Sarah Rock reports goes for a run in the forest:
The last time I ran a 10-miler, it was pre-marathon, pre-injury, December and freezing when I put my santa hat on to keep my head warm to run at Sneyd. This was the complete opposite – baking heat and sunshine – a quick half mile warm-up had me dreading the forthcoming 10 miles.
About 900 of us set off to run what turned out to be a slightly undulating course through the New Forest, mainly on trails. The scenery was fantastic, with wild ponies and biker groups making way for the herds of runners. I had a slow start due to congestion but then began to thoroughly enjoy the race, particularly the few shaded areas provided by the forest and I have never been so grateful to see a man with a hose at 5 miles – a hose-shower proved more effective than chucking cups of water over my head which had been my strategy up until that point!
I finished about 3 mins outside my PB but was absolutely chuffed to finish my longest run since February without aggravating my injuries, probably due to the provision of post-race massage, which was extra pain but was worth it. The beautiful setting meant that lots of runners stayed after the race to indulge in well-deserved BBQs and ice-cream and I even did a spot of running-kit shopping! 10/10!
Sarah’s time: 01:18:18 – 188th (chip time)
Full results are here (PDF file).