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Throw Away the Rule Book - Fizz Beats Pfitz!

Thursday 9th January 2020

Sorry coaches, but it's time to put away the Pfitzinger books and think again.  Empirical evidence shows there is a new, more pleasurable, way to achieve PBs.  It's called the Fizz Plan,  Champagne, processed foods, too little sleep and mumbling along to much of Auld Lang Syne.  What am I talking about, you may ask?  Well, I am referring to the Brighton tradition of the double Park Run on New Year's Day.   Last year I amazed myself by going to bed at 3-30am after too much vodka and then running a Park Run PB 5 and a half hours later.  A one-off or the way forward?  Well, you only have to look at the results from January 1st this year to see a trend:  at 9am, out of 833 runners (and a high-quality leading bunch for sure) Phoenix had 5 of the first 20.Those with Hove Prom PBs: Paul Weir: 16:37, Tom Clewley: 17:17, David Powell: 17:23, Daniel Simpkin: 17:25, Jonny McCormack 17:38, Tim Jukes: 17:44, Bobby Searle: 18:12, Steve Selby: 18:22, Will Russell: 18:36, Olle Akesson: 18:37, Pete Goodman: 19:27, Lincoln Borgartz: 21:35, Daniel Allen: 21:42, Charlotte  Matthews: 22:40.  Then at the Hove Park 10-30am run there were 5 more PBs (with 6 Phoenix runners in the top 20 out of 859 overall).  Tom Clewley 17:38, Cassius Hebden: 18:31, Corbin Bailey: 19:49, Chelsy Hallam: 20:57 and Charlotte  Matthews again at 22:46. I don't know everyone's previous best above but I do know that there are some seriously good new overall 5km PBs in there: eg Bobby, Steve, Will, Pete, Lincoln...

So either it is the over-indulgences of Christmas and New Year – allied with a lack of sleep and training – OR it's the first day of what could be a cracking year once again for Phoenix where all those hard sessions pay extra dividends...

Phil Grabsky (no PB – clearly went to bed too early)