10 Things I Think About Running

10 Things I Think About The San Silvestre Vallecana

1. Spanish Flu

I think that I picked up some sort of Spanish combination bug in Seville or Chipiona. It’s been very bad, it’s like a stomach bug combined with a headcold, a sort of hybrid disease. I’ve had no appetite and been hot and cold at the same time for about 3 days. Awful. I still had to run the race. I couldn’t go all the way to Madrid and not try.

2. Omertà

I think that Cathal Dennehy is the Paul Kimmage of running. Everyone was happy, all the runners were very happy, it was grand, the omertà was holding. No one needed to know the reason we were all going faster. Then he spat in the soup. My mother even sent me the article after I won the race in Chipiona. She said I shouldn’t be cheating and wearing the shoes. Actually no she said well done and to get her a pair of them too.

3. The Real San Silvestre

I think that the San Silvestre Vallecana in Madrid is the best race I’ve ever run. There were 40,000 in the popular race and 2,000 in our race which had the elite runners in it. It’s incredible, the atmosphere, the course, the darkness, the crowds, the lights, the temperature everything is perfect. I’d like to do it every year.

4. Imperdibles

I think that it is a uniquely Spanish thing not to give you safety pins with your race number so that you have to go to a Merceria to buy them. The lady in the shop was delighted to sell us them for €2. I was delighted that I knew the Spanish for safety pin.

5. Decathlon

I think that decathlon is good but terrible. It is very cold in Madrid at night so we had to get some spare clothes that could be disposed of if there wasn’t a bag drop. The problem is that it is just cheap enough that everything seems like a good idea I got a pink bandanna to match my shoes, a yellow Leevale like top, white gloves and terrible terrible three quarter length pants which won’t be allowed back into Cork. In the end there was a bag drop so only the three quarter lengths won’t be coming home.

6. Salida

I think the start of the race was very intimidating, it was limited to under 38 minute 10k people so in combination this with it being in Spain it meant that everyone looked super fast. Even Conor was a bit scared. There was a helicopter overhead making that noise that you hear in films when something good is about to happen in sports and a man shouting in Spanish on the microphone. It’s amazing how ok you can feel with a bit of adrenaline, I almost felt like it wasn’t a terrible idea to run with my disease.

7. The Four Mile Rule

I think that it is ok to run when you are sick so long as the race distance doesn’t exceed four miles. It’s like the body has a reserve tank for four miles and that’s it. Like your car when it’s on O fuel, it’s ok to keep going for a bit, but don’t take it too far. The reserve tank must be there to enable you to run away from a Lion if you’re sick. I used all of the tank and sure enough after four miles I was close to 7 minute mile pace. Game Over.

8. Tour De France

I think that the last few kilometres of the race were as close a feeling as to riding one of the mountain stages in the Tour De France as you could get. The crowds were so close, they had white clapping strips from the sponsor and glitter that they were throwing at the runners. It’s fantastic even if your sick and being passed by half the field.

9. The Climb

I think that every road race should finish on a 2km climb. It was like one of the cycling classics. A big steep climb at the end of 8km of flat or downhill. It really sorts the race race out, must look great on TV, the big climb in the dark. I’d loved to have powered up the last climb but in reality it was a terrible trudge. I suppose at least I got to appreciate the crowds and the Rayo Vallecano stadium.

10. The Sympathetic Metro

I think that Spanish people are lovely, I was very bad after that race, it was a combination of disgust at not being able to run properly in a big race, extreme sickness and no food. We were sitting opposite an old man on the metro, he saw me shivering and heard my teeth chattering so he offered me his scarf. I explained that I was very very extremely sick and that I was actually very hot despite shivering. Everyone on that train probably has the same disease now, I feel bad, kind of.