Ripon 10 and Perfect Timing.

Today was my first race in the Blacksheep Championship with the race being the Ripon 10 miler. The weather was good for running and I was feeling fully fit and ready for the challenge ahead. Fergus Meade the current leader in the series had opted to miss this race but on the start line Paul Lowe and Jim Bulman of North Yorkshire Moors AC showed up and both these runners make any race hard going for me but I decided to stick with my plan of trying to beat my best time on this course from 2008. Team mate Andrew Halliday also in the Blacksheep Championship was also pleased with his form and was looking for revenge after being beaten by Dave Parkin and Phillip Elliot-Dick at the Fountains 10k two weeks ago. The race started and straight away I hammered it to the front and across the fields, Lowe and Bulman decided to let me go and by two miles I was still feeling good even though I had set off way too fast. The trail section around Studley Roger deer park is very scenic but also hard bloody work and then there is the long uphill section of the full length of the deer park to contend with. The Marshall at this point was informing me I had approximately a 300 metre lead and this spurred me on even more, it was then a case of going with the deep downhill section and preparing myself for the long steepish uphill section to the seven mile point. At the seven mile point things become a whole lot easier as it's more or less down hill but instead of looking to get a slight rest it's a time to dig deep and get motoring as fast as possible downhill back to the finish. The Marshall's at the front of the race on the cycles did a great job as I find having something / someone to chase after a whole lot better than just chasing fresh air. I re-hammered it back across the fields to the start-finish line and finished in 54 minutes 26 seconds which is faster than what I ran in 2008. I then waited for the two North Yorkshire Moors lads to finish and I couldn't believe my eyes when team mate Andrew Halliday came in 2nd place ahead of his rivals. What happened to the NY Moors lads ? Well ! Paul Lowe had enjoyed the deer park section that much he had decided to take Jim Bulman off route for another look around the deer park to see if they could spot some deer that they had sorely missed. After a few heated words with Bulman shouting at Lowe about telling him he knew they wouldn't see any dear they returned back to the race route but had lost valuable places. ( I've always said their a funny bunch those NY Moors lads ). With another team mate Richard Hall finishing in 9th place Thirsk and Sowerby Harriers took the team prize as well. Keziah Paxton also had a great run for the Thirsk and Sowerby Harriers and was victorious in the ladies race.
Beating my time from 2008 was important because that year I ran Sub 2 hours 27 minutes for the marathon and with the Ripon race being so close to the marathon it makes for a good indicator of what shape I am in. As a result I can confirm to myself that I have timed it to perfection to be in top form come the marathon in two weeks time.


At last my caraciture has turned up from Melmerby 2009. I have been looking forward to this picture for just about a year now. Not a wrinkle in sight, I must shake the artist's hand if I ever see him again.