Three race reports to record as succinctly as possible.
13th Dec. II Subida de Monte Pajariel. 17km. 650m ascent 650m descent.
This was the long awaited race that Pinilla the miner had been promising to organize again ever since the first edition in February 2008. I took part in that one although for some reason I can’t find any record of it in my running diaries.
It was worth the wait for the course alone, an attractive loop around Monte Pajariel followed by a sadistic roller-coaster of firebreaks up to the summit and then a superb semi-technical descent. This was the race I felt best in, possibly due to a conservative start and familiarity with the trails and descent (but not the firebreaks!)
20th Dec. Lugo Monumental 9.8k. 2 laps below the Roman walls followed by one lap on them.
This is a race that I have much lauded
on other occasions. Went again with Baltazar from the cement factory. As ever, it was cold, very cold, 10º below just outside Ponferrada and not far off that in Lugo itself.
Parked the car and made our way to the Plaza Mayor. On the way we met Saad Kaiche, Spain’s tallest man, in a flea market. He wears size 59 shoes you know.
My heart sank when I found El Cafe Central had closed and all my pre-race rituals went to pot. We were forced to perch on high stools for 3 quarters of an hour in the soulless modern establishment next door surrounded by elite athletes. Here I followed up my strong coffee with a hot chocolate chaser which settled uncomfortably at the pit of my stomach. I should have known better.
Suffered indescribably from 7k onwards by which time we were running a circuit high up upon the Roman walls… no bars to nip into and discreetly finding some gap in the wall would have incurred the risk of crapping on the backmarkers who were still on the penultimate lap 10 metres below. I didn’t even consider this option. This is a UNESCO World Heritage Site after all.
Huffed and puffed and dragged myself home for my slowest ever 9.8k. And Lugo somehow lost a little bit of its magic although I did look up to one of the tallest men on the planet.
1st Jan. The Morning After. Church Stretton, Shropshire. 5 miles, 300m ascent/descent.
This one’s listed as a fell race.
Last year I came here with my dad and it was appropriate that dad’s brother Trev should come to walk the 2010 edition. Great race run almost in its entirety on snow and ice, but once out of the shade the sun helped thaw us out and provide ideal conditions. There were runners, walkers, juniors, families, dogs and even one bloke with a Santa hat and a pair of Speedo swimming trunks. I coughed and spluttered on the ascents and finished a couple of minutes slower than last year. We pledged to come back for more next year.
This drew to a close the most prolific period of racing in my life. Have run 5 races in 6 weeks. Can’t say the same for “training” as in the same period I’ve only done 2 half- hour runs along the canal but the races have been fun and I’ve been careful enough not to get injured. Now where are those New Year’s resolutions….
