Charity place secured for London Marathon 2014

So some more excitement – got myself a charity place in the London Marathon next year!  I’m sooo pleased and get a little happiness every time I think about it.  Get to run London for a 2nd time!!

The charity is Look UK, who are a small, national charity helping families and carers of children with visual impairments.  While I believe that virtually all charities do good work, I’m especially happy to support the smaller ones that haven’t got the big advertising budgets that the larger ones do.  In fact, I only found out about this place via a post on Runner’s World.

I LOVE London, and was thrilled to run it in 2013.  I wasn’t planning on running it again until I got another ballot place, but I thought I’d miss it so much next time I couldn’t resist.  I’ve got a target of £700 to raise (plus the £100 registration fee), which is a lot but far less than what most charities require which is closer to £2000.  So it’s doable, and with a bit of sweet talk with the marketing and events team at work, may even be able to get some support for a decent cake sale event for the students.

Go on the runnerworld.co.uk forums and there are plenty of people who don’t like London, or say it’s not worth it.  Even to say that you’ve got a place results in a deluge of comments such as “oh – last time I checked there were 100 other UK marathons to choose from nowadays!” or “it’s just a circus through Deptford”.  Plus a lot of complaints about how people think there are too many charity places and not enough for “real” runners (although figures released last year did actually show there were almost twice as many ballot places as charity places!).  Hmm well everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and many people don’t like the hype around London, but I do!!  Out of the 5 I’ve run, it’s by far the best – only Berlin comes close.  I love the electric atmosphere, the famous landmarks, the capital city, and the way the spectators come out in their millions to watch and celebrate a great day of British sport.  As I was running it last year, I was thinking about how I would certainly love to do it again next year.  At the time, I was saying to myself I’d do anything to run it again in 2014!!  (Although by mile 20 I was vowing NEVER to run a marathon again!).  Afterwards I thought I would certainly love to do it again, but probably only if I got another ballot place somewhere down the line.  But I changed my mind when I found a charity willing to accept a much lower target than usual, and signed up again!

So that means next spring I get to run five marathons!  I’m starting to freak out a bit, but as long as I stick with the idea of running 4 of them purely for fun and not chase any target times I’ll be happy.  There are 2 back-to-back weekend of marathons – Brighton then London at the beginning of April, and then Liverpool then Kent at the end of May.  Half way between the two is Milton Keynes!

The plan is to train to run back to back longer runs at a slower but steady pace, so I can get round each but then recover as much as possible in between each race.  Ideally I’d like to run Brighton at a reasonable pace, around 5.05 – 5.20 (my PB is 5.03) and then rest for the next week with a few walks in between.  Seeing as London is just one big street party I will just aim for anything between 6.00 – 6.30 as it will be a chance to simply enjoy the atmosphere.  There will be so many first time novice runners going for that sort of time so I won’t be at the back!!

Then 3 weeks until the MK Marathon.  I’ll be able to get a decent few runs in, maybe up to about 10k, and just check out how my legs are feeling and avoid injury.  I’ll aim for anything under 6 hours! 

Another 3 weeks til the Liverpool Marathon.  I really only signed up for this for the atmosphere as there are loads of bands along the way, so I’ll plan to run/walk this one and maybe have a bit of a dance at each band – one every mile!  I’ll see how it goes on the day but it will be another slow one, so around 6 – 6.30 will be fine.  Finally, just 6 days after that (not even a 7th day of rest!!) it will be the Kent Marathon.  There won’t be the bands or crowds to pause and dance to this time, so I will pretty much need to do this one at a steady pace all round (which is why I’ll need to take Liverpool slowly so I can have a bit of a chance to recover). 

Not sure if this is actually going to work, or whether my legs will fall off halfway across Tower Bridge!!!  The thing I’m looking forward to is just an opportunity to run a few marathons purely for fun and not worry about a time – but it’s a bit of a step up as I’ve done half’s for fun but not full’s!  No doubt I’ll start regretting this mid-May! 

