Friday saw me walking a 5 Km stroll, as I didn't want to run again, as the plan was to do the Parkrun in Lisburn again on Saturday morning.
Saturday morning came, along with the rain. Now, I've never been a fair weather runner, to be honest, you can't be when you have lived in Ireland for so long, but as I am training on the treadmill at the moment, rain was not a welcome sight. Added to that the fact that I wear glasses, purely so I can see where I am going, and it did not bode well. However, I must have got the bug back, because I didn't let the rain stop me, and off I went to Lisburn, suitably attired for the wet conditions.
Needless to say there were less runners present than last week, and I do confess my back was a tad stiff as I limbered up before the off. Wearing a long sleeve shirt, with a running top over that, adding in a rain jacket and a cap - I was weightier than last weeks fine conditions had seen me, but I was determined to improve on that showing. I took it easy on the short lap, knowing what to expect this week with the hill as we started the first of the three longer laps, and just at the bottom of the first hill, my shoe lace decided it needed retying, so I had to bend down and stop it flapping away. Not a lot to report really about the race, except that I still needed to take short walk breaks, which is a worry at only 5 Km, hence the need to work on my stamina as I progress.
I was checking the watch, and was hopeful I might break the 30 minute barrier this week, and as we approached the final turn for the run into the finish, I picked up the pace, along with Catherine Devlin, who I was now running alongside. She kicked a little, I did too, and tried to pull away, but to no avail, and as we closed towards the line, I had to let her go as I couldn't live with her kick, and she crossed the line a few seconds ahead of me, with ,y time just outside the target, in 30:01. Catherine set a new PR in 29:58, and we briefly congratulated each other, and as she said, it's great to have someone to kick with to push you over the last few strides - I'll get her next time!
What can I take from this race. Well, a 39 second improvement, while wearing wet weather gear must bode well for a sub 30 next time out. I certainly need to work on the stamina, as I am still struggling to run 5 Km outside in one go, but I am heading in the right direction - Onwards and Upwards....
PS - The picture isn't from Saturday, just a reminder that I could run a while back too....
