Northbrook 10k- A DNS the Day Before for BBCH, But a Lovely Run Down Memory Lane on Home Soil

What even is this heat?? So we’ve had a heatwave for literally about 8 weeks. I sit here, it’s August. It only just really rained a couple of days ago. It was truly lush. I’ve never been so happy for rain in England. 

My training didn’t even begin for BBCH, the temperatures were to reach 27 degrees on race day, with a 10:50am start. It just wasn’t appealing to me.   My first half this was in 2015, I remember it all to well. It was hot and sticky and sun burny, around 25/26 degrees and I struggled in that and that was with training. I just wasn’t prepared to be stupid. If I didn’t have Freya, maybe I would of done it just to finish but nah. I was gutted also because the medal looked sick and they introduced a runners vest in the goody bag. Oo well. There will be more years to come. 

I forgot that I planned to run my second claim running club’s annual 10k race. So I reasoned with myself to do that instead. I tried to get Lizzy to do it. But her reply was it’s just too fucking hot. You’re mad. No. I looked at the route, I’d ran down all of the route at one point in my snail career, I’d also rode a horse down all of these lanes at one point. The familiarity was one of the things that kept me doing this race. 

I managed to get my best friend to come with me and use my camera for a bit. I got my race number, walked out of the Jag Club then down half of Browns Lane to the start. The heat was monumental. I was sweating by just standing there. That and I forgot my cap! I had a quick chat with Lizzy’s dad, Kevin whom does all the club statistics and data analysis, he wasn’t running that day due to marshalling. I felt kind of guilty. I really should of helped with the marshalling and said I’d help next year. After that, I recall saying to Vickie. I’m not sure about this, it’s really hot. I’m going to die. Might just go back to the car and go home. She didn’t envy me at all. She just said. Just do it. Walk if you need. Drink water when you want and need. 

With that advice we started. Straight up the Browns Lane hill. Gosh I was puffing like I smoked 50 a day. It was a shock to the system not being particularly warmed up and pounding down and up a big incline. After you peak, you run down to turn left alongside the White Lion Pub on Wall Hill Road which again is another elongated climb. However, to keep my mind off it, i thought of riding our horse Guinny who we sadly had to put down in November last year. We had so many memories along these lanes that my mind just went away with the fairies. After peaking here we passed the lane that the stables was on. Down a short decent before heading up Pikers Lane. A memory that comes to light here was the only house on the lane on the right handside. Many a time he had scarecrows or this one time he had a David Beckham human sized  cardboard cut out. I have no idea why?! Maybe he didn’t like horses, but Guinny really hated it. He’d shy, try cantering down the lane because he was shit scared! Bless him. It was also infamous for fly tipping, me and mum nearly landed in a ditch many a times peaking this hill. Going up Pikers i was met with another memory, I remember it happened not long ago. I cycled in front on my mountain bike whilst Guinny and mum trotted behind, not for long. I called his name and he started to get really excited. Mums was laughing her head off as he flung his head in excitement into a strong canted with mum wooowing him in an attempt to slow him, still giggling. I was racing him, trying to catch up but he left me hanging behind and didn’t wanna wait for me. We then turned left back onto Bridle Brook Lane. A nice decent and a welcomed water station to head back up another incline onto Wall Hill Road once again. All these memories took me to 5k

1st mile = 10:35

2nd mile = 10:57

3rd mile = 12:35

Another hill. Gosh this is coming all too repetitive. 416ft to 534ft a 10 minute long incline. Looooovely. Just what I needed when I was sweating my tits off. Just as I peaked. My earphones died. Well they were loyal actually but my iPhone adaptor lead died. Feck you iPhones. That cost me £10 to replace! Money grabbing dicksplashes. Why can’t you have a normal headphone port with a charging port like a normal mobile phone. Nooo you just wanna combine the two so when it breaks you make more money. Cocks! Never again, after I’ve paid my contract off I will not get an iPhone ever again. Sorry Apple, you’ve lost me. You’re just getting ridiculous. Sorry, I was so angry. I like my music when I run! 

