This morning KK and I ran the Gerald Fox 10km and 21.1km race at the Jo’burg zoo. We’ve run this race twice before and every time we’ve run it, the weather has been miserable. It was no different when we arrived at the zoo with the temperature hovering on a nippy 9 degrees.Okay, so let me cut to the chase. How’d it go?

The good:

• I felt strong. This must be due to the weekly spinning sessions as well as the Tuesday and Thursday afternoon runs.
• I kept to my run/walk strategy.  Ironically, it takes my mind off watching the kilometres.

The bad:

• KK and I forgot our running chips at home so our race times were not recorded. Pity for KK who did a PB! 1:41 minutes for 21.1kms.
• My Garmin died on me at the 8km mark. Dead. I need to get it fixed. It seems my satellite doesn’t switch off which drains my battery.

The ugly:

• The race was tougher mentally than physically. I did not want to get out of bed this morning. I did not feel like running in the cold. I struggled running whilst being surrounded by walkers who kept passing me. In fact, the last 1km was hectic. I’m racing against people who are walking. WTH!
• At around the 6km mark, I thought about running a half marathon again. Just the thought of it scared me and I was filled with self-doubt. I need to work on this. *what’s new*

So to end off on a postive note, my training for the 2013 running season has started early. Last year, I only started in November with the Irene race but already I’ve completed Old Eds, Wanderers and Gerald Fox.

This is good. Now just to keep going…