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1 Year, 1,001 Miles

I realise that there are still a few days left, and I need to squeeze in a 30 minute challenge run before the year is out, so my total will probably edge up a little further, but yesterday I hit the 1,000 mile mark for running in 2020.

It has, for all of us, been a very different year from the one we were probably looking forward to at this point last year. For me, I suspect running is one of the things that has helped most in getting me through it.

Back at the start of 2020, I set myself some goals:
  • See how much lower I could take my 5k PB below 28:38
  • Get my 10k PB below one hour from 1:03:49
  • Get my 10 mile PB below 1:45:00 from 1:49:29
  • Get my Half Marathon PB below 2:30:00 from 2:30:23
  • Complete the equivalent of John o' Groats to Land's End (874 miles) by the end of the year.
As the year passed, my runs increased in length and duration, and I ticked the goals off one by one so that they now stand at:
  • 5k - 26:36
  • 10k - 58:19
  • 10 miles - 1:34:29
  • HM - 2:05:46
  • John o' Groats - Land's End completed 22 November
In the absence of Parkrun and organised events, it's been a year of virtual challenges and races, of online communities and virtual running buddies. It's been a year that has challenged and pushed many of us to discover capabilities that we didn't know we had.  For me, yesterday was another one of those achievements. I didn't believe that I'd manage 1,000 miles this year; it was always something I thought I'd do "some day". Even at the start of December, while I knew it was possible, it still seemed unlikely. A fortnight ago, it started to look like, if everything aligned, it might just happen, then yesterday, it did.

It's been quite a journey and I'm interested to see where 2021 takes me (and hopefully it takes me beyond the boundaries of my village and local surrounds so that I can discover some new places to run in).

In the meantime, I hope everyone had a lovey Christmas and that 2021 brings you health and happiness.

As always, stay safe.
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Location: Pencaitland, Tranent EH34, UK

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