Your race of 2009

Now to the end of another year. Whats been your race of 2009.

The race which you enjoyed the most. Done a PB. The one that made you feel happy.
Also, on the opposite side, the worst race of the year too.
It can be any race whether running, triathon, durathon, you name it.

For me, not many good races this year and hoping the best one to come is
the Witham Boxing Day 5 mile in Essex which normally gives me a good race.
Worst race, quite a few but London stands out again.

Gaylord!

This year has probably been my overall worst year for running ever! Started with the flu, then was side lined with bad piriformis syndrome, then a bad cold and another bout of flu and a sprained ankle/broken foot thing(?) which still persists. At no point did I ever really get going

Best Race - I'd just about recovered from the first bout of flu and I had had a decent run at Parbold Hill race two weeks earlier, so I went in to the Cloud 9 Hill Race feeling quite good. 3 lads from work were running and few from the running club as well.

I set off hard because I wanted to avoid any potential log jams on the narrow start and found myself running along side a club mate who is a better runner than me, I stayed with him on the first gentle climb, but when it started getting tougher he pulled away. On the first decent I caught him up, but again dropped back on the next climb and got passed by another club mate. But on the final decent I caught and passed them both and it was just a case of holding them off to the finish. At one point I was running on my own and could see no signs or marshals and was convinced I'd gone the wrong way, but I rounded a corner and was confronted by a steep road climb with a marshal on the top and thought I was going to loose my place but dug in and got back onto the disused railway track and ran it in to the finish ahead of everyone I knew. Result!

Worst Race - Moel Y Gamelin, Another hill race but this one involved some real hills. I'd run the majority of course on training runs over the years so knew what to expect, but due to various injuries and illnesses I'd lost all strength and stamina so by the end of the third climb I was completely done. I was reduced to walking on anything that remotely resembled an incline. I made up time on any decent simply because I can run them easily and fast, but overall an embarrassing performance. But at the end of the day it was still a nice day out,

Best race was probably the AIr Products 10k in Crewe. Ran 39:15, a time I genuinely had no idea I could do - I thought I might just duck under 40 minutes if I had a really good run. It's a straight forward basic race largely around a trading estate so no scenic views or  majestic herds of wildebeest sweeping across plains, but it runs efficiently and does the job.

Worst race I'll split into two. Worst race physically was the Burnham Beeches Half because it was just so hot. I got to half way on schedule for around 1:34 yet ended up only just under 1:50 because I kept having to stop. Windsor half was even hotter, but I just packed that in completely at 5 miles so it wasn't so bad. Worst race mentally was the London marathon this year. I actually ran a 10 minute PB, but I was so set on a Good-for-Age time and ended up missing it by 98 seconds, and all because of the heat again. I knew from 16 miles that I was just going to miss it, and that really detracted from what I should have regarded as an achievement, but at the time it really messed with my head.

so hard to pick one as have had aamazing year.......end of january was given the go ahead to start running and cycling gently after 4 months out with achillies..........so took it easy.

end of march did a 200k audax bike ride........the thrill of finishing after such a crap winter was brilliant

June bala middle distance triathlon.knocked 20 mis from prev year and won first female welsh vet

july ironman switzerland...............an amazing experience all round with the pirates support.

sept JW ultra.my first ultra and a great 30 miles along a canal..........another great weekend

nov a new 5k PB at th4e park runs.getting under 25 mins

dec    the brecon beacons ultra 45......only enetered 2 days earlier and with meldy's help managed to finish in one peice....loved running in the dark with the headtorch eaten peanuts ....after almost freezing conditions.

loads of other great races including the pudding race last week and a 2nd and 3rd awelsh vet at two other triathlon distances..........

so hard to just pick one race..they all meant so much for so many different reasons..............but have now managed to so many things that I would never have contemplated without the pirate attitude

Best = Wolves Half.  First ever race and I loved it.

Worst = Brum Half.  So different, more people, slower, Yuk.!

Best JW Ultra, just felt good all the way and knocked a big chunk off the year before.

Worst bizarrely was a local 5 mile in June where I recorded a PW which upset me

My best race of the year was Sunday's 5 miler, running in the snow, in which I managed a new PB of 33:08.

My worst race was the Cork Half Marathon in which I DNF'd due to my damn knee injury.

A number top events for different reasons, mostly glad to be running reasonably well having had a hernia operation which buggered up most of 2008.

It was great to do The Charnwood Hills Race, Grizzly and Turkey Trot again. Probably the best event for me was my first ever duathalon at Silverstone considering I couldn't ride a bike at the start of the year (never learnt and I'm 44) I considered this a great achievement - but it was made better because 3 weeks earlier I had my first bike accident cracking a couple of ribs and grazing a lot of skin (arms, hands, knee and face) in the process (my 2nd bike accident happened during the race and I finished with blood streaming out of my chin).

Other top events were the Men's Health Survival of the Fittest and the Northampton 10K.

Personally my worst race was the Killer K XC in Milton Keynes, a very good event but unfortunately a minor hamstring injury meant that I was running to protect my leg from further damage rather then going for it.

Best - Cabbage patch 10 - dipped under 56 for the first time - by a second

Best day our - Burnham Beeched half - just used it as a sociable Sunday run. Fantastic swim after and lovely day (too hot for proper racing though)

Worst - Wolverton bloody 5 again. 3 years ago - injury and pulled out. This year - stitch

Best, Cardiff Half, PB and finally made it under 1:30.

Least best, maybe Lliswerry 8, but only because it was a little dull.  It was still well worth running!