So by the looks of things, Kent should now be my 10^th Marathon, well within the target of 10 before I’m 30 J

The Roman Run 26.2

Last weekend I acquired a medal from an old local race, the St Albans Marathon from back in the 1980’s that no longer takes place.  I think it was cancelled back in the late 80’s or early 90’s due to low numbers. Now we have a regular annual half marathon and 5k, but no full marathon.  I was interested in this race and felt that since I had now come into possession of the medal I must now run it – by remembering it in this way, it would make a training run feel really special.  I will call it The Roman Run.

I realised I was able to do the run on the correct date (7^th December) which was really good – just 27 years too late….!!  But it did not give me much time for find out the route so I had to guess a lot of it but tried to include what I knew.  

To make it a special run but also keep it realistic and not let it totally screw up the rest of my training, I put some rules/targets in place.

1.   - Try to start and finish at the same place that the original marathon started.  However this was not really feasible due to new buildings, shops etc. in that area and making driving/parking then running there a nightmare.  So I decided to start and finish the run from home but ensure I passed through that area when I did parkrun.

2. -  Include Parkrun.  It was our 100^th parkrun so there were a lot of extra people turning up. I could not miss this and with it being so close to the original marathon’s start it I could run there, and then begin Parkrun as if it was the start of the marathon.  It was also good to run with a big group although I did feel a big over-kitted out for a 5k – with running backpack, energy gels etc. and got some funny looks! (I was also quite near the back this time and having run it at marathon-training pace did not get a particularly impressive time!).

3. -   Try and include as much as the original route as possible.  This was very difficult in the end as having only a couple of days to plan, I did not find out the route.  However I knew that the route went up one of the steepest, harshest roads up towards the town centre so thought I should better include that!  I had also heard the route went out towards one of the nearby towns, but as this was now all dual carriage way with a massive roundabout to cross, it would be very difficult to run it without the luxury of closed roads.  Instead I decided to keep as much of the route within the city as possible and include local landmarks.

4.  -  Keep it as a training run.  I didn’t want to push too hard and injure myself as the proper marathon training starts again after Christmas.  I’m running 4 marathons next spring (1 serious, 1 semi-serious and 2 for fun) and keep quite a high mileage all year round anyway so figured that if I did this very slowly and ran/walked part of it then I could get some early low-risk miles in the bank.  Therefore my only target time-wise was to finish before it got dark, and would take walking breaks frequently from early on!!  This also meant I would not count it as a marathon but just as a logged training run of that distance.

So early Saturday morning I set off for the first part of the run.  5.5 miles to Parkrun, then when I got there it was only 8.55am so I had to stop and hop on the spot for a few minutes before we got going.  Had a fun Parkrun – I imagined to myself it was the beginning of the marathon!  Afterwards I had a quick catch up with friends (trying to bribe them into running the next 10 miles with me but to no avail!) and sadly turning down the usual post run coffee and cake.  When they heard I had another 17-18 miles to run they told me to get on with it or I’ll cramp up!

The main part of the run was now underway.  Realising I had actually gone out too fast for the first part and then getting very cold in the queue to scan my barcode, it was suddenly feeling very tough.  A very steep uphill mile into town past the cathedral had to be walked, then into the face of busy Christmas shoppers in the marketplace meant I got more odd looks!  I even took a wrong turn here and started running my regular run out of habit, and had to double back!  This was despite having a map pinned to my running belt!  It was good to tick off lots of local sights, including:

The park that was old Roman capital city and remains of the surrounding wall

The remains of the Roman Theatre

The city Cathedral and grounds

The Marketplace, Clock Tower, various old pubs and inns

Old Roman roads still in use today as major routes into London

Other more local landmarks which have since been closed or decommissioned (including the old railway line and nunnery).

