2 x 10km

Yes last weekend was the TMC a 38km trail run I was going to run, Yes I was on the mountain, but only taking pictures (see last weeks post).
Now weekends don't end on Saturdays and Sunday saw the running of a new race on the Cape Town running calendar, the Vlei 10km. My leg was holding out and I decided I would have enough time to run it and still pick my wife up from the Airport!!!

Yes Dawn's plane was landing at 08h00 and the race started at 07h00 so I had 40min to run and 20min to get there... It's all about timing!

I started the race with a friend of mine, Candice, and I set the pace at just under 4min/km knowing that I didn't have the legs to run any faster and running slower would get me in trouble with the wife!!!  Things went well till about 6km when we started to lose a bit of time. With 2km to go I kicked for home leaving Candice and some other guy who had been running with us.


I want to say I changed gear and the running of old was back... it wasn't!! I thought I would be able to put in 2 3:45s for the last 2km but I had to settle with 3:54. (3 weeks of almost no running will do that to you!)


I finished in 39:45, and without stopping I head for the car and the airport. I was on time, but Dawn and her 88year old Mom (she had taken her to England and Scotland for a holiday) took another 40min to to emerge with their luggage.


Role on this weekend and the Cape Town Marathon... A marathon was never on the cards, but I was up for another 10km, and with a week of running under the belt I set my sights on 38min. I didn't have the best of starts and only caught my wife, Dawn, 150m down the road, Mr Garmin was telling me I was running at 3:37/km and I was going to blow... lucky for me we turned and the pace settled. I found myself running with Jo-Jo a 40+ lady!!! I didn't get away from her till 5km and at this stage I could see the leaders heading back they had past 6km in about 17:30 and were flying...


I could now see one of my athletes ahead of me and I just focused on not losing him. Then at 8km he lost it and I started to close in and with 500m to go I had him. The clock was ticking and I was running flat out crossing the line in 37:59!!!

The race was won in 28:45 with the leading ladies finishing in 33:20, with the Marathon won by a Kenyan in 2h15:55 (a little slow in comparison to Berlin's 2h03:38!!!)