It was at this point I seen Massey members egging their team up the hill. Their entries for their club were one of the highest for the event. It shows for their supportiveness to their fellow club runners. It was lovely to see. We then turned left into Watery lane. Just up from there was the Red Lion Pub. Again so many memories. I went on the zip wire with my cousin Ciara and because we were so heavy combined I literally got wooden shards in my bum and knickers due to my arse ccraping along the floor back in 2012. It was also mine and my Nans favourite pub. We’d always go for family birthdays. To this day, it does a banging Cesar salad and home baked lasagne. 

Running down the road I always recalled Guinny having a shit fit at one of the drain covers. Every time. Even though he’d been on that route numerous of times. He’d literally give that wide a birth, he’d be in the hedge on the other side!! After the water station I was met by Steve. One of the Village gym members and mums friend, I’d known his partner, D for many years. Apparently she was probably finished by now! She’s a great runner! Speaking to Steve helped mentally drive me forward and pick up a little pace. 

Mile 4 13:05

It showed with mile 5 coming in at 11:58. After the incline at the end of Watery we went right. Here I knew for sure it was a downhill or relitively flat for the last two 2.5 miles. We were met with water sprinklers to run through which was so refreshing. Before I knew it, I was at the last 0.7 miles of Washbrook Lane. I recall running this in 2016 whilst marathon training in complete darkness with all but a head torch on. It was so scary. Don’t think I’ve ever ran so quick in my life. As I started to walk a runner who wasn’t part of the event said, keep going. It’ll be over quicker. Then spectators said under half a mile come on. Round that corner. Give it some welly. So I did. I got over the finish. My heart was racing and I seen Kev at the finish who congratulated me and thought I’d done it fairly fast. Coming from the man who’s in his 50’s and does a 40 odd min 10k with ease. Ha! I came in at 1:12:46. For the heat. I was super proud! 

Overall, I liked the idea of a cup instead of a t shirt. It was a lovely idea. The medal was also big and colourful. I can’t believe I’ve never participated in this event before. It was well organised. Many water stations to accommodate the heat and the sprinklers were an added bonus on two/ three occasions en route. I definitely got my money’s worth. You could say I’m kinda bias because they’re my club. But no I mean it. It was a brilliant event! 

Two Castles 10km 2018- A Sickness Bug From Hell and A Lush Water Infection

So, this run was a wing it run. 3 weeks before I was due to partake in it, I gained the sickness bug I was so desperate to avoid. It knocked me for 6 completely. I woke in the early hours of the morning to Freya wanting her bottle, but I quickly had to slap Jake awake so I could go and throw up. It took the best of 5 days for the nausea to settle, within theese days my Two Castles race number came through the post. Once again I was debating whether I’d be fully fit to be able to take part. Directly after... maybe due to my shocked immune system,  I gained a head cold, then a week before race day, I was again in the same bathroom experiencing... a burning bladder and increasing discomfort. Luckily I had some antibiotics of which, I took immediately as soon as I discovered leukocyte’s in my home uralysis. I just couldn’t get over my bad luck and Ill health at the moment. I was constantly being struck down. 

To top it off, I hadn’t ran properly since the Liverpool half apart from doing the Wolf Run. We hardly ran either. My confidence was thin for this one. 

Race morning came and I decided that I wasn’t going to pull out, I was just going to do it as slow as was comfortable. Luckily my best friend Lizzy was able to get a place transferred from her friend to her. It made me feel so much better, but because I run alone, I feared that Lizzy talking to me would cause me to get out of breath too quickly escpeically with the amount of undulating-ness of the course. We arrive with no longer than 30 mins to spare before the start. I wasn’t met by my dodgy pre race stomach either which, was a bonus. 

The start was underway. We went out the Warwick Castle ground down hill to turn the corner onto the Coventry Road, which was the first incline of the morning. I was feeling great. I managed to run up the whole thing averaging a sturdy 11:25 min mile. The first mile seen me ease into my stride quite well. We reached another incline to then pass the beautiful pub called the Saxon Mill. Coming up to Warwick bypass roundabout I started to flag which was about 2 miles in. The heat was making an appearance and I felt my sweat glands weren’t releasing the sweat properly (vile- I know) which made me feel a bit lethargic. The second substantial incline was still on the Coventry Road. But featured a lovely down hill section. Which was a relief for my leg and lungs. Looking back at the data, I was making good progress considering how I felt:

Mile 1= 10:31

Mile 2= 10:51

The third mile turned us into Hill Wootten. My god. They like naming their street names with a hill in it. 