The lack of proper marathon training made this an interesting, if tough experiment.  With a proper plan I got round the Berlin Marathon in September in just over 5 hours, but now 2 months later I was walking long stretches by mile 14.  No worries though, I was not in it for a time today!  Miles 15-20 were very hard with a lot of hills.  It was quite lonely too now, Parkrun being several hours earlier and the excitement long gone.  I stopped off in Tesco for a chocolate bar and tried not to collapse at the tills (more odd looks!).  At mile 20 I saw a friend from work.  She thought I was mad but wished me luck.  On the home stretch now.  Strangely at 21 miles my body decided it was feeling ok again and I was back to running (well, slow jogging).  I think I was getting a bit confused by now as kept losing track of what mile I was at, or the time (somehow I thought I was at 5 hours when really I was at 6!), or even what street I was on.  Finally I reached my road, 26.2 miles!  I got in the house and had the best post-marathon goodies ever – a pizza, tub of ben & jerries, a bubble bath, a DVD and the 1986 medal.

So overall it was a great feeling to re-enact this old marathon which may or may not ever take place again, and a good sightseeing tour of places I rarely bother visiting in my home town.  In the afternoon I was able to go into town (in the car!) not only to do present shopping but get the medal cleaned up a bit and the ribbon repaired.  Post-run I felt very tired but nowhere near as sore as after a race marathon which was rather nice.  Total time including waiting for Parkrun to start, queuing for barcode afterwards, a quick chat, 2 tesco/loo stops was about 6h25m from leaving the house to getting to the end of my road (to think I am happy it was under 6 & a half hours!!!).

Thank you to the original organisers back in the 80s for holding the original marathon and inspiring me to run this time, and also to Parkrun for our 100^th run!

Christmas Countdown

So we are now in December, can't believe how fast this year has flown by!  I'm so pleased to have been able to finish 4 marathons, 7 triathlons and plenty more races of different distances and training in between.  Never thought that a year ago that would have been possible!

So hopefully December will be a quieter month to try and rest before the marathon training starts up again in January (there is one little plan I have though for next weekend, but not quite committed yet so will say no more!).  And as for carb-loading, time to swap the potatoes and pasta for a few mince pies and chocolate perhaps?

The next race I have is the Pednor 10, a small, local race between Christmas and New Year.  I did it last year and enjoyed it.  Other than that it's just training run/sessions and parkrun. It's a bit difficult to get out on the bike much now, as trying to cycle into work down dark, pot-holed roads to and from work is a death trap!  And let's admit it, I'm definitely a fair-weather cyclist anyway!

My place of work has a good scheme going on though, where you can join in certain "Active Students, Active Staff" sessions at the gym and around campus - weekly in term time and completely free!!  This is great as it means I've been able to add some different cross-training in focusing on strength, toning and core but without being another hard CV workout.  There are loads of sessions from football to burlesque fitness and are aimed at beginners and novices so a lot of fun to try something new.

So lately I have been trying gymnastics and pole fitness.  I mentioned the gymnastics in my last post, and today I went again and we did cartwheels, round offs and handstands.  Can just about do a decent cartwheel and round off but handstands are tougher than I remembered - I don't think i used to get dizzy when I was 15!  Plus my back was getting worse and worse after every round off which did not help.  There were a few more experienced students also training, to think i used to be that good!!

The other class I went to was pole fitness, which is basically a sporty version of pole dancing in the gym studio.  After an aerobic warm-up, we got into groups of 3 according to our experience level (me being total beginner obviously!) and went to a pole.  We were given various moves and stationary poses to try including simple spins and sitting on the pole.  Plus a lot of strengthening work such as pull ups!  if you think pole fitness is just twirling round a pole looking sexy, think again!  My arms were really sore afterwards and it required a lot of upper body and core strength.  I really enjoyed it though, it was great fun and when it starts back up in the new term i will try and go regularly.

Finally we had out triathlon club Christmas dinner which was really good.  It was good to meet up with people outside the gym/pool/parkrun etc and see what everyone looks like when not in lycra!  I even won 2 awards for the club race series league!  Novice female winner and 3rd female.  It was great to be recognised in my first season and good to know that some the races I had entered counted for something towards club points as well!  Next year I will try and enter another 1-2 races that count as well as our members-only races.

