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Sunday, December 07, 2008

BHF Santa Run in Basingstoke

This morning I took part in the British Heart Foundation (BHF) Santa Jog in Basingstoke. I can be sponsored at the following web page http://www.justgiving.com/santasherwood

Which this was a fun event which you could jog or walk round multiple 1km laps of a park. You could do 1 to 5 laps it was up to you. The only compulsory thing was the Santa suit, which in the cold was good to keep warm and must have made some good photos as due to the frost/ice on the grass.

There was also a group performing Christmas songs at the start.

I started a few rows from the front where the mayor of the town started the race. he must have been cold and keen to start walking around as it started 5 or 6 minutes earlier than planned. Not that I am complaining as within 100m I was in the lead!!!

I ended up doing the rest of the lap in the lead even though the marshals were not that helpful with the directions and this was the first time that I was in the lead of a race.

After completing the first lap in the lead a slowed down a bit as I did not want to get an injury the week before a marathon, due to the pace and that some of the paths were icy.

I am not sure if it is good race etiquette to overtake the mayor in the finishing straight but another Santa was trying to out sprint me so I had no choice to pick up the pace.

There was no timing or places but I think I was comfortably in the top 10 at a good pace considering I was wearing a Santa suit. I was glad of the bottle of water at the end due to how warm I had got with running layers underneath the Santa suit.

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