Sunday 18 November 2012

Today was my third run in the St Neots Riverside Half Marathon.  The weather was dry and bright and fairly cool - good running weather.  We almost missed the start as I thought it started at 10.30 not 10.

At the start I joined the pack just ahead of the 1:45 pacers and managed to stay ahead of them throught the race.  I set a good steady pace and manged to stay reasonably comfortable throughout the run.  I crossed the finish line just as the clock reached 1:40 and recorded a new PB chip time of 1:39:43.

Sunday 9 September 2012

A very hot day for the Grunty Fen Half Marathon.

The course from Witchford Village College started with a 5 mile loop followed by a long 8 mile loop.  I set a good time for the first 5 miles in under 40 minutes, but then the heat took its toll and I had little energy left for the final loop.  I finished in a time of 1 hour 49'17".

Sunday 20 November 2011

St Neots Riverside half-marathon.  This was my second time at this event. Previous time in 2010 was 1 hour 47:15.  This year the weather was foggy and at the start it was rather cold.  With a target of 1 hour 45, I set out with the 1:45 pacers and kept alongside them for the first mile.  At this point I decided to push on a bit.  With the hill in Abbotsley between 2 and 4 miles out of the way, I used the downhill section towards Waresley to gain some momentum.  Last year I started to flag at 7 miles but this time I was till going strong and feeling comfortable.  The second time up the hill at Abbotsley was soon out of the way and I had enough energy to push on to the finish.  At 10 miles my time was just over 1 hour 17, well ahead of my 10 mile PB.  A surge down the hill from mile 12 led me to the finish in 1 hour 40:30. 

The fog lingered throughout the race so there was no wildlife to be seen.

St Neots - Half Marathon - Sunday 21 November 2010

My first half marathon. Weather was cool but not too cold at around 7 degrees. There was also quite a bit of a breeze. With a forecast time of 1 hour 52 I decided to try to stick with the 1 hour 45 pacers.

The race started up the hill out of St Neots on Potton Road and then headed to Abbotsley. The first mile was quick at just over 7 and half minutes. The second mile was just under 8 minutes and the third about the same. Just after 3 miles the route turned right up a steep incline along High Green and continued uphill along Pitsdean Road. This was very energy sapping and the water station at the top of the hill was very welcome.

Just before the 4 mile mark the route turned left towards Waresley. This section was flat at first and then became a steep downhill stretch. Here I was able to open up a bit and pulled ahead of the pacers where there was less runners. The downhill soon became another uphill to the 5 mile mark. The total time at this point was still within 8 minutes per mile. The road flattened out again before turning right, the route was then downhill into the village of Waresely. At the bottom of the hill the road turned left again along the B1040. At 6 and half miles (halfway) we had another water station. Just before 7 miles the road again turned left back towards Abbotsley. I was starting to fall behind the pacing group at this stage so I took my energy gel.

I closed the gap a bit as we approached the 8 mile mark just before Abbotsley, but with the hill again at the Green and Pitsdean Road I decided to let them go, as I was already ahead of my target and didn't want to overstretch myself. The second time up Pitsdean Road didn't actually seam as bad as the first time. At 9 miles we were at the water station again. After this the road turned right at the top this time along Drewels Lane towards St Neots.

A flat section followed for the next mile. Then from the 10 mile mark the route was all downhill. The foul smell of a chicken and turkey farm (sorry about the pun!) was enough incentive to push a lit harder at the stage. The route then twisted its way past the Abbotsley Golf Course, before the final water station at 11 and half miles. Immediately after the 12 mile marker we were back on the B1046 having completed the figure of 8. The road then retraced our steps over the A428 and the railway line down into St Neots. Near the end of Potton Road the route turned into Ridgeway through the housing estate past the 13 mile marker and finally to the finish - in a time of 1 hour 47'15".

A Buzzard was seen soaring over the woods along the road to Waresley and 2 more over Waresley village.