Tonight I have swimming, and tomorrow will be running and circuits.  Next week i hope to move running back to Monday lunch times as it will no longer clash with gymnastics, and it's nicer to go to circuits fresh having not done a run as well that day.

Norwich Half Marathon

Most of the races are now over for the year, and I've cut back on the harder/longer training sessions for a month or two.  Still done a couple of organised runs/races though including the Mo-Run Battersea which i mentioned last week, and the Norwich Half Marathon.

The most recent race was the Norwich Half Marathon on Sunday.  Last year I got quite a good time at this one, but after a very long (but fun) weekend of tunnel flying, a lot of driving, and very little sleep I was feeling pretty rubbish at the start line.  I had met another girl Vicky the day before, and her friend Denise (both colleagues of my brother who works in Norwich), who were also running it and decided fairly early on I might stick with them and run at their pace as I didn't think I was going to get near my target time of 2.20 that morning.  I had not had much sleep (an hour at best, maybe less hahaha?!) and the day before had consisted of a long drive, getting home, having breakfast and going back out to volunteer at parkrun.  It was a beautiful morning for runnings but i have to say I was glad I was not running it that time.

Anyway - back to Norwich.  It was a good day for running, clear, sunny and cold but not freezing.  Quite bitter winds but not as bad as last year where the strong cross/headwinds made the going really tough!  We got there in time to drop off our bags and pretty much go straight to the start line as there was no point in getting there really early and hanging about in the cold.  On the start line I was probably the only one feeling like they had already run a half marathon that day, but there was of course no pulling out now!

We set off, for 1 lap round the showground of just under 1 mile, then 2 long laps round closed roads on the outskirts of Norwich and the surrounding villages, including another lap of the showground at the halfway point.  It was a nice route, good scenery and flat.  My legs had really begun to ache again after the tunnel and gym so I decided that I was definitely going to have to take it easy and so ran with Denise and Vicky (it was their 2nd and 1st half marathons).  It made it a lot more fun having people to chat to on the way round, so I got us going at a steady pace when possible and I hope that I encouraged them when the going get tough!  Knowing my time didn't really matter I was please to help them out including stopping to fill up their water bottles at the feed stations if they did not want to stop and stand still.  We did get overtaken/lapped by the lead runner at mile 6 but it was amazing to hear the crowds cheered us as much as they did the fast guys!  My Garmin battery died at mile 10 though which was annoying (I forgot to charge it the night before!) but it was probably not really needed other than for the time as we were not looking for even splits/miles but just to finish within the cut off time limit (had to do 90 minutes for 6.5 miles, which was fine!  Not sure if there was a 3 hour time limit but we assumed there was!).  

There were some low points in the race but I really wanted them to finish strong so we did a walk-run for the last few miles and also got together in a little group with other runner for the last 2 miles which was good.  It was nice to finally come back into the showground at mile 12 and run harder knowing that we did not need to hold anything back any longer!  There were still quite a few spectators and a lot of the finished runners were really encouraging.  In the final 200 yards you hear your name called out which was really nice and encouraging, and after the others encouraged me to go on for the last bit (they assured me they would certainly be finishing now!) I went for a faster last mile mile and sprint finish.  In the end my finish time was 2.42 (my slowest!) but I was so happy to have run with the others and seen them finishing the race - they finished in around 2.44!

Overall it was a good day out and the organisation was great and the marshals were amazing.  I think it was a lot easier to be running that morning rather than standing around in the freezing cold for over 3 hours!  There was also a lovely medal and plenty of food/drink in the goody-bag including a Red Bull-style drink that was much needed on the long drive home.

