I ran at the very back of a race and I ran the whole distance with someone else; and it was awesome.
The race in question was the Stort 30 by Challenge Running. It's a scenic 30 mile out and back along the River Stort which I ran 2 years ago. A few weeks before the race a friend contacted me and asked if I could sweep the race with him and although I've been making all sorts of plans for next year and been running regularly it never really felt like I'd started getting ready for the challenges ahead.
Honestly, I'm not sure if they needed a sweeper or I needed to get some demons out of my system with a long run but it was the perfect opportunity to do both. The weathers perfect as was the company (thanks Conrad).
It was a whole day of running, talking about races and running shoes and it was just what I needed to get re-energised and back on track.
I took a few days out afterwards and then started to plan.
One spreadsheet later and with a basic training plan in place I'm starting to feel better prepared for the big goals of next year.
Complete the Centurion Grandslam of 50's
Run Milton Keynes Marathon to a PB (sub 3:28)
Complete the Stour Valley Path 100.
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| Fear the sweeper. |
But the biggest thing for me is to get back to enjoying it. Remembering that training is just a way of preparing for the adventure and excitement of race day. That it's better to run with others than alone and that as long as you stay ahead of the sweeper you are winning.
