The weather was sunny and warm on Saturday, and felt like a summer's day. We arrived at Great Langdale to the same stunning backdrop we saw when I took part in the Herdwick 10k last July. In fact the course was the same, apart from a few changes in the start/finish lines. We parked up in the nearby National Trust car park and discovered my friend from Lakes Single Mum had already arrived. After saying our hellos we headed to the registration gazebo. I picked up my running number and registered and paid for the boys to enter the children's run, a bargain at £3 each I thought. A small gathering of Walney Wind Cheetahs started forming as more from our running group arrived!
Nearing 11am, the children all gathered at their starting line on the road. The website didn't specify a distance for the children's run, only that it went to the next hotel and back but I figured it wouldn't be very long. Andy ran with Sam and I ran with William seeing as it was on the road and the road was still open to traffic.
Oh my, I slightly underestimated the distance (Andy later measured it at about 2.5k) but William ran brilliantly. Once we reached the field with the finish line in I let him get on with it. Shortly after, Sam ran in with Andy and both boys received a new medal to hang on their medal holders.
Half an hour later, I headed out to the start line for the 10k. I was a bit nervous even though I had run the course before. I was really hoping to beat my previous course time of 1hr 14mins. I didn't get off to an overly good start as my shoelace became untied as soon as we set off! I had to step aside and get it tied as there was no way I would have managed the entire 10k with a loose shoe!
Anyway, once I'd set off properly, I started remembering all the bits I found tough about the course last year. Mainly the hills. And also the heat. But mainly the hills! Even in shorts and vest I was boiling in the April sunshine! I reached the 5k point at the Langdale Hotel in just under 32 minutes, and grabbed some jelly sweets from the water station on the other side. I did my best to run as much as I could on the way back but the climb upon leaving Chapel Stile but tough and I did have to start walking a bit. As tough as I found it, it's a gorgeous course and the stunning scenery makes the challenge worthwhile.
I reached the finish in 1.10.32, so was really pleased to have knocked 4.5 minutes off my previous course time. After having a drink I slowly made my way over to the t-shirt tent to pick up my reward! A well organised event I thought, in a lovely part of the Lake District.
Congratulations to you and the children. Especially for surviving the hills and beating your previous time.
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