Easy Runner Tough Ten Challenge 2008

This morning (Sunday 17th February) I competed in the Easy Runner Tough Ten challenge at Weston-Super-Mare. This is a 10 mile race, which starts and finishes on the beach, and the rest is split between running on the road and through the woods. Whilst not as suicidally hard as the rough 'n' tumble, it certainly isn't a PB course either, as there is a killer hill at the entrance to the woods which you have to negotiate twice.

I had used the race as a training run for the London Marathon in 2007. Because of this, I think I was slightly apprehensive going into the race, as it felt like a no-win scenario. If I didn't beat last year's time, it would confirm that I am not as fit, and not training as hard as I was then. If I did, it would probably only be by a couple of minutes, and would mean I haven't kicked on from then as I should have done.

Anyway, what happened in the end was this: I drove down with Terry from the running club, which was nice as we had a good chat, on the way down and on the way back. It's always so much nicer to travel to races with a mate, it can be awfully lonely going on my own and there is no one to celebrate with if you do well.

We had an imposed warm-up before the race; being late we had to jog to the start line to avoid missing the race! When we did start I took it nice and steady, knowing what was to come and getting the breathing going. The hill at 4 miles took its toll, but I still managed to run most of the way up. The section through the woods was easier than I remember it being last year, probably because there hasn't been so much rain in the last week. I took it very steady on some of the tricky downhill sections, taking no risks at all.

The hill was a lot tougher second time round, pride forced me to run up it even though I was going at a snail's pace most of the way. Before I knew it I was out of the woods the second time and on the final stretch home.

As I approached the start line I couldn't believe it when the clock only said 1 hour 24 minutes and with a final push I managed to sneak in just under 1hr 25! Even though the conditions were easier than last year, this was much better than I expected on that course. It just goes to prove that very often if you relax and enjoy a race you do better than you would if you put too much pressure on yourself and keep checking the time.

After the race I hung around for a short while with Terry, Kev and Gerry - they had all improved on their times from last year so everyone was happy. As we stood on the beach in the sunshine it made me remember why I do these races - the cameraderie and the feel-good factor you get when you complete a tough, long distance race. I'm glad I bought the long sleeved t-shirt with the names of the runners on the back to remind myself of a great day out.

No alcohol to celebrate today's result, I didn't want to undo the good work of the last few weeks. I need to persevere with the weight loss and reckon if I can lose a stone I'll be doing that race in under 1:20 quite comfortably next year. Instead I treated myself to a chicken madras and relaxed in front of the TV, watching The Pursuit of Happiness.

Roll on the Tough Ten 2009.