GLOUCESTER SPORTS BLOG

Chedworth 10 mile Trail Race

2012/03/21 at 15:50PM by Steve

Took part in the Chedworth 10 mile multi-terrain race in the beautiful Cotswolds countryside on Sunday, as we were retailing at the event! As usual, I left it to the last minute to enter (9.51am for a 10am start!) so distinct lack of warm-up meant the first mile on the road felt quite quick!

Started off nice and steady in the chase group as the chap from Cirencester AC went off really hard like he normally does, I've raced against him in the past. Onto the start of the off-road and some sloppy muddy paths, I was swapping places continually with two other guys as the leader pulled away. Along some undulating paths and the leader was 120m clear, with the other two pulling away from me slightly as I suddenly found I was breathing a bit too hard, bearing in mind we still had 7 miles to go! Sharp left and a slight incline allowed me to catch the other two, followed the perimeter of a few fields and a steep uphill meant I went past the two guys and into a clear second. I could now see the leader as I knew he wasn't so good on the hills and he seemed to be constantly looking round to see who was where.

We had a nice downhill stretch towards the halfway point and the infamous stream crossing (see pic below), nice and chilly but as a steeplechaser I should be used to it. I was closing on the leader and had the gap to about 30-40m but I knew we had some uphill to come, turned left on a field and a long climb to the top corner and by the top I was right on him, he didn't look happy. I was happy to let him stretch away again slightly but closed when we got onto the forest path. A nice mile or so on good terrain before a left and the start of the long climb. I made my move and tried to glide past him as we went up through the gulley. The uphill always seems to go on forever but by the top I was 50m clear and feeling confident. Legs were feeling heavy but I knew I needed to push on and try and get him to lose interest.

Along the fields and then downhill back into the forest, nearly stacked it in the mud, sharp left again and the final climb. Legs were hurting and lungs were burning but this was my final chance to get away. Massive relief when I got to the top so started striding out along the muddy paths back towards the road. A quick glance behind told me that he had given up and so I could afford to relax along the final road section and into the finish.

Really pleased with my run, surprised myself with how strong I was bearing in mind my limited mileage. It's all about quality not quantity! Got two bottles of wine, £20 and a massive golden shoe trophy for my efforts, a good day all round! Happy running




New Shoes!!

2012/03/14 at 16:25PM by Steve

Despite the fact I co-own a running shop, I still really look forward to the time when I can choose a new pair of shoes, and that time finally arrived on Monday! My faithful Adidas Supernova Sequence 3 have finally given up the ghost after a solid 650 mile effort, so it was time to retire them down to gardening duty and pick a new pair of daps.

When we got a quiet period in the shop, I brought down as many suitable shoes as possible and tried them all on. Now people have to bear in mind that different shoes suit different people so even if I like or don't like a shoe, doesn't mean the same will apply to anyone else. First shoe was the Adidas Sequence 4, the update. Still a lovely feel to the shoe, but for some reason it didn't quite fit right around the ankle so I moved onto the Puma Vectana 2. Pleasantly surprised by this shoe, a really plush feel to them and a spongy forefoot, definitely a contender! Next was the  New Balance 860 and although a nice shoe, a little loose on the ankle for me.

The Brooks Adrenaline GTS 12 was next and it felt lovely, great cushioning and nice support but without being too obtrusive, also a possible. The Asics 1170 was also a pleasant surprise, I've never been a big fan of Asics since they gave me some rather spectacular blisters at the London Marathon back in 2007, but these felt good. There was always that nagging doubt though so they were put aside. Onto the final shoe, the Nike Zoom Elite 5 and previous versions of this shoe have been my absolute favourite, so it had a lot to live up to! I wasn't disappointed, it felt great. Lovely and soft, the support worked well judging by the video gait analysis. I'd found my winner, but honourable mentions must go to Puma and Brooks. The Zoom Elites will be debuted tomorrow for a steady run so I'll let you know.....

