This was my first race of 2013 due to being injured for most of the year so far. In the few weeks leading up to the race I was able to run without pain, but was only able to make it up to around 6 miles so again I was aiming to get round the course with no more injuries or setbacks.
Last year it was over 20 degrees and brilliant sunshine for the race, but this year it was almost down to zero with gale force winds. Keith had put out a call to action the week before as we were in danger of being relegated and needed to put in a good performance to avoid the drop.
As the race began I didn't feel too bad - its pretty flat to begin with before a steep descent down the hill and I was able to run comfortably before having to face the hill for the first time.
By the second lap the tiredness was starting to hit me and I really had to dig deep to get up the hill the second time. By the time I reached the top and turned into the gale force winds I was glad the finnish was just round the corner.
But was it......
As I approached the finish area no-one seemed to be stopping and then it hit me - we had another lap to go! Last year it was only 2 and I did think the course seemed to be a bit shorter. Afterwards I learnt that a big loop at the bottom of the hill had been cut out because the ground was in poor condition after all the recent rain and snow.
At this point I seriously considered dropping out of the race as I just couldn't contemplate doing another lap. Its one thing pushing yourself to your limits when your running well, and another to just hang on and I'm not sure which is the most painful.
On the last lap I was passed by many runners and my lack of training and endurance really put me in the red zone and reduced me to a snails pace up the hill for the final time.
Ironically I was passed by Jim close to the end and finished one place behind him as I did in the same race last year. The difference this year was that he had missed the start of the medium pack and had to run with the fast pack (as did Chris) and so was a full 5 minutes ahead of me.
On the day I was 183rd out of 384 in horrendous conditions but on the positive side we didn't get relegated and will be in the 2nd division again in the next season.
