This morning was great! I went for a run but rather than slave to the mileage i just did a run i wanted to. I knew how far it was more or less but i wasn't concerned about distance, speed etc.
7:30 this morning, it was still dark and there was frost. Not as heavy as recently but the cars looked like they would shatter if touched. Then there was the wind. I set off down the road taking it easy as the pavements were white with frost. Frosty but not too slippery.
The plan was to do scary hill - this name has been coined by members of the Shurdington Tri Club who having cycled down termed it so scary as to be deserved of the name. In reality it is a 3km uphill at 16% - not sure if that is average or just the peak but either way it's steep and tough for these parts!
The weather to the top was ok - just cold but not too wet, not too windy, cold - sure. At the top it was like being in another country. Birdlip was cloaked in snow and low cloud. It was more like a scene from Narnia than Gloucestershire!
At the top I made my way back towards Cheltenham. Running on freshly frozen snow crunching underfoot was just the best! Small strides and slow pace were required to prevent a wipeout that would not be seen but would nonetheless be embarassing! Through the snow and to the tope of Leckhampton Hill. The plan was to run straighti down the hill but half way down i took a detour across the fields. Half way down there was a mound with a pile of cube rocks in memory of a horse (i need to complete my research here as cannot remember the name and never took a picture) I continued through the fields, dropped onto Leckhampton Lan and then it was a familiar route home.
The distance was just over the 10miles and the pace so slow it's not worth reporting! Mayhill Training at the best!
It was great to run without a care and be free of times, distances and schedules. There was still magic in my shoes just a different kind today!!
