Somehow I won the M45 age group of the BMAF 5000m today, I came 5th in the race, but I never had a chance against the M35s anyway. It started very well for me, with the a lead group of 6 (younger than me) athletes taking me along at 75s for 5 laps. Steve Hallas was in front, nobody was prepared to go past him, and the pace dropped with a 80 and a few 78s.

Then reality kicked in, the whole group poured past Steve, he will run much faster times in other races! M35 and M40 races developed in front me. By this time I was fairly safe in the lead of the M45, and finished in 15.51.53, which is slightly faster than some of my recent efforts. My left foot and ankle are still holding me back, more in training than racing, and I feel I could go faster in better condition. I'm thinking about resting the ankle during July, I'll have to see how it works out over the next few weeks.