Gloucester New Year 10 mile

Didn't plan to do the 10 mile (16.1km) race today. Got chatting to Mike, a good running mate of mine during one of the runs with my old club over Christmas and got talked into doing it. Went to bed last night still undecided. Got up about 15 minutes before 9am and finally chose to race rather than go out on the bike. It was a grey overcast day and rather windy too.

Toasted a bagel and tried to sort out my kit in the meantime. Where is the stuff that I need? Decided to race in the white shiny pair of NB234 from the shop in BB Plaza instead of my ultralight blue suede shoes due to the distance. Luckily it wasn't raining so I won't get the white shoes dirty - what a poser! Stuck hand out of the window to check temperature (yes very unscientific but it works). Probably ok for shorts with long sleeve jersey. I have heard somewhere that keeping your arms and hands warm allows more blood to go to the legs where they are needed. Don't know whether this is true but seems to work for me.

Supposed to meet up at 9am to go out in three cars. Hardly surprising to get there about 10 minutes late. Sorry guys... Race was going to start at 11am so no big rush. Already a bit busy at event HQ when we got there. Nearly managed to twist my ankle on my way to signing on (yes entry on the day is allowed). What an idiot I would be if I actually did it. Stood there yakking for a while before deciding that it might be a good idea to warmup before the start. Warmup consisted of a bit of jogging around and stretching - hardly a full proper one.

Fairly simple tactics today. Planned to run with Tony who did 67 minutes for 10 miles a couple of weeks ago. I thought 7 minute miles (4:21/km) would be pretty hard to sustain over this distance. I am notoriously bad at underestimating my pace - I assume 8 minute miles (5:00/km) as my usual training pace. Hopefully I would survive till past halfway and then make a move.

Was talking to someone and facing the wrong way when the horn went. Eventually started my watch as I crossed the start line. This wasn't a big race, around ??? runners so there wasn't the wall of people that you see at big races. Ran together with my pace maker and start moving up.

There is a short "dogleg" about 1 mile after the start where you turn back around a traffic cone to make up the full 10 miles. As we approached the cone, the leader already had about 20m lead on the rest of the chasing pack. Mike was some way in front of me. Got to the 1 mile marker at 7:17 (maybe a bit of mistake with marker placement). Shouted out the split to Tony and told him to go faster.

Began to pull away from Tony around the 2nd mile. Stuck on to a couple of runners, ran with them for a bit, then overtook them on a slight rise. Could see Mike in the distance. Why isn't the gap closing. Eventually like a fisherman reeling in his catch, I passed several runners who were between me and Mike. Went by Mike around the 4th mile. Saw the time at mile 5 and talked to someone running alongside. Told him that this was my first ever 10 mile race. He replied that he wanted to break 65 minutes. Overtook him at the water station where he paused to get a drink.

Kept going and put in a bit more effort on the little rises. Felt pretty strong and managed to overtake quite a few more people. Mile 6 was a watershed. This was close to my usual race distance of 10km - any further and I was venturing into the unknown (strictly speaking I have raced further than 10km but only offroad / cross country). Tried to work out what 10km time the 6 mile time would equate to in my mind. I find that mental calculations is a good way of passing time during races.

Went past mile 7 without noticing it. Attacked on another slight hill to overtake more runners. Got to the top of the hill straight into a gusty headwind. Arrrggghhh don't look back keep trying. Felt like I was running in mud for a while. Luckily they probably felt the same and didn't catch me back. Started looking for the mile 8 marker with 3 more runners in sight. Got to the two who were on the back (one male one female) on an uphill just after the 8th mile. The one who was in front had started pulling away from them. Ran with the two for a bit and made my move. Bridged up to the runner in front with a decisive surge.

Decision time now. Do I run with him or make a move? Will I blow up if I try to escape now? When in doubt, talk! He asked whether I knew the finish. I said no but the 9 mile marker should be soon... which was also where I decided to make my move. Just past the 9 mile marker which I remember clearly, I upped the pace. Not a sprint no, just a gradual increase to try to drop him. Didn't dare look back but I knew a gap had opened.

Round the last corner. A bit of a headwind. Keep up the smooth flow. No need to sprint yet as the runner in front was too far gone. Keep a bit in reserve in case the one behind did anything. 200m to go, start winding it up and cruise into the finish to stop my watch at 64:37 (official time was 64:42 - so it took me 5s to get to the start line) for 26th place. Quite surprised at the timing - indeed I think I could have gone faster as I didn't feel as ill as I have felt after some 10km races.

Worrying thought - am I better at longer distances? Should I move up in distance? The thought was quickly banished when I realised the increase in mileage required. Probably keep to what I am doing for a while first. The performance may be partly due to an increase in my usual endurance runs to 45-60 minutes, often over hilly terrain. Still not bad for this early in the season. Very happy with the negative split and the amount of overtaking I did (no one overtook me after mile 1). Got complimented on my strong finish by several people I overtook too.

Mile 1: 07:17 (07:17/mile - 4:31/km)
Mile 2: 13:33 (06:16/mile - 3:54/km)
Mile 3: 19:46 (06:13/mile - 3:52/km)
Mile 4: 26:08 (06:22/mile - 3:57/km)
Mile 5: 32:30 (06:22/mile - 3:57/km)
Mile 6: 38:42 (06:12/mile - 3:51/km)
Mile 7: Dreaming
Mile 8: 51:59 (06:38/mile - 4:07/km between 6-8)
Mile 9: 58:21 (06:22/mile - 3:57/km)
Mile 10: 64:37 (06:16/mile - 3:54/km)

See here for full results. Note that the winner ran in the Olympic Marathon in Athens.

Location 52°N 2°W