Racing

I like racing. It doesn't matter how far up or down the field I am, I always enjoy the whole racing experience and find that I push myself a lot harder in a race than I would if I just went out to do a training run. This week I have done 2 races, the Troon 10k on Wednesday night (organised by one of my previous clubs, Troon Tortoises), then the Glen Lednock 8.5 mile road race earlier today. That makes it a total of 9 races so far this year.

Wednesday in Troon was a wild night. When we turned right towards the sea at the 8km point, the rain was so torrential and right into our faces that it was a struggle to see where we were going. Then the last km up the prom was a case of splashing through the puddles and trying to avoid the deepest ones. Despite the foul weather I thoroughly enjoyed the race and was really glad I made the long trip through from my work in Edinburgh. I was even happy enough with my finishing time of 40.38 - my days of being upset at being over 40 minutes for a 10k are long gone, I think :) Well done to all the guys from Troon Tortoises: as usual, the organisation was excellent, and I would make special mention of the on-course marshalling, which was as good as I have seen in any race. It was my 91st completed 10k, so I'm into the home straight as I head towards the magic 100.

Today was the Glen Lednock 8.5 mile road race, a new event which starts in Comrie (which is only 12 miles from my house, so this is one of my local races). The route heads right up Glen Lednock to the Ben Chonzie car park, then turns round and comes back the same way. The first half is almost all uphill, but as it is an out and back route we had the benefit of the hills all the way back. It was quite a small field - only 39 took part - and I finished 6th overall in a time of 57.22, having been almost 4 minutes faster for the 2nd half. Like Troon it was a really enjoyable, well organised event, and I'm sure the numbers will grow in future years as more people get to hear about it.

I'm now intending to have an easy week (at least in terms of my running) before the 55 mile Cateran Trail race next Saturday. I'm looking forward to seeing the Cateran Trail route, most of which I have not been on before, although my plan is to run at a sensible pace throughout, not push things too hard, and to use it as a long training run for the WHW race in June.