Terrassa - Half Marathon - 21k

No Personal Best but still very happy with 1h24m33s. The half marathon in Terrassa is run on a very hilly course and this is an excellent time. I arrived well on time and walked to the start area from the town center what took longer than I thought. Nearly there I met two other runners and talked with them and they already told me this certainly wasn't the fastest half marathon. When we arrived at the starting area we wished eachother good luck and I continued to the place where they stored your clothes and made the last preparations before starting the warmup. It was very chilly this morning, but luckily the sun helped a bit, eventhough it would soon dissappear behind the clouds as was predicted. At 10am sharp we were shot away, with a really thundering traditional rifle. 

 

The first few hundred meters were on an broad boulevard which was great for space and easy running from the beginning. The first 2k were quick, in spite of trying to go easy, in 7m30, and on to the 5k mark I maintained pace passing in 19m exactly on the 1h20 schedule that I hoped to be able to follow. Upto the 5k point the course already started to climb and it continued to do so, and rather steaply, for 3 more kilometers at least. Ofcourse my pace dropped considerably and I passed the 10k marker in 39 minutes with a 5k partial of 20 minutes. For 2 more kilometers the road went more up than down and then we started to go really downhill, sometimes very steaply like the meters just before the 15k marker which I passed in 58m47 with a slightly better 5k partial of 19m47. After 2 more kilometers of more downhill than uphill we turned up to a broad boulevard called Rambla Égara, which was all uphill untill the 19k marker. Here I really lost pace and even the last two kilometers that were more flat I just barely held on and finished in 1h24m33s, with a last 5k partial of 20m27 and a last kilometer in about 4m50. All in all I am happy to have run here. The course is hard but nice to run and there was quite a crowd cheering us on and the ambiance at the finish area was great. Lets see what I can do on a flatter course in 3 weeks from today!!!

Cursa Sant Antoni - 10k

Continuing to be in good shape with another 37m00!!! I tried hard to improve my PB but it was not to be today. Yesterday it was cold and rainy and we were very lucky to start the day with a little wind and only a few clouds and no rain to be seen at all. After a good warmup I entered the first box and after some 10 minutes we were shot away.

 The first few meters (I am on the right)

The first 20 meters were a bit rough but we found rythm very quickly and the first kilometer went by nicely in a low 3 minutes, later confirmed at the second kilometer mark with 7m06. Running along the Gran Via nice and straight I maintained excellent pace and the 3rd and 4th kilometer went by running 20 seconds under the 37 minutes schedule and I arrived at the half-way mark in 18m05. The sixt kilometer went by very well too still maintaining the 20 seconds under schedule and even the 7th kilometer that goes slightly uphill I maintained good pace. Up to the 8th I started to struggle a bit and most of all during the ninth kilometer I lost my pace and margin passing 5 seconds behind schedule now. I had just enough push left to arrive at exactly 37 minutes! Happy with repeating a very good mark and now onto longer distances for the next two months and starting with strength and mountain training already!

With the finish line in sight