Percy Pud 10km, 1 Dec 2024

Percy Pud is a really popular 10k in Sheffield which attracts a high quality field (Eilish McColgan is a past winner!) - you need to be quick off the mark just to get an entry! I most recently ran it two years ago so I had a time in mind but as the race grew closer I didn't think my running form was good enough to get close to my 2022 time. It's a downhill start and an uphill finish so I never aim for negative splits, I'm rubbish at those anyway! The first 2-2.5k is undulating with some hard pulls uphill. I was glad to get to the dam wall which meant flat running around the reservoir. It was a calm morning so no unwelcome cross wind coming off the water.  A few cones in the road mark the turnaround point at halfway. Seeing the faster people at the front on their way back was a nice distraction and once I had turned around and was heading back I had lots of cheers from my many Totley AC clubmates who were also running. I felt pretty good on the flat but my uphill strength was lacking so I just had to try my best on the undulating sections in the last couple of k's. I was very glad to cross the finish line and very surprised to see I was only 10 seconds slower than my 2022 time. I also managed to scoop the first V40 prize so walked away with a bottle of champagne, a silver cup, running shop voucher and the standard finishers gift of a Christmas pud!

Laura Allen