10 Things I Think About Running

10 Things I Think About The John Buckley Sports 10 Miler

1. Contrarian Luddite

I think that the longer I hold out against the Vaporfly plague the better. I’m borderline obsessed with the things at this stage, they’re to me what electric cars are to Michael Herlihy. I have watched every conceivable YouTube video and I’m a member of every Facebook group, I’m happy to watch the expensive clinical trial unfold at the moment. I really really hope they cause permanent sudden onset idiopathic irreversible achilles tendinitis after 200 miles. Remember the Vibrams.

2. Prorogued

I think that Saturday evening races are terrible, I wish I had been working, 8pm with work is fine, waiting around all day for 6pm with nothing to do is torture. I slept until 11, got up slowly, had many coffees, a croissant and porridge in the Bookshelf and then walked around town. Then I had more coffee and another croissant before collecting the number and pointlessly driving back home to drink more coffee before going back to warm up. It would have been much better if we’d just gotten it out of the way at 10am.

3. Plunder and Pillage

I think that there will always be someone who is more insane than you. I thought that I was great by not really tapering for races but then Jonathan told me his plan for his holiday to Ireland, 4 races in 4 days. It’s completely brilliant turning up for a 10 mile race having won a 5 miler and a 5k on the two days before. To make it even better he got up Sunday and drove to Drogheda for another 5k. He ended up with three wins and a second. You know you’re doing the right thing whenever everyone else thinks you’re insane. JEP is a hero. We need more JEPs.

4. Prefontaine

I think that I’m getting the hang of these longer races. I used to always worry that no one would go fast at the start and that we’d all end up running slow so I would always make sure that it wasn’t too slow. I now understand that you don’t have to run off the line like Prefontaine. It’s ok to just wait a few seconds and then follow someone reliable like Michael Morgan.

5. Think

I think that the best thing about 10 mile road races is that you have the time and capacity to think, you can take your time, there’s no real panic in the first mile or the second mile, you just find someone like Joe Cunningham and sit behind him in the windy bit because you know he’s worried about not running sub 55. Don’t look at the watch just go by feel and listen to everyone else worry about being 5 seconds faster than planned.

6. 10 Mile Pace

I think that the best thing about 10 mile road races is how it feels after about 4 miles. It’s so nice to be bouncing along the road with a swarm of Vaporflys thinking this is grand and easy isn’t it, I’m going to show them all today, I could go much faster if I had to. There’s a great temptation to surge to the front of the group and show how everyone how great your are. I learnt that lesson 10 years ago in Ballycotton trying to run away from a big group, in 10 milers you sit and wait with your cards well hidden.

7. Discharged

I think that it’s amazing how quickly the 4 mile feeling disappears in a 10 miler. I knew it would get horrible eventually but I was hoping it would only be horrible for a mile. Instead it got very horrible at mile 6 out along the water. I was doing my best to hang onto the Vaporfly shod trio of Viv, Mike and Joe. It was mesmerizing to watch the six luminous feet dance away from me. I knew if I got to the windy corner by the bridge with them I’d have a chance but the aerodynamics of that pointy bit at the back of the shoes clearly made them far faster in the wind and they drifted away gradually until the mental elastic completely snapped going up the mountain over the South Ring.

8. The Line

I think that I like running along the line on my own. It was like doing a session where I try and follow Alan in the distance except with Viv instead of Alan. I quickly gave up any hope of beating Viv once we got over the bridge. It was a little upsetting and I did get a little unmotivated but then I forgot that he existed. It was so nice, so peaceful and quiet on the line.

9. Tugboat Dave

I think that I might have cheated a little in the last mile, it wasn’t deliberate, more circumstance. I had a bike in front of me for the last mile. Dave O’Mahony appeared in front of me and insisted on cycling very slowly blocking the horrible headwind. He was almost as much shelter as Joe on the first lap. I don’t think it was cheating as everyone else was wearing Vaporflys so a bike is probably fine. It was definitely less miserable.

10. Hop

I think that the most annoying thing about this race was not getting humiliated by Viv and the Vaporflys, it was that I came within 3 seconds of having a faster 10 mile P.B than John. I didn’t even think about it coming up to the finish. If I’d known I’d have sprinted so hard, picturing his small heart breaking as my big lumbering frame crossed the line. I’m nearly almost there, it’s almost better to do it this way, beat it gradually, although I wish I could beat real Hop. I think he might even make a comeback if I do beat his P.B. I hear the vaporflys are very easy on the knee.