Thinking of entering my local 10km

[Sharonb9999]

There's a 10km race that is run near me (the start/finish line is about a 10 minute walk from my front door). It's in September - ages away. It's described as 'undulating' which, looking at the route, translates to 1 quite steep hill at about 1/3rd way round and a proper steep hill at about half way. Then pretty steep downhill on the home stretch. My usual running routes take in a couple of hills which - despite almost a year of running them - don't get any easier. Looking at last year's times I would be well towards the back of the race going by my current pace. I'm dithering about whether or not I should enter - or should I find a flatter course? I've decided I want to try for a half marathon next year on a flat course (to coincide with my half century birthday) so I want to get at least one 10km under my belt before then - just to get used to the whole 'race' experience. The reviews I've read about the 10km are all positive about marshalls, friendly for beginners etc so it could be a good race but the hills are putting me off. I'm thinking I could try it to see how I get on but it's quite rural and not that runner friendly normally - the roads get closed off for the race. Any suggestions/tips?

[poppypug Graduate]

Yes , go for it , I would !

Its all a learning curve, all miles on your legs . Yep, definitely 100% yes ! xxx

[Ullyrunner Graduate]

Go on - you know you want to give it a go. You've got until September to work on those hills.....

[misswobble Graduate]

You have time to fit in plenty of practice before race day ☺ As you do your training runs you will be getting stronger all the time

[Sharonb9999 Graduate]

OK I'm convinced - I'm entering it. If I hate it then I'll have to re-think my half marathon for my half century challenge for next year. I've discovered that I like to have something to aim for with my running. I did a 5km at the end of last year for the local hospice that was OK but it was full of uni students who whizzed off and I got a bit swept up with it all then struggled to finish. I'm much better with pacing myself now - I know what feels right for me so I guess it's now a question of tackling the uphill and downhill stretches and aiming for a decent time for a 49 year old woman who is built more for endurance than speed

[Rob_and_his_westie Graduate]

I'd say go for it. I went through a lot of agonising and course-checking just like you before I did my first 10k race last September. Like you I figured I'd finish near the back, but once you realise the only person you're really racing is you, it really doesn't matter and having done seven of them now, I must say I absolutely love them. A 5k race is over all too quickly and anything 10 miles and up needs some serious preparation so 10k represents the ideal distance to me. Enough of an event so you can get a real buzz out of it, but not too much prep or recovery needed.

If they've closed off the roads and they have marshalls then it sounds well organised. Sounds like you picked a good one. In my experience, "Undulating" appears to be a word with wide interpretation, ranging from a series of minor humps to a mainly flat run with one great big ugly hill! If you can walk the course before you run it, that's always a good thing.

Good luck, you're going to enjoy it. Hopefully there's some bling involved too?

[millwalki8 Graduate]

Just make sure you overtake at least one person and then you will deffo not be last

Good luck

[CoachPotato Graduate]

Good luck with your 10k... Always good to challenge yourself and with the 5k already under your belt you know it's realistic

[BloomingEck]

What's the worse that can happen? Go for it, and good luck!

[millwalki8 Graduate]

I did one a month or so after graduation, no records broken, wasn't on the winners podium, but I got round in 1:15 and got the medal.

Crack on and get it done, its fab

[Peter_B Graduate]

I'm contemplating the exact same thing, a local 10K but in the middle of June.

Haven't entered yet, but am quite pleased with how my build up is going so far so I'm leaning closed and closer to biting the bullet.

[AdamB Graduate]

Go for it. I wouldn't worry about it not being a flat course. It's the same for everybody (i.e. everyone's time will be faster on a flat course). Just take the bumps as you find them. Be prepared to shorten your pace until you get to the top. Once there you can always switch up a gear (or not, if you need a couple of minutes to recover).

Undulating tends to be a bit of a catch all description and means different things to different organisers and also depends on the part of the country the event is located. I suspect that there are East Anglian undulating courses that are flatter than some of the Pennine or Lake District flat ones.

[Mp63]

go for it