Round Sheffield Run

The Round Sheffield Run has been on my radar for a year or two and so decided to go for it this year. I really liked the idea of having something on the race calendar which was completely new and not like anything I’d done before – a good motivator to keep the mileage up in between Benidorm at the start of the year and everything I’ve got booked in the autumn. 

Like a lot of the events I book tend to, this was sort-of in the distance for ages then all of a sudden it was weeks away and I needed to really get some miles (and hills) under my belt. Aside from a couple of 10km events which I’ve not quite managed to get written up I’ve not particularly managed to get any really long miles in. This is partly down to the upheaval of starting a new job and also just because the weekends and long run opportunities seem to have flown by and disappeared. This even included one particularly awful Sunday where instead of doing the 10 miles I had planned I took a few steps and had a full emotional breakdown and just about managed a part run, part walk, part cry 5km spurred on by an extremely patient Des! 

Despite this, I’m feel the fittest I’ve felt in about a year and have been seeing my average paces coming down nicely and so yesterday morning as we set off on our way to Sheffield I tried my best to push any doubts to the back of my mind and focus on how much I’d been looking forward to this race for the last few months.

There were 5 of us from my running club who made the journey, all relieved that the weather had cooled somewhat since Saturday. For anyone not aware of the Round Sheffield Run, it’s a really unique event in that it’s split into 11 stages of various lengths which take the runners around various parks and trails on the outskirts of Sheffield. There’s a walking recovery between each section and you get a time for the whole thing as well as times for each of the individual sessions. Everyone is given a coloured bib which corresponds to a starting wave and  I was the first of my little gang to be checking in my timing chip and off on my way.

The DOrunning Sound Sheffield Run contingent!

Stage one was alright. It was very pretty and the atmosphere was great but there was a steady incline which got steadily difficult on my sluggish legs which I just couldn’t seem to get going into any kind of rhythm. By the time I got to the first checkpoint I was really pleased of the 4 minute break.

Stage two. I’d been warned about this, I’d read the description and I’d heard other runners on stage one talking about it – I knew that it was one of the toughest stages in the course and although now looking forward it it, I was glad to know that one of the hardest would be ticked off early on. This positive attitude faded as quickly as the elevation climbed, though! Bloody hell it was hard, it felt almost completely vertical in places! It was still extremely pretty thought and there was quite a nice novelty of jumping over little streams in the woods. Not before time the magic 100m to go marker appeared – however this was the hardest bit of the section! Some bloody brutal steps which we heaved ourselves up under the encouragement of a friendly marshal after some serious perseverance it was done. 

Stage three was my favourite!! I felt like I’d settled in quite nicely by this point, helped by a nice long recess between the stages. It was a gradual down-hill which aided to the recovery from the first two sections. It was nice and short too which helped! 

Stage four was quite nice but a bit tricky. I’m not great on my feet at the best of times, so I’m always extra cautious when on ground that’s slippy and uneven so I felt I needed to take real care as I made my way through the woodland, excited because I knew my family were likely to be at the end of this section.  I always forget quite how much of a boost it gives seeing friendly faces and this time was no different – I had given up and intention of running for a good time on the clock so hung around chatting for a bit before I set off on my way to the next section. 

Section five. Oh my! It starts half way up some extremely sharp elevation which sees the runners climbing up some steep steps in the middle of some woodland. I was starting to flag a bit by this point and I don’t think any words can do justice for just how hard it was – even photos don’t completely show it! This stage seemed to go on for absolutely ages as well, twisting and turning though the welcome shade of the woods in the mid-day heat, dipping in and out to let quicker runners pass me until eventually I heard “finally” behind me and there was Des! Luckily just the 100m to go sign appeared at around the same time so we used the next walking break to spend some time together, plodding up a hill before we were again greeted by my smiling family. 

The photo doesn't even nearly do the steps and incline justice!

If I’m honest, the next couple of sections are a little bit of a blur, even though it’s only been one day since the event! I was really struggling with heat and general fatigue and, not for the first time during this run, I really started to wonder whether I could complete it. I honestly think the only thing that kept me going was the thought that even if I stopped, I’d have to get back to the start/finish anyway where all my group would proudly be wearing their medals. 

I had a word with myself and dug deep to carry on. I was ticking the sections off despite how hard it was – however a real spanner in the works came when I got to the second and final water station to find there was none left. Bloody awful flash backs to London last year set in and so did the panic. I was shattered, I ached and I had been looking forward to this water for a good two miles. Really needing to gather myself I came up with a plan and put in a call to my family to meet me further along with supplies. I just had to get through a couple of relatively short sections – simple. So I took it steady and tried to put how shitty I felt to the back of my mind, chatting to fellow runners where I could to help. 

Thankfully, a very kind marshal at the end of the next section gave me some of his water which I sipped at along the next recess so I felt much better by the time I reached stage 9 (I think). I’m so pleased I had a renewed bust of energy which allowed me to fully appreciate the vast Sheffield skyline which sprawled out ahead at this point – accompanied by the most forgiving downhill on the entire course. Even better when I was greeted by my family and some ice cold water at the bottom!

Again, the photo doesn't do it justice! You can see the lovely downhill sloping off too.

I felt pretty jovial as I made my way through the next recess, knowing I ‘only’ had a 2.2km and a 400m stage left! Dobbing in to stage 10 I picked up the pace a bit and headed up the incline presented to me with a renewed sense of determination. For a little bit anyway. Then it just turned into more bloody never ending hills which fortunately had some cheerful marshalls stationed strategically to help with motivation and directions for what seemed to be a way more than ‘just’ 2.2m and even more woodland steps! 

Finally, I suddenly realised I recognised what I saw in front of me! This was it, the end was in sight! Only 400m to go, through the path I’d taken into the park all those hours earlier, only this time being clapped and cheered in by the hundreds of runners who had hung around, my family and the rest of my running club who had all finished well ahead of me. 

Dobbing myself in (or should that be out?) for the final time and bowing my neck to get my medal feeling a wash of pride, relief and exhaustion wash over me felt fantastic. It was another one ticked off the list – one completely out of my comfort zone and a whole 15 miles altogether!! 

Relieved to be finishing! 

I am really glad I did this one. It was really good to do something completely out of my comfort zone as I can be really guilty of playing it safe and sticking to what I know. It was hills which I’m not fond of, trails which I find tricky and the whole course was about 2.5 miles longer than I anticipated. 

Hills hills hills!

It helped massively that the marshalls were fantastic, right up until the end too. As someone who takes quite a lot longer than some people to finish events, it’s not uncommon for the last few marshalls to be showing signs of being fed up and wanting to go home. This absolutely wasn’t the case yesterday though, and it goes a huge was in helping make the event more enjoyable. If they’d have just had enough water at that station I wouldn’t have had any negatives at all (apart from the ridiculous hills, of course!) 

Next stop, Robin Hood Half Marathon! Training for that begins now :)

The obligatory medal shot with a well earned pint!