I’m going to crack on with the next 4 races of the 2014. All of these were half marathons. The beauty of running for me has been the ability to continuously try new things, mix things up run with other people and be inspired by the incredible efforts of others. Now I knew of people that had done races on consecutive days. Marathons, half’s even ultras but I wasn’t sure it was for me.
2014 saw me push many boundaries that I didn’t think I was capable of, or indeed that I had really thought about from 2006 to 2012 which I class as my fundraising running period. Thought probably sounds a bit strange considering a lot of challenges since, including 2014 which we’re covering now, were all around fundraising.
So please let me elaborate. 2006 through to 2012 was basically only train for a race, do the race and then completely stop running! Unless like in 2007 and 2009 it was a half marathon a few weeks before the man event; a full marathon. So, for me those years were pure and simple just running to fundraise. There was no particular enjoyment, especially as my times didn’t get better but for half marathons went the other way!
2013 was when I didn’t run for charity and concentrated solely on running to see if I could run quicker than I had before. Thankfully, the answer was yes! What if it hadn’t been? I believe that I would have probably carried on as an occasional runner and never dreamt of some of the challenges I have eventually done and since attempted; all bar one, successfully.
Where were we? The next 2 races were both on the same weekend. And they were very different to each other!
| 8 | 05/07/2014 | Bham & Black Country Half (BBCHM) |
| 9 | 06/07/2014 | Edgehill Half Marathon |
| 10 | 17/08/2014 | Worcester City Half |
| 11 | 24/08/2014 | Severn Bridge Half |
If you’re keeping up the races 8 and 9 were 2 weeks after the almost tropical conditions of Shrewsbury half. I did just 3 runs in that 2-week gap, 5.5 miles, 6.7 and a 4 miler. I wasn’t following any particular scientific method or even any sort of training plan but just listening to my body. Although sometimes if my body felt like it was good to run, I’d find a reason not to.
So, the BBCHM, also known locally, as the canal half. It was my first time doing a race on a Saturday and even though there is an extensive and beautiful canal network in the West Midlands including where I live, I’d never at that point ever ran by the canal. The race is pretty much all along the canals from near Wolverhampton train station to Brindley Place in the centre of Birmingham. In 2014, it came off the canal for about half a mile due to some work being done. There is also a tunnel you run through which is very disorienting!
If you’re not familiar with the race, it’s run in an almost time trial type way. The fastest runners get the earliest start and the runners in each wave go off in mini waves so that you spread along the canal and don’t have a few hundred people racing along! I really like it. It is a bit of Marmite race. You either like it or hate it. I have done it twice since. The only reason I’ve not done it more is due to lots of clashes with things happening in life.
I’d recommend this race. When you go off in your little group it can be quite competitive! You want to lead the way. It’s a race where you have to be honest about your expected finish time. You might want that early start, but it will be a real drain on you being constantly passed by those fleet footed runners. Although I always question if the sub-80-minute runners enjoy it! Or get their money’s worth! Knowing I had another race the next day, the plan was to stick to 12-minute miles. I came home in 2 hrs. 40 so pace wise, job done. A good mornings work. The great thing with a city centre finish on a Saturday was easy to find a place to eat and drink and easy to get home. A van brings kit bags from the start to finish, and it is a fine race with a lovely finish allowing everyone to chill out in at the end. From what I recall it was a warm day; not the heat of 2 weeks before, but still warm. As you would expect a pretty flat route.
Not so the Edgehill half. This half is no longer called this. It’s now known as the Compton Verney half after the stately home (now an art gallery) from which the race starts and finishes. You start and finish by the home and it is a great place to run. Much like Stratford a few weeks earlier it was all countryside running although there was one bit where we went through a village, and it seemed like all the people that lived there came out to cheer! There were only 188 runners, and the vast majority were very lean looking club runners. The photo below is still on the Compton Verney website. That’s me a few hundred metres in, at the back of the field. And that is where I would stay. The lady to my left finished about 14 seconds ahead of me. I had a sprint finish but not enough to close her down.
I used the same tactic as the day before. 12-minute miling. I’d been warned about a nasty hill at about 11.5 miles, and I was not ‘disappointed!’ I’m glad I was the final person to complete it in a way. It made me realise that it doesn’t matter where you finish or how long it took, the finish is always the priority. So, Usain Bolt may have gold medals galore, but I had acquired my first ‘wooden spoon.’ A few more have followed over the years! What impressed me the most on the day and even now looking back on it is my time. 2 hrs. 38 on a tougher route, a tad warmer and for me new territory in running on successive days. Running 2 days in a row wasn’t something I did a lot of even back then, so it was another good day’s work!
So, with that done, I had the longest break between runs. 6 weeks! In the remainder of July, I did a total of 35.5 miles spread over 8 runs, a Parkrun and then 2 weeks before my next half I did a 9 miler! I’m impressed with that. And then on the 17th August feeling refreshed I rolled up for the Worcester City Half. Between the double half marathon and this race, I’d signed up for another 3 half marathons so that I would be doing 20 races and not 16. The last race was not going to Droitwich half on Nov 2nd and not Birmingham half 2 weeks earlier. Not just that but I couldn’t do Snowdonia Trail marathon due to a non-running commitment, so I shoehorned in Leicester full 1 week after Birmingham!
