10k completed and just before MiniMe claimed the medal

I have been running for approaching 2 years although mostly just as a more endurance based exercise compared to the short sharp busts of exercise experienced in karate. Although I always enjoy completing a run I sometimes find it hard to motivate myself to get out there in the first place. So as someone motivated by gadgets and setting goals, I bought myself a new iPod nano in 2007 with the Nike+ widget for measuring and recording my runs. This worked wonders for my running motivation so I decided to try and enter the 2010 London Marathon and base my training on the assumption that I might be lucky enough to get a spot. In preparation I entered the Brooks Brighton 10k, which was held on Sunday 15th November 2009 along a storm lashed Brighton seafront.

By the time the 10k rolled around I had already received my rejection letter from the London Marathon so I entered the adidas Silverstone Half Marathon so I still had a target and continued my training for the 10k. The Brooks Brighton 10k was recommended to me by a friend since it’s a very flat course although it did not help that a storm decided to throw itself at the South of England across the weekend so I was keeping a keen eye on the weather. Thankfully the Sunday morning saw a break in the storm and we were lucky to escape with no rain for the run although there was bit of a sea breeze blowing into us as we ran along the seafront.

Mrs danyul and MiniMe accompanied me to cheer me on and I was soon lined up with the other 3,000 or so other runners waiting for the start. I decided to put myself quite far back at the start but that proved to be a problem as the starting gun fired and I was finding it difficult to find my pace whilst weaving through some ‘slower’ runners. This proved even more troublesome since the start section is quite narrow compared to the rest of the course and gets even narrower as the club runners turn at the end and come back towards you. I didn’t really like to waste energy crossing across and darting through some of the crowd but equally I wanted to hit my natural pace as early as possible to get some semblance of a good time.

Once we hit the turn at the end of the first stretch there was more room to maneuver and finally we were going back past the start line to the much wider seafront section. I soon settled into my natural 10k pace and thanks to some tunes from Podrunner I was soon on my way. The sea breeze was not too harsh although I did make sure to grab some of the water on offer so I could get the salty taste from my lips. I finally settled in a group that were running at the same pace as me and the longest stretch was soon over as we turned and took advantage of the tail wind. With the pier a firm target in the distance I picked up my pace a little and was soon heading to the finish line with MineMe and Mrs danyul cheering me on. I had little to give for a sprint finish, so I had paced myself well, and jogged across the finish line to receive my medal.

MiniMe soon took ownership of my medal and once I grabbed some of the free drinks of offer we walked back to the car so I could stretch a little and then get changed. Thanks to all those involved in the organisation of the race and I will definitely be back in 2010. My stats for the race:

• Category: Senior Men
• Category Position: 552 / 720
• Gun Time: 55m14s
• Chip Time: 51m37s
• Chip Position: 1292 / 2519

The time was a personal best for me over 10K although with a better starting position I will be aiming for under 50 minutes on my next timed / measured 10k.