Old Ripon 10 Mile Race Route.

Two laps of the old Ripon 10 mile course was the training session today. I find the route perfect for my training as it has everything in it I need to build the strength I will need for the marathon. Plenty of hills, long fast stretches, fast down hill sections and also off road muddy sections near the end to stop you getting into a nice comfy rhythm. The first lap was used as a warm up but I soon got upto speed so I managed to complete it in 1 hour 5 minutes 30 with my legs starting to stiffen up by the end. Strangely on the start of the second 10 miles they suddenly felt fresh again and more or less stayed that way all the way to the finish. The 2nd lap was completed in 1 hour 2 minutes 06 which would of earned me a top ten finish in the race in 2007. My time on the 2nd lap was 12 seconds down from March last year, but I felt I could of done another lap in the same time as the 1st lap if I had wanted to. So the missed long runs over Christmas due to the snow and ice has not really made much difference.