The hour came....

.... and it bloody well went an' all. Bugger.

I came. I ran. But I didn't quite manage to conquer. I tried, gave it my best but my legs just wouldn't go quickly enough. It was a strange feeling. I felt, not exactly comfortable, but alright. The moment I tried to up the pace, well, I just couldn't. I ran an even race and manage to put in a good final kilometre but I fell short of nineteen minutes. I managed to claim my fastest 5k for five months so things are at least on the mend. All this stalling cannot hide the fact that I must own up to a miserable 19:15.

I'll not blame it on the night's chilly conditions - although, I never did manage to feel anything but cold - and I'll not blame it on my sore throat. The sad truth is that I just don't have the speed endurance at the moment. I have some endurance. I have some speed but they don't want to come to the party together. I need a plan. A schedule of training that will focus the mind, the body and the soul. I need mile reps. I need hill reps. I need long runs. In fact, I need pretty much everything - and I will get there. The road ahead might be long, and you can bet your arse it's going to be winding but I'm the man who can't be stopped. Read my lips, by April's Bridge Inn race I will break 18:30 - and you can take that to the bank - but in these harsh economic times don't invest anything you can't afford to lose.

Thought for the day: Tough times call for hard determination.