Saucony 10K, TCR Show, Sandown park

AT LAST! A podium at the TCR show 10K. Rather than doing this in 2008 (4th) or 2009 (5th) I thought I'd wait until the competition was super tough with Harry Wiltshire, (former student world tri champion) and very recent sub 32 minute 10k man and Lee Piercy - 2009 National Duathlon champion, European champion and pretty much the best duathlete in the country to name just two.

Anyway, the race got off to an insane pace with one clear runner ahead. For the first 1.5k I was struggling to keep up with a lead group of five but gradually the crazy pace slowed up and by 3k I was nicely moving up the field and managed to go through the first lap in 2nd, keenly overtaking Harry and Lee in the process.

However, it really really started getting hard at only 4k in. By the time I got half way round the wheels were really coming off and I felt that I'd be lucky to maintain any sort of momemtum. I could envisage the whole field sliding past me but.......they didn't. I guess almost everyone else was as blown out with the initial pace as me, (2k in 6.20 = 31 min 10K pace on a hilly, tight and slippy 3 lap 10K course!).

Anyway, I slipped down to 3rd at the start of the 3rd lap and was convinced that Harry, Lee and most of the top ten were about to come storming past. But something from within, (I suspect Frank Horwill!) made me keep pushing and by 8K I could sense that Harry was tiring. I dug deep for the last kilometre and almost dipped under 33 minutes.

Yabba dabba do and some yet more prize winning kit for 2010 including a tasty pair of orange and black Saucony racing shoes - should go nicely with the black and orange Torq kit!

The best field yet seen in the TCR 10k?


At the start of lap two and closely chased by Harry Wiltshire

The Perch 6.25 mile multi-terrain race

Ahhhh.....there is nothing quite like the warm glow of the podium, the handshake with the race organiser and a nice crisp voucher and a tasteful bit of granite to stick on the fireplace! After finishing 5th the week before it was good to come back into form in this testing multi-terrain course that started and finished at Epsom Downs race course and get 2nd.

A terrifically hilly start saw the field almost climb onto the race course. After such a start I was surprised to see the fairly tasty first mile go past in 5.14. Even at this stage though it was clear that the race was just a two horse race, (oh dear!) with me and Eddie O'Gorman already with a huge lead over the other 600 competitors. Eddie managed to build up a steady lead all the way up until about 4 miles where a sustained attack on a long descent brought me back up to him and I briefly took the lead.

Unfortunately, there then followed a horse trail and Eddie's superior traction, (or my feeble cross-country skills!) came to show and he re-built his previous lead. Never mind, 2nd place isn't so bad for a townie with an allergy to mud!

http://www.epsomoddballs.org/perch.php

1,000 yard stare, sugarcubes at the ready



















Almost finished, super course.....despite the mud



















Always a good feeling, nice bit of marble and a voucher