Race Report: Paisley 10k

Hey look, my blog is still here! Flips on the light and peers around. Alright, who wrote "clean me" in the dust on my monitor?

Seeing as I have another race tomorrow, I figured I'd better get moving and actually finish my race report from my last race, almost two months ago now.

Right. August 30th I ran my fourth 10k race in Paisley. It was also my best 10k race! I ran it in under 1 hour 17 minutes, beating my previously best time from a year ago in the Great Scottish Run by 39 seconds. Woot!

I had several goals for the race, and I'm happy to say I met most of them.

• Goal 1: I was not last! Ok, given that there were over 1000 runners, this wasn't likely, but you never know. As it turns out, 65 people were slower than me. Knocked that goal out of the park.
  
• Goal 2: Yep, I beat my times from the Great Edinburgh Run and the Great North 10k!
  
• Goal 3 (unstated): Set a PR -- Check! My best 10k time before this was 1.17 something in the Great Scottish Run in September last year. That also happened to be my first 10k, but that's neither here nor there.
  
• Goal 4 (unstated): Finish in under 1:15. Nope, didn't happen. This was a long shot, but it's a goal that is within reach. I think. Eventually.
  

The race itself was fun and well organized. Highlights of the race were running through St. Mirren Stadium and along the Paisley canal towpath. The only downside was this one pair of runner-walkers. As I was running the whole thing (woot!), we kept passing each other. Unfortunately, these two were conversing nearly the whole time and completely oblivious of others who might be around them. Just the two of them somehow managed to run/walk such that they often were taking up most of the path. And once, they even ran past me, immediately crossed right over in front of me, and then dropped to a walk, nearly causing me to plow into them. Argh!

However, aside from those two, it was a great race!

As to Paisley itself, well, it's basically a suburb of Glasgow. It wasn't always that way. At one time it was a textile powerhouse. They had several statues and monuments dedicated to various dead guys named Coats. By the way, if you sew, this is the same Coats associated with the thread company.

I got there late enough in the day on Saturday that I didn't get a chance to see anything of the town. But I did take some time on Sunday after the race to walk around and see some of Paisley. Here are a few pictures that I took.

Paisley Town Hall
Paisley Abbey
Public Torture Device on display at the Paisley Museum

My next race is tomorrow, the Jedburgh 10k. Given how I've been currently running, I don't think the under 1.15 time is in my legs just quite yet. But who knows, maybe the fall leaves will inspire me and I'll surprise myself!

Great Edinburgh Run, with Daleks and Stormtroopers!

So I ran in the Great Edinburgh Run today. And walked in it quite a bit as well. This was my second 10k race, but I was just not in the mood. My stomach was aching (thanks to what I took for the headache I woke up with), and my legs were tired for no reason I could figure. And there were hills. And I forgot tissues, so by about kilometer 6 in desperation I turned to wiping my nose on my sleeve, yuck. Given that I'm not one to really push myself on a good running day, I whimped out rather early. Whine, whine, whine.

But, it was a terrific day to be out and about Edinburgh! And I took my camera, because I was already planning to have fun with the race, even before I decided to whimp out.

The race started on the George IV Bridge, right in the middle of Old Town.


We started the race by crossing the Royal Mile and heading down the Mound for views of Edinburgh Castle and the National Gallery.



After a short jaunt through one of the Princes Street Gardens, we headed back up toward the Royal Mile.



Then it was down the Royal Mile to the Scottish Parliament and and past Holyrood Palace. Most of the rest of the first half of the race was spent running below Arthur's Seat.



The middle bits of the race were less interesting, running through parts of the city that are certainly historical, but not really worth stopping to take a picture. One cool thing about Edinburgh is that the city is 3 dimensional. A bit more than half-way, we actually ran under the George IV Bridge where the race started.


The race ended with a run around the Meadows and back to George IV Bridge for the finish.


In all honesty, Edinburgh doesn't get much prettier than this. If you were ever thinking of visiting, now is the right time of year!



As in many races, there are the folks who like to take it to the extreme with their race kit. Or lack there of. Sorry ladies, I wasn't quite brave enough to snap a pic of the nearly naked guy, who was only wearing shoes and what looked like an adult version of underoos. There was also a guy running in a kilt. But the best costumes by far were the dalek and the storm trooper with cross-dressing Leia.




I just checked my official time, and I finished in 1:19:43. What?! I have how idea how this is possible given how much I walked. That's under a 13 min/mile average pace. Bah!

