Notts 5

Having not injured myself in Friday’s 10k, I opt to have another go in tonight’s Notts 5 which starts and finishes on the Embankment.

I still opt to cycle to and from work though, which gets the legs going.

L won’t be wearing the new running shoes I got her for her birthday. They are too squeaky but having spoken to the brilliant Wiggle they have confirmed that they have a manufacturing defect and a replacement pair are already on their way to us.

I run a decent 36.10 five miler. Which is faster than both 2013 and 2014 but some way short of 2011. Like two and a half minutes short. Then there was 2007 but that was a different life.

This year’s time was helped by racing against a girlie who clearly had no intention of letting me beat her and obviously I had no intention of not beating her. We ran the second of the two laps side by side and both sprinted for the line before collapsing in separate heaps after a brief friendly handshake of course. I won by the way, just. When I come round, I am yet again handed a bottle of beer, I could get to like this new trend.

I crawl to the car, get the boys and then we all cheer L across the line before going for a recovery drink in the Navigation.

Notts 5

A bit of light relief to start off two weeks of holiday comes in the shape of the Notts 5 Mile race on the Victoria Embankment.

My injured knee flares up during my warm-up but that seems to get the pain out of the way for the race which goes ok, at least on that front. My pace however does feel rather slow and laborious but looking at my times after the event, I was up on last year’s time all the way to mile 4. Then I slowed over the last mile and hobbled home about 40 seconds down on last year.Not bad I suppose, on no training.

Notts 5

Tonight my partner has entered us both in the Notts 5 race on the Embankment. Only now she’s pulled out due to injury and will be supporting instead. I feel a bit set up but she says it will do me good. I’m not so sure it will.

I think she ought to sit in the boot with the dogs so that she can’t see what’s going on otherwise her bottom lip will be quivering in a right old sulk.

Things don't start well even before the start, when I put my foot down a hole warming up and sprain my ankle. I have to sit down until the world stops spinning. Thankfully the start has been delayed by ten minutes due to traffic on the course which gives me some recovery time.

The run, as expected, was bloody hard work; they always are these shorter ones. The shorter they are the longer they seem to take. Not that the ankle helps. My legs tell me I was out there longer than on last week’s half marathon but my watch says otherwise. 36:35 Once upon a time I could do these in 32...