A big race week, leading up to the Bramley 20 at the weekend (yes, the picture is an apple called the Bramley 20! You know what a race looks like). I have to say that work has been one of the toughest weeks in my last 15 years at B&Q, so it was a blessing that I only had two easy runs to fit in - I just don't think I could have come home and banged off a tough interval session this week. The big race on Sunday was the two 10-mile laps of Bramley, near Basingstoke - a perfect marathon prep. race. My goal was to crack 2:25, which I nearly did, coming in at 2:25:46. The last 3 miles just nipped the 46 seconds out of me. The weather was hardly promising, with sleet as I drove up the M3, though for the race itself, the rain stayed off, though there were some biting winds in the second lap (not from me I hasten to add!). All in all a successful race, given that the last time I ran that distance was during the London Marathon in April 2009 - clearly 6.2 more to go on that day! I also ...