Rose early to participate in a half marathon in Richmond. It was hot, hot, hot.
The route starts in the beautiful Petersham – a small hamlet-esque village just outside Richmond, on the road towards Kingston and close to Ham. The Ranlegh running club is situated behind The Dysart Arms, a pub named after William Murray, the 1st Earl of Dysart, who lived at nearby Ham House.
It really is a gorgeous part of London. Right next to the park, the main street is lined with a group of 17th and 18th century mansions. There’s Rutland Lodge, which is now converted in to mega-pricey flats, Montrose House, once home to rock legend Tommy Steele, and Petersham House, a Wren-period property owned by Francesco Boglione, who also owns the Petersham Nurseries.
Petersham Nurseries shot to fame a few years ago after Madonna allegedly lunched at the cafe. It’s run by Australian chef Skye Gyngell and has won a raft of awards including "best alfresco dining" at the Time Out Eating & Drinking Awards. www.petershamnurseries.com
Anyway, no alfresco café breakfast for me. I had 13 miles to run. The start of the route is uphill and after a short climb the rest is flat as a pancake. I started off well, but worried I was going a bit too fast in the heat. The first half of the run offered quite a lot of shade and I managed to keep fairly cool.
The second half of the run was very pretty, partly along the river covering the same course as the Kingston Breakfast Run I completed earlier in my training. It was very exposed to the sun and super, super hot. Had a bit of a waiver between miles 11 and 13, was really feeling the heat and lost my concept of how far it was to the finish. Luckily I managed to pull through that when I realized there was potential for me to finish in under 2 hours. Really pushed it for the last mile or so and finished in a time I was very very happy with.
Ran: 13.1 miles in one hour and fifty-eight minutes
Petersham Nurseries shot to fame a few years ago after Madonna allegedly lunched at the cafe. It’s run by Australian chef Skye Gyngell and has won a raft of awards including "best alfresco dining" at the Time Out Eating & Drinking Awards. www.petershamnurseries.com
Anyway, no alfresco café breakfast for me. I had 13 miles to run. The start of the route is uphill and after a short climb the rest is flat as a pancake. I started off well, but worried I was going a bit too fast in the heat. The first half of the run offered quite a lot of shade and I managed to keep fairly cool.
The second half of the run was very pretty, partly along the river covering the same course as the Kingston Breakfast Run I completed earlier in my training. It was very exposed to the sun and super, super hot. Had a bit of a waiver between miles 11 and 13, was really feeling the heat and lost my concept of how far it was to the finish. Luckily I managed to pull through that when I realized there was potential for me to finish in under 2 hours. Really pushed it for the last mile or so and finished in a time I was very very happy with.
Ran: 13.1 miles in one hour and fifty-eight minutes
Loot: Medal with blue ribbon, banana
Jelly babies at miles: 6, 8, 10, 11.5
Results: http://www.ranelagh-harriers.com/results/080511.html
Jelly babies at miles: 6, 8, 10, 11.5
Results: http://www.ranelagh-harriers.com/results/080511.html
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