Sunday, December 06, 2015

Caernarfon border league

Race: Caernarfon 10k (Border League race 3)
Time/Position: 36.01 (13th from 262 [1st V45])
It's taken a long time, but I finally came first in my age category in this: my 57th border league race. Numerous second places over the years, but the absence of several key runners meant we all finished much higher up the field than in the first two fixtures of this season. By pure coincidence, we were staying on Anglesey (just like we were when I ran the Anglesey Half Marathon in March), so it was all very convenient. Yesterday, Beaumaris had been under water as floods swept the region. Today, the worst of the rain had cleared and only a few patches of lying water gave a clue to the intensity of yesterday's downfall. We ran the route in reverse, which I've never done before (although I must have done the normal route 6 or 7 times). I think it's slightly easier this way round: up the steep hill opposite the castle, then the undulations through the inland villages. This just leaves the final flat 5k along the lovely riverside path: completely flat. The expected tailwind seemed to have morphed into a crosswind by the time we got there though, which meant times were a little slower than might have been hoped for. I paced the race quite well, moving through the field, and had thought I was just under 36 minutes. Slightly over in the end, but still felt like an enjoyable and encouraging race.

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