Accounting for age......

 Well what a fabulous day yesterday was for racing.  Sun high in a cloudless sky and  with the temperature just cool enough to help not hinder in the heat of competitive battle.  In the Lake District 455 enjoyed the scenic tour of Derwentwater,  running the 10 miler from Keswick.  257  ran "Through The Villages"  from Wheelton near Chorley whilst  on this side of the Pennines 220 competed in the Maltby7.
 Shame then that I had resisted the lure of  the Lancaster half marathon!  I had given strong consideration to running but  failed to join the 705 who made the trip for the Lancashire coastal run.  I had debated with myself all week and in the end we simply decided against the journey.
 But also uppermost  in my mind was the fact the almost inevitably it would have been a very hard slog for a personal worst time in what would have been my 103rd half.  Now I can hear murmurings that race times are NOT the be all and end all  of racing :  the 13.1 mile distance in itself is a challenge certainly at over 60: age group placing is always a spur and just taking part in a field of that size would have brought plenty of shared effort and added another page in the book of memories.
 Friend Sally M. also reminded me to bear in  AGE -ADJUSTED  race times.  So if I ran say 97 mins. as would be predicted it would factor out to 79 minutes (97 x .8143; the age adjusted factor for a 62 year old male).   My 42.39 2011 best for 10K starts to look more respectable adjusted to 34.26!!
 In fact lowering that 10K time was also a consideration because  if I'd have done the half I think I might have made it the last race of the year and I think there is unfinished business over 10K and even 5K.  Who knows.

 Not having over 13 miles in the legs meant that Pat and I were able to enjoy a  4 mile loop of the top of the moor with the SKY + handling the New York marathon recording.  I was particularly keen to photograph the progress made in laying down the slabs across the bog from Keighley Gate to the Trig Point. This pic shows the work in progress.
          But in dashing out I left the camera!
 Still pleased to report for any local readers that the work is complete for this section.  Bad news for purist "up to the knees"  bog trotters,  but  good news for the state of shoes, kit and the laundry required.
On top of the morning 5 miler it was not quite the easy day I had in mind,   but hey it wasn't a day  to be inside now was it?