So, Worcester city half represented that 10th race of 10, the halfway mark. And it is the only race I have had to run naked! Behave yourselves! I got to the start, switched on my watch, and go a No Battery sign and it went off. Running apps weren’t a thing in 2014 or if they were, I didn’t use them or know about them. So, I was going to have to run this half on instinct and by listening to my body. It means I never knew what my mile splits were for that race but even if I say so myself the race went well, even if the omens were not good to begin with. I think the first half and full I did I had a simple Casio stopwatch so I didn’t know the distance but I knew how I was doing timewise.
When I rocked up at the start which was in the countryside there was no sign of the start and finish line! I thought I’d come to the wrong place initially but there were other runners milling about so I knew it was the right place. This version of Worcester City half is very different to the event that takes place on the first Sunday of September now. This early edition was very rural, undulating with a run through a stream or ford, not really sure! The version now, run by Steve Crams, Events of The North is a fantastic event. This was a good race in 2014, but there was just 1 toilet for the 200 plus runners!
Stood at the start line, cursing as I had no working watch to time myself, a lady stood next to me started chatting to me. Now this has become more and more common at races. People who follow me on social media, have met me at other races, seeing the name for the first time etc. In this instance the lady, Lorraine, was a fellow runner who did Walsall Arboretum Parkrun. She was there with her daughter Emma, and they were using it to as marathon preparation. Manchester 2015 as it turned out, so I was able to recommend it as a good race. I have kept in touch with both since and seen them at a few races and amazingly at 2 Manchester marathons saw them at the same point on the bridge into Altrincham on the 2-way stretch. The photo below taken by a friend of theirs shows us having a bit of a natter!
I soon forgot about the no watch and as soon as the race started tried to find a rhythm. It was a strange feeling not being able to glance at a watch to ensure pace was OK and how far I had run but there was something quite therapeutic about listening to my body. Occasionally I’d up the pace and then ease off again when I realized it was a bit too quick. It was another lonely-ish rural run. I always had a runner in site and there was a good number of marshalls, but I was glad to finish. The bonus of this race was being given my official time as soon as I finish. 2:21:43. A pleasing time, given the up and down nature, more up it has to be said; and having had to run the race with no guide to time and pace. In fairness this was how runners of just 15 to 20 years prior would have done it. It was how I did 2 Junior Great North Runs. And it showed that the training was going well, I was in good shape, and I had become a lot better at judging pace based on how I was feeling as opposed to letting adrenaline propel me or allowing myself to almost compete against runners, I thought I could get the better of. As many will know, never look at another runner and make any assumptions on their running ability, history or strength.
So quickly onto race 11 which was just a week later. Between the 2 races I did just 1 run. Parkrun the day before! Looking at it, a sensible gentle pace. Race 11 was the Severn Bridge Half, and this was the inaugural running of this race. I’ve been lucky enough to do races celebrating major milestones. I’ve got a possibly unique record of having done the 40th NY marathon, the 40th GNR and the 40th London marathon. You can chuck in the 40th Kenilworth half as well! I took part in the GNR that saw the millionth finisher at that event. I’ve been lucky enough to do races that have drastically changed, usually for the better. The Worcester City Half, Oxford Half and Shrewsbury half.
Doing an inaugural face feels quite special. No one on the start line knows what to expect. Some runners were familiar with the area, but they didn’t know exactly what to expect. What was really good was that the race started on the Severn Bridge! Coming back, we had to use the footpath but starting on the bridge was quite cool. New York is the only other race I can think of where we started on a bridge. We had been promised a tough route with a hill that was going to be challenging. There were 3 hills prior to that, each with a helpful sign saying, “Not the hill you were warned about!”
That hill when it eventually came was tough! I decided halfway up, like many runners, to switch to walking to conserve energy. We had been promised an immediate downhill at the top and we weren’t disappointed. Having got my breathing under control I was then able to get straight back into a rhythm and finish quite strong. The finish was a bit tight but as an inaugural race it was pretty good. At the finish I saw a fellow ARC runner, Chris Sprules. Chris, alongside the legend Ron Reynolds and Jo Yarnall, was extremely helpful in my first 2 years at ARC of providing advice as I transitioned into multi race challenges and ultra-running. It was lovely to finish a race and see a friendly face.
Oh, the time? 2:21:58. Almost identical to the week before and on a much tougher route. I had a fully charged watch this time, don’t worry. This was a wonderful place to be in. Running 2 solid half marathons on successive weekends and feeling really good. And I needed to! Because I had a 1 week break and then 9 successive weekends of races. 6 more half’s and 3 fulls to do. The going was about to get tougher.
Next week I’ll go through the next 4 to 5 races before finishing off about the 2014 challenge in 2 weeks.
Usingh Bolt - Endurance Runner 
I love going back in time to read all these and it’s a lovely record to have for you, too!
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