Glasgow 5k Park Run Race Report

This was my first race for 2010. I'm well into my ultra training and not really doing enough speed work to have high expectations but it's a fun event and fitted in coming at the end of my easy week.

I have done this race 4 times before but each time it has been following an ultra race when I've not been in the best shape for a 5k. My best time on this hilly course is 19mins 17secs so I was interested to see if I could get anywhere near it today.

Katrina was also running and looking to see how her recent running would help her.

We dropped Emma off at work in Braehead and then headed to Pollok Park arriving with enough time to have a decent warm up. Well I went for a run while Katrina kept warm in the car.

I felt good on my warm up and decided to push hard and see what happened. Today is the national cross country championships in Falkirk so I knew most of the good club runners wouldn't be here today but there was still a big crowd at the start.

I was too far back at the start and the first kilometre was a bit of a pain as I made my way through people to find room to run. Maybe it was a good thing though as I started steady and by the first hill I could see I was in the top 10 which surprised me.

I was working away well and held my position going through the first lap. On the second lap I could hear a guy right on my tail so decided to try and stay ahead of him. I held him off on the up hill but he went past me on the downhill.

Over the last kilometre I went past him again on the uphill but the course finishes with a longish downhill bit and he went past me again. I purposely hadn't looked at my watch the whole way round but glanced at it with less than 300m to go and it showed 18.44 .... maybe I could get under 19mins which had been an outside idea.

I pushed it in and stopped the watch on 19mins 04secs ... just outside 19mins but a pb on that course. I finished 7th which was fun to be so far up the field but as I've said most good club runners will be in Falkirk today.

I ran back up the course to see how Katrina was getting on. I saw her coming up the final short sharp hill and she was struggling with her breathing and hadn't had the best of runs. I reckon 5k is far too short for her now. I'm working on the idea of a half marathon later in the year!!

We queued up to give in our finishing chips only to realise that I'd completely missed all the emails about having to register to get a bar code! Richard who organises the race said if I emailed him he'd amend the result sheet.

I'm now off to my swimming lessons which finish at 2pm. Hopefully when I come out I'll hear that Everton have beaten Man Utd in the early kick-off!!

Sat 20th Feb parkrun 5k race details
5km in 19mins 04secs (6.09pace)