Great South Run

I'd eased down coming into this race and was hoping for a top 10 Brit finish, seeing a very strong startlist. Not everyone turned up, but there was still a very strong field and really I wanted a good time out of it also so was grateful for the company. I knew the wind would be strong on my hometown's seafront, and it didn't disappoint....

Starigh from the gun, I let the lead group go, and settled in a pack with Mark Draper, Tom Payn, Mike Skinner, Darren Deed plus a few others and I heeded my coach's pre-race advice of tucking in and not forcing the pace from the front early on. I shielded from the wind, feeling very comfortable as the first few miles all passed in just outside 4.50 per mile. I think at about mile 4, I found myself at the front of the group, and pushed the pace on a bit, feeling pretty good and targeting a few guys who had fallen off the lead pack. A mile or so later, Draper and Payn surged past me and put in a burst. I was in 2 minds as to what to do, and so let them get ahead a bit, but not out of reach. Within half a mile they were abck in the pack, and Tom said after the race that the surge probably wasn't a good idea and a more gradual pace change would have been better. 2 guys broke away from the group at about 10k, which I passed in 30.24 and with the wind behind us now, I wanted to chase them as I knew some shelter from the wind in the last 2 miles would be really beneficial. I couldn't bridge the gap but seemed to have got away from the pack behind, and I passed Antony Ford at about mile 7.

As we turned into the 2 mile stretch along the seafront to the finish, the wind hit and halted the 4.48 miles that I'd put in since 10k. To my surprise, as I thought I was clear of the group, Mike Skinner, Darren Deed and Alan Buckley went past me with Mike urging us to share the pace in the wind. The last 2 miles were one of the weirdest closing stages to a race I have ever experienced: if you ran at the back of the group, it felt like a cagey track race with everyone holding back, waiting for the surge; yet as soon as you hit the front the wind battered you. So you're left with a choice of running slowly at the back, feeling impatient; or running slowly at the front, knackering yourself. I went for a mixture of the two, wanting to help us push the pace on as Lee Merrien was coming back now and I wanted to make sure we stayed clear of the guys behind. We caught the 2 who had broken away and there was a surge by Buckley and a couple others at 800m to go, but they couldn't get a gap and so the group closed again. Even at 400m to go, I felt like I was jogging in the group, and the sprint began at 200m to go. 4 got ahead, including Darren Deed, but I managed to 'sprint' back past him, finishing 3 secs ahead and just behind the 3 foreign athletes that had tagged onto our group when we'd gone past them.

The last 2 miles were 5.10, 5.12, and felt slower to be honest. My finishing time was 49.30, and looking at the results, I'm happy. Had a good joke with Darren about our comedy sprint finish on a 20 minute warm down. I think had the weather been kinder, I'd have threatened 49 minutes, and am very pleased with how it went - 14th overall and 6th Brit is a result I definitely would have taken beforehand. I was lucky to have a group to ru wiht for the most of the race, which helped I'm sure.

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