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Belton House parkrun fun!

Wondering what the ‘paparazzi’ is doing this morning! Me & Pasky. Picture c/o Richard Hall.

During the winter I get plenty of opportunity to take part in Belton House parkrun. I very often run it as part of a long run, so rarely get to run it full gas – at best it’s half marathon HR. I wasn’t expecting to take part in Belton House parkrun #111 as it was a Grand Prix Saturday, but Friday afternoon practice at Baku made me aware that the timetable was a little different from regular European races, meaning I had a crucial extra hour in the morning, meaning I could take get in a quick parkrun before hot footing it back home to begin work.

The weather could not be much different from six days earlier at the London Marathon – light rain, a light to steady breeze and temperatures maxing out at around 7C. It could have been near perfect for Marathon running: in around ten years I may get over the injustice of the unseasonably warm weather we were subjected to for 26.2 miles. In near full winter gear I made the very late decision to add a t-shirt to the thermal top I was already wearing – chance would have it it was the 2018 London Marathon finishers’ t-shirt I’d put in the top of my running drawer.

The shortest distance to run to parkrun for me is just over two miles, I decided to loop a bit longer making it nearer four by the time I lined up the start. More than plenty who were there, but compared to some of my long runs over the winter, where I had 15 or more miles already clocked up, I felt like I’d barely run at all.

Changing the playlist – unaware of the shock I was about to get! Picture c/o Richard Hall.

Running with music pumping into my headphones, like I regularly do, I changed from a Prince playlist (Fantastic, but trying to smash a 5:30 mile to Do Me Baby is kind of tricky!) to my running/spinning playlist, reserved for events where some pumping tunes are required to help keep a good tempo. I kept the earphones out to hear the pre-run briefing before hitting play as the short countdown commenced and we were on our way.

The start. Picture c/o Shaun Parkes.

I often find myself outside the top 15 for the opening km or so of parkrun, but the legs must have felt reasonable (Or the field was a little lethargic) as I was soon into third place, already miles behind the rapidly improving junior runner William Tucker, but closer than usual to the regular man being pulled along by dog combo, who often starts quick before fading a touch.

A swifter than usual start. Picture c/o Richard Hall.

Neither were of much concern to me – I genuinely care little what position I am in a parkrun as it’s not a race. What was concerning me was that the Tiny Tempah track that had began my parkrun had been abruptly replaced by something quite awful which I had to pause for fear of corrupting my mind. I later found to be Michael Buble, accidentally put on by my wife back at home using Spotify on Alexa. To correct this heinous mistake would have meant getting my phone out which, while running comfortably below six minute miles, was not practicable. So I had to make do with the relative sound of silence.

Persistent rain meant the gravel track out to the Lion Gates was a bit of a splash fest, although it has been worse. The same could be said for the rest of the grass 2.5km loop, which was wet, but not as slippy and muddy as it has been this winter. Leaving the gravel path and onto the grass, Chris Limmer came onto my shoulder. He is training for a 100 mile race this Saturday, but his diet of long runs seems to be paying dividends for his 5K pace, as he has had some good runs in recent weeks.

His presence must have seen me pick up the pace for we soon caught and passed man with dog as we ran alongside the golf course. Along the ‘back straight’ where the mole hills make running a bit of a nightmare. Chris pulled past me. Tucking into his slipstream I had visions of this being New Years Eve v2, where Greg Southern and I paced each other around to my course PB of 17:00.

Beginning lap 2 and feeling good – for now. Picture c/o Shaun Parkes.

Letting Chris take the pace for a minute or so I pulled back past him and just increased the pace slightly. Unfortunately for the benefit of a quicker time, Chris was just unable to stick to my tail and I eased slowly ahead. We had clocked 5:38 for the first mile, but heading off the gravel path on the second lap back towards the golf course, Garmin flashed a 5:25 mile.

The second lap – leading Chris and legs beginning to burn! Picture c/o Richard Hall.

On a good day I’d be able to maintain that pace for the rest of the parkrun. At that moment I just began to feel the marathon in my legs and also in my mind and I just had to let the pace slip a touch. It wasn’t a killer final mile but it was certainly a bit of an effort to get to the finish. 5:38 was the third mile split with barely any sprint finish to speak of. William finished first in a cracking course PB of 17:01, I came home second in 17:27, with Chris third in 17:41.

Coming into the finish – P2! Picture c/o Shaun Parkes.

