With his focus being firmly on the hilly Isle of Man Marathon in 5 weeks time and thinking it would be a good training run, Phil decided to enter Rutland’s Whissendine 6ix, known for being a hilly course, at the very last minute. 

Phil set out fairly steadily and by the time he had completed his first mile, there were 2 clear leaders ahead of the pack that Phil was running with. He gradually picked up the pace in the 2nd mile and was in 3rd position with just one other runner from the pack having been able to come with him, who sat on Phil’s shoulder for the next 1/2 a mile or so. Phil knew, that having run twice already that week, it was doubtful that he would be able to outkick his rival in a sprint finish with tired legs; when they hit the next hill, Phil upped the pace to 5.10 for about 1/2 a mile. Thankfully, Phil’s speed opened up a gap of a couple of hundred metres or so. He was able to ease off the pace to maintain this lead for the rest of the race, happy to finish third in 34.27 and especially pleased with how strong he felt on the hills after a tough week of training.

The TORQ Performance Running Team is sponsored by the following and without them, we would not be able to do what we do, thank you: