Kirkley Hall 10 miler race report - So I got up nice and early even though the venue is only 15 minutes from where I live to chill and get my head straight!!.
2 very strong cups of coffee and a bottle of water later I was ready to go. Kirkley Hall is a funny mixture of buildings, the original hall, stables and Orangery are still there but over the years an outdoor climbing centre, various buildings attached to Newcastle university and a small zoo have been added.
As the runners assembled in the hall there was a huge downpour outside which didn't bode well however it had thankfully past by the time we walked down to the main drive where the race was due to start.
It was hard to estimate numbers but I'm guessing that there were about 600 of us.
The route was all on country lanes which I know well and although none of it was closed to traffic it wasn't an issue as the roads are very quiet on a weekend.
The first part of the route took us towards the small village of Ogle and had some nice downhill sections allowing me to reach 5k in 31 minutes.
As expected all the fast runners had zoomed off into the distance but there were a group of about 100 of us strung out along the lanes but all going at roughly the same pace.
We continued north towards another villiage called Whalton, the fields either side packed with sheep, cows and horses. Although I was going faster than planned I kept my pace up as I felt comfortable and got to 10k in 1 hour 4 minutes, very quick by my standards.
The last 6k were admittedly pretty tough, my pace dropped as we had a few steep climbs and the legs began to go but I soldiered on.
I was very glad to see the line and despite slowing I finished in 1.47.08, almost 4 minutes better than I had done previously for the distance and an average split of 6.42.
The wifey met me and I had a well deserved coffee and soup in the Orangery.
Very very chuffed with that but I'm done with anything over 5k for the next couple of months, it's Park runs all the way in December and January.
Bling photo to follow!!!
Run happy, run safe.
It’s Not a Myth Fabulous450 Bulls Don’t Like Red, but Move for Mind Challenge Complete! ❤️
Flitwick 10k - My first 10k event
Feeling Cheated
My first official race 😁
It’s all about running today. Me and some ultras.
