The race was also delayed by ten minutes (something about a large queue, probably at said running stall!) and we were not set on our way 'til about 10 past the hour.
Having taken part in yesterdays Parkrun I wondered how I would hold up in the first few miles and honestly for most of the first mile I was cursing my two race weekend ! The first mile is a lap of a trading estate, and it felt very hard and not very fast ! I didn't even glance at my watch on this first lap and it failed to vibrate at the mile split ! The second mile leaves the estate and heads out of Heanor - uphill !!!
The three years since I last did this race must have seen my memory wiped because miles 2 & 3 are predominantly uphill with some flat sections to suck you into a false sense of security - there is reported to be 58m of climbing on the course but I reckon you must do that in mile 2 alone. My watch did tease me with a vibrate at 2 miles and showed a second mile at a slow 8.02. Mile 3 was kinder in terms of the flat sections and I think I managed a 7.19 or something akin to that. At mile 3 something wonderful happens and there is a good mile or so of downhill and I made up some more time here ! In fact, it was great to continue to see my race average fall by a couple of seconds every time I looked at my watch, and mile five was soon completed with an average of 7.30 in tact.
The last mile is not so kind with two climbs contained therein and I was spent as I crawled up the second of these to cross the line with a better than expected 47.53 which was good enough on the day to finish 230/881.
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