Storm Bert saw a somewhat miserable trek across to Oulton Park Grand Prix circuit near Chester, where the cheery folks at RunThrough were hosting a multi-distance series, with 10k, half mara, 20 miler and full marathon distances all up for grabs. Yours truly had decided that a month on from the Yorkshire Marathon was surely an opportune time to try and squeak out a bit of bonus fitness from previous training, and opted for the 20 miler distance. Given that my last 20 miler was the notoriously tough and hilly Spen20, I had high hopes that this would prove to be a faster race. I was also labouring under the false assumption that all race circuits were flat, although this proved not to be the case (more on this later).
Pulling up into the car park I spent a good 5 minutes caking my face, and inevitably much of the inside of my car, in glitter. It’s scientifically proven to both make you run faster and feel more fabulous. Navigating number pick up and bag drop was easy enough, and RunThrough had organised some local gym trainers to take us through an enthusiastic warmup. There were a few lone wolves loitering nervously at the start, and I struck up conversation with a few new faces; always good to find new running pals.
9.15am and we were off fairly promptly, with a short out and back along a strip before embarking on 7 laps of the track. The initial section is fairly exposed, and Storm Bert smacked us all in the chops with a what can only be described as a ‘robust’ wind, and lots of frankly torrential rain. It was at this point that I realised that the track was in fact NOT flat; more’s the pity. A wild hairpin bend at the 2km mark saw a dangerous camber to the tarmac, and runners all slid unceremoniously down to hug the race line as we tootled towards an uphill section. For the first 2-3 laps the undulations didn’t seem too horrid, especially with the hills around Stocksbridge. By lap 5 I was starting to find even a small pull uphill a bit of a slog, and by lap 7 I was questioning my life choices. Marshalls and volunteers were cheery throughout, with one lovely older chap at the halfway mark being particularly enthusiastic and a total sweetheart. On my final lap I made sure to run over and give him a fist-bump, but in my excitement at the impending finish and general jubilation that the rain had stopped I found myself throwing myself into his arms and declaring undying love and appreciation. He sent me on my way with a cheery shout of “go get ’em lass”. Thankyou Mr Orange raincoat, whoever you were.
I smashed past the finish line in 2:49:27 – a new PB and a pace that I was super-pleased with. As I went to collect my post race alcohol free beer and goodie bag someone hung a bronze medal around my neck – surely a mistake? I hopped over to the race director and asked them to triple check the result before celebrating wildly when I was informed that yes, I HAD come 3rd place female. I have a strong suspicion that this was to do with the low popularity of the 20 mile distance rather than anything to do with my speed, but I’ll bloody take it regardless.
If you like a road race with a twist, don’t mind a bit of a trek over towards Wales, and have the mental tenacity (or stupidity) to run a long distance race in a lapped style format, Oulton Park GP Race is the one for you.
