I signed up for this race in Sept as soon as I got back from my last 10k (which was in horrible wet cold gusty rainy conditions on Swansea Bay seafront). The running club organised transport. Twelve of us were going but due to illness/injury only 7 of us went, in a large taxi cab driven by one of the club. We had to set out at 9.30 for a 1.30 start (if I had been taking my car I would have left at 10.30 ish, but then I had already registered whereas the others hadn't).
Aber is only 80 miles away but on mostly narrow very twisty country roads. One guy who had had to sit facing backwards turned green pretty quickly. We felt sorry for him so I swapped seats with him and I soon started feeling really unwell too! We stopped after about 1.5 hours for a loo/fresh air break. Another lady took my seat facing backwards so I could face forwards but my feelings of nausea persisted. Next thing the first guy asked us to stop urgently, and literally only just made it out of the taxi before being ill, poor thing!
We got to Aber with loads of time to spare. The driver had decided to stop in MacDonalds. I hate MacDs but there was no choice, I had a hot chocolate and felt a little better.
We then went to the leisure centre & found the changing rooms and lockers. I was back and fore to the loo, still feeling car sick and also with my usual nervous tum!
Despite the forecast being cloudy dry with sunny spells we had miserable heavy drizzle and windy conditions to walk/jog the half mile to the start. I was chuffed I had brought one of my spare Flora London Marathon plastic "ponchos" to put on at this point!
A fellow club runner was doing her first 10k, so one of our coaches (a veteran but still very quick) said he would keep her company and get her round. I was in front of them when we set off. I set off a bit too quick. Settled down a bit, and didn't mind the first 5k. But I started to feel sick again so it was tough after that. I really had to force myself to keep going. About 7k in I looked at my Garmin and worked out how fast I would need to go to get in below my previous time. I felt it just wasn't going to happen, I just felt beaten! But I decided whatever I would do I wasn't going to let the lady who had been 15 yards in front of me for about 5 k get away from me. (If I had any competitive edge I would have got in front of her!)
I justified the walk breaks (all very short) by telling myself that would leave me some reserves for a faster last kilometre but it just didnt happen! I was just so relieved to get to the finish. My time was a minute slower than in September.
So on the one hand I am proud I finished despite feeling yuk, but really wish I had pushed myself and not taken so many walk breaks!
Then I found out that my friend and her "coach" had got past me (none of us know how or when as the field wasnt that crowded!) and had finished in 1h 06 so that left me wishing I had stuck with them from the start! Grr!
The original plan had been to stop for some nice food and a pint on the way back and I had been really really looking forward to this bit (having had only a banana and some hot chocolate since brekkies) but then the majority decided they wanted to get back sooner - so guess where we went for food . . . .MacDs! Another hot choc for me!
It was a fab race, looking back! A lovely varied mostly flat course, amazing sea views (if you like rough seas!) and really well signposted and marshalled, plus very welcome changing facilities/showers/lockers at the leisure centre start point so I will definitely sign up again next year BUT will take my own car (and stop somewhere nice for food on the way back!).
Disclaimer The pic isnt mine and is a bit more extreme but you get the idea of the views I had from the prom!
Tuesday’s Jeff 👍🏃♀️🥵
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