I didn’t have long to recover for I had a couple of miles to run to get home so I could begin work. I was able to correct the Spotify issue and had the pumped up running tracks to help me home. The final run stats came in at 9.5 miles at 6:19 average, with the parkrun the fastest at Belton House since January 2017. So much for taking it easy after the marathon! In all seriousness, hopefully it bodes well for a good summer of racing. I think I am in fairly good shape and if I can avoid injury and illness some good things are possible.

 

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Race Report – Clumber Park Duathlon (Standard Distance) – Saturday 18th March 2017

With the London Marathon again taking early year priority, my participation in the Clumber Park Duathlon has been very much considered a side project. I’ve continued to do my post Sunday morning bike ride brick runs and have cycled over the winter to a similar, perhaps slightly higher volume than in 2016, but there has been no specific peaking for the event, nor any taper to speak of.

I was though meant to have some shiny new aero wheels for the event. My bargain buy a week or so before the event, alas, turned out to end in something of a disaster as the front wheel turned out to be faulty and the entire wheel set needed to be returned. With my training wheels fitted with an 11-32 rear cassette in anticipation of the forthcoming Fred Whitton sportive, I was looking at not even using my TT bike for the event – not wanting to risk derailleur failure with an ill-advised gear change on to a big-big combination.

Fortunately a brief encounter with a friend post spinning session a few days earlier led to an offer of his HED tri spoke aero wheels. It was 10 speed, which meant some iffy gear changes, but I was grateful for the opportunity to be able to ride my TT bike on the day – after all it was why I spent so much money on the thing for events like these. I fitted them to the bike a couple of days before and had all of 10 minutes to give them a quick spin – they worked!

Originally I had no plans of using the race as an opportunity to enter an ITU Championships event, knowing that I was unwilling and unable to take part in the 2017 Worlds taking place in Canada. However with a day or two to spare I succumbed to the temptation and paid the £10 fee that meant I’d stated my intention to qualify for the 2018 European Standard Distance Duathlon Championships, on a date and at a venue that is yet to be determined. The race now had a purpose, at least.

I woke at 5:30am on the Saturday morning and began the military style operation to get myself and the entire family out of the door by 6:30am. We finally departed at 6:40am, which wasn’t too much of a disaster – we arrived at Clumber Park just the two hours before my planned start time. That said I pretty much needed all of those two hours to get ready – there is so much more to organise in a multi-sport event than in a running race: assemble the bike; pump the tyres; check the bike over; collect your entry; fix all the required stickers in the right places; take bike to transition and set up; listen to the briefing; warm up etc…

Despite all that I was ready with around 20 minutes to spare, the start was delayed by ten minutes so I had the chance to watch with my family the sprint competitors start their race. I even got chance to have a pre-race family photo, which sees me looking far fresher than a post race one!

With the kids before the start of the race.

I lined up in my wave a few minutes before the off. I felt fairly pumped for the race, more than at the recent Newton’s Fraction. I did though not feel particularly healthy, coming down with a cold the youngest had suffered with for much of the week. Setting off in a wave containing pretty much just runners in my age group, I eyed up the competition. There was one familiar face – someone who beat me at the World’s in 2016. It was no surprise when we started that he surged to the front of the field and edged slowly, but inexorably, away from me. He was briefly followed by one other runner, but he had started a little too exuberantly and I was soon able to catch and past him on the first of a few little climbs on the opening 10K run.

The run course was an out and back 5K loop – constantly rolling with a couple of mild hills to tackle. We started just a couple of minutes behind the women’s wave and so it wasn’t long before we began to catch and pass a fairly steady stream of runners. I quite enjoyed this – it’s more interesting targeting the next runner to catch rather than stare into empty space. Being an out and back too I could regularly see how far the leader was in front of me, and how those behind me were doing. My pace was solid, if unspectacular, averaging around 5:50 a mile. I could definitely feel the effects of the cold in my legs, they were suspiciously heavy and lacking any zip. That said I couldn’t complain too much as I came into transition second in my age group and only passed by a couple of young whipper snappers who had started their race a couple of minutes after I did.

Transition was solid and a million miles away from twelve months earlier at Rutland Water where I completely screwed up my transitions, posting some of the slowest times of the race – down with those who literally like to change their clothes, have a snack, and some drink, perhaps even a little sit down before setting off. In and out in just over a minute, sixth fastest in my age group, losing just six seconds to the fastest. I had chance to share a few words with my family – who helpfully had parked themselves pretty close to where my bike was – mindful that at Rutland Water I couldn’t find it! I’d opted for the shoes attached to pedals option (Another pre-race chore to set up). I didn’t quite manage the flying mount but I was soon up to something close to full speed.

