Nottingham Christmas Half Marathon

Today I have the Notts Christmas multi-looped Half Marathon at Holme Pierrepont. Shoot me now. It’s as dull as ditch water but necessary dullness training-wise. L was booked into do it too but due to injury she has now passed that particular poisoned baton over to Daughter.

The race doesn’t start until 11:30, and I would normally be a fan of such leisurely starts but I’ve got to be elsewhere at 3pm.

The race goes astonishingly well for me in a 'I didn’t know I could do that any more' sort of way. I start off way too fast and then get faster. I start off doing 7:50 miles before accelerating to almost 7:30 miles. This is largely the fault of the two girls who overtake me early on, chatting away as they pass as if it was no effort at all. Naturally I undertake to catch and then pass them again. I am egged on in this venture by my new friend who I shall called ‘Steve’ because that is what it says on the front of his number. This may not be his name because Daughter is running with L's number and therefore under her name. 

‘Steve’ is also trying to catch the girls, most probably for different reasons to me as they are all in their 20s unlike the old codger that is me. Anyhow we pass them and then hope to drop them, well I do but I suspect Steve would like to run with them, but as it turns out dropping them seems impossible anyway as they're just too damn fast.

So aided by a flat course, the novelty of no wind at Holme Pierrepont, lots of nagging from ‘Steve’ and the two ‘passed but not dropped ’ girls constantly breathing down our necks we sprint over the line in 1:41:42. Extraordinary. I ran 1:47:47 here last year. It’s my fastest time since a 1:40:38 at Peterborough in October 2017.

The two girls finish about 30 seconds back and Steve goes off to chat them up while I collapse in an uncivilised heap.

Nottingham Christmas Half Marathon

As regards finding a distance race to run at this time of year, beggars can't be choosers and canny race organisers know this. Step forwards www.time2runevents.co.uk creators of the Nottingham Christmas Marathon and other races throughout the year based on multiple circumnavigations of the regatta lake at Holme Pierrepont.

This is L’s worse nightmare, hence why she’s not doing it, but I just welcome the simplicity of it. It’s also full, so I’m not the only sucker.

They have a marathon, a half marathon, a 5k and a 1 mile fun run. The Marathon is eight laps and is held on the Saturday, I am running the Half Marathon which is on the Sunday and a mere four laps.

Well, four laps and a bit to make up the distance. Which means the start is right around the other side of the lake, 1.4 miles from registration.

They do provide lap bands in case you forget what planet, I mean lap, you’re on. I hope I can count to four but I can’t guarantee it. I will simply run for about an hour and three quarters, then stop.

At least it’s all on tarmac and there would be a good chance of a fast time if it wasn’t for the notorious Holme Pierrepont winds.

One lap of the lake isn’t quite 5k but I would have though they could have done a short loop out on to the car park or something to make up the 5k, which would have made the laps a nice neat distance. That alone would have enabled you to get some meaningful split times. It would also have given them the option of putting out km markers, which would have been even better, because there are none at all. With the non-standard lap distance they would have been just too confusing.

Of course you’re all screaming at me to wear a GPS watch and let that do my splits. I’m such a dinosaur. I do train with a GPS watch but have never worn it to race in. Wish I had today and make a note to myself to do so next time. Not that I will remember.

Therefore my time was almost a complete surprise when I crossed the line but 1:47:47 isn’t too bad.

There is no t-shirt, unless you’re willing to pay extra for it, but there is a Christmas themed medal. Hmmm. 

L says she has the next running of this event in February down for her half marathon comeback, who would have thought...