Dead Runners society race report
Four Villages half marathon - sunday 24th
January 1999.
Three days before I passed my PhD viva
exam I was back up north running one of my favourite races, the Helsby/4
Villages half marathon, another test of my recovery.
Hello deads
Dr Tony here reporting for the Tiger team with a slightly belated race report from last sunday. I've been a bit busy this week to post a big race report but now with my PhD exam finally behind me here I go with a tonymegaracereport.
Last sunday (24th) Shelley and I were back up north visiting family and friends in my home town of Warrington to celebrate my parents 37th wedding anniversary. This weekend coincided with one of my favourite races, the Helsby/4 villages 1/2 marathon in north west cheshire. This was to be my 10th run in the race, I first ran the race as a fresh-faced 21 year old back in 1985. I ran the race every year between 1990-95 and my 4 fastest half-marathons ever were run on this course in 1992-5. I have only beaten 1h24 for the 1/2 marathon 4 times all on this course with my pb of 1h22.53 set in my golden running year of 1992. After my move to Cambridge University I always wanted to come back home to run the race but in 1996 I was recovering from a broken shoulder and couldn't run, in 1997 I was in France and in 1998 I'd just got back from holiday in the USA. Finally this year I was able to run Helsby again. This was to be a special run for me as it was to be my first serious race since I fell over running and fractured my knee 6 months previously, it was to be a test to see how my recovery from injury and return to proper training was progressing. I knew that there was no chance of a sub 1h24 this year, especially as they had changed the course from when I ran all those fast times. The village of Helsby is dominated by Helsby hill to the south, in the past the course started and finished in Helsby and passed through 3 other villages on the flat marshland to the north between Helsby and the river mersey. This made the course FAST, there weren't too many hills on the old course. This year the course was changed to go south of Helsby through some different villages which meant that Helsby hill had to be circumnavigated in some way, there were going to be a few hills on this course! The beautiful Shelley and I travelled to the race with my old friend and ex-workmate and training partner Bernard, just like old times for me. We arrived in plenty of time and saw some old running friends from Spectrum Striders and my old workplace of Daresbury Laboratory including eurodead Robin Tasker who had come to marshal and watch us run.
Eventually it was time to run, on with my racing gear and I jogged for 5 minutes to loosen up then lined up in the middle of the pack. Shelley lined up at the back she was going to run the first 2.5 miles at the back and then turn round and run back to the start, Shelley is recovering from her foot injury but is not yet fit enough to run a 1/2 marathon. Conditions for the race were quite good for January, cold and sunny with a bit of a breeze, it could have been a lot worse. Bang and off we shuffled, with over 1600 entries it was going to be a slow start in the middle of the pack, over the start line in 32 seconds. The first 1/2 mile was at little more than a jog, things speeded up a bit after that. Through 1 mile in 8.37, I was hoping for 7.30 pace all the way so this was a bit slow. Just after that I passed one my Spectrum Striders clubmates and gave her some encouragement as I passed, then I heard someone call my name, it was ex daresbury dead runner Johanna Radcliffe, I hadn't seen Jo for ages. A very brief word with her then on with the race. Gradually working my way through, 2 miles in 16.00/7.23 last mile, 3 miles in 23.08/7.08. By now the pack had thinned out a bit which made overtaking a bit easier. I was moving reasonably well, I wasn't trying too hard as I knew there was a long way to go and I wasn't sure of my fitness. 4 miles in 30.17/7.09 and 5 miles in 37.37/7.20. Feeling a little tired by now but not too bad, still holding back a little.
Kept working my way through, passed a couple of Spectrum Striders, the odd runner came back but I wasn't interested in racing anyone yet. 6 miles in 45.27/7.50 and 7 miles in 52.14/6.47, a misplaced mile marker somewhere I think. At 8 miles which was reached in 59.52/7.38 I passed another Spectrum clubmate, now it was starting to hurt a bit more. I also passed a lady from Stockport Harriers wearing some Parrott designed Buffalo Chips shorts (HI GEORGE)! Up to now the course had only been gently undulating but now things started to get steeper :-( 9 miles in 1h07.06/7.14 and 10 miles in 1h14.45/7.39, the course was climbing very gradually around here, there weren't many steep hills but it was getting tough. Just after 10 there was a short steep descent (ouch!) before another climb, 11 miles 1h21.54/7.09. Soon after that we turned a corner and a marshal said "all downhill from here" and there was a steep descent for 1/4 mile. I was going flat out now, my right leg was hurting on the descent but I was racing it in with a Wilmslow runner and still passing a couple of runners. At the bottom of the steep bit the course was gently downhill all the way in, 12 miles in 1h28.54/7.00. I was really hurting by now but only 1 more mile, I could see another runner clad in the all black of Spectrum Striders ahead so I had to keep going and pass him, I passed him 1/2 mile from the end. 13 miles in 1h35.47/6.53, there was Robin spectating, sharp right then sharp left turn and into the the finish straight, just got past the Wilmslow runner on the line.
Finished in 1h36.26, really pleased with my run. I was shooting for sub 1h40 so to go that fast was encouraging. Still I ran a marathon at that pace last year so I have some way to go to get back to full fitness. My sore left knee survived but nearly everything else was hurting after the run, still it was nice to feel the pain of a good hard race again. Met up with Shelley, she had done her 5 mile training run OK. We had a chance to chat to some old friends again after the race before heading back to Warrington before we returned to Cambridge. I understand that the race was won by Graham Hill of Stockport Harriers, son of the great Ron! An encouraging run, my next test is the Bury 20 mile race next month. Should I survive that then I'll enter the Sheffield marathon in April.
bye --
Shelley Walsh and Tony Bell
Milton Cambridgshire England
Tiger@shells.demon.co.uk
Shelley Walsh Shelley@shells.demon.co.uk
http://www.shells.demon.co.uk/index.html
Tony Bell
Tony@shells.demon.co.uk
http://www.shells.demon.co.uk/tonyweb.html
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