Dewsbury 10k

I nearly didn't run today. My cold got much worse yesterday evening & overnight, so this morning's race seemed to be a far from sensible activity. I'd arranged to travel with Alison B & Justin P, so felt a bit obliged to show up, although I did think about going home when I was waiting feeling very shivery in the car park at Menston.

Arriving in Dewsbury, the warm up didn't help a lot, I was still cold & lethargic. However, once the race got underway I suddenly felt much better. I ran the 1st km in 3:33 & the second not much slower, which was ridiculously fast, even if I'd been 100%. At that stage I was running with Justin, who was starting at a more sensible (for him) pace. I decided that I'd better ease off a bit, as I was sure that the effects of my cold would slow me down at some point.

I got to halfway in about 18:45 and with the 2nd half being slightly downhill, I was starting to think that I might get to the end without any major disasters. I was then running just behind a guy from Leeds AC who I thought might also be a M55, but try as I might I couldn't close the 10m or so gap to him, although it did ensure that I kept running at a reasonable speed. I got to the finish with a chip time of 37:04 & a gun time of 37:09, so I ran the 2nd 5k in about 18:20.

I subsequently found out that the runner in front of me was a youngster (1st M50), so I did manage to get the 1st M55 prize. It seems strange now to have won two prizes in two weeks (after the Brass Monkey), and an honour to receive the prize from Derek Ibbotson (Olympic 5,000m medalist & 4 minute miler).

All things considered it was a really good morning, even better considering that I nearly didn't run at all. Travelling back with Justin we stopped off at Sportsshoes Unlimited, I resisted the temptation to buy more shoes, but did get some new running socks (although I doubt they'll make me run any faster). I'm off to bed with more Lemsip now.