Haddington Half Marathon (Scotland) Sat 18th Aug 2012

This was a race I entered very last minute! I knew I was due in Scotland over this weekend so decided to do a Google search on races that were on. Bingo I hit the jackpot! – Well a half marathon – bit more than I was maybe looking for, but I thought, Why not!! I knew roughly the area, as Haddington is not far away from Musselburgh, this is where the Edinburgh Marathon finished (I did this in May).

It was a stunning morning as I drove passed the Campsie hills on route to Haddington, the weather seemed to be on our side, which was a surprise as it had been tipping it down for two days previous!

It was a late start for a race, starting at 2pm, however this does give you body time to warm up and stretch out during the day (also means you don’t have to get up at Silly O Clock to eat breakfast). The race started in the centre of Haddington at the sports centre, but quickly left up and out of the town along the small B-roads. The course very undulating so although it was hard work and not a PB course it kept things interesting! The countryside we passed through was lovely and the weather held at about 20c the whole way round, ensuring you came through the finish line with a tan, bonus!

The race finished at the Rugby pitch in Haddington, just across the road from the start. Little medals and bottles were handed out to all finishers. There was as much water as you needed at the end, as well as a fantastic spread of cakes, sandwiches, teas, coffees and juice for when your appetite returned after the run (for me, within about 30sec!).

Overall I finished the race in 1:51:20

Did I enjoy it? Would I do it again? Yes

Would I recommend it? Is it well organised? Yes

Great day out!!

Hyde Park Summer Mile

With only an hour until the start gun for the Hyde Park Golden Mile, this race was almost cancelled. The rain was lashing down and it seemed like it would be turning into kayaking race instead. Luckily it stop raining and the night was a go. The race was one mile long and was run in waves, so not a typical run of the mill race. There were around 15 runners in each wave with the first group comprising the slower runners and each group got faster. In order to determine which group ran with, we had to put the predicted time on the entry form to be allocated a slot. I was in group six of seven, Gilly and James were in four.

 With a race thats just one mile, its hard to know how you pace yourself, but my plan was to go from the gun. Hit it hard and see if I was fit enough. Gilly and James did not give away their tactics. But by the looks of their faces at the finish they had put everything in, with a big smile, they seemed happy with how they had done.  Myself. For the whole race I was running on my own. It started well, mostly downhill to help. But as the half way point came, the lactic acid was kicking in and and I was feeling the burn. The last quarter of the race was flat, so everybody was starting to catch me up. As hard as it was though, I held on and managed to win my wave. 
A customary drink at the prize giving and enough home made Chilli and food to sink the hungriest hippo. All this was put on by the great Hyde Park Harriers Club, so thank you to them.
 

 

Mens Winner 4:32secs

 5:07secsStephen - Overall 11th - 

5:09secsGilly - 73rd - 6:32secs

James - 61st - 6:11secs

Golden Acre Park Relay

Our Leeds Teams were looking forward to this race and the weather on the day meant a good race should have been the order of the day. As it turned out, both James W and James D had mixed runs. Wrighty, leading off the 'A' team had promised to go off 'like a rocket' but then proceeded to sit 2/3rds of the way down the pack as the runners set off. He did make up a few places on the way round the parkland course (which was rather more undulating than I seem to remember!) but blamed a tight back for his inability to make serious headway into the leaders. A time of 19minutes set the team up for a good run nonetheless. James D had the 'honour' of anchoring the 'B' team - not through any desire to grab all the glory, but rather because he didn't want the ignominy of being overtaken by a load of 15 year old girls on the first leg. Instead, this honour went to Old Boy Kirk Arundale who duly obliged in 'letting' the said girls go past him without any sign of resistance on his part. Nevertheless, a steady run gave Gilly the chance to chase a few on her leg. This she did, and when she produced a time a whole minute quicker than Kirk's the shame on his face was evident.

 The final leg saw James D attempt to chase a few 'old timers' round the course, and although one or two succumbed to his blistering tempo, meaningful progress through the field was limited. Even the raucous support provided by his parents and their dogs on the way round failed to inspire him. Despite his team mates urging him to sprint at the end (I thought I was!), he returned a time some 10 seconds slower than last years effort. Still, a good time was had by all and a couple of decent performances were in evidence - Steve S producing a particularly strong 2nd leg for the 'A' team. We shall aim to do better next year, if for no other reason than it will make us feel less guilty about wolfing down Fish&Chips on the way home.

So to conclude; The course was a challenging one with a few short, sharp climbs to get the legs working. The section through the wood was very uneven and it was difficult to keep the momentum. However it was a very scenic course, much more enjoyable than running past buildings and traffic.

The course was fairly dry under foot so it would have been suitable for racing shoes, but we chose our off-road shoes to be safe, if there was a light shower and the course would become very tricky under foot so our suggestion if you are planning on doing this event is take a few different pairs of shoes and choose on the night.