Continuing on from where I left off last weekend, today I followed up my interclub and Worden Park successes with a victory in the Lancashire Championships 5000 metres, at Stanley Park, Blackpool.
Now, I would not consider myself a proper track runner, far from it - this was actually only my second ever race performance on a track. My first came exactly 12 months ago when I claimed silver in 16:00.
I do train on the track once a week, at UCLAN sports arena, in Cottam. But the prospect of racing on the surface and in that environment has never really appealed to me for whatever reason.
Perhaps it is the conception that you have to be rapidly quick to enter track races, and the fear of not being quick enough? Also, with training for Spring marathons over the last 3 years, it has always clashed with the short track season, meaning I miss out. I don't know, but for some reason it is something that has just never materialised properly.
Anyway, encouraged by Team Chairman, Lee Barlow, Wesham has managed to turn out in force at this particular event in the last two years. For the second campaign in a row we took home the team prize and Gold medals -Well done all on team Wesham!
Myself, Lee, club stalwart Alex Rowe and team captain Garry Barnett wore the club colours out there today and all did the vest proud.
Individually, I took the win, and Gold medal - meaning I am Lancashire men's 5000 metres champion for the next 12 months!
Ok, so many of the top runners weren't there - but what's the saying? "you've got to be in it to win it"? I have no doubts that I would have gone quicker if I had someone to battle it out against, but I feel like I put in a solid performance in the circumstance.
It's a shame that there wasn't a few more quicker guys out there, as I feel I would have really benefited from that. But I am confident that when I go out and race at a more 'loaded' race in the future, that these experiences will stand me in good stead and I will be able to take advantage of being in company then.
Running fast, and pushing yourself physically can be difficult anyway, but trying to do it out on your own can be really tough, finding the motivation to find that extra couple of percent to boost your performance. I set off looking to run15:30 pace (5 minutes per mile), and ended up with 15:39 after fading in the latter part of the race.
It was a lovely sunny day, and despite being clear out front I still had plenty of targets to sight - as I found myself setting a little personal challenge to lap the rest of the field (which I managed - sorry!!) and that helped me to keep going all the way in to the finish.
A great day, fantastic result, and a couple more medals for the cabinet. A good start for a summer on the shorter stuff!
Saturday 23 May 2015
Sunday 17 May 2015
First 10k of the year
I can't believe we have made it to the middle of May and prior to today I hadn't raced a single 10k all year!
Ribble Valley was my last outing over the distance back in late December. Although I had meant to have been doing various races before now, for one reason or another it just never happened.
Today I started to put that right. A combination of wanting to get out of Moll's hair whilst she revised for Monday's exam, feeling fresh after Thursday's interclub and the fact that the race had been added to Wesham's club championship, saw me venture off to Leyland to do the Worden Park 10k.
I last did this race back in 2013, when I finished second place in 35:34. It isn't the easiest of courses, is undulating throughout, with quite a tough hill at the end of each of the two laps. Unfortunately the wind hadn't dropped any from Thursday either, so conditions didn't exactly help for fast times.
There was some good competition on the start line today, so I knew that I would have to be switched on and "on it" from the off, with Matt Thompson (who I am still to beat at crosscountry!) club mate James Mulvany and young Joe Monk all very good standard runners.
Joe ran practically the same time today as I did two years ago, it is obvious that he is going to be a high class athlete in a couple of years time. If I had any advice for him, it would just be to stay patient and keep working hard - I remember what it was like to be the youngest at races and trying to close that gap to be winning races. He will do it sooner or later, but hopefully when he does I will have continued to develop myself and can keep up with him!
As we set off on a downhill start, it was actually Joe that was really the only one to pull away with me in the early stages, I think I dropped him after about a quarter of a mile, and from then on in I was on my own. It was just like a re-run of Thursday's interclub all over again, with the knowledge that as long as I didn't do anything daft, the race was already in the bag - but despite the conditions and nature of the course, I really fancied a crack at my PB.
To get that PB would require me to run an average of 5:15 per mile, and my first mile got off to a good start, posting 5:09. The second mile of the course levelled out from the downhill start and then began to add a few gradual inclines and undulations, a check of my watch saw that I had slipped to 5:20 for the mile. The third mile was mainly uphill, and with a tough kick towards the end of the lap. I managed to maintain the same 5:20 pace from the previous mile by digging in a bit more.
