A strange day out in London

I'd heard that the British 10km was quite an experience but nothing prepared me for the day's events as they unfolded. An early start got me to a convenient parking spot just behind Liz's house off the Mall by 7.30. Everything was strangely quiet walking across the front of Buck House and up through Green Park, part of my old training route when I worked in London. Having blagged myself a free / elite entry (don't ask, long story!) I registered at the Hard Rock Café near Hyde Park Corner where I was handed elite No. 11 (no pressure then ...). Sat there for an hour watching the real runners go through their pre-race preparation, including luminaries such as Olympic Marathon Champion, Constantina Dita and World Marathon Champion, Catherine Nderaba. I was more interested in looking at the memorabilia on the walls of this famous venue and thinking how different the place must have looked just a few hours earlier with Saturday night's revellers. Chatted to a couple of people then ran up Park Lane to Marble Arch on an uncomfortable warm-up (adductor / abdomen sore, more later). Had to scream blue murder when a job's worth security man wouldn't let me back into the Café (I know, I don't exactly exude elite runner status!). Eventually we were ushered to the start where the enormity of the event started to unfold. Jogged down the first half mile of the course to do a few strides and on the other side of the road, facing up towards the start, were wall to wall runners, thousands of them penned in like sheep!

After interminable speeches by the Lord Mayor and others; a token lighting of the Olympic torch; some fanfares from the military buglers and three (yes three) renditions of God Save the Queen, the race started. Of course I'd stiffened up by then, my aforementioned problems restricting me badly, so the kamikazee starters streamed by. The noise was deafening from the waiting competitors on the other side of the road and this continued all the way to Piccadilly, down Pall Mall and into Trafalgar Square before we reached the end of the snake. Eventually got into my stride and by the time I reached Embankment at about 3km I was going well. Continued to pick off runners coming off the back of the dwindling pack holding the three lead women (an Italian being the third), although after a u-turn just before halfway I was very much on my own. The next stretch is familiar to all who watch the London Marathon as the course emerged from a subway and along the Embankment towards Westminster Bridge - this stretch was straight into a strong wind (I always tell people that the marathon course is into the prevailing wind for long stretches so isn't that fast) and I was running in splendid isolation, apart, that was, from the thousands streaming along in the other direction. The whole thing was made even more surreal by the fact that I was rapidly closing down a solitary runner, namely Olympic champion Dita! Over Westminster Bridge, another u-turn and back over the bridge to Big Ben, around the permanent demonstrators in Parliament Square (they seemed pleased to have something to see for a change), up Victoria Road, yet another u-turn and we finished running past Downing Street in Whitehall. Couldn't quite catch Dita (34.31) but pretty happy with my time of 34.37 as it was my fastest non-Bourton 10km for 14 years (for non-Glos readers, Bourton is reknowned as being very "fast"). Also pleased to beat Ranelagh's Jonathan Stacey after he got the better of me at the Ranelagh ½ in May.

Picked up my gear (from the elite spot just yards from the finish, I could easily get used to this treatment!) and walked up to Trafalgar Square towards my car. I was astonished to see thousands of runners streaming through the 1km point with plenty more still waiting to cross the start line. It has to be said therefore that in finishing 12th out of 27,000 it was a slightly uneven contest! I sat and watched for a couple of minutes as I changed out of my race gear then strolled back to my car - Buck House & The Mall now heaving with tourists in contrast to much earlier - with ominous pains percolating through my body. Dropped my gear into the car and tried to do a warm down: I was in agony, my adductor had seized up and the pain in my abdomen was searing. I was doubled up; I know Ron Hill would have managed to hobble a couple of miles in this state but not me. Was home by 12:30 and wondered how many poor souls were still out on the course.

Postscript: with marathon training in full flow, at least in theory, I'd taken Monday off work to do my long run. So despite a bad night, out I went for a 22 miler, thankfully with Natalie and her friend Alice coming along for the ride on their bikes. Have subsequently seen the doc (already being treated for the adductor problem by the lovely Helen Hall in Fairford, highly recommended) and am waiting on blood tests to see what the problem is and whether Finland is viable.

The Ashes are back

By Evie Jones (Lakeside Primary School)

The wizards of Oz are coming to Wales,
The best team with a bat,
We’ve built a brand new stadium for them
With a view of the Taff – Howzat!

