10 Things I Think About Running

10 Things I Think About The National Senior XC

1. Well Done Races

I think that every runner needs a good humbling every now and then. It is too easy to fall into the trap of running “Well Done” races where you beat the local GAA player by 3 minutes and collect €100. The National Senior XC would put you back in your box, fairly lively. This is the opposite of a Well Done Race.

2. Santry

I think that Santry makes Abbotstown feel like running around a cemetery. Santry has so much more atmosphere. The course is nice and narrow. The crowds can move from one side of the course to another so they can see the runners twice or even three times a lap. It feels like there is always someone watching you. It’s fabulous, a great experience, the European XC will be on the wrong course.

3. Nerd Alert

I think that Athletics Ireland will have to start checking shoes on the start line to stop cheating. When we lined up at the start I looked down and saw a fella wearing AlphaFlys, the Kipchoge colourway, the ones that are €10 extra for the Kenyan flag. AlphaFlys have a stack height of 39mm which is 14mm higher than the 25mm stack height limit for XC. I was so angry I was tempted to burst one of the silly air pods with my 12mm spikes, I probably should have because the AlphaFly guy went onto lead the first lap.

4. Conner Mantz

I think that watching the NCAA XC on Saturday almost convinced me to wear Dragonflys for the race. I thought about it for a while and decided that it was not worth dirtying a pair of €150 spikes for the sake of 2 or 3 places and the loss of the moral high ground so I left them at home and accused everyone who turned up wearing them of pseudo cheating.

5. Elbows Out

I think that my favourite thing about the race was the amount of elbows that were being thrown. It was a magnificently physical race. Normally the elbows stop after the first 200m but in this race they went on for a good 2 laps. It was great fun. One fella said sorry about elbowing me which was ridiculous, I was not sorry about anyone I elbowed.

6. Hey Heywood

I think that I didn’t have enough raw speed for this race. I went out as hard as I could to try and get ahead of and torment a few people but I was still the last Leevale guy after a lap. I passed Heywood on the second lap but he quickly easily caught me again, he kindly encouraged me to stay with him as he passed me, I really didn’t want to stay with Heywood, I wanted to stay ahead of Heywood, I wasn’t able to stay with Heywood.

7. Black Hole

I think that because I went out a little too fast for my own ability the second half of this race felt like being sucked into a black hole. I was passed by a lot of people, too many people. I didn’t get lapped so I suppose I didn’t enter the actual black hole.

8. Headache

I think that once you start counting the laps in a cross country race you are in big trouble. I was suffering majorly after the first lap. That first lap was so hard I started to get a headache. Because I’d been listening to Brendan O’Connor on the drive up I diagnosed myself with the disease. I considered dropping out and buying one of those antigen tests but then I remembered that the reason I run is because I like to hurt so I kept going. The headache cured itself.

9. Social Media Medal

I think that there will eventually be a social media medal in these races for the best performance by a runner with a social media presence. It could be competed for by bloggers and podcasters, sort of like the master’s category but for writing and talking nonsense, it would almost be the same category anyway. I absolutely hammered the runner from the Runner Beans podcast so I think I might have won this category.

10. Again Again

I think that I don’t have too many more of these National Senior XC races left so I need to look for reasons to have them repeated. Today was the first time I felt very very old in a race, more of the field was younger than me than older. Hopefully Athletics Ireland do the right thing and invalidate the race due to the AlphaFlys adversely influencing the race, violating World Athletics Shoe rules and we get to do it all again next week. I can do the shoe policing if they need someone, I’d love that.