Peel 2 Douglas 10 Mile Run

Well I've achieved my first training aim of the week by finishing 2nd in the Peel to Douglas run this evening in a time of 56:03.

See www.manxathletics.com for more info.

I finished behind John Halligan who outsprinted me at the end. I realised with 200m to go that I had achieved what I set out to do and was not keen to slaughter myself in a sprint finish. The fact that John is a great athlete with a mean turn of speed (must be the track work shining through) didn't help my cause either!

I also learnt not to nail a 1-pint+ smoothie containing 1 banana, 2 kiwi fruit, 250ml whole milk, 250ml water, and a spoonful of smooth peanut butter just 90min - 2 hours prior to an event. It felt like a lead weight in my belly for the whole race! I will learn.

With respect to yesterday's 100km cycle, the legs felt a bit heavy in my warm up but once we got into the race, they were sound. I would probably have benefited from sticking to the easy 2.5hr ride I had planned though.

Anyway, I enjoyed it, it was a good battle with John and that's the stuff we race for. Daz Gray who finished 3rd deserves a mention for pushing the pace for the first half of the race - he's a grafter alright; doggedly determined!

-AC