Bedfordshire AAA 10K

With an event base at the Bedford International Athletic Stadium and a traffic-free course in the local water park, only one member of Grantham Running Club made the trip on a Friday evening to race this 10k.

The course is a nicely designed lollipop shape, with the first and last 2k being along an old railway line. There is then a footbridge over an A road, with a loop along paths, some tarmac, some gravel and some forest tracks.

The whole route is traffic-free and there were no problems with other parkusers. The course is also very flat, with the only noticeable incline over the bridge each way. Looking at the map, the course goes around some quarries, an old power station and past a sewage farm. Due to the tree cover, none of these are visible, although the sewage was noticeable both ways.

Surprisingly for a county championship event, there were fewer than 200 runners and the race was not chip-timed. A much larger field would have caused problems, because the first 2k was not particularly wide, but again there were no problems seen this year.

As befits an event targeted at club runners, the bling afterwards was understated, a traditional medal (nicely engraved on the back) and water and a banana. There was also a water station half way round – which gave out proper bottles, very helpful given the hot conditions.

Peter Bonner completed the event in a new personal best of 40 minutes 20 seconds. Speaking afterwards he was pleased with the time, especially given that he'd managed a 5k pb the previous Friday, and said that his next target was to try and get 21 seconds quicker. Overall, he recommends the event for anyone wanting to do a fast, flat 10k who is able to travel to Bedford after work on a Friday.