After drinking about 50 beers and a bottle of Jàgermeister, as well as eating like a pig for a week in the build up, I had zero expectations for the Boxing day 10k.

But I was simply pleased to wear the magical red vest for the first time since Gilberdyke in August as a 10 week injury lay off ruined my autumn.

Before the race there was a cracking atmosphere which is par for the course for a harriers race, enhanced further by everyone in great spirits with it been Christmas.

3-2-1 go! We are off! I hit a good rythmn straight away, amused by the number of people in front of me whom I knew set off way to fast, I must have passed about 40/50 people in the first mile and a half, but this helped my rythmn even more.

Great to see the legend of David Gowens just before the 2 mile mark, and at this point I saw Tim Groves up ahead, and knew I must be running well as me and Tim have had many a good race together, and I looked at my watch and was shocked, I’m going at sub 40 pace!

Nah, I won’t hold this, it’s always windy on that bloody track……except it wasn’t, and I carried on at the pace, 4 miles ticked and I worked out I had 15 seconds in the bank, but I needed a good 5th mile as I knew the wind and dungevan hill in the last mile would hit me.

5th mile I could only manage 6.28, damn, I made the turn off the track and at that point my legs simply didn’t have the miles back in them post injury to drive through, effort was there, but my pace plummeted, and dungevan hill felt like a mountain!

Hammered a fast finish home despite the intentions of a selfish sod in a car cutting me up at golf club, rocked a 40.19.

Way off my PB but after a serious injury combined with the volume of booze and food I am absolutely over the moon with this as it came out of the blue and gives me confidence for 2020!

On a side note, I joined harriers in January 2019, and have got PB’s in every distance from 5k to Marathon, and met some awesome new friends at this great club, thank you everyone and here’s to a great 2020 to everyone in the red vest!

Dave Wilson