Yep Sport

Race 10: Victoria Park 10K

July 8th, 2007 by Ollie

Race 10 was to have been the Bushy Park Time Trial on Saturday, but my train out to Teddington broke down on the platform. So, Plan B, a training jog around Victoria Park, was executed. Later on my housemate mentioned she was running a 3K fun run around the park the following day, and on checking the website I noticed there was a 10K too. Perfect - only 15 minutes walk from my house.

This was my first formal 10K race - I had done a 10K trail challenge in 49 minutes a few weeks ago, but this was a flat, fast race without breaks. My 5K pace is currently around 4 minutes, so I aimed to try to keep to that but give myself an extra 10-15 seconds for each kilometre, aiming for a time of 42 minutes - not coincidentally the time Alex B ran at the London 10K last week. The course was three laps of part of the park. I don”t normally like lap races as it’s more boring, but it was good for this race as you could plan your strategy ahead.

In the end I did the race in 42:09 - I sprinted the final 500m but wasn’t able to make the 42 minute mark. It might be a little while before I will be able to contend this time again, as the course was extraordinarily flat and fast. Reigate Priory on Wednesday is a hilly course, although Regent’s Park next Sunday should be quite good.

Posted in Event Log