NWFPAC ‘Michael Page’ Championship 2023 – Race 5: Southport Half

Another weekend, another race down, this time race number 5 – Southport Half Marathon. Over a thousand athletes made their way to the West Coast, with 577 half-marathoners and 465 participants on the 10k. This made it very difficult for NWFPAC to do a pre-race meet up. What with the never-ending queue for race numbers and the very limited number of portaloos, this was a perfect recipe for warm, stressed participants. There was even a false start (which I am reliably informed may have been because Adrian Rogers didn’t have his number – it’s not a race unless Aid is ready!).

7 members of NWFPAC braved the Fylde Coast heat and were rewarded with a mostly cloudy race, albeit not that breezy.

The course definitely had PB potential with some areas even sporting fresh tarmac. Sadly nowhere near for me, instead there were several times where I considered whether it was worth carrying on or simply taking the 10k exit routes, particularly at the 10k finish line – 9 miles into the half marathon!

The race was an out and back with a little extra. With a thousand people starting in a relatively narrow funnel it took a few miles for the course to spread out, meaning I spent the first few miles watching everyone whizzing past me. Of course, this meant I too got a bit carried away, and had to slow myself down after a stitch at around mile 3. This was just before we reached the never-ending road, Marine Drive, where we spent the next 10 miles.

One of the benefits of the out and back layout of the race was the inevitable crossovers – genuinely helped to get the mojo back on those bits where I was contemplating my life choices. That and my fellow NWFPAC members letting me know how far away the next water stations were, so great teamwork.

The results show a very fast set of times by the NWFPAC-ers. Mike and Byron crossed the line within 10 seconds of each other, and Stephen was just over 30 seconds behind – all way under the 1.30 mark! With a small number of competitors this was a high scoring race for the Championship, meaning I got 17 (or is that 16, I wait to find out) points for a time 15 minutes slower than my PB – result!

Both Mike and I decided to turn down the commemorative t-shirt – due to the environment or due to not wanting to remember the race, I couldn’t comment. Regardless of opinions of the race, I’m sure those who went to the pub after felt a lot better after a well-deserved cold beverage.

Well done all!