Striders 10k - Homebush

Bit of an odd day. Speedwork had been going well, and I was hoping for a quick one - definitely sub 37, and hopefully back in the mid 36s. In the back of the mind, though, I knew that I'd only had 5 to 6 weeks since my last illness and there'd been a little bit of disruption mid-Feb with a trip away.

Warm up went okay and the legs felt pretty good. Plan was to get through 5k in 18:10 - 18:20 and see what happened. I knew Brightshoes and Mohammed were plotting for sub 36, so they would be in the general vicinity, which might help drag me through.

Field set off and there was a fair old scramble through the twists and turns of the car park. The front half of the field missed the second right turn, thinking it was later, and things really didn't settle down until past the 1km mark.

Felt pretty solid training Brightshoes and Mohammed. I was in the midst of their group at 5k in 18:24, and thought I'd ramp it up, as I felt pretty decent. This went fine, until the monkey jumped on the back just before 7km. Funny thing was, I had Mohammed and Brightshoes behind me, and I could hear Mohammed groaning. This intensified, and I was certain he was throwing up. I didn't look back - I figured the best case scenario for me was to see him throw up, and I didn't need to see that.

I ebbed and flowed through the last three, uphills hurting pace, but seemingly able to push on the downs. I knew Mohammed and Brightshoes were still there, as I could hear Brightshoes encouraging Mohammed. I banged out the last couple of hundred metres best I could for 37:09.

Bit disappointing, but I doubt I could have gone much better on the day - a softer midway split wouldn't have made much difference. Oh well, at least it's a yardstick. I'm improving, no question, weight's coming off, fitness is coming up, endurance is coming along. Just need to keep doing the work.