07/03/10 - 2 Runs: Elgin and Nairn

Elgin
Distance: 5.6km/ 3.5miles
Altitude: 80m/ 262ft
Temp: 10°C/ 50°F
Weather: Mild, breezy

I warm up for my 10k race with a gentle hash run in Quarry Wood west of Elgin, a pleasant jog in the woods on what must be the warmest day of the year so far.

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Nairn

Distance: 10.0km/ 6.2miles
Altitude: 20m/ 66ft
Temp: 9°C/ 48°F
Weather: Mild, breezy

A pretty good day for a 10k, not too cold and with a moderate breeze. We gather on Nairn High Street before heading southwest out of town into the breeze on an undulating road surrounded by fields. I get going at a good steady pace and gradually reel in a few runners as we near a sharp left turn near half way where my time is 18:36, the Moray Road Runners are especially good targets in their luminous yellow shirts. Another turn and we are on a long straight and flat road back into town with a tail wind, perfect for maintaining a good pace through the hard section of any race. A couple of sharp turns and a quick down and up under the railway and we are back on the High Street where I up the pace but can't catch two runners a little ahead. I'm very pleased with my time of 36:50 (officially 36:51) which eventually nets me 19th place in a field of 380 or so. In this kind of form I might even have a chance at a PB, set 18 years ago in Malawi (36:30).

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