Wednesday night saw the first race of what is a highlight series for me each season - the Interclub Grand Prix.
Teams from Preston, Blackpool, Red Rose, Wesham, Lytham and Chorley annually fight it out for positions both individually and as a club, in what is a real regional battle. This year a little bit of extra spice and interest has been provided in the shape of a new seventh club (and race) to the series in the shape of Thornton.
Each race is traditionally between 4-5 miles long and is fiercely contested throughout the field as every runner battles to earn each and every last position for their team.
As has been the case each year since I joined Wesham Road Runners, Blackpool hosted the first race of the campaign. This meant a 4 mile course, taking in two laps of Stanley Park.
Having managed to fit my long run in a day early over the long bank holiday weekend, I approached this race in good shape on the back of a couple of days worth of easy running and a leg massage the previous night.
Once the gun went, myself, David Rigby and Rob 'coach' Affleck (both Preston Harriers), quickly moved to the front of the field and opened up a gap on the other competitors. I managed to get my nose in front early on and it stayed that way throughout the first lap, as we moved increasingly away from the rest of the field in a close pack of three.
In the early stages of lap two, Dave made a bit of a move into the lead and held it for about half a mile as we negotiated the section of the lap through the woods, bringing us out on the outer parameter of the course near the hospital.
Before we re-entered the park however I had regained it and managed to hold off throughout a high paced final mile into the finishing straight. My final mile split came in at 4:41, my quickest ever single mile! It hurt, but was well worth it when I crossed that finish line in a new PB time of 19:50.
Now, last season I finished in 3rd place overall in the series, improving on 4th place the year before and 5th place in my first full season the time before that. So this year, the aim is to improve again and hopefully go at least one better again! To that end, the season could not have started any better.
It was a fantastic occasion, as Wesham had a massive turnout with many new runners, both at the front end, but also supported admirably through the field too. The presence of Thornton Cleveleys and also the growing power of Red Rose in terms of numbers also boosted the success of the race, as more than 350 runners turned out in total.
A great spectacle to have played a part in, and one that I will remember for a long, long time.
That was my final race before the marathon too, and after an 8 mile progressive tempo with Rob Affleck and Gethin Buttler tonight, there are not too many effort runs to go now.
Rob Danson x
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