Mmm....traybakes 😊😊😊

Last weekend was rather a busy one.....finishing up at work, catching up with friends, attending a course in Glasgow, helping out the National Trust, and then travelling down to Manchester ready to fly out to China.

I felt that I needed to squeeze in a little run to get my legs turning over somewhere along the lines, and so the Stoneybeck 10k hosted by Eden Runners just north of Penrith seemed a perfect chance to do this and break up my drive south. It also gave me the opportunity to catch up with my friend Karen who runs for the host club (and the fact that the race was being sponsored by "Traybakes" was just a minor incentive!!!!).

After registration and the prerace safety briefing (at the Stoneybeck pub) we wandered down to the start line....with me trying not to be intimidated by younger looking women in hotpants doing drills and stretches.

An informal gathering in the road and we were off, though there was a rather steep climb up and over the railway within the first 100m. Karen had said that she thought her legs would be tired after a recent triathlon but I knew our relative start speeds of old and so it was no surprise to be chasing her down and overtaking her on that sharp climb. What did surprise me was the speed of other ladies that I didn't recognise. I didn't think I was hanging around with a 6 minute first mile, but I was nowhere near the leading lady.

The race route was an uneven figure of 8, starting with a 1.5 mile long southerly loop which took us almost out to the M6. Having circled back to the start line, we then had that tough little climb over the railway again before heading northwards this time towards Plumpton. 

Into the finish line

I tried to relax into my running, but realised I'd actually increased the pace, so it was no wonder I felt like there was no way that I could keep going at that speed. Despite this, I could just about make out the ponytail ahead of me disappearing away up the road. I'd overtaken several men in the first few miles and so although she was about 30s ahead of me (and stretching that gap) at the 3 mile marker, there was no one in between us.

Plumpton village was at the far point of the loop and involved a cheeky descent and climb up again out of it. At the 4 mile point, I noticed that the gap had stopped increasing and seemed to be actually decreasing, so it was time to rely on my strong if not speedy legs.

This was helped by the fact that we had to run along the A6 south from Plumpton, directly into a headwind. I tried to just ignore the chase and focus on keeping my own running going. This clearly worked as I moved into the lead at the 5 mile point, though I thought she might then duck in behind to use me as a windbreak and outsprinted me at the end.

I know you're not meant to look back as it just encourages those behind you, but I was not that self-disciplined as I felt exhausted and that the finish line couldn't come soon enough. Little turns did give me some confidence that I was pulling away, as did listening for the marshal's advice and support when he directed runners off the main road and back down towards the finish.

My "prize haul"

My gansta hat prize - 1 size fits no-one!

A final descent on a muddy road towards a farm, and the long finishing straight came into sight. I know I'm "meant" to be a distance runner, but that finish line just looked so far away and I really wanted to stop as soon as possible. I managed to avoid embarrassing myself by keeping the legs moving to the line, and had just about enough time to gather myself, thank the organisers and marshals, congratulate the male winner and welcome in the second lady. If it wasn't for her, I doubt I would have run anything like as fast as that, even though the race did live up to its promise, with as much traybake as you could eat once you'd finished!