Mileage: 15miles -1 hour 37 minutes (all AM)
Gail and I were down South this weekend for our friend's wedding in Shrewton. Our B&B (pictured) Fairlawn Hotel was in Amesbury, Salisbury, a lovely part of rural Somerset and just down the road from Stonehenge.
Of course I never leave home without my trainers and running kit, why on earth would I? So despite not getting to the hotel until 1am I was up early for a quick breakfast and a 15mile run before the wedding. I have to admit it was quite difficult eating a bowl of Crunchy Nut Cornflakes and nibbling toast when the B&B staff were bringing out plate after plate of full English breakfasts to all those sitting near me. They all smelt amazing, but my inner-strength prevailed.
After breakfast the nice man who owned the B&B told me how to get on to a really good cycle network (route 45, if you're ever out that way) on some quiet rural roads and I couldn't wait to explore.
One of the things I have always loved about running is that you can pretty much do it anywhere. All you need are your trainers, a pair of shorts, a t-shirt and a bit of ground. The chance to explore somewhere new, especially in the countryside, is always an adventure too and a chance to see a bit more of where you are, which I love. Saturday morning was a little grey to begin with, but the skies soon cleared to let the sun shine. With the river Avon running close by, surrounded by undulating green and yellow meadows, bushy trees and picturesque cottages with thatched roofs and log burning stoves, the air full of the sound and smell of the countryside it was a perfect morning. It was a great way to start the day and a glorious place for a run. The route I was given quickly took me out of Amesbury and into that postcard scenery, where along this route I passed a 16th Century manor house, which is now owned by Sting, village rumour says its worth over £16million. I didn't see too much of his pad, as I was invited in and he was well hidden by a large stone wall and gate. Maybe next time I'll ring ahead and see if he'll set up a Lucozade station for when I run past.
I was a little stiff and sore after Thursday and Friday night's fast running, but I set myself the target of running around 7 minute miles for the 15 miles I planned to do. However, after clocking the first mile at exactly that I felt quite good and decided to push the pace a little, but not too much, as I was slightly worried about burning out and then having an agonising, slow and painful jog back to the hotel. I am not sure if it was the combination of good weather and beautiful surroundings or simply that I am running well at the moment, but I managed to maintain and improve my pace for the whole of my run. The roads were very undulating too with some steep climbs and sharp descents making it a far from ideal surface to run on, but I felt in the 'zone'.
After reaching halfway in about 50 minutes I turned round and headed back. Still feeling good I again tried to push the pace, particularly the last 3 miles, and did the second half in about 47 minutes (splits below).
I was really pleased when I got back to the B&B. I always feel good after training, but when a training run has gone that well it can be hard to knock the smile off my face. I paid for it slightly later on as my legs were tired throughout the wedding and repeatedly called out for chairs and ledges to perch on. They certainly didn't enjoy dancing to every song played by the band at the evening reception, but I guess that's where the endurance kicks in! However, the plus side was that I didn't feel guilty about all the food I managed to ram down my throat throughout the day! It was a great wedding and really nice to catch up with some of my Uni friends that I don't see nearly enough of.
My splits:
1) 7.00
2) 6.42
3) 6.45
4) 6.30
5) 6.28
6) 6.33
7) 6.36
8) 6.31
9) 6.27
10) 6.27
11) 6.23
12) 6.36 (biggest climb of the run)
13) 6.13
14) 6.12
15) 6.16
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