So after a week of building up and hoping to be first lady again, it all went to pot on the day. I suppose everyone has good and bad days and in theory this should have been an easy win, however drinking too much water before leaving, and arriving late are two bad combinations for success!!! Walking from the car park to the start line, hubbie in tow to take photos, he tells me ‘you have 3 minutes’!
PANIC, I need the loo first argh!! So I leg it to the track and everyone is braced and ready to start, the usual pre-run brief is happening so I just say to myself, hold I in, it’s only 3.1 miles, be over in 20ish minutes, then I can go.
On your marks, get set, GO….and were off!.....uh oh this isn’t good, round the track and out onto the park, Matts to my left snapping away and I just think, I’ve gotta go, so spin round and run back to the club house. Shouts from fellow runners ‘you can’t give up that easily’ (thanks Simon!), and Matt-‘well you’ve blown it now’-I’m sorry but I have no choice-really didn’t want to do a Paula Radcliffe on a 5K park run! Ironic really as this is the running club she trained at as a junior! Once I’m out of the loo pretty much everyone is out of the track and on the park, right sod it just go for it…….I feel light and energetic so maybe this won’t turn out too bad after all, overtake a few mums running with buggy’s, a guy with a dog and a few chilled out runners having a chin-wag while ‘jogging’, they’re obviously not too fussed about getting a PB, down the slop, round a corner and hear a shout ‘go Sam’…its one of my patients who volunteers to marshal the park runs! argh-how embarrassing, the steep hill hits but its all good-I have energy in my legs (must have been that banana I had before I left), overtake a few more people puffing and panting, and a guy with a kid on his shoulders-good on him, round the corner about half way and Matts there on a bench camera at the ready-‘smile’ J (see pic!!)...
Suddenly I notice there is only a few ladies in front-hmmm maybe I can come near the top/1st after all, come on legs and lungs lets get ‘em! Down the slope again more encouraging shouts from my patient really help especially as the killer hill is coming up again, second time round always a feels like running through treacle!! Ahhh back onto the flat and I can see the finish, round into the track, Matt encouraging me ‘your third lady’!...well that I wasn’t expecting, I wonder if I would have got a PB if it wasn’t for the pit stop? So I did it in 23:25, only 1 minute 16 seconds after the first lady-YAY!! Not so annoyed with myself after all! 
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