You could say proud dad Darren Smith has lots of catching up to do in this year’s Tour of Tameside.
Last year his daughter Aliesha, 17 at the time, clinched the fastest woman on the course accolade – a particularly incredible achievement considering she only intended to enter one of the four races!
After doing so well on day one Aliesha – an Active Tameside lifeguard – decided to do Hell on the Fell and following a good position in that event went for all four, completing the entire tour in just four hours and three minutes.
So, this year the race is truly on for 46-year-old plumber Darren, one of our Tour of Tameside competition winners.
“I was so proud of Aliesha and what she achieved in last year’s Tour,” he said.
“I just love the atmosphere of the Tour of Tameside and this year I want to race my daughter on all four stages.”
A member of Easter Cheshire Harriers, Darren finished in the top 20 overall in last year’s event and he’s hoping to achieve the same again, despite picking up a back injury in April’s Manchester Marathon.
In preparation for the tour Darren is factoring more hills into his usual four runs a week.
Adding inclines is a great tactic to improve form and faster times – even on flat courses.
Hill training leads to more powerful, efficient strides as it builds muscle strength.
Hill sprints or repeats can also improve running economy meaning you’ll use less energy overall on longer-distance races.
“I normally go to the gym Monday and Wednesday, run Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and do a long run on a Sunday, around 10 miles,” said Darren.
“Running keeps me fit but it’s also my way of switching off.”
All the best for the Tour Darren – may the best Smith win!
