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On Sunday 3rd May 2009, my Dad, boyfriend, cousin, mates and I ran the Great Edinburgh Run 10K over a hilly course and through gusting winds. We all ran in aid of Barnardos courtesy of  sponsored T-shirts provided by the Joseph Pearce Jogging Club. Everyone had a great time except my cousin who didn’t remember crossing the finish line and ended up in the medical tent (she’s fine now).

We spotted the elite runners getting changed near the Powerade tent, where free bottles of sports drink were being handed out to grateful participants. Micah Kogo and Bernard Kipyego seemed tiny in comparison to their reputations as world-class athletes. The surprising thing about the top runners was how skinny and small they were – belying the power and stamina in their legs.

As for stats – my Dad got his target time of under 55 minutes coming home in 54:05, Rob came 547th out of 10,000 entries in a time of 44:52, and I managed to just break the hour in 59:57. Despite not remembering the end, my cousin beat me roundly by 51 seconds. Don’t you just love the chip timing results system?

Rob running around the Great Edinburgh Run 2009

Apparently, due to the difficulty of the course, runners can safely take off around two minutes from their 10K time to compare with flat courses. However, many people were prepared for the hills, including Deena Kastor. Read about her arm-pumping success by clicking here.