Phew! I ran the Race for Life today… Here’s a quick Q&A…
So did I finish? Yes.
Did I beat last year’s time (37min)? No.
Was I happy with this year’s time (38min)? Yes
Was it hot? Yes it bloody was
Did I puke? No
Did I want to puke? A few times
Moving swiftly on…
As promised, here’s a pic of me, pre-warm-up…
I look happy, but I was cacking myself at this point...
Crane shot, provided by Mr N (far right) holding his phone v high. You can see I look a bit nervous here, as I try to juggle my sports drink and water bottle in vain...
Apparently Mr N took this of the warm-up, but it's not really an action shot, is it? Look closer as you can spot we're eagerly waving our hands in the air and engaging in other such stretchy movements
And they're off...
I’m pretty pleased with my time, for several reasons – firstly, I’d forgotten just how epic the hill at the end was, so I instantly forgave myself when I was forced to walk up that bit again… Plus, until the stinky hill, I actually managed to outpace myself from last year – I reached the 4k marker in 28 mins, whereas last year it had been 30 – so it was definitely the hill that did me in in the end. Also it was extremely hot, even more so than last year. So much so, in fact, that the organisers warned us not to go hell for leather.
I was so nervous before the start this time – I had one of those ‘what on earth am I doing here?’ moments. The warm-up went very well, though - well better for me than some – the old lady next to me complained to her companion that she was pretty done in after all that – so didn’t fancy having to do a 5k as well! As I jogged past the start line I could see my family trying in vain to spot me in the crowd, but I couldn’t grab their attention. (Amusingly, because they couldn’t see me, they told me afterwards that they wondered if I’d backed out after the warm-up! Oh yea of little faith…)
For the first 500m my heart was beating so hard, I was really having to tell myself to calm down. By the time the 1k marker came into view, however, I’d settled into a rythmn, and that’s where my training really paid off. I felt myself go sort of onto auto-pilot – just like last year – and was able to run for 15 minutes before I had a quick walk break. By then I’d reached 2k – exactly the same pace as last year. By this time I’d also watched a lot of people pass me, but my favourite section was between 2 and 4k – here I was able to keep up the pace, and passed a lot of other runners, many of whom had passed me earlier. I got to 3k in 20 minutes and then to 4k in 28 mins. But then, of course, there was the hill…
I wanted to run up it, I really did. My mum had positioned herself at the bottom of the hill to cheer me on – which was a great morale booster. But I felt pretty sick with the heat, so I knew that if I pushed too hard up the hill I’d never make it down. Also at that point, I realised, far too late, that munching on a last-minute Nutrigrain (sickly stuff, but I wanted the energy!) 10 minutes before the start was a big mistake. A mistake I did not wish to share with any unfortunate passers-by, as it appeared to be quite keen to make an unscheduled reappearance. It was a bit soul-destroying to see the seconds speed by on my stop watch, but there it was – by running up that hill I would have thrashed last year’s time – but I just didn’t have the strength or the stomach. It was quite satisfying to pick up the pace again at the top of the hill, however, and yet again overtake many who’d passed me earlier. I managed the final stretch at a comfortable pace and as I passed the finish line I felt a sense of relief and contentment.
I should, of course, be sharing with you my post-race victory shots, but I’ve just been checking them out and they’re pretty awful, not least because I’d chucked half my complimentary bottle of water over my head in order to cool down – not a good look!
So, with the gift of hindsight here are my top tips for running a 5k.
1. Do as the organisers suggest and get there early. Or you may well get stuck in traffic as 2,999 other runners also try and reach the course by car. If the traffic proves to be at a standstill, do what we did and abandon your car as soon as you can and walk the rest of the way – you’ll get there much quicker.
2. Queue for the portaloos with at least 20 mins to spare – or you’ll miss the start! I time-managed this perfectly so felt super-smug – yes little things please me greatly!
3. Sipping from a sports drink before you start will reduce the amount of water you’ll need during the race – well this worked for me, anyway.
4. Don’t eat any last-minute snacks too close to the start – I wish I’d left that darn Nutrigrain alone – see above…
5. Get your picture taken whilst proudly wearing your medal, before you chuck water all over your head.
6. Just do your best – whatever your time, the moment you cross the finish line you’ll just feel fantastic!!
It’s probably also worth adding that it’s good to enter a charity race if you can – it feels extra great to know all your hard work is raising money for a good cause. Now I just have to decide which race I’m going to enter next…
2 Comments
July 1, 2009 at 4:24 pm
well done well done well done! that heat must have been gruelling. glad your stomach made it to the end too, hehe. really like those tips. and well done perfectly timing that portaloo visit… that is immensley satisfying especially when you see everyone else in a flap!
July 7, 2009 at 1:12 pm
Go you!!! What a great race report, I really enjoyed reading. Reminded me of the days when I did triathlons – I’d get there an hour before, queue for the loo and then mill around nevously…always best to get there early though, you don’t want the stress of getting caught in traffic as well! Well done, you should be really proud of yourself