Shrewsbury Parkrun #54 pacing event

So I only blogged yesterday but this definitely deserved a write up of its own.

The day didn’t get off to a great start…

As soon as I got up, I knew something wasn’t right with my knee. It’s been slightly sore after running for a couple of weeks but this morning I was struggling to put any weight on it.

                                  

My first thought was Parkrun and the fact I was supposed to be pacing! Thankfully once I was moving, the pain eased and after walking to the Quarry I had no pain at all.

After picking up my pacing bib I took a slow jog to the start line (actually resulting in a personal record on a Strava segment!) and met up with the other pacers and the runners that had started to gather including Katie, a fellow Run Mummy Run-ner.

Thinking about the race beforehand I hadn’t imagined many people would want to run with 30:00 with most people either just ahead to get sub 30 but I was surprised to see quite a few people heading my way and gathering at the start line. It was definitely an ice breaker and I chatted to a few people, many aiming for PB’s of 30 minutes.

We set off and heading the hill I tried to make up a few seconds from the delayed start. I very quickly gained a few people running with me including Julie, a work friend doing her first ever Parkrun. Waiting for my watch to catch up my pace I stuck to a steady rhythm and we took on the first hill. I lost a few people at this stage but passing the Quarry swimming pool and heading down the hill they caught back. I completed the first mile in 9:35- perfect!

Heading under the bridge

The second mile is the flattest mile and for some reason always my slowest; it was nice to have a few people with me at this stage as we rounded the monument. My second mile flashed up at 9:55. I was a bit worried at this stage as I knew I wouldn’t finish in 30 minutes if I carried on that pace so knew I needed just a bit more speed. As we approached the hill, people started dropping back and I knew I had to stick with my pace and plough on.

I completed the second hill and making up some time, I managed to get my pace down and as my watch flashed 9:45 one of the ladies who had ran with me previously caught me up. The finishing line was in sight and it was a countdown of seconds to get over the line in time. I urged her on in front of me and she passed the stopwatch at 30:02, me close behind in 30:04.

4 seconds! In a day that is nothing but it all counts in a run. I was so pleased to be so close to 30 minutes but just a teeny bit annoyed to have not gone just under. There will be a next time!

Going back to the fantastic lady who crossed the line in front of me, I have identified her from the leader board as Jackie Roberts. Jackie was aiming for a PB and she told me at the start line she wanted to do under 30, 29:59 to be exact. Her finish time was 30:02 but I am so pleased to see that this in fact a 4 second PB! We weren’t quite there but I am so pleased for her.

Parkrun photos by Paul Jones

Well done to everyone who made the pacing event possible!

All of today's photo's can be found here http://www.parkrun.org.uk/shrewsbury/photos/