 



Track season looming

2012/03/08 at 16:11PM by Steve

Now that the evenings are getting lighter, it has made me realise that the track season is looming large on the horizon. But before that, the road race season is also almost upon us and we have started to get lots of lightweights and racing shoes arriving in-store. I've already decided that my lightweight shoe of choice is going to be the Nike Zoom Elite 5, as I've had about 6 or 7 pairs of the previous versions and it was my favourite shoe of all-time, praise indeed! As for my racing flats, it looks like a fight between the Brooks T7 Racer or the Asics HyperSpeed 5, unless something else comes in that looks even better in the April deliveries! Any suggestions?



May Hill Massacre 2012

2012/02/21 at 16:37PM by Steve

Gloucester Sports was retailing at the re-arranged May Hill Massacre on Sunday, and as this is one of my favourite races I thought I would enter on the day. It's an 8.5 mile multi-terrain race with two big climbs, the first of which takes you up over the top of May Hill. As we were selling at the event, I don't get to have a great warm-up usually, but I toed the start line with about 200 others. We start off with about 800m of road before we start the climb up to the top of May Hill and the guy who won the Dursley Dozen the week set off like a scared rabbit! I hung back slightly, knowing what was to come but as soon as we started going up on the gravel trails I went past him and into the lead. I carried on working hard up the hill to the 1 mile mark, got a slight breather as the route levelled out before going hard up the road section. Into the wooded area and a left turn up the muddy section towards the top, had a sneaky glnace to see I was now 40-50m clear.

I worked really hard up the hill, pumping the arms like fury to establish a strong lead, finally went through the gap in the trees onto the common at the top, a sharp right towards the summit. The legs felt heavy but I knew I could start striding out, touched the trigg point where there was a supportive crowd to cheer us on. The long downhill started and I was now 150-200m clear and feeling good. Back into the forest and making sure I follow the arrows as there are lots of other paths I could take! A hairpin turn at just before 4 miles onto some slightly more solid terrain and a long downhill to the road. I kept looking behind me to see if I could see anyone but it was now just me and the course!

Onto the road section which was a new part of the course, up the hill and then back onto a muddy path. Lots of undulating terrain and then onto a soggy, boggy section which had a slight uphill incline. I found this the hardest part of the course as I knew I was getting tired, then over the stile, across the field and back onto the road. I hadn't seen anyone for a couple of miles so it was nice to see a few familiar faces cheering me on before I started the second climb. This climb is muddier but shorter, desperately trying to keep moving in the mud. Slowly made my way towards the top of the final climb and worked furiously up the last bit, knowing it was pretty much all downhill to the finish. Back onto the road for a section, trying to let my legs go with the road, a quick right then left and back onto the trails through the last section of woods. It felt nice to really stride out and I was ticking along quite nicely until I got to the road section and the final 800m. I knew I was clear so I eased off slightly but managed to cross the line in 52.33, which broke my course record by about 2 minutes although the course has changed slightly from previous years.

Really happy with how I ran, pleased that I was able to stamp my authority on the race quite early on. Eventually found out that the guys in 2nd and 3rd had taken a wrong turning at about 5 miles so didn't claim their rightful places on the podium. The prizes were generous but certainly unusual, an ornamental axe and a voucher for a pair of Dubarry boots worth £300!

A great race, would recommend it to everyone. Shoe of choice was the Mizuno Wave Harrier 3

Cheers, Steve



Early morning runs

2012/02/15 at 09:40AM by Steve

Was out running at 6.45am this morning, it was nice to be running in almost daylight after the long winter months of starting and finishing in the dark! Venturing out in Adidas Supernova shorts now as it's not so cold, hopefully the running tights can be put away for another year!

Felt surprisingly good for the second run on the trot, despite feeling a little run down yesterday, 45 minutes later and I'd clocked up a nice 7.5 miler. Time flies when you are having fun...



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