The Roos bring their Ashes,
With their pads and bats and caps,
But they’re playing in Wales, not England,
So they better pack some maps.

The strange thing about cricket
Is that they stop for tea and scones,
But we’ll serve them Welsh cakes and laver bread,
And large portions of the fast bowler Simon Jones.

The Aussies will pour over the border
To our land of song and hills,
But the Barmy Army will beat them
With weapons of golden daffodils.

All the players will dress in white,
And cover their faces in zinc war paint
Whereas the crowd will bring anoraks and sweaters,
And at the sight of the sun in Wales, they’ll faint!

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I don't have Sky - life's too short to spend hours watching my favourite sports on tv, especially as they are all endurance based: cricket (5 days), golf (4 days), marathon running etc. But it is so frustrating at times like this; the evening highlights are a waste of space as they can't encapsulate the chess match ebb & flow of a quality Test with all the nuances developing as the game goes on. I'll just have to rely on Aggers and the TMS team to bring the games alive in my ears and allow me to picture the view in my mind. This will be difficult for the first match in the unlikely surroundings of Cardiff (money talks more than tradition in modern sport unfortunately). It all reminds me of the 1970/71 winter when I used to listen to the radio commentary from Australia late at night as Ray Illingworth's team beat the Australians over there in a magnificent series.

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At the end of last week's heatwave I had a pleasant workout in the Aerospace '5' near Cheltenham on a tough course which climbed up towards Cleeve Hill. Felt I needed to wear a race number again despite struggling with an adductor strain and other problems that a family Blog like this wouldn't want to know about. Started very slowly as planned then picked up pace in second half as I like to treat these evening races (especially when as hot as its been) as good tempo runs. Splits were 6.07, 5.50, then avg 5.30 for the rest. Nearly caught Mike Smith on the line but as he got thrashed by a 50 year old in Bourton's half marathon the previous week, thought I'd spare him any more embarrassement. Claudie came along and there was some good social with some newer Ciren members as well as a good chat with Dennis & Lucy Walmsley ahead of Finland next month (it appears it's impossible to run anywhere in the world and not find a Bourton runner in the same race).

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Great news from Natalie. She got her 2:1 from Exeter; her next two years are now mapped out for her (and for dad's bank balance!) in two more of Europe's capital cities. What a great life she is having.

Passing ships in the night

A bit morbid this week but for good reasons. We all think of ourselves as indestructible, especially when young, with a lot of bravado about running vast distances, drinking masses of beer, driving fast and sundry other stupid escapades. When you get as old as me you start to see things differently - albeit I am a mere spring chicken compared to the remarkable Fred Robson, about whom more later - your outlook starts to change when you see what goes on around you.

There was an article in Ranelagh Harriers' newsletter last week that should be pasted up on every club noticeboard in the country. I will try to précis it here but look it up under News (newsletter no. 309) on Ranelagh's website for the full version. A regular club runner aged 35 from Leeds was down in London for a few days and went out for an easy four mile run. He collapsed and died during the run. He had no identification on him so the authorities couldn't contact anybody. Given the vast expanses of our wonderful Cirencester Park (4,000 acres?) and beyond to run in, where we enjoy idyllic isolation, can you imagine how bad things could get here? There are identification gadgets that can be attached to running shoes and it is clearly important to tell people where you are going to run. Since my heart scare last summer and continued associated problems, I always try to tell Claudie my running route and I now always fill in the personal details requested on the back of lots of race numbers, something I used to mock when they first appeared.

I have known of a few deaths associated with running over the years; in most cases the informed opinion has been that running actually deferred the ultimate finishing line although try telling that to the families of the handful of people who all died on the same day in the Gt North Run a few years ago. The recognised creator of the jogging boom in America, James Fixx, died whilst out running aged 52, the ultimate irony given his preaching about the healthy nature of such an activity. My very, very good friend from Australia, George Thomas, died aged 41 whilst driving home from a 10k race. He was my mentor whilst he lived in London in the late 70's and drummed into me how to get regular training lodged into my daily lifestyle.