St. David's Day 5k Race

Back in January, I was hunting around for a 5k race to run this spring, and there were none to be found in my neck of Scotland. But I really, really wanted to find a race to run in, so I started looking farther afield, and stumbled across the St. David’s Day 5k and 10k races in Cardiff, Wales. Hmmmm…Wales…I’d never been to Wales. I emailed my friend Xenia and she was all for the idea of a weekend in Cardiff, including the race. So last Friday, I was on my way to Wales!

It's a long train ride down to south-east Wales, 8+ hours if you go through London. They do have a more direct train route, but the London route was actually cheaper, even if it took a bit longer. The train from Edinburgh arrived in King's Cross Station, and it only took a short hop on the Underground to get to Paddington Station, where I would get the train to Cardiff. Finally, about 10:30pm I rolled into Cardiff -- I'd left Edinburgh at 2pm.

Paddington Station

On Saturday, Xenia and I saw some of the sights within driving distance of Cardiff. (Thanks for driving, Xenia!) More on those in another post. And, Sunday, it was race day!

It was terrific weather for a race, around 50 F, and Bute Park, where the race was being held, was a very pretty place to run.





Bute Park is right by Cardiff Castle.

According to Wikipedia, it was landscaped in the 18th century by Capability Brown. I wonder what he'd think of this pig in his park.



Oh yes, this is supposed to be a race report. My goals for the race were very low. Run the 5k (3.1 miles) in under 39 minutes and no walking. I'm happy to say that I did meet both of these goals! My watch time for the race was 37:12 (12 min/mile on the dot!), and the official clock time was 37:36. There was no chip timing, only a starting gun time to mark the start of the race. Since I'm slow, I positioned myself at the back of the starting pack, so it took a just a bit to get across the starting line. Either way, well under 39 minutes!

At times during the race, I was a bit demoralized by the kiddies who were beating me. And yes, I do mean kiddies. One boy was running with his mum, I'm guessing he was no more than 6 or maybe 7. And then there were the two girls that I'm guessing couldn't be older than 4 or 5 (ok, maybe the younger of the two got a couple piggyback rides, but still). These two were particularly annoying because at the start of the race, they were weaving back and forth in front of me along the path, making it impossible to pass them or anyone else. And then there was the chicken, or rather someone running in a chicken suit. I kept the chicken in my sights through most of the race, but was never quite able to catch up.

In spite of the fact that I'm slower than a 5 year old and a chicken, I was still really happy with myself at the end of the race. I'd picked a pace that I was pretty sure I could keep for the full 5k, and I did! And then, right after I crossed the finish line, something really cool happened. The woman who crossed the finish line right after me (I didn't even know she was there), came up to me and thanked me for my steady pace and not stopping to walk! I vaguely remember passing her in the first kilometer or so. Aparently after that, she just stuck to me, and used me to pace her through the race. It was a really good feeling, knowing that I was able to help someone. I wonder now if it was her first race.

After that, it was back to the B&B to grab a quick shower, while Xenia went on to run the 10k race as well. And after lunch, back to the train station to catch our train. It was another long train ride back to Edinburgh, but I at least got to see this fellow on the way.

Great Scottish Run

This morning I ran in my first 10k race, the Great Scottish Run in Glasgow!

The largest trial of the day turn out not to be the race itself, but actually getting to the race. I ended up having to take a taxi to the bus station, because no local buses were running yet, and then the bus to Glasgow ended up leaving 15 minutes late. Given that the race started at 9 and the bus was schedule to arrive at 8:45, this made me a bit nervous. But we made up some time, and I made it to Glasgow and George Square in time but with no extra time. Whew!

I was at the back of the back, given my late arrival, which meant once the race got going, much dodging and weaving past the walkers was requried. I've decided that when there is room, I don't really mind this. It gives me the illusion that I am fast. :+)

One fun thing about the race was the bagpipers stationed at every kilometer. I liked that I could hear them playing up ahead and know that one more kilometer was almost finished. (And men in kilts* - Win!)

At the end of the race, my running partner Elaine and a friend of hers were there to cheer me on! Definitely a good feeling. I don't know what my exact finishing time was, other than under 1:20 (I hope). [Edit: Just checked and my official race time is 1:17.24, a 12:29/mile pace! Yeah!]I messed up setting my watch timer at the start. Oh well. I wonder if this helped me to enjoy the race more, because I wasn't worrying abut my time. I could just focus on running at a comfortable, sustainable pace. Just one short walk break at the 5k point! And I finished! Really, that was my goal!

