22nd August 1st park run in 18 months


It's a fine line between success and failure. If you were a member of the GB 4x100 men's relay team then 0.01 seconds was the difference between winning gold and ending up with silver. Or perhaps the difference between winning a medal and being disqualified will be a few mls of anabolic steroid only time will tell. With regards a park run, the difference between feeling like a world beater and a very, very average also ran (excuse the pun) is roughly four minutes.

Yesterday was my first park run for over 18 months, and although I have run in the intervening period (although yesterdays attempt wouldn't suggest it) this was the first time since Park Run came back into being a regular Saturday morning event, that I have taken my usual position towards the back of the field ready for the B of the bang. Or in my case the g of the bang!

Bestwood Park park run is perhaps what could be called undulating with a couple of calf straining short, sharp climbs thrown in for good measure and even after a period of 18 months they hadn't got and less steep. And I guess you can guess the rest without me revealing all the gory details. Even having eventually reached the 'summits' the usual long downhill sections felt like running through treacle. A very hard solid treacle so my hips and knees are currently reminding me.

And yet...and yet despite feeling as if I had slogged my way round like a human sloth, the difference between my time today and my best ever time on this course, one that sent me home skipping and jumping, was only four mins. What felt like a long, long four minutes. So all I can assume is that it was a significant lack of lycra and not the extra lockdown pounds that significantly reduced my areodynamics and thus my time. 

So the marshalls at the Belvoir Castle 10km trail run next Saturday had better be ready for the super speedy lycra clad blur that smashes those sharp steep summits!

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