We are now enjoying / enduring a bit of a heatwave. Great you say, a decent summer at last. I agree and like nothing better than getting out for a run with the freedom of just wearing shorts (I know, with a body like mine I should be covering up to protect the population at large, as my darling daughter Natalie told me the other day!). But the heat brings its own problems. In 2003 there was a lot of publicity about how many elderly people died in France in the heatwave that year; a number of younger people perished on an organised long distance walk in Holland as well, yet there was precious little about the effect it had in the UK. I know though because my dad was one such statistic, dying in his sleep after the hottest day of the year. We must respect weather extremes and not think we are indestructible. Take wise precautions; if doing a long run try to go out early and even drop some water off in advance at points around the course.

Two brighter matters on which to finish. I alluded earlier to 78 year old Fred Robson. He was running marathons 10 years before even I was born and he was out in Finland last weekend doing another one despite 30ºC temperatures (careful Fred!). Picture shows him having a massage after the race. He has a wonderful attitude to life and to running. I look forward to buying him a celebratory half pint of Guinness when he next appears at the pub - what a wonderful man.

Finally, can't let my reader(s) go without mentioning our esteemed club captain Adrian Williams. He missed club training last Tuesday so that he could post a decent 5km time at a race down near Bristol, a round trip of about 60 miles (I think he was actually just trying to get out of attending the club committee meeting personally), as a barometer on how his Berlin Marathon training is going. Just one problem: he got the wrong date, there was no race!

Enjoy the sunshine.

A step back in time

In the good old days, summer lasted from May to September with endless hot, sunny days; village greens sporting cricketers clad in all white gently playing forward defensive shots for hours on end; village fêtes with maypoles, strawberries and cream and WI home made cakes, and running races always starting at 3pm on Saturday afternoons. Well, on Saturday I was able to witness three of these things - cricket being the exception as it has changed somewhat; the commentators were bemoaning the WI run rate falling below nine an over for example, what on earth would Geoff Boycott make of that?
The Broad Town 5 is a lovely little race and has been going 26 years. Start & finish is in a tiny school playing field where the annual fête attracts a lot of interest for what is only a small village (not sure why it's called a town). We parked in an adjoining field where the grass grew higher than my little MG, which as a consequence was camouflaged and thus difficult to find after the race. I was surprised to find four female teammates at the race, mother & daughter Thomas plus itinerant travellers "if there is an obscure race we'll find it" Jane Stevens & Christina See. In fact the overall turnout was excellent with over 200 finishers swelling the coffers of whatever school fund / good cause the fête was raising money for.
I enjoyed most of the race if only for the fact that I was leading for 3½ miles - it's a long time since I've been that close to the lead vehicle. Aim was for a good tempo run to supplement my current heavy marathon training so I wanted to ensure a good pace. By two miles (10:35) I only had Gary O'Brien for company and he allowed me to do all the work which I didn't mind. I maintained a good pace and felt strong despite the hot conditions (3m in 15:59) ... until the big hill just before four miles. In the foothills of this mountain (which ultimately led onto the Ridgeway way above us, although we turned off before reaching the top), O'Brien eased alongside me and then as it became steeper he edged ahead. I was a beaten man and fell away like a Rich Tea biscuit in a freshly made cup of tea. I "ran" the fourth mile in 5:51 before thankfully regaining some composure on the flat and ultimately downhill finish with a final 5:35 and an excellent second overall which Claudie missed as she was watching the dog show!
My day was made when I met up with a couple of acquaintances from many, many years ago, Dennis Williams & Ian Isherwood from Hercules Wimbledon running club. They'd done this race once a long time ago and fancied a weekend away with a Saturday afternoon race, no doubt to be followed by a few glasses in a local hostelry. We spent quite some time reminiscing about old times and mutual friends. Great fun.
A couple of drinks Saturday evening then a long run (2h 15m) Sunday morning completed a really good old fashioned running weekend.

PS For ease of reference, the first WI referred to in the narrative is Womens Institute, the second West Indies. Hope that sorts out any confusion.

Contrasting 10km races

I've attended two 10km races in the last two days, one as a competitor and one as a marshal. The contrasts between the two were dramatic.

The Fairford Festival 10km, as the name implies, is run as part of a weekend of festivities in the town where I work. Both the festival and the race, plus associated 3km fun run, have been going for many years and have been highly successful. Unfortunately this year things changed. The organisers manifestly failed to market the race with no flyers distributed at other local races or to nearby clubs. As a consequence the race almost didn't go ahead because of lack of entries - this at a time when most races close entries early and have to turn people away. Of course this meant that Cirencester were able to clean up, we managed five of the top eight places and the only reason we didn't have the race winner was because Chris overslept, see his Blog for more! Jon Young's photo shows the beeming winning team of Adrian Williams, Chris Illman & me with the delightful Sharron Davies.

The next evening Cirencester promoted the Westonbirt Arboretum 10km, the course threading its way through the winding footpaths of this beautiful area near Tetbury & Highgrove. Entries closed weeks ago at 750 and organiser Dave Edelsten could easily have accepted double that number. As ever with Dave's organisation, everything went very smoothly; it was a spectacular sight seeing such large numbers spread throughout the grounds of the Arboretum. With a sapling tree for each finisher there was also a bit of novelty for all as well.

The Westonbirt results have been published this morning, just a few hours after the race finished. The Fairford results have also been published today but because the second finisher's time was not recorded all results are incorrect! Apparently the fun run results are even worse. If people pay out £8-10 for a 10km race they expect decent organisation. At Westonbirt they got it, at Fairford they didn't.

The longest run

Had planned to run the White Horse 5 on bank holiday Monday but the 11:30am start put me off as it impinged on good eating / drinking time in the midst of a heavy social weekend. It was partly coincidence and partly planned that so much social stuff happened all at once - just like the old 93 bus, you wait ages for one to come along then three come together.

So instead of dodging gypsies & collecting chocolate biscuits at Gloucester, it was off to the Thames Head for lunch with Claudie, my sister & mum. For any locals interested, the food at the TH is now superb. This followed dinner at Jesse Smiths in town on Saturday night and lunch in our garden on a glorious summer Sunday with friends from London.

Saturday's dinner, again high quality, was with Cathie & Dave who, remarkably, got married on the same day as us. We didn't know them then but they were only a few miles away: we married in Morden, south London and they tied the knot in Horsham, Sussex. Unfortunately, being relatively close meant we had the same weather ... it bucketed down all day, absolutely incessant it was. They say that's a good sign and I guess it was because all this waffle is leading to the fact that we celebrated our 25th anniversary on Tuesday! Champagne at home finished off our few sociable days perfectly. Shame Natalie couldn't join us but the poor girl is in the midst of her finals at Exeter Uni.

Of course I trained on our wedding day - my best man was a 30.17 10k runner so it wasn't a gentle plod - and I managed to get out twice on our anniversary. Not sure how many more years I'll be strapping on the trainers rather than slippers but I'll keep it going for as long as I can. As I've said before it's a lifestyle thing.

Thanks Claudie, you're a star for putting up with me all these years!

Relaxing by the Thames

Thought I'd crucify my legs further with another half marathon back at my old stomping ground. The Richmond Half, organised by Ranelagh Harriers, takes in some wonderful settings and, as a consequence is very popular despite an 8.30am start. Living 100 miles away this meant Claudie & I staying overnight with old friends and that meant eating & drinking well. That's my first excuse.
The race started right outside the Ranelagh clubhouse, went over Richmond Bridge, then to Twickenham, Kingston and the magnificent Hampton Court, before returning along the (generally) tarmac towpath, over Kingston Bridge and back to Richmond. It was a beautiful warm, sunny day. My race was nondescript as I was isolated for nearly the whole race, just picking off a few fast starters, before I got into a nice little trio after 8 miles and we picked up the pace. My marathon, previous night's antics and continued health problems all kicked in over the last couple of miles and I was pretty weary by the end. David Rowe's picture shows race winner, Peter Tucker, bounding along. Great to meet up with old friends of course, including two we hadn't seen for a few years: Grenville Tuck and Ned Sullivan. Makes it all worthwhile.
During the previous evening and after the race, swopped lots of texts with my buddy from Rome, Gavin Jones, who decided to run the Prague Marathon. He'd run Rome in 2.48 in March, was aghast to hear that I'd run 2.47 in Scotland, so ran Prague at short notice ... in 2.46! He is a happy man but I shall return and sooner than most expect ...