From the off the cycle leg felt like a real struggle. I’m used to the quads aching for the opening few miles as they transition from running to cycling, but they just ached relentless for the entire ride. I also struggled hugely to maintain a TT tuck position, by far the worse I have ever been. It wasn’t helped by the wind. It wasn’t as strong as first feared and we were well sheltered in the forest of Clumber Park, but out on the road we were subject to a stiff breeze which, when it was a cross wind, had a habit of trying to blow me across the road.

It wasn’t long before I was passed by the first cyclist – looking far stronger and more settled on the bike than I. Then another passed, and another. Indeed a steady stream of cyclists passed me for the entire ride. It was somewhat demoralising, if not entirely unexpected – I’ve still not cracked the ride leg on a Duathlon and if ever there was a course that wouldn’t suit me this was it – constant small rollers that the big guys can power up while I struggle. Watts wise it wasn’t even that bad a ride – 234 of them was the average, which isn’t far off what I averaged a few days earlier on a 40 minute spin session – and here I was riding for over an hour. The main issue was definitely not being able to hold a tuck position. Post ride I’m thinking it may be something to do with saddle position – I’m going to spend the next few weeks and months tinkering with that to see if I can find a sweet spot.

Finally, after an hour and six minutes the bike ride came to an end. I came into transition, once again cheered on by my family, who told me I was doing really well. I wasn’t convinced, having been passed by far too many riders – twenty two were quicker than me in my age group alone, over one hundred across all the age groups. At least there was no calf cramp in transition – a regular foe and at dead on one minute transition was again pleasingly swift, eleven seconds slower than the quickest in my age group – fourteenth best on the day. I did though have to stop briefly after transition – the tongue on my left trainer was not sitting right and not wishing to risk injury through irritation, decided to stop and adjust to taste.

I left transition with two or three other runners. I had fears this was going to be a hellish 5k, but as I swiftly passed them and set about closing down others in front of me, I knew that this was going to be a bearable conclusion to the race. I didn’t feel like I was trying that hard or going that fast, but did notice that my mile splits were getting faster: 6:00, 5:50, and then 5:46 as we approached the finish. My legs were actually getting better all the time and I cruised in passed the finish line at 5:24, feeling that, had I needed to, I could have run that leg much faster.

There were some technical issues on the day – there were no results published until the Sunday. I had no idea where I finished other than my wife letting me know I was around the 24th to cross the finish line. When I got the email receiving the final results it transpired I was 40th overall, and third in my age group – setting the fastest time in the final run leg by 48 seconds in the age group and the thirteenth fastest overall. With the first four finishers in their age group kind of guaranteed a place in their chosen ITU Championships, the odds are favourable that I have done enough to qualify. There is a clause in the regulations that could see some 39 year olds take my place, but I have no way of knowing if that is going to happen. Given that at Rutland I failed to finish in the top 10 in my age group and wound up qualifying for the Worlds’, I am hopeful.

Post race was pretty understated – with no medals and not fancying the alcohol free beer handed out to finishers, I collected my bike and headed back to the car. We had planned a post race picnic by the lake, but just as the picnic basket was pulled out of the boot, the rain began to fall and we abandoned those plans for lunch back at home in the conservatory.

Reflections on the race are a mixed bag. I don’t feel as though I performed to my full potential. The cold I came down with certainly didn’t help. My form is also yo-yoing a lot at the moment – a lackluster Newton’s Fraction was followed six days later by a very comfortable 2:51 marathon in training. The ride – in particular the failure to hold a TT position, was disappointing and something I really need to work on. But when I compare the effort to the shambles of Rutland Water in March 2016 it is clear I’ve made a lot of progress since then and given the strength of the field at Clumber Park this year, I’m not doing that badly in the grand scheme of things.

Unless there is a dramatic change of plan, that is now the racing done, bar a a couple of Club Time Trials, until the London Marathon. Some important weeks of training lie ahead – it’s where it all fell apart this time last year, I’m keen to avoid a repeat this time!

 

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Parkrun Report – Belton House parkrun #1 – Saturday 7th November 2015.

A mediocre performance at a free to enter timed 5k run would not normally merit the honour of a rare post on this blog. Belton House parkrun #1, however, was perhaps the one of the more important events I’ve taken part in.

Over a year in the making (and nearer two if you include the previous failed attempts), Grantham finally had its parkrun, albeit as close as it could physically be – technically Belton House being in the small hamlet of Belton on the outskirts of Grantham. Although I was privvy to the details in how the parkrun was founded, I only played a very minor role in its establishment.

