Happily Ever After
Life in The Rural Retreat with a beautiful wife, three cats, garden wildlife, a camera, a computer – and increasing amounts about running
Earlier posts can be found on Adventures of a Lone Bass Player, where this blog began life. Recent entries can be found here.
Optimistic For Oxford
by Russell Turner - 14:36 on 20 August 2024
It’s surprising how much difference a couple of degrees can make.
Last Saturday I finished the first week of nine weeks’ Oxford Half Marathon training with a six-mile long run. Several walk breaks were needed, as was determination to complete the final half mile after I’d been running (and walking) for an hour. The rest of the week had taken some effort too; I wasn’t looking forward to increasing mileage.
That was last week. Week 2 began yesterday with a 40min steady run which felt more comfortable right from the start – so much so that I turned it into a progression run, each mile faster than the one before. At the end I could have continued with no problem, and no walk breaks. My optimism has returned.
There was much less wind yesterday, but the biggest difference was the temperature: 16º on Saturday, 14º on Monday. I might have found my tipping point. It’s no accident that my HM PB happened on a windless, 7ºC day. Let’s hope there’s a dull day in Oxford and not a repeat of the heatwave which hit Royal Parks on the equivalent weekend last year. That was a tough run.
Today was still 14º, although the wind had picked up again. Fortunately, the schedule called for 45mins easy, which I completed in four miles, with no walking, and ready for more. I’m not over-confident that by race day, on October 13, I’ll be primed for a PB, but I’ll be disappointed if, at the very least, I don’t beat the year’s swiftest HM so far: 2:12 at London Landmarks.
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