Running 1:17:30 [5] 15.62 km (4:58 / km) +527m 4:15 / km
Tigger Tor and first race in 17 months. I was really nervous this morning with genuinely no idea how or whether I would hold up - it made me realise how much I have missed that feeling! The aim was to run a bit cautiously and that worked out OK. I was way back on the way out of the carpark and began to wonder, but it gradually transpired that it felt comfortable and folk started coming back to me. The up hills were good to me; flats, downhills and technical sections less so, but there were enough climbs that I could work my way through to the chase pack (Steve F long gone). Once there I made a mess of the route finding over to Houndkirk Hill and nearly got caught by another group, but had enough in the tank to get a decent gap on the last climb sparing me a sprint down Long Line, which I badly wanted to avoid.
Lessons learned? I'm running OK and the strength is still there, but speed is lacking. The hip felt good, but is stiff now. I would dearly love to get a season in this year!