My first track 10,000 experience

What a night; my Night of 10,000 PB’s adventure.

​Yes, I know what you’re thinking, lots of people have said it, it’s a lot of laps. However, going in to it, the laps were the least daunting aspect of the event. As someone who spends a lot of time doing hundreds of laps of the deep end of a swimming pool whilst aqua jogging, 25 laps of a track didn’t seem all that bad.

The most daunting aspect of the 10,000 to me was the pacing. As someone who easily gets carried away and often goes out too hard, especially on the track, I was worried about doing exactly that. I knew if I went out hard 25 laps would in fact seem extremely long and painful. I had countless chats with my boyfriend, telling me not to go out too hard, and to be sensible. Sensible is not something I am used to being. But, I didn’t want to suffer a very painful final 5k, so was determined not to go out too hard. As the race gun went, I tried my hardest not to let the adrenaline get to me too much, but after the first lap, I heard my boyfriend shout, ‘Hannah, be sensible’. I guessed that meant I wasn’t doing as I was told. After that I eased into my pace, I managed to stay pretty consistent for the rest of the race.

@eric_tolentino

​For anyone looking to do a 10,000 on the track, my first bit of advice would be, make it a good race! I was very lucky to be able to do a race with such an incredible atmosphere. The buzz, excitement, and most importantly, the support of the Night of the 10,000 PB’s made every second of the race enjoyable. Having support the entire length of the race, at every side of the track, was enough motivation for anyone. I have never done a race with the same number of spectators as that, and it was incredible! Look for a 10,000 with plenty of support, you will need it to get you round and make it as enjoyable as it can be.

As I said, the number of laps wasn’t something I was worried about, however, during the race it definitely seemed a lot of laps. As someone who doesn’t tend to look at their time, having the clock at every corner of the track was something I wasn’t used to seeing. I told myself not to look at the lap counter, but it was pretty hard not to. The first 10 laps flew by, it went so much faster than I thought, but the middle 10 definitely seemed to drag. It was then that the support of the crowd really kicked in. It was their cheering and shouting that made sure your motivation didn’t flounder. Once the final 5 laps arrived, it flew by once again. It was those final 5 laps, where you had to dig deep and push.

So, in reflection, how did I feel it went?
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Overall, I loved it. I achieved the most important thing in that race, and that was to enjoy it. There wasn’t a single moment through the entire 25 laps that I wasn’t loving what I was doing. And that to me, is better than any result. Whilst I was pleased with where I placed amongst the field, the time wasn’t quite what I was aiming for. However, I wanted to finish the race strong, rather than over doing it and failing to hang on for the remainder of the race. Next time, I would try to stick with the pace I was aiming for, as now having done my first 10,000, I feel I could run the time I wanted, and I know what the distance feels like on the track for next time.

It was such a great experience, and something I have learnt a lot of lessons from. So, on to the next race.