Over the course of the pandemic, running went from something I did as an obligation — as a necessary but boring part of staying healthy — to something I began to enjoy as an activity. I went from tricking myself into running for 45 minutes by watching the Premier League on the treadmill to running close to 2 hours on roads and trails and trying to find reasons to justify running for longer. Running is now something I plan my week around, so while in Ireland over the summer my wife and I ran a lot and took part in a couple of local races.
Tara AC 5K
First up was the Tara Athletic Club 5K at Skryne in Co. Meath. A rural course that went up the Hill of Skryne, the top of which we reached around the mile and quarter point, and then was flat to gently downhill pretty much the rest of the way. The evening was gorgeous, sunny and dry, but not too hot — perfect racing weather! Unlike most races in the US, which provide detailed interactive online course maps in advance, we just got a quick look at a paper map on a wall as we went in search of a bathroom pre-race. The locals would have known all about the Hill’s gradient, but I was half-way up before I realized quite how steep and long the hill was — I’d been to Skryne before, but only in a car, and all runners know that hills are much longer than you think on driving up them… Nevertheless, adrenaline took me up without slowing to a walk, and the gentle downhill helped me recover and finish under 26 minutes, which is a decent time for me.
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