One funny thing that I wondered about. When running along the bridge over the Clyde River, I noticed that they had police stationed periodically along the sidewalk (backs to the water). It looked like they were guarding against random runners who are suddenly overcome with the urge to hurl themselves over the side. I mean, come on! It was only about two kilometers into the race. No one should be that desperate yet!

One last tidbit. When visiting the Great Run website, I noticed that they had this game so that you too can take part in the Great Scottish Run. It's somewhat trivial, but enjoy!



*Although there were also boys in kilts and at least one girl in a kilt playing as well.

New Experience of the Week: Running around Arthur's Seat

Today I participated in the BUPA Great Winter Run, a 5K race around Arthur's Seat (more pictures here) in Holyrood Park here in Edinburgh.

The race started at 11:30, and late arriver that I am, I reached the place where they were lining up (on the north side of Holyrood park near the Scotish Parliament building) with maybe 5 minutes to spare. This was not how I planned it, of course, but it worked out because I had just enough time to stretch a bit and take a couple pictures before we were off.


The racers were divided into three groups (based on estimated 5K race times), and each group was started with a separate pistol shot, with a minute or so wait in between. I placed myself at the back of the last group, which it turns out was a good place for me to be. The folks around me seemed to be going about the same pace, and during the race they walked about the same amount too.

It was a beautiful, beautiful day! Unfortunately, about half the race was uphill. If I did this right, this link from Gmaps Pedometer should have pictures with the race course and elevation. I ran the first kilometer or so until the elevation started going up, and after that it was lots of walking with spurts of running here and there. I continued with the walking/running until maybe the 3 1/2 kilometer mark, after which I was able to run the rest of the way to the finish line. Yep, that last kilometer and a half were all downhill. :+)
(This picture is looking back toward the finish line.)

After crossing the finish line, I turned in my timing chip and collected my loot! Did you know that they actually reward you sometimes for doing this running thing?

I now have a nice, new long-sleeved T-shirt, my own personal thermal space blanket (silver square thing on the right), a sampler of muscle rub (yellow rectangular thing upper left), an energy bar, a bottle of sports drink, some cheddar cheese flavoured pretzels (less than 10% fat! (and they tasted like it too)), and my favorite thing, a medal! I honestly don't think I've ever received a medal for anything before. The other side of the medal says "Participate - Enjoy - Succeed". I think that's a good philosophy to have.

One highlight of the race was that they had bag pipers playing at the start and at every kilometer marker throughout the race course. How cool is that! Not something you're going to find at most races, I expect. I really regret that I didn't stop to take a quick picture.

I was planning to take more pictures after the race. At the very least, I wanted to get a picture of me all sweaty and triumphant at the end, but the batteries of my camera chose that moment to die. Darn.

I don't know what my actual race time was. The clock at the finish line said something like 45 minutes, but my actual time was probably a minute or two less with the staggered start. At some point, I think official pictures and race times will go up on the race web site, and I'll update this post when those results are in.

I decided to enter the Great Winter Run back in November, after I started running as my part of Team CB. And when I was out there today, that's what I told myself, "I'm running here for Team CB!" Thank you CherryBombs for all your encouragement and support! I could tell you were all there in spirit cheering me on!

Addendum: The site for the race says that my time was 39:15. Under 40 minutes! No way!!

Running Update

While I was away over the holidays, I'm happy to report that I upheld my running end of Team CB. (The healthy eating end, not so much.) I think I ran a total of 5 times, and I have the shiny, pretty stars on my wall chart check list to prove it. Some of this includes going to the gym with my dad to run on the treadmill, but I also ran most of the way around the block where my parents live. These are country roads, so around the block actually adds up to over 5 miles! I'm talking intervals of running/walking. I'm no where near to the point where I could run all of it without walking breaks.
Of course then I got back home on New Years Day and promptly did no running until Friday, when out of desparation I joined a gym. Because I am whimpy about running in yucky weather. We got snow here in Edinburgh! What's with that?

The reason I was feeling kind of desparate was because one of the things that came in the mail while I was gone was this:

It's my entry number, timing chip, and race-day information for the BUPA Great Winter Run. I look at this and I wonder what I was thinking signing up for a 5K race! Yeah, yeah, if I'd actually stuck with my training schedule, I would be prepared, but all those weeks of only running twice instead of three times means just running for 10 minutes straight (the longest I've run without a walk break) is still quite the challenge.

So I'm trying to remind myself that just by running I win. Obviously, I'll be taking walk breaks. But, I still get nervous every time I think about it. What was I thinking!?!?