Yesterday I was a bit sore and tired to do the swimming session in the evening with Tri-Force, however I did go to a gymnastics session at the gym at work.  There is a good scheme on for students and staff at the Uni where I work, where they run free beginners sports sessions.  I used to do gymnastics until I was about 18 so I have long since lost the ability or flexibility and felt more like a stumbling baby elephant rather than gracefully cat-like!  So I mostly used the session totry and stretch/ease my muscles, and I think in time it will be good for conditioning and core work for the triathlon/running.  Was also good fun to use the beam and bars again, however unbalanced and ungainly I now am!!  Most people wanted to learn to backflip, however with myongoing back injury that is now sadly out of the question.

Finally I have signed up for my first Ultra - a 50k run in London, the Royal Parks Ultra next October.  It wasn't cheap but it looks brilliant and is fairly well timed after the Berlin Marathon.

My next race is the Pednor 10, a local 10 miler just after Christmas, and then the Polar Nights Half Marathon, in Tromso, Norway - dark, snowy and VERY cold but should be epic especially if the northern lights make an appearance!

MoRunners Unite! The MoRun Battersea 5k

Yesterday I took part in one of the MoRuns, in Battersea Park, London.  They are a series of 5k and 10k races throughout the UK in November which support Movember and men’s health charities such as Prostate Cancer UK and the Institute of Cancer Research.  I find them well organised a lots of fun, and nice to know that part of your entry fee does actually go directly to the charity (I am not sure how much exactly, but many so-called charity runs do not give any funds to the charity – fundraising/donations needs to be done on top of this by the runners).  This year I did the 5k (last year I did the Milton Keynes 10k).  Feels a bit odd travelling all the way into London and paying money to enter a 5k race but I fancied a day in London and with lots of guys at work taking part in the mo-growing for the good cause, I wanted to get involved myself (minus the facial hair growing part).

I do like the atmosphere of the MoRunning!  It’s open to all and you get a lot of first timers doing it for charity, but there’s a “work-hard play-hard” feel to it so some quite fast club runners were there as well.  As there are 1,000 runners, it’s not massively packed and overcrowded like the big city charity runs but still feels liek a good turn out.  Always plenty of fancy dress which I find a good laugh especially at the end of the season when the “serious” races are over.  I went on my own, but think I would have had more fun if I’d gone with friends (even first time runners) as it’s more about the camaraderie and community than just running.  I did go in fancy dress too, an Iron Man costume (girly version which was basically a short dress!) and drew on a Tony Stark mo.  There was probably more fancy dress runners than not!  The most popular theme was the 1980's "118" runners in red and white gear, plus superheroes and 60s/70s/80s costumes.

Wasn’t sure how the run itself was going to go, as I had given blood earlier than week and had found my previous two runs since very tough (e.g. my Parkrun time on Saturday was 30 mins – much slower and harder work than my 28 minutes a week ago).  I decided to try for a decent  time, but not worry if it didn’t go to plan and I did not feel recovered enough.

The run was 2 laps of Battersea Park and was very flat, with pretty surroundings.  Things went well at first and I was a bit ahead of my target pace.  Unfortunately I really don’t think I had recovered enough from the blood doning as soon it was feeling very hard work, very high heart rate, could not get enough oxygen to maintain pace (I know a 5k should be all-out, but this was a fairly standard 6 min km’s so hardly anything earth shattering for me!).  I got an awful stitch coming through the half-way point which lasted for most of that kilometer, and I had to slow right down to a jog.  The final km was better but didn’t make up for the lost time earlier.  I sort of wished I had just taken it slowly the whole way and not tried to push myself too early as I did not really enjoy it like I should have done due to the pain!!  I finished in the exact same time as the previous day’s Parkrun of 30min 12 sec (always annoying to get JUST over 30 mins in a 5k!).  

Still, I never regret doing a race however it goes, and once I had crossed the line it was the same good feeling of having done it as best as I could manage.  I really liked my medal, which was mo-shaped.  There was water, sweets and hot food at the finish.