Mile 3= 11:21 

Mile 4= 11:50

I love this section of the run, I don’t know why. But you’ve climbed for what seems like the equaivilant of Mount Everest, at the time and then you suddenly turn right and have a lovely decline. With beautiful houses on the right too and the spectators are amazing, well they are throughout this whole run. It’s incredible. After this you’re met with massive trees hanging overhead and you slowly run back up gradually. 

Mile 5= 11:32

Rounds Hill!!! Ergh- the steepest hill over a short amount of time, I believe. I struggled up this hill to the point where Lizzy was running ahead. Turned back and ran back up half with me at least. Hand on my back literally pushing me up the hill. Like you can do it. Come on. Bless her cotton socks. I was just really lathargic. It was getting hotter, and I was fairly ill trained. (Seems to be becoming a common thing :-(.) Fishpond Road again seen Lizzy trowelling forward with confidence, whilst I flagged. From the beginning I had had a niggle in my right hamstring which remain easing as my muscles got warm. So I didn’t really want to overstrech unless I had to at the end. I tell you what. When I first started taking fitness seriously as a slightly over weight teenager in 2013, I joined the Royal Court Gym where I’d go religiously after 6th form. One day i squatted with a studio bar and really, really hurt my right groin. It was excruciating. I could hardly walk. The first time I’d really had a sports induced injury, then it proved a big issue when I started running. After running more than 8 miles, there was a full ache spurring from my pubic bone, (for the ladies, where your triangle is just above your ninny) round under my bum cheek then the ache persisted to shoot down the side of my leg. To which, I came to the conclusion myself that I had a slight bit of pirofomis syndrome. At the time I wasn’t really working or having a reliable income. Nor did I know the trueness of the sports massage’s magic fingers. When you’re 16/17 that doesn’t really cross your mind. I’d have the same pains for a couple of days after, but I’d just deep heat the shit out of it, hobbling to my lectures at University. At this point, I just really didn’t think my body was cut out for running. I thought, yeah I’ve joined all these half marathons, but what’s the point if I preempt that I’m going to get this pain every single time I run over a certain distance. I am no runner. Then suddenly, in 2016 it stopped. I can only assume that the groin muscle/ surrounding ones got stronger with the amount of running and sheer determination for me to keep at it. That too and i joined my mums classes at the Village doing spin, step and tone, Zumba and aqua on a regular basis. I wasn’t ready to sling my towel in just yet. This year sought a significant improvement in my stamina, general fitness and a reduction in body weight and fat, I was starting to gain a lean running figure. Now I’ve had Freya, I’m starting again, and with it come restrengthning areas neglected after 9 months. Anyway back to it. 

Finally, mile 6 arrived to my utter delight. However, you know you have to climb once again the Kenilworth Castle grounds, but again you have the spectators in their hundrads calling you home! I told myself, no. I cannot walk now. The last 0.2 miles. I will not let it defeat me. Plus, I wanted to at least give people the impression that I hadn’t walk/ ran, especially because my step dad had made the effort to come and see me for the first time. Castle Road then turned right into Grounds Farm Lane and I picked up the pace, reaching my fasted pace of the day at 8:46. Me and Lizzy sprint finished. 

This run reiterated why I love running, what I can achieve if I just try and cancel out my brain telling me stop. Although I stopped to walk all of 10 times, it was no longer than half a minute. Which I was proud of, considering how demanding the course is. I will always try to return to this race, well now that’s it’s a ballot I will always enter it with hope of gaining a place. I’d say it was definitely still my next favourite 10k alongside the Birmingham. I finished in a respectable 1:10:13

This was my second ever 10km race back in 2015. Can’t you tell I was struggling? I finished in 1:16