So after last weekends fun with the Grim I decided to join in with Chris and his friends (Tom and Sharry) and run the Maidstone Harriers Turkey Run. Unlike last week I was really very chilled about this race with it being a shorter distance than the Grim.
Here I am on Saturday night relaxing ahead of the Turkey Run.
Now the Turkey Run is an annual 10k run starting at East Malling Research and running along country lanes, single track paths and through woodland areas. Having completed the longer Grim run the week before (and beaten Chris) I was fairly confident that the Turkey Run would not prove too difficult for me.
However Sunday morning came and Chris sprung a giant surprise on me! He insisted that we run in fancy dress, we both wore Santa outfits although Chris looked more like a member of ZZ Top than Saint Nick!
I look awesome as Santa, Chris looks like a ZZ Top tribute act.
We arrived early for the race which gave us enough time to warm up, take on last minute fuel (food like bananas) and a bit of water. It also meant that we got chance to have a chat with competitors who had run in previous years. Tom was very good at chatting with people but I am not sure they understood what he was saying all the time!
Here I am pre-race fueling up.
Tom dressed as a reindeer, here we are all ready to set off.
We found out from the marshals (I assume that is a position not a name, or else it would get very confusing). That the course was the driest that it had been for years. Chris was naturally disappointed at this (there is something wrong with that boy) but Sharry and Tom were quite glad as it meant they would not have to wade through slick mud. Personally I was happy as hopefully it meant I would not have to de-tangle my fur again.
The course was amazing. A great mix of uphill, downhill and flat and enough off road sections to keep everyone from getting bored. There was a lot of running through woodland which was a little muddy and I had to be careful I didn't slip and fall! It was a very quick route as well and suited Tom and Sharry (who both ended up taking off away from Chris and I) as they are quicker runners.
This was Tom's first event and he was keen to finish in a good time so he followed the pacing of some people who were a bit quicker than Chris and I. This did him good stead and he came home in an excellent time of 52 minutes.
Sharry also ran a very strong event and came home in 54 minutes finishing 12th in her category. We were all very proud of her and hopefully the four of us can run more 10k events like this again.
As for Chris and I, well Chris settled into to his regular pace and plodded along finishing in 56 minutes (his aim was to break 1 hour). We couldn't help wondering how much longer it might have taken if the route had been as wet as people claimed it had been on previous years. Although I think I would still stick with Chris as I can keep with his pace even though his legs are about 5ft longer than mine!
Once again I managed to beat Chris, this time by a little more than a second as I had more for a sprint finish than he did (he was not impressed at this!). Although we both agreed that our next event should be a longer run (I think we are doing the Hell Runner Hell down South with Geoff and people Nick) with a little more dirt and water.
Here we are happy and proud showing off our medals.
There were a few gripes about the event though. Even though I am not an experienced runner I think it would have been handy to have had some distance markers. Chris had to work out how far we had run using the timer on his watch and estimate how far we had run. There was also a few narrow sections of run which made it difficult to move past someone running slower in front of us. This was especially true on the first major hill section, which really took a bit of the wind out of our sails as we we still feeling very strong at this point. Although it did feel like there was loads of room for people who were stronger in the latter stages of the run to ease past us and make us feel like we were going backwards towards the end (unhappy faces).
My final grip was with my costume. While I looked dashing as Santa it was bloody hot! Felt apparently does not breathe when you run in it, I know Chris found his hat and beard very warm to run in and they were very sweaty at the end.
I was baking by the time we reached the finish and managed to get a cup of water or two (no water stations, odd)!
Anyways afterwards we all went for a much needed pub lunch (pie and mash for the win) followed by an ice cream (thanks Tom).
I love a Magnum.
All things considered in though two weeks I have completed two events, I think I am hooked. I preferred the longer run and I felt the atmosphere at the trail event was a bit more relaxed and less about times and more about completing the event, which I prefered. However the people on Sunday were all very friendly - with some amazing fancy dress costumes - so I would definitely do this event again (next year folks can we have a meerkat category pelase). Although I have to say I think I am a longer distance meerkat (the pace suits me better - short legs and steps you see).
On Saturday morning Geoff, Chris and I are off out for a long morning trail run - I am sure I will let you all know how I get on. Until then keep doing what you do, or something.
Peace and Love.
Nick.
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