Later I headed to the shops for a bit before it was too crowded with Christmas shoppers.  Having just done a race it was a good excuse to wear running gear for the rest of the morning on the way home which is sooo comfortable! (Although could do with a wash!).  I almost felt like going for a run along the Embankment since so many London runners were out running, but decided with my bulky backpack and coat that it wouldn't really be convenient so I got myself an early Christmas present from the running shop instead and then headed home.

Here is a paragraph from thier website, which I think sums up MoRunning.

To be a MoRunner means you are part of something bigger than yourself! You’re part of a community, a family, a team. When you step up to that start line at your MoRun, look to your left, look to your right, and remember friends are all around you! So whether there’s a MoBro with a funny moustache, or maybe a MoSista that’s painted one on, or even someone dressed up as a superhero, give them a smile, shake their hand, and just remember we are all in it together. Run hard, run fast, have fun and enjoy being part of something special!

Stevenage Half Marathon Race Recap

This was my second year of running this race – and last year I got my still-standing PB of 2.12.  I think that was timed quite well after the Loch Ness Marathon as I felt really good and fit, and fully recovered.  This year though it was only 2 weeks after the Eden Marathon, and I wasn’t quite recovered fully.  I decided to try and go for a fairly good time but not a PB – under 2.20 would be good.

The weather was a LOT better than last year – sunny blue skies instead of horizontal rain!  I drove to the football ground where car parking was allowed, and then there was a short coach ride to the start which was at the athletics track.  It was a good venue as there was plenty of room and places to sit, showers and changing, and a track to warm up on.  Baggage was in a marquee.  We had to pick up race numbers on the day but there was hardly any queue so it did all feel well-run and efficient.

It was cool, but not cold, so I opted for light capri-tights and a half-zip tee-shirt, with my hydration backpack.  I’m well used to that pack now – it feels uncomfortable to carry a bottle in my hands now.  The course was two laps along cycle tracks and paths (no roads) and did manage to make the most of the nicer areas as much of the run took place around the park.  It was a good sized race, about 600 I believe, mostly club and local runners although possibly a few charity runners (or at least they were wearing charity vests from a previous race).  I saw one of the guys, Trace, from Tri-Force at the start line.

I was feeling good at the start, having rested for a week, but did go out a bit too fast!  I felt fine for the first lap though and chatted with Trace for a bit, but about half way through I was feeling sore and my legs felt tired and heavy.  I had one of my gels and some fresh, cold water at the next feed station.  My pace slowed by quite a lot on the second lap and I was not sure if I could manage it in my target time.  I had to listen to my iPod to take my mind off my dead legs.  Sometimes I don’t wear the iPod if the crowds are good and I know a lot of people don’t like them (recently heard about a race where a large amount of people were actually disqualified for wearing earphones), but just for the record I do keep it on a low volume and make sure I can hear people’s voices, cars, etc.  When I pass a marshal I always pause it or take out an earbud in case they give instructions.  Anyway, the course was mostly flat but there were a lot of small hills in the way of underpasses – but still a fast course overall (and nothing compared to the Eden Marathon!).  The nicest part was going through Fairlands Valley Park which made good use of the cycle tracks and paths, and got more spectators as there were plenty of people out enjoying the nice Sunday morning weather.  The second lap is actually slightly longer than the first lap and has a slight hill, but then it’s a nice final few miles of mostly downhill back to the finish.

We finished back at the athletics track and did a lap of the track before coming up to the finish line.  Just before I entered the road leading up to the track, I noticed my watch was on 2.14, but heard someone said it was about 6 or 7 minutes to the finish line – so I tried to get my pace on to finish by 2.20!!  Pleased to say I just about managed it – a sprint round the track as best as I could meant I just scraped in at 2.19.41!  I was shattered and my legs were killing but I was really pleased as it was the best time of 2013 (which just proves that my half’s have not been what I have been concentrating on this year!).  I got a medal, banana, bottle of water, two £5 Sweatshop vouchers, 2 Lucozade drinks, a flapjack - and quite a few leaflets.  There may have been a chocolate bar as well, but I may have bought that with me myself, can’t remember.  Any food after a half is always good though!  I immediately sat on the grass to both rest and sort-of stretch and quickly ate the banana.  I also treated myself to a couple of mince pies and a cup of tea in the canteen afterwards before driving back home a hot bath and afternoon of DVD watching.

