispy Kreme for doughnuts.
sense of well being identifiable. Mount Olympus and happiness are still my key motivators but you can see through the cluster that those motivations have since grown from that original acorn into something more.
Eleanor's Endeavour 