...nothing to do with Philip Scofield or Gordon the Gopher, or that other fella who's name I've forgotten... Oh, Andy Peters! Anyway back to the point.
Apart from Parkrun, I haven't done any "proper" timed races other than an ill-fated 10k years ago in Wiltshire, which I thought would be easy and full of farmers in wellies and a laugh. It was actually up a lot of hills, was taken very seriously with a lot of running clubs, and no laughing at all. That's when I thought "sod that" and stuffed my trainers into the back of the wardrobe.
Now that I'm taking this running malarkey seriously and treating it with the respect it deserves, I thought it was time I looked at a few localish race-type thingies.
I'm starting with an official 5k that isn't Parkrun, it is at the same time as the St Albans HalfM. Other Half is doing the Snorbans Half, while me and the nearly-teen are doing the 5k. Then in October there is an 8k women-only race along the Undercliff (trying to get a team of 4, have 3 so far, toying with putting OH in a dress) and then... Drum-roll please... Brooks Brighton 10k in November. Yikes. This is fast, quite competitive and I think I may have gone a bit loopy.
Having always insisted that I am NOT interested in bling, it looks like I may be persuaded. If someone had told me this time last year that I would be hatching these plans I really would have laughed in their face before stealing their Pringles.