Week 11

48.6 miles (inc. 20m race) 

A good week, enjoying the earlier signs of Spring and the definite natural increase in pace. Tough race 20 miler to finish though! 

Monday 2nd March 

BVH 
7.33m @ 7.28 p/m 
54 mins 
Harborne High Street 

Anticipated an easy slow recovery run, but on a mild evening and a crew who seemed 'up for it' - Ian, John and Dave, this proved to be more of a tempo style Monday effort! Harborne High Street awaited and felt really good - I think the ski-legs have now been dropped and this mesocycle has reached a pacer section. It seems to be the trend; build on slow endurance for the first couple of months and when the better conditions come though the running feels and becomes that little bit easier

Wednesday 4th March 

11.2 miles @ 8.17 p/m 
1hr 32 mins 
run home thorough Cannon Hill + canals 

After a day's recovery (enjoying a rare Villa home win against the Baggies), this was the long midweek run scheduled. Not quite the 12 miles but that was by default rather than design and enjoyed a gentle explore of the city's Eastside, before heading down to Cannon Hill and the Rea Valley, in still light conditions. Fantastic, really enjoyable. Hit the canals in the dark (not too bad, I guess I was a scarier sight to anybody coming in the other direction) and pooled back home. Getting used to these longer mid-weekers

Thursday 5th March 

BVH - pyramid Hill Reps (Beech Road) 
5 miles

Club night and didn't fancy the proposed 7 miles @ half-marathon pace. Haven't done any hill work for a good while so this seemed a decent idea, taking in the pyramid session on Beech road, scaring the beejesus out of any residents peeping behind their curtains! Session ran at about 7.30 pace and the hill as challenging as ever. Felt fine

Saturday 7th March 

5.1m @ 7.59 p/m 
40 minutes 

Taking the opportunity to get in a few miles when I could as James trained at PerryWoods. Reflective short run, thinking of Jack who's dad sadly passed away this week in a car accident. He'd only just done the Coventry Half the week before. Really does put it all into context, and gives you the determination to make the most of what you have.

Was the BVH awards night yesterday evening too; enjoyable occasion. Tempted to have a drink but staying off the alcohol until after the marathon, bar perhaps an Easter celebration

Sunday 8th March 

Gloucester 20m Race (Race Report) 
Time TBC - was 2.33.37 - 125th 
20 miles! 

As I write this at 7pm, I'm hurting! Left quad and thigh feels shot to bits, looking forward to a recovery day tomorrow. Great preparatory Marathon race, quite low key. Just an hour down the motorway and after an early start and a very poor diet yesterday (cheeseburger and chips at the Villa for an epic Cup win over the Baggies, with crowd invasion, it was an assembly at a Park and Ride near Gloucester for a serious race-briefing and gathering of 400 or so souls for this annual 20 miler.

Rule number 1: Check your watch. Not me - mine had died before I even started, so I was feted to run to feel, rather than to pace, which can always be dangerous. I wasn't planning to go out any faster than 8 minute miling, but I also forgot rule number 2; You'll always be going out faster than you think! A whole swoop of runners passed me in the first few miles through attractive suburban Industrial estate landscape, and I was feeling rather smug thinking I may pass a number of them again later with my super slow pacing! Didn't quite work that way though as Races seem to defy time and space equations, and I was already a few minutes up after just a few miles, as we headed out on to one of three loops of just over 5 miles, in much more attractive rural surroundings.

It was a good morning for running; damp and drizzly and a little wind, but nothing too concerning. Without watch and headphones (the iPod Nazi's were out in full affect - instant banning apparently) it did give a chance for race reflections, and at one point all you could hear was the sound of local birdsong. Ah, the joys of running. The field also spaced out naturally and the teal vest attraction, Bournville having the noteriety that it has, led to striking up a conversation with a female runner, Katie, who won the women's full JW Ultra last year, and was using the race as a second 20 mile run this weekend! I ended up running the next 15 or so miles with her at about 7.45 pace (I'm guessing as  I actually don't know!), and the miles flew by, as did the couple of mini-inclines on each particular circuit. I think that's one of the best things about running; unless it's eyeballs out and total focus, you never know who you may be running with. Anyway, she gamely left me in her wake with a couple of miles to go and I completed the final loop and headed back to the finish and race HQ. Rather than speed I was looking for continuity, and although it was started to hurt at about 18 miles, there seemed a few other much worse off, which is always psychologically lifting. Pleased to see the finish line, almost instantaneously brought back up the goodie bag fizzy Lucozade and then wondered how I was going to fit into my Xtra Small technical T-Shirt. Ho Hum, life's too short ….

I would definitely recommend this for any marathoners looking to do a 20 miler in race conditions, but it has brought home the fact that 20 miles (in itself) is a bloody long way, and the body is still rebellious. Strangely it's 'not' the Gloucester 20 it used to be. I did this as my first ever 20 miler back in 2007, and it's a completely different course. The old one was more aligned with Frampton, for those who know the July 10km route.

Marathon training on track though, another good consistent 45 miler (or thereabouts week), and pleased to have got this completed. Just have to wait for the time now - I think it was about 2.35, so not in PB territory but hopefully not too fast that I'll feel beaten up for the next week or so ….