Finally decided late upon entering the Aviemore Half Marathon, and headed out early the morning of the race accompanied by Vickie and Stevie puppy. Arriving at the Badaguish centre around an hour before the race it was certainly a wee bit chilly as I didn’t use the option to send a bag back to the finish line. However the copious amounts of tea drunk helped somewhat.

I certainly felt heavy legs from the Bennachie Hill Race the weekend before, especially on the short but relatively steep uphill sections in the first couple of miles out of Badaguish. A few equally steep downhill sections afterwards helped to pick the pace up a wee bit and a really enjoyed stretching out on the way past Loch Morlich. I carried some isotonic drink rather than relying on the water stops, which was good as there were only 3 water stops. I didn’t suffer from any of the hydration problems that I have in previous races and finished strongly back into Aviemore with solid 8 minute miles.

Have since run 16 miles on the Deeside Way with Steve, have a hotel booked in Callander for the Glen Ogle 33, and am about to start tapering my training going into that race.