Goals for 2011

Now that all the races and big runs are finished for 2010, it's time to think up a few goals for next year.

My main goal for 2011 is to achieve some consistency by running regularly, and to try out a few new events.

In terms of road speed over the standard distances, my goals would be to run sub 17 minutes at Glasgow or Strathclyde Parkrun, sub 28 minutes at 5 miles, and another sub 35min at 10k.

At the longer road distances, I'd like to clock another half decent Half Marathon time, like sub 1:17, but ideally something more like 75 minutes to enter new territory. For the London Marathon I'm hoping to break 2:50 at last, having run 2:53, 2:54 and 2:54 my previous 3 times.

On the Scottish hill running scene I don't have any goals other than to plod around a few races, and possibly to photograph as many as I race.

On the longer distance side of things, I have a half-baked plan to head back to the Pyrenees in late June or early July to have a bash at the Pyrenean Haute Route. This 800km trek is described in 45 stages from west to east, but I would attempt it in the opposite direction, aiming for the Atlantic, to avoid it feeling like a re-run of my GR11 in 23 days. I would also try to complete it in 21 days to make it a bit of a challenge.

In the nearer term, I've got a 35 mile hill run planned in the Lake District that has been at the back of my mind for about 40 years, and I hope to attempt this in late Feb or early March.