Reservoirs

Wednesday found me running on the road. Just a short 5km up to Hurst Reservoir at the far end of the golf course and a loop around the estate. Blimey it was chilly. The cold air was bitterly cold, it felt heavy on my lungs. I was regretting not taking my inhaler out with me as I struggled to get any sort of rhythm to my breathing. I was glad I'd only planned a short run, otherwise I would have needed to cut it short. A distraction on the way home saw 8 Canadian geese circling low over the golf course, always a delight to see. I know they head up to the reservoir at night time, perhaps these were heading that way to get some shut eye. I managed the 5km in just under 30 minutes, so my pace is keeping a steady 6min/km. I'm happy with that.

Today found me by water for the second time this week. Venue for today was Ladybower reservoir and I had a running partner, my oldest and dearest friend. We're aiming to meet up once a fortnight and run together - push each other and get some improvement in speed and distance. There was even mention of finding a fell race to do together in a few months. I'd say I'm a little faster than she is, but her ability to run for a longer time means I'm building up stamina I might not get when I run alone. We ran from Ashopton Bridge, up to Fairholmes and back down the far side - a distance of 9.2km. Our time was 58:16, averaged at 6:20min/km. For me that distance, in that time, is a minor achievement and running the whole way round feels very satisfying. It just shows that running with someone else motivates me, pushes me and gives me that determination not to stop when I know I would on solo runs.