Sunday 11th September was the Cardiff 10K and, as usual, I was like a kid at Christmas on race day. My running buddy Clare picked me up and we headed into town. Clare was running with her Mind Cymru work colleagues so I wished them all a good race and went to meet my Pegs at the museum.
Last year I finished the Cardiff 10K in 1:03:35 and was happy to do this years in 1:05:00 or 1:06:00 ish as I hadn’t been running as quickly as last year during training.
Pre-race meet up
After all that excitement we made our way to the start line.
I was feeling great, ready to take on the race and give it my all. The start was crowded and the pathway wasn’t very wide so it seemed to take forever to get into a bit of space.
There seemed to be runners everywhere and a lot of people were weaving in and out trying to get ahead of the pack. Trying to keep out of the way was my main priority as the weavers didn’t seem to care who they nearly took out in the process. I thought it would ease off as we got further into the race but it didn’t until about 7km in.
Racing surprises
At about 8km I realised I was actually doing a good time and there was a chance I could finish closer to last year’s time. I decided to really go for it and see just how fast I could do it.
Every bump in the road felt like a hill and my legs were objecting. The finish line seemed like miles away. I kept on pushing and somehow managed to beat my PB!
My finish time for this years Cardiff 10K was 1:02:44 – nearly a minute quicker than last year!!
After the race
One of the best things about being a Peg is the social side of the club. We all get on so well and it’s tradition to hit a bar and talk even more about running.
This race is what I needed to keep my confidence high and to keep me excited and motivated about my running. Next up is the Cardiff Half Marathon on 2nd October and I can’t wait!
