A slightly last minute decision to race on the same day as the London marathon with… sunshine!!

When and where?

21/04/24 – Roundhay Park, Leeds, UK

Start and Finish: Somewhere in Roundhay Park

The Route

The course was 2 laps around the park. It was twisty with climbs and a generous amount of downhill at the start with the some minor climbs.

The best part of the course was running around the lake in the park. This is what they use for the triathlon so you can’t help but feel energised! It was beautiful, scenic and flat. As we turned into the woods this was when the climb began up to Roundhay’s ‘castle’. I’m used to hills and this is what they call a killer! Once you made it to the top we then had to run by a smaller pool of water before up again and back down. Lap 1 done, time to do it all over again…!

In addition to the 10k, some people were running the 5k (1 lap) and some were already out running a half marathon (4 laps!). I don’t envy those running the half marathon at all. This did make the route a little congested at times but a bit of patience (yes Lindsay) meant the path soon made it so people could eventually overtake.

Race Conditions

It was freezing at the start, but the sun came out. It was forecast cloud so I didn’t bring my sunglasses… amateur! Luckily it wasn’t too bright.

Once we set off running I soon rolled up my sleeves. It hadn’t rained for a few days (a miracle), so the paths were fine to run on. All was well.

My Performance

The aim was to enjoy it and apart from that awful hill, I did!

Regarding the hill, I managed to run up it the first time round but on the 2nd lap I decided to walk halfway up for a minute. I knew it wasn’t going to be a PB and the aim was to enjoy myself. Slugging my guts for a time I wasn’t fussed about just isn’t worth it. I wouldn’t have saved much time as I would have been too tired to push in the final loop.

My mental strength was great today, there were pacers on the course but I ignored them. I did find the start a little frustrating as it was very congested with some runners on their half marathon and maybe not at the same pace as us running the 5 or 10k. However again, this wouldn’t have affected my time massively as I would have probably gone too quickly with a downhill start.

Overall I’m pleased that I kept calm and gave it the best I could with my current level of fitness. My time matches my current 5k time even with the big hill! Hopefully with this in mind, I can start knocking that 5k time down back to where it needs to be.

Would I recommend?

Yes, I enjoy Runthrough’s races. They are well organised, supportive and pace inclusive. It allows runners to give distances such as a half marathon a go without paying ridiculous amounts and for 5k and 10k runners fit in a cheeky last minute race. I’m not a fan of lapped courses, especially 4 for a half marathon but for the money you can’t go wrong.

The medal and support around the course is fantastic and I got to run around water which is one of my favourite things to do.

Would I do it again? Probably not, but I will do another race organised by the company.

Official Time: 1hr 3mins