Virtual Robin Hood Half Marathon

In a year of cancelled plans and postponed events, one which to many would seem fairly insignificant, but to me was one of the biggest disappointments, was the cancellation of the Robin Hood Half Marathon.

Ever since my first one in 2016, my running calendar has kind of gravitated around my ‘home race’. It’s an absolute highlight of the year and one we all look forward to at DOrunning (and SBRC before that). The event is special for me and Des too as we see that as being where our relationship became serious back in 2017 – so for several reasons it seems to mark the end of one year and the start of another.

Despite my excitement for the event each year, it’s been a while since I’ve really put time in to specifically training for this one. In 2016 and 2017, my running efforts centered around it and I’d spend months building up to the half marathon distance specifically for that day. Things were different, however, in 2018 and 2019. My love of running was seriously lacking and long runs only really happened on race days, which led to a some really disheartening events and quite a few tears afterwards. It’s daft looking back, of course I wasn’t going to enjoy the day if I’d not put the training in before!

This year, everything has been different! As I’ve written in previous posts, as the year has progressed, my running has gone from strength to strength. This really started in February with a running streak and the decision not to put myself through another miserable half marathon and stick to the 10km distance. Then, during lockdown, I found myself with no commuting and a more flexible working pattern – not to mention the pubs being shut and not much to do other than run!

So, when emails started dropping saying race after race was cancelled and my parkrun barcode sat neglected on the side, I couldn’t help being disappointed. I decided, especially having committed to running this year’s Robin Hood in aid of a fantastic local charity, that I’d still channel my efforts into completing a half marathon on the date in September, whether it was going ahead  officially or not. When the event was cancelled, DOrunning stepped up to arrange a virtual option which gave another boost of motivation to get the job done.

Instead of the detailed training plan I often create myself for events, I just carried on running as often as I could without needing to beat myself up if I didn’t stick to what was written down. Without a doubt, one of the biggest influences on my training was the DOdaily Wednesday Workout Challenge. Before I knew it, I was heading out two or three times on a Wednesday, regularly covering double digit miles throughout the day, something I’d never consistently done mid-week before.

After a great summer of running, I went to bed the night before the half marathon feeling excited and looking forward to seeing what I could do the next day. I had arranged to run with my friend who I’d been doing a lot of training with and we had a time in our heads which was challenging yet achievable…and we were ready!

We knew it was going to be a very different day compared to what we’re used to. But, a few of us gathering in a small corner of Victoria Embankment as daylight broke, it still very much felt like event day and there was a great sense of occasion. I must admit it was quite nice to start when we were ready without being stood shivering and nervous in a pen for half an hour! With no real crowds to run through, I still couldn’t help but smile thinking of the years before and how excited I am already am for next year’s race when, hopefully, the spectators will be back again!

Settling in nicely, before we knew it we’d ticked one mile off the thirteen-long list and were heading up the first incline into the infamous Park section of the course. We were both more prepared for this than we ever have been, having practised it several times on our Wednesday morning runs in the weeks leading up to the event. As tricky as ever, we climbed through the tree-lined streets keeping a decent pace and still full of smiles, gradually working our way up until we finally tipped over onto the long and welcome down-hill of Derby Road.

The next section usually passes by nicely looking out for my (much quicker) running mates who are approaching mile nine as I’m just passing mile four. Obviously, this year, we didn’t have this welcome distraction. Undeterred, we carried on crossing the traffic lights at Crown Island and on towards Wollaton Park and into the part myself and Rachel both find the toughest of this course. For some reason, the long stretch before you get to the park is always a struggle. I think it’s the combination of not having much scenery and the gradual but definite hill ahead of the park gates, mentally bracing yourself for the big tough hill approaching the hall.

After a bit of a mishap with a misplaced water station in the park and a couple of obligatory Wollaton Hall selfies, we settled into pace again back toward the ringroad…and having past the half-way point, starting to feel like we were on our way back.

Half way!

The next few miles were fairly uneventful. This point of the run is always a case of getting the next few miles ticked off and getting inside that magic “less than a parkrun to go” marker. We ran, we chatted and we probably moaned a bit, and the miles melted away in front of us until before we knew it, we were in the last couple of mile – and well ahead of our target time!

I might be looking on it with rose tinted glasses (it has taken me three months to write this!) but I’m sure I remember feeling better and stronger than I’ve ever felt turning back into the Embankment and onto the final stretch – even without the crowd support and big grandstand finish to look forward to!

Without the luxury of a professionally measured course, the final mile was a bit of a random one, running backwards and forward, towards the finish line then away from it for a loop or two until finally, our watched clicked over that magic 13.1 miles as finally passed under the balloon arch, full of smiles and delight. I really couldn’t believe it when I looked at my watch properly to find I’d ran an unofficial (owing pausing to cross roads out on course!) of 02:20:32 – so much better than I’d dared to hope for!

So, that’s what happens when you spend the summer training properly for an event, building up your milage gradually and getting your head in the right place for it. As I mentioned, it’s now been three months since that day and I’m still do delighted with the result! I now really can’t wait for the return of the full event next year to see what a bit of crowd support and racing fellow runners does!

All smiles through the finish