Chester Spring 5 - A PB for Chris

I went to Loughborough today, the HiPAC. A regular journey of late, this trip has now become synonymous with a stopover at the Uttoxeter Starbucks for something frothy and sugary. Starbucks had this hoohaa recently where they ask for your name, and indeed I was asked for mine. From then on, it was Richard this and Richard that. Nice. I felt wanted and deserving. Imagine the crushing blow I experienced on the return journey only a few hours later, same place, same guy, same questions. It was like we'd never met!

A different day yesterday. The sun was almost shining, and all I had to do was get to Stockport, then a quick drive to Nottingham, and back home, refreshed and ready for the short trip to Chester. And then it started to snow. I only got as far as Doveholes, before the road was closed just ahead of me, the satnav reporting that all roads East were shut. Unreal. Getting home wasn't easy either, but the snow brought with it a cold deep penetrating wind that etched away at any enthusiasm I had for going out again and running around.

My 5 mile PB was set at Chester back in 2010 with a 32.15. Not bad, not great, but again, I was never going to get anywhere near this today, so what to do. A chat with Chris revealed that he was up for a PB today and had his sights set on sub 38 mins. I reckoned a nice little set of steady 7.30 min/miles would be a fine way to spend the evening, so a plan was made and a deal done. Then the gun went! And that was the end of the plan. Chris isn't a man who can lay claim to a steady pace. He likes to race, and in this area of the pack, there is much racing to be done.

As we set off, it all came back to me, listening to his post race stories about those who he races with, the battles, the defeats, the comebacks, arch rivals and so on. In a throng of Blue and Yellow Wilmslow vests, Chris was the bull and they were all waving their red rags. 'Come on Rich', and with that, my idea of a pacing strategy went out of the window. The first two miles are unquestionably downhill and Chris decides this is where his race is to be won. We averaged 6.55 for those first two, 7.05 for the third and then the gentle climb back up to the finish.

I was still waiting for the wheels to fall off, but he kept battling on. And battle is the right word. There is huge competition in this part of the field. Wilmslow runners behind and in front, you're always both attacking and defending, position change all the way. Whereas where I've raced before a little higher up the grid, the spacings just get further part and sometimes you can't see another runner ahead. But here, this was racing, this was fun, but for the racers; hard fought. Having shaken off Chris's arch rival John P, we approached Sally.

In the last mile Chris's shoe lace came undone, and he had to stop, despite my advice to carry on. John caught up, Sally got away and it started all over again. By now, we were running a different race altogether. A PB was essentially in the bag, Chris was looking for scalps. Again, we shook off John and caught Sally. It's funny to watch others reactions to being overtaken. Both John and Sally didn't like it, and sped up. But Chris reacted too, forcing them both to slow and recover. And repeat, and again, until one gives in. On the finish straight, Chris absolutely nailed it to cross the line in 36.03, a massive PB for him by over 2.30min. He was proper chuffed. My ankle felt OK and no calf issues, so I was quite pleased also. This race was quite businesslike, it was just about 'racing'. So as such, there was no tea or cake of any description, so straight in the car and back home. An hour or so before and I was exceptionally reluctant to get out and brace the evening air. A day of contrasts.