Short run weekend and thank goodness as the weather was rubbish. Especially on Sunday morning.
I had booked myself on to the Liverpool Half Marathon, ages ago, before I knew I’d be running London. Luckily it seemed to coincide quite well with my training in that it gave me a valid excuse to take it easy after two consecutive weekends of 20 odd milers. Plus it was the very first half I’d ever done, back in 2014, a whole year ago, so it felt like a nice anniversary to commemorate.
The forecast in the lead up to Sunday was not looking good. Virtually 100% probability of rain and strong winds meaning that the last four miles along the prom back to the centre of town would be like swimming through treacle. The night before, not much had changed although the wind speed had dropped a bit and I had primed Arun (my cousin who lodges with me and who also owns a car) to give me a lift in at about 8.20. But I didn’t get my kit out ready, I didn’t soak my oats and I didn’t set my alarm. I was definitely wavering.
The next morning, despite losing an hour to BST, I was awake at 6.30 (probably due to the rain on the window pane) and I got up and forced a mediocre version of porridge down on the off chance that I would actually go. Climbing back into bed on an uncomfortable stomach I decided on a final snooze til 8ish. I was sure I could still find my kit, find my number, find the safety pins, find my gels and put it all together and on me in twenty mins. Assuming I could be muster the energy though. Finally, by 8.05, I decided to get my backside into gear and commit to it. I knew I’d have to still run at some point during the day so it may as well be now.
So, on the plus side the heavy winds did not materialise. The cold, continuous, miserable downpour was a good incentive keep a brisk pace. I ran the first six miles with a running club buddy, until she decided she needed to find a portaloo or bush. My eventual time was a minute or so slower than my PB in Coventry, 02:05:31, but that was okay considering my legs were probably still tired a bit from the previous two weeks and I was soaked to the core. It’s also quite nice to see my steady progression. This time last year I came in at just under 2 hours and 18.
theleadlesspencil 