4 Villages Half Marathon

I saw hardly any Wilmslow runners on the course and am too sensitive to the cold to chat after January races – it would be good if others used the ‘Comment’ button at the bottom to give a fuller picture of the race/day.

The blustery 25kmh wind forecast did not materialise and I was only aware of a significant headwind coming down Tower Hill. 6^oC is a reasonable temperature at this time of year. The Wilmslow runners’ times suggest the course ran faster than last year and are very much on par with Wilmslow and Congleton 2008.

Great run by Nicky to pick-up another L50 first, Tom was edged-out of the M50 prize which I think he has won in the past. Big Malc made the podium and Rob and Vicky achieved fourth place in their categories – excellent results in a race that attracts a lot of quality.

Those who (statistically) ran well were:-

Angela, Don, Gavin, Geoff, Ian Smallwood, Kasey, Neil, Nicky, Owen, Peter, Rob, Steve and Vicky.

Those on par with their race results in the second-half of 2008 were:-

Catriona, Gareth, Ian Ashcroft, Kate, Penny, Tom and Trevor

Those who may look at Helsby as a useful training session in preparation for Wilmslow were:-

Amanda, Julie, Louisa, Malcolm, Mark and Rod.

I have not enough race data on Bill, Ian Roylance, Simon, Jamie, Mike or Soraya.

If anyone has their mile splits could you let me have them (

ian@ianashcroft.com

). I ran the first four miles in 30:12  but the next four in 32:12. This drifting off the pace cost me my 1:42 target, my times for the two sectors are very similar to last year – I’d like to work out whether it is me pacing the race wrongly or simply variation in the course. Whilst my time disappointed, I can sleep soundly at night knowing I was ahead of Penny, Catriona and Amanda, all of whom beat me at Congleton. I’ve four non-running weeks between now and Wilmslow so glory may be short-lived. Owen was not in my calculation but with a 7+ minute PB he was, according to Mike Marshall who kept appearing at regular intervals, reeling me in steadily in the second half of the course. I was unaware of his presence but my push in the last mile to get under 1:44 gave me a 7 second lead.

As well as Mike, I appreciated support from Daniel, Nick, Dave, Andy and Paul, plus Clare Hawkes near the finish.

Steve Smith, with another in a succession of superb runs, would be my nomination for Runner of the Month but Angela, last month’s runner-up, scored a big PB so it looks very tight. I’m not around, is it possible for you to organise again please, Nick (info@completeperformance.co.uk).

 

Could you also let me know of any mistakes in the results posted.

Ian

 

Several forgettable photographs can be viewed at > http://mickhall-photos.com/ (NB. with both sets, the first is last)

Don