There was a race going on this Monday afternoon. It was the Kranjska Gora 10K run.
A group of running friends minutes before the start with yours truly second from the left
I love to run. I am not the faster runner. In fact, I love to run slow and long runs. Nevertheless, I decided to take part in this race. It is an easy event. 5K on the side road out of the town, turn, sprint back. All asphalt and only 40 meters of the vertical climb on the way out. Easy :)
Since I don' train a lot my expectations weren't really high. I wanted to finish the run in about 50 minutes. To be honest I did prepare a bit because in the last two weeks I did two interval runs. They both felt great.
The weather before the start was wet. It started to rain and the humidity was really high. This didn't bother around 100 and some runners from several countries to start on a high note. Full speed ahead!
The race
I started reasonably fast at it felt good to stretch my legs a bit more than usually. I decided to carry on with the tempo around 4:40 per km1.
Imagine my surprise when I reached the finish and realised that I managed to keep the high tempo. My result was 45:48. More than four minutes faster that I have hoped for. I felt exalted.
This is me with my friends Bernarda and Matjaž right after the finish. I am blinking somewhat foolishly because the salty sweat is getting in my eyes. I don' have a camera face :)
What's Next?
I told you that I am a slow runner, didn't I? My immediate plans are to take part at two mountain marathons and after them stretch the legs again at a city half marathon run in Varaždin, Croatia. All this in the next four weeks.
It might be a lot but since I don't practice much I take official events as a practice. I love the company of fellow runners and the refreshing surroundings. I enjoy the nature during the run.
In one word - LOTS OF FUN :)
You will hear about it. I promise!
1 4:30 means four and half minutes per kilometer. For those of imperial persuasion, this is around 6:26 minutes per mile.
Both photos are by another friend Polona - thank you!
Photo gallery of the event by Miha Mohorič
Sorry that I don't have any action photo of me. If I find then I'll certainly publish them.