Running in sodden Reading in the Mizuno Evos - and that's magic!

 

Former England cricket captain, Andrew Strauss, the mercurial magician's assistant Debbie McGee and one-time Olympic hurdles champion Sally Gunnell -it's not often you'd fit them into the same sentence but they were buzzing round at Madejski Stadium yesterday, the impressive home of Reading Football Club.

Straussy's young son was performing some some of hip hop dance move on the gleaming foyer floor, Sally was being interviewed by television crews, and Debbie, who looks pretty good for 54, was mingling with sponsors ahead of her role as starter of the Mizuno Reading Half Marathon.

I've never sampled VIP experience before a race. That's usually the domain of fleet-footed Kenyan runners, but yesterday I managed to snaffle a blue band before the race and was whisked to a swish hospitality suite which overlooked the pitch behind one of the goals, and which provided a superb view to the finish to the 13.1 mile race.

I'd managed to wangle a much-coveted VIP band and so escape the non-stop rain showers, because of the testing of the new Mizuno minimalist shoes. Reading was the finale of our six-week journey which has seen each of the runners blogging and tweeting about the shoes as we've swapped the comfort of our gel-filled, heavily cushioned, reliable running apparel for the bare-boned offering that is the Mizuno Evo.

Mizuno were extremely generous. We arrived at the Madejski Stadium and were given a carrier bag laden with goodies. Inside the hospitality suite they were dishing out running tops, bum bags, running bottles and t-shirts like there was no tomorrow.

I felt really sorry for the thousands of runners milling outside seeking shelter from the incessant rain, while we changed and prepared in the warmth of this plush hospitality suite. And after the race, drenched to the skin and shivering with cold, the room provided the perfect sanctuary and a great view as we watched runners stream into the stadium for the final 200 metre sprint to the finish line.

This was, without doubt, the wettest race I have ever run in. I’m sure other runners will argue there have been wetter runs, and maybe I have been lucky, but conditions were miserable. It was bitterly cold with rain and sleet showers for a large chunk of the race.

However, that shouldn’t detract from what was a brilliantly organised run. Reading doesn’t offer the most scenic of routes with its city centre half marathon, but the crowds were hugely enthusiastic along the traffic-free route, with more than a dozen bands and DJs adding atmosphere on an absolute stinker of a day.

Some of my fellow Mizuno runners opted to avoid running in their brand shoes for the half marathon. It was perhaps a wise choice because over 13 miles the shoes are unforgiving.

But, in for a penny in for a pound, I stuck with my Evo Cursoris for this final half marathon outing.

I’ll be honest, it was tough. Really tough. By eight miles my legs were hurting through the relentless pounding on the road and the lack of protection. I was running reasonably quick by my standards at just over 7min 30sec pace. I tried to keep my form throughout by running off the soles of my feet, but it was hard. The rain was wearing and I tired quickly.

Knowing how much I suffered after the Eastbourne Half Marathon a fortnight earlier, I remember thinking at eight miles that this is going to hurt. My hamstring and calves were screaming with pain. But you simply take it in your stride and knock off the miles to work through the pain. The advantage of running in a big race is that you are never isolated so there are always runners to pull you along.

I crossed the finish line in a respectable time of 1hour 36 minutes, and was happy with that. The foil wrapping were quickly thrown on to stave off the chill as I gingerly headed back to hospitality.

Twenty four hours on I am aching. My feet are numb and my legs feel stiff.

I love to Evos, truly I do. They are a great shoe, so light and easy to run in. And on my shorter training runs of an hour they have been great. They are fantastic up hills and make for a swift run along the prom. It’s once you go over the hour mark when your body tires, your form suffers, and you are not running wisely, that running in the Evos becomes problematic.

I wouldn’t run a half marathon again in the Evos, not without a longer transition from my normal shoes. I shall continue to run in both sets of Evos, and will probably give them a run-out next Sunday in the Eastleigh 10k.

Minimalist shoes are definitely the way forward, but the transition is important to get your feet used to the new-style shoes. Had we had time, I would have given myself a longer transition into the shoes.

If you’re interested to find out more about the Mizuno Evos, here’s an interesting video link: http://www.mizunopro.com/running/blog/article/wave-evo-is-coming-launching-january-5-2013.

And these are the Twitter links to my fellow Evo runners:

@jonmackintosh
@RunningPeekay
@gofasterfood
@Boshrun
@kimingleby
@BePrettyFit
@NatRunClinic
@Ashton378
@JuliaArmstrong
@sammymargo