Originally it had been suggested that Grantham would have its parkrun at Wyndham Park. As a Grantham Running Club committee member I played a role in dismissing the proposal as I saw the course as overly twisty and narrow in places – with three passes of a footpath known locally as dog shit alley perhaps not conducive to encouraging new runners – part of the ethos that makes parkrun such a success. There were also issues with a cycle path running through the route, a lack of any toilet facilities pre-run and inadequate parking.

Belton House, on the other hand, had almost everything a parkrun could wish for: generous hosts in the National Trust who would provide parking, toilet, and cafe facilities. An almost entirely off road route with some exceptional scenery and the ever delightful herds of deer that always bring a smile with their grace when jumping fences as they flee when you run towards them.

It was many months of negotiation between the National Trust, Grantham Running Club and Grantham Athletics Club, before the go ahead was given for Belton House parkrun. A route was finalised and rehearsed a couple of weeks before the first official run. I was racing on that day, but had the opportunity to recce the route a week before, on a wet and windy morning. I was impressed with the land that had an astonishing draining ability. Local roads were flooded, you would barely know it had been raining for nearly three days solid.

It was a similar story when I awoke for the first Belton House parkrun. Wet and very windy conditions prevailed. For the first time since moving from Coventry to Grantham two a and a bit years ago, I enjoyed the ability to be able to run to a parkrun rather than face a lengthy drive. It was tempered by a lethargic feel and some distinct stiffness in both hips, but all the same I was glad to be out running.

There were plenty of familiar faces at the start line as most of the parkrun volunteers come from Grantham Running Club or Grantham Athletics club and I spent the minutes before the start chatting with a number of them. There were whispers I would be the sure-fire first place finisher but I knew there were at least two other runners who on paper are significantly quicker over 5k than I am.

There were around 200 runners taking part, which is not a huge number, but a manageable amount for a first attempt and impressive given the miserable conditions. The pre-run speech by Event Director Gordon was long and mostly inaudible (He had forgotten his loudhailer) but it was respectfully observed by the field. A few minutes later and the countdown was given and we were off.

The start of the inaugural Belton House parkrun. Picture Courtesy Graeme Reynolds
The start of the inaugural Belton House parkrun. Picture Courtesy Graeme Reynolds

With hips a little stiff I set off as swiftly as I could while not making quite the suicidal start that some around me made. As seen in the picture above, around a minute into the run, I (in the white long sleeve top – no club colours for me at a parkrun (it’s not a race!) was around fifth, with the eventual first place finisher, but not the winner, Jake Richardson on my far right, also making a sensible start. The picture shows clearly the rain that has fallen, it doesn’t illustrate the near gale force wind that blew directly into us for the opening section of the two lap course, before we thankfully turned left and onto the grass section of the lap.

I passed the child who had slipped ahead of me and found myself fourth, running comfortably, but not that quickly. Matt Emery was a clear second halfway around the first lap and the early leader Philip Nind was around 5 seconds ahead of me. The first two were uncatchable with my tight hip flexors. I would normally have settled for fourth but I fancied the distinction of finishing in the top three of the first Belton House parkrun, so I spent the remainder of the first lap slowly hauling in Philip. I caught him as we started the second lap. I thought for a minute about tucking into his slipstream into the wind, but felt the time was right to put in a surge and break his tow, so this is exactly what I did. By the time we passed the golf course for the second and last time I had a clear gap which I could relatively easily maintain.

I had the rest of the lap to try and enjoy the run as best I could – the last remaining deer fled over the fence as I passed, and I began to lap the backmarkers – with far less difficulty than at other venues such as Newark and Peterborough. With not so much a sprint finish but a slight increase in pace, I finished third in 18:44, just under 50 seconds behind Jake in first and 30 behind Matt. The times were not quick but I reckon the wind was worth at least a minute on the final times. A quick handshake with those finishing ahead and behind me and it was off to watch the rest of the field come home.

Passing Belton House. Picture Courtesy Graeme Reynolds
Passing Belton House. Picture Courtesy Graeme Reynolds

I spent the next fifteen minutes or so watching the rest of the runners finish, each passing runner emphasised the overwhelming merits parkrun has in encouraging runners of all abilities. I then jogged home, very slowly as the left groin had tightened significantly and the wind had, if anything got stronger. Happily though the pain was temporary. The first of hopefully many Belton House parkruns was done.