In May 2010 I put together a relay team to run the Leeds Half Marathon corporate Challenge – being the only one with any running experience I put myself on the longer last leg and we struggled round- eventually!! This was my first proper run for a long time after having 13 years out of the sport following a bout of glandular fever in 1997.
Since then I had kept myself fit, discovering at the age of 25 that I was a fairly handy goalkeeper and, as I owned a pair of gloves, was in quite some demand! 5 or 6 games a week for 10 years or so kept the love handles at bay and gave me the adrenalin rush I used to get from an 800m on the track- it was also a great stress release!!
In that time I had also tried to get back into running with a couple of appearances at the annual Leeds University Relays and one go at the John Carr 5k at Esholt. None successful, none quick but I knew one day I wanted to get back into it!! That was when I set my target- to get back onto the track running 800m’s by the time I was a veteran- in my eyes this is still 40 for men!!
As Jamie started to get older I also decided that I needed to get moving for a couple of reasons- first to keep up with him and not be one of those dads who couldn’t play with his kid, but also hoping to encourage him in sport, be it running, football, rugby or whatever he wanted to do!
It was at this point that my search of the internet for suitable races led me to find parkrun. In June 2010 I did my first, and really enjoyed it- bonus, it was free! So I did a couple- the second a minute faster than my first in 24:54, however still over 8 minutes slower than my best ever- in 1992!! (more about that later!!) No matter- I never expected to be as fast again and was doing this for very different reasons so that didn’t bother me!
It was September before I managed to get to another, managing 3 in a row before getting busy again, returning in time for the snow, ice and sub-zero temperatures of last November. I ran my 2 fastest times in those conditions and really enjoyed the challenge!!
However- the reason I was not running consistently, or quickly, was down to a persistent problem with my achilles tendon, which I put down to unfitness and old age!! Every week after a run I would limp my way to about Friday then run on a Saturday- and only then when I could fit it in! It was February 2011 when I got properly hooked- and I think the main reason for that was the social network on Facebook.
Being the sociable creature that I am I had joined in a few chats and made a few comments in the forum then one day I got a friend request from a lady whose name seemed familiar- a quick check of the weekly results gave me the answer- we were pretty much about the same standard, in fact I am sure she regularly passed me on the last lap as I died every week!!
That lady was Emma Drake- and she deserves a chapter of her own!!!
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