Another one bites the dust

Well what a cracking little run out that was.

After Wednesday's steady effort, I got another 5 in after work Thursday, as I knew I wasn't going to be able to run Friday, so after an amusing journey home involving the train driver forgetting to stop at Newark (which is an anagram of wanker, as I discovered yesterday),  it was a night in the spare room and up at 0630 for my "long run with a difference'.

Straight into the car, and a cheese sandwich and a bottle of banana milk later I was parked at Bowland Bridge in the semi-dark of the pre-dawn, trying to decide whether I needed a headtorch or not.  Not, was the decision, so I set off towards Ilkley on the Nesfield road.

The theory was that it's 5 miles to Ilkley, then run the "Beamsley Bash" with the club, then back to the car - 20 miles.  Easy.  Only it's actually only 4.7m to Ilkley, meaning complex calculations would be required.

As I got to the Old Bridge a few minutes early I jogged up the road to have the watch on just over 5m, then waited for the crowds to arrive.  Jules carter was first, so we talked marathons for a bit, and eventually there must have been about eight or nine folk.  The plan was 2x5min efforts and 5x6min.  I'd decided to run somewhere near the back, but of course that was never going to happen, was it?

I found myself running somewhere between Jules and the quicker ladies, and without actually pressing the lap button it's hard to know what the pace was, but I think it was around 6:40 most of the way - and it felt pretty easy.  I even managed a chat with Jules as we trotted along. 

These sessions usually have standing or walking recoveries, but I tried to keep running up and down, in an effort to get a few extra yards in as much as anything.  The middle nine miles of my run passed really quickly - and if I could be arsed to get up early enough I'd do more of my LRs like this, as the run back to the car (plus a little wiggle at the end to make it 20) was a nice steady end to a cracking run.

That makes 50 for the week, so I think I might even drag myself out tomorrow for a few short recovery miles, before it all starts again on Monday!  Cutback week the week after, which is good, as I've just felt a few ITB twinges this week - never whilst running when everything's feeling really good - but in bed or when I've been sat in meetings.  Nothing to worry about, but maybe time I got that sports massage sorted out...