This is the 300 year old Konigsberg Bridge problem - a mathematical exercise to determine whether it's possible to cross every bridge in a city only once, starting and finishing at the same place. In the 1700s, it was determined that it was not possible in Konigsberg despite there being only 7 bridges. It is possible in Bristol with its 45 bridges, however. It is a looped course, starting and finishing in the same place.
This has been a walking route for some time, and my Dad, Steve, created the FKT route a couple of years ago, so I thought I would give it a go. A number of bridges are currently closed, but I tried to stay as faithful to the original route as possible. I've ran the whole route once before, and I've also done the city section before as well, so the route was fully recce'd beforehand.
I carried everything with me, and didn't stop for any resupply. I started the day poorly - I'd planned to carry 1L of water in my normal running pack, and then an additional 500ml in a belt, but no sooner had I left my house to make my way to the start had I realised that I'd left the belt inside, along with my keys and a bag of Oreos.
10 minutes in to the run, I then needed to stop to use the public convenience, wasting further time.
Aside from the early mishaps, the run itself was fine. My training load has been quite high recently, and I felt as though I was running tired. Heading through the city my pace was relatively slow, but I was aware that I was carrying limited water for the day and didn't want to over exert myself too early. Although it was only mild, I even took my overtop off to limit moisture loss through sweat!
After about halfway I felt a bit better and started to pick up more of a consistent pace and also started to enjoy the run a bit more for what it was. I was rationing water but eventually ran out with about 5 or 6 miles to go which made the last hour or so a bit uncomfortable, but I had plenty of snacks - jam sandwiches definitely a winner for the longer runs.
All in all, a good day out and a decent route, though the long run out to Pill and back is a bit tiring. Good route round the city, including heading through Temple Meads station which is a public right of way. Plus, nice to cross all the different bridges and head around the harbour.
A beatable time for sure, but didn't want to go into the red with other things coming up. Might have another crack in a few months time once the other things are done.