Week 9 of my London Marathon Training and my plan includes a Half Marathon Race, so I took on the joyful Brentwood Half in Essex. No problem with the pre-race jitters…because of traffic and  parking challenges, we were pretty tight with time and so sprinted to the start of the race with just a few minutes to spare. Once we got moving, I settled into my stride, looking at my watch once at the start and then never again as I tried to run on feel, rather than watch pressure. The course was really lovely, with a buzzy, supportive crowd cheering and offering bowls of jelly babies and oranges along the route, making it a fantastic atmosphere. London Heathside Ladies Captain, Cathy Jeremiah (pictured with me), ran a cracking race and stomped it as the 2nd Lady finisher. Running in a slightly different zone, I placed 24th Lady (but first in my age category!!) with a time of 1:35min- decent, but not a PB. After taking on some gruelling distances with my Marathon Plan, (the previous run in week 8 being a 24 mile run), running a Half Marathon, was a welcome treat!