So at halfway I found myself about 5 seconds shy of PB pace, but still within touching distance. Mile 4 was a repeat of the first mile of course, and I clocked the exact same time for it as first time around (5:09), meaning that for the first time since the early stages of the race, I was back in the realms of a PB time.
I knew that mile 5 would be tough, as the mental aspect began to get harder, knowing that the race was well won already, I admit that running into that head wind it was tempting to relax a little. I resisted though and pushed on - and ran 5:23 for the mile. I was slightly disappointed to be back behind the required rate, but knew I was still in with a slim chance if I could summon up a big finish.
Sadly, the second time around the big final climb did for me, I chucked everything in to that sixth mile, but clocking 5:24 I knew the game was up.
I did however, still have a shot at the course record (32:47), and I gave it my all in the last stretch into the finishing line. I came up just short again however, finishing in a time of 32:49.
All things considered though, I am delighted with both my performance and application to the race, and it gives me huge confidence moving on to more 10k's through the rest of the year. I will run quicker, but today will have benefited me massively I reckon.
To top it off, Wesham claimed another men's team prize, to round up a fantastic week for the club again!
On we march #teamwesham!!
Ribble Valley was my last outing over the distance back in late December. Although I had meant to have been doing various races before now, for one reason or another it just never happened.
Today I started to put that right. A combination of wanting to get out of Moll's hair whilst she revised for Monday's exam, feeling fresh after Thursday's interclub and the fact that the race had been added to Wesham's club championship, saw me venture off to Leyland to do the Worden Park 10k.
I last did this race back in 2013, when I finished second place in 35:34. It isn't the easiest of courses, is undulating throughout, with quite a tough hill at the end of each of the two laps. Unfortunately the wind hadn't dropped any from Thursday either, so conditions didn't exactly help for fast times.
There was some good competition on the start line today, so I knew that I would have to be switched on and "on it" from the off, with Matt Thompson (who I am still to beat at crosscountry!) club mate James Mulvany and young Joe Monk all very good standard runners.
Joe ran practically the same time today as I did two years ago, it is obvious that he is going to be a high class athlete in a couple of years time. If I had any advice for him, it would just be to stay patient and keep working hard - I remember what it was like to be the youngest at races and trying to close that gap to be winning races. He will do it sooner or later, but hopefully when he does I will have continued to develop myself and can keep up with him!
As we set off on a downhill start, it was actually Joe that was really the only one to pull away with me in the early stages, I think I dropped him after about a quarter of a mile, and from then on in I was on my own. It was just like a re-run of Thursday's interclub all over again, with the knowledge that as long as I didn't do anything daft, the race was already in the bag - but despite the conditions and nature of the course, I really fancied a crack at my PB.
To get that PB would require me to run an average of 5:15 per mile, and my first mile got off to a good start, posting 5:09. The second mile of the course levelled out from the downhill start and then began to add a few gradual inclines and undulations, a check of my watch saw that I had slipped to 5:20 for the mile. The third mile was mainly uphill, and with a tough kick towards the end of the lap. I managed to maintain the same 5:20 pace from the previous mile by digging in a bit more.
So at halfway I found myself about 5 seconds shy of PB pace, but still within touching distance. Mile 4 was a repeat of the first mile of course, and I clocked the exact same time for it as first time around (5:09), meaning that for the first time since the early stages of the race, I was back in the realms of a PB time.
I knew that mile 5 would be tough, as the mental aspect began to get harder, knowing that the race was well won already, I admit that running into that head wind it was tempting to relax a little. I resisted though and pushed on - and ran 5:23 for the mile. I was slightly disappointed to be back behind the required rate, but knew I was still in with a slim chance if I could summon up a big finish.
Sadly, the second time around the big final climb did for me, I chucked everything in to that sixth mile, but clocking 5:24 I knew the game was up.
I did however, still have a shot at the course record (32:47), and I gave it my all in the last stretch into the finishing line. I came up just short again however, finishing in a time of 32:49.
All things considered though, I am delighted with both my performance and application to the race, and it gives me huge confidence moving on to more 10k's through the rest of the year. I will run quicker, but today will have benefited me massively I reckon.
To top it off, Wesham claimed another men's team prize, to round up a fantastic week for the club again!
On we march #teamwesham!!
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