Report: Race Three - The Hook 10 Mile Road Race

Two days later and I've just about recovered enough to write this report!
On Sunday I ran in the ten mile race that was part of the Hook Fun Run and Road Race, in Hook, Hampshire. As well as the ten mile race there was a six mile race, a 2.5 mile race and a 2.5 mile fun run, so it was well attended by a wide range of people of many different abilities from all over the country.
I was aiming for a time under 1 hour 40 minutes. My only previous attempt at this distance in a training run took me 1 hour 48 minutes, so this represented a pretty significant improvement, but at the same time was something I thought was pretty achievable if I worked hard. Training hadn't been going well for a lot of this last month though, so it definitely did not feel like a sure thing.
As usual JoJo sacrificed her lie-in to drive me to the race. The morning dawned soggy, and quickly graduated to Welsh levels of rain. I began to regret scheduling a BBQ for after the race, I had obviously cursed it. I was equipped with a heart rate monitor and music player this time - running alone again I decided these would be helpful. The music player staves off boredom, helps maintain a good rhythm and hitting the right track at the right time gives you a little boost of energy - purely psychological, but it feels real. The heart rate monitor was there so I could watch my progress and make sure I was working hard but not so hard I'd exhaust myself before the end. I was aiming to stay between 170 and 180 BPM for the majority of the race, definitely not above 185 until the last two miles, for those of you into the numbers. And of course I ran in the CA blue polo shirt! As we drove to Hook the skies cleared - my luck with the weather held out for another race!
The race regulations said everyone had to finish in under 1 hour 45 minutes on the advice of the police. That confused me, until I was out on the A and B roads and realised just what a big event something like this is to organise. The organisers and police had to partially close some very busy roads, manually hold and direct traffic and do their best to ensure the safety of all the runners, without causing complete chaos! They obviously decided that an hour and three-quarters was quite enough, and I can't blame them. If you were one of the drivers trying to get somewhere on Sunday who was held up by our race, then I'm sincerely sorry.
Around the 10 mile route there were more water stops than any other race I've done so far, all staffed by smiling volunteers. And bear in mind there were another three races at the same time as mine! Whoever organised this did a great job.
Hook is a pretty little town, and the race route took us through several of the nearby villages, with lots of locals out on the pavements and greens or leaning over fences to cheer us runners on and applaud as we went past - even people like me who were so far back they must have been waiting ages for us to pass! You see it on TV and it looks a bit odd sometimes, but when you're out running you really appreciate the support from total strangers. So what if many of them are thinking "rather you than me!". Believe me, you're grateful anything that helps you keep putting one foot in front of the other!
I didn't have much of a strategy for this race - maybe when I've done a few more races I'll be able to start thinking about strategy, for now, it's mainly survival. However, I can do maths, and that's something to do to help split the run up into manageable portions. I completely missed the first two mile markers, so I was pleased when I hit the three mile mark after 25 minutes. That equated to 8:20 per mile, way faster than I usually run. That was good to know, but I knew it wasn't sustainable: 1 hour 40 is about 10 minutes per mile. I decided to try and stick to 9 minutes per mile for as long as possible.
Four miles came round - just under 34 minutes. Excellent, maybe this 9 minute mile was something I could stick to! I don't care if someone's granny just out-powered me up that last hill, just keep going. Five miles rolled round in at 43 minutes. Briefly it occurred to me that this was further than I could run a few months ago, and I was only half-way...
Six miles. Hang on, that's almost 10K - check time - 51 minutes. That meant I was faster than my first 10K race back in March at Brooklands! Seven miles crept up, this time just over 9 minutes. My legs were aching, and I now understand why running on roads is different from running on a treadmill. On a treadmill you don't have to balance on different surfaces, skip around puddles, dodge your fellow racers, change direction... Road running uses more and different muscles, and at race pace you use them all more intensely.
I think I zoned out a bit at this point. It was a very boring long stretch of A road, some dual carriageway, I was passed by quite a few runners and started falling behind someone I'd been following for most of the race.
Suddenly, 8 Miles - I've slipped, that last mile took nearly 11 minutes. OK, it's fine, still ahead of my goal, and you expect to slow down as the race progresses and you get tired. But this is the last stretch, a repeat of the loop through the industrial estate from the start of the race, then down through Hook from the north and back to the school. I could visualise most of this section, and I knew I had to crank up the effort. Nine miles came up and I was back on schedule.
The last mile: you know you have to give it everything, but there's not much left in the tank, and a mile is actually quite a long way. 800 metres - half a mile. Two women who've been behind me till now decide this is where they put on a burst of speed, but I just can't. This last bit is through small residential roads leading to Hook Schools, and the finish line is in the playground. I find some energy, and manage to keep them in reach. 400 metres to go - I know I'm almost there, so I kick off and put on a burst of speed. As I overtake the runners around me it feels amazing. I look around as I come into the school and there's no-one near me. Part of me wants to look around for my family who came out to see me finish, but I know that I have to concentrate, keep the speed up, every step takes focus to drive me forward and not slow down. The big yellow numbers on the digital clock seems to expand to fill my vision, and I cross the line at 1 hour 29 minutes and 2 seconds.
Official results are here: www.hookfunrun.com
Next month it's a triathlon. Details to be confirmed on the last two races in July and August. If you want to join me on one of these races then I'd love to have you along, drop me an email, leave a comment, or give me a call or text.
And please remember to go donate money at www.bmycharity.com/V2/60kmtoLourdes