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| Getting ready for the race to start |
Sunday 9th July saw me participate in the
Virigin Sport British 10k and what a fantastic race it was. Now I don’t want to blow my own trumpet here, but 10k, or 6.21 miles for those who prefer an imperial unit, is now a very comfortable distance for me to run on a regular basis. I aim to run this distance at least once a month so for once I wasn’t worried. For me, this race was all about getting used to running with lots of people.
With over 10,000 participants this was one of the largest races I’ve competed in. The sun was out and we were warned it was going to be another hot one. But this was not just any old 10k race, this was all about celebrating Britain and creating a party atmosphere. Union Jacks were proudly displayed together with British music blaring out for both spectators to enjoy and to encourage us runners to push that bit more. The route took us from Piccadilly to Whitehall through Regent Street, Trafalgar Square, the Embankment, Westminster Bridge and Westminster Abbey. A truly amazing route and one I would definitely run again.
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| Passing Nelson with Mr P! |
Now on this race I had the pleasure of my hubby, Mr P joining me. This was his first race following an ankle op after falling down a curb on holiday last year - and that was before a drink. His training has been a little on the erratic side but nonetheless he was up for the challenge. I said I would run with him, but as we entered our start pens I finally admitted that on our race applications I predicted we would finish the race around 50 minutes. Mr P laughed, looked at me, saw I was being serious and then wondered what the hell he had let himself in for!
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| Keeping an eye on my pace |
For once, the race actually started promptly at 9.30am and with music blaring off we go striding towards Piccadilly Circus. Our pace was good, with just over 5 minutes per kilometre or for our imperial friends, just over 8 minutes per mile. We kept this pace going and just after half way I have to mention that we saw my fabulous charity “
Tommy’s” out in full force cheering on their runners for the day. Although I wasn’t technically running for them on that day I decided to cheer them as I scooted past along The Strand. They probably was wondering why some crazy lady in her Union Jack T. Shirt was cheering Tommy’s at them but they cheered back all the same. So on we went and once we were along the embankment I knew the end was near. I’ve got to mention the music at this stage as this was my favourite bit. Around the 6k mark there was a brass band playing the theme tune to Game of Thrones (can’t wait for that to start again) and then shortly after that a DJ was blasting out Human League’s “Don’t You Want Me” which I just had to join in with. My running partner on the other hand was much more silent, in fact he was the quietest I’ve known him for a very long time. We stride past the 7k point knowing Westminster Bridge is next but just before we get there a very puffy Mr P said “I’ve got to stop - you carry on”. With just over 2k to go I ran back and forth over Westminster Bridge, past Big Ben and Westminster Abbey and round to the finish line along Whitehall.
I’ve got to say that Virgin Sport organised this race to perfection and apart from the boring black T. Shirt we were given in our post race goody bag (come on Richard Branson, I thought Virgin’s colour was red), this was definitely one of the best races I’ve competed in so well done Virgin Sport.
Now I love statistics so here are a few from last Sunday:
Total number of registered participants: 11,250
Total number of finishers: 9,227
Total number of spectathletes: 15,000 + general public
Oldest athlete: 85
And now for some stats of my own:
My official chip time for this race was 53.06 which places me within the top 6% of women runners on the day and top 15% of runners overall. I’m pretty pleased with that. I know I could’ve ran a bit faster but bearing in mind it was a hot and humid day I played it safe and kept a constant pace and made sure I drank to thirst. Plus I was obviously trying to encourage Mr P to keep up! And by the way, Mr P completed his race in 55.03. I’m very proud of him.
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| Showing off my medal |
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| Selfie time with Mr.P |
282 Days to Go until the 2018 London Marathon
Remember to visit my Virgin Money Giving Page to read my full story