Thanks Fairlands Valley Spartans for a good race – no doubt I’ll be back next year!

Coming last vs being near the front

So really I am not a fast runner (or triathlete) and my main goals are generally to either get my own new PB, or if not running for a target time then to just enjoy the day as much as possible.  I think this is fine, and 99% of runner’s attitudes out there seems to be similar and not at all negative of anyone who isn’t a sub 4hr marathon runner or equivalent.  Ok so I’ve seen one or two elitist articles arguing that ALL marathons should have a 5 hour cut off limit (apparently to deter people who don’t take it seriously?!!) - I tend to get annoyed for a few minutes then forget about it as that is clearly never going to happen (imagine the revenue lost from the charity runners!!).

I was thinking about some of my races this evening where I have actually come last, or very close to last, and compared that to the two where I’ve done very well in in comparison to the rest of the field (mainly due to luck and timing).  I came to the conclusion that there was NO difference in how much I enjoyed the race, or how pleased I was with my own performance, whether I came last or near the front.  Here are a couple of examples!

Races I’ve come last or almost last (i.e. the final finisher).

Marlow olympic-distance triathlon:  I’m not sure if I was last, but on the 2^nd lap of the run I didn’t see anyone else behind me so I may well have been!  I really was not bothered about this at all – it was my first at this distance and just wanted to complete.  I was very happy with my time of 3hr 33mins.  The other runners were very encouraging as I did my first lap (as they did their 2^nd) and although I ran the 2^nd lap alone, the marshals were great.  Plus I got the biggest cheer coming back in!!

Eden Project Marathon:  I think I was 4^th from last.  I was certainly at the back for the first 6 or 7 miles as the back runner/marshal was staying with me that whole time.  I think I later over took one guy and 2 other girls, and the results back that up.  Again no worries.  I was more concerned about finishing within the 6 hour limit (it was a very tough, cross country race, and I was already well over 5 hours with 4 miles to go).  I still got great encouragement from the volunteers both on the course and at the finish line.  Was just very pleased to have done it and there was still plenty of goodies left both at the feed stations and the finish line.  They did not have the problem of running out of supplies for the later runners there!

Triathlon club training and races:  I have come last in nearly all the evening time trials, and last in the monthly duathlon and end of season sprint tri.  In the tri I got a great cheer as everyone else was back so more people around at the finish line!

Races where I’ve done well in comparison to the masses

Pink Ribbon Walk 20 mile – this was not a race, but an un-timed walk with no results list, so I am not sure whether to count this.  But I really wanted a good time for myself and the goal was to practice power walking, race walking and very slow jogging over a long distance.  There were a few others who were obviously also marathon runners all with the same sort of funny walk/trot pace plus 3 girls at the front who walked “normally” but very quickly.  I think I came 4^th in that walk which was pretty awesome but didn’t really feel much different to whether I’d come at the back!

London – Brighton Bike Ride – I was by no means at the front of this one, but due to being in the earliest wave, having just 1 very short break and working hard the whole way round, I finished within around hour later of the first lot (around 10am – to give you an idea, people were finished from 9am onwards all day to around 5 or 6pm) so it was great fun cycling with good club riders and being well ahead of the crowds.  Again, not a race, but when you see a finish line in front and finishing before most people are even out of London it felt pretty awesome.

Being last is certainly more humbling and really more motivating.  I have never met anyone who looked down on me or anyone else for coming at the back and often you get the biggest cheers.  Every final finisher at Parkrun gets the biggest cheer!  How else are people going to be motivated to start and carry on running without such encouragement from fellow runners?

As they say, 26.2 miles is still 26.2 miles to anyone.  And a 12 min mile is the same distance as a 6 min mile.  J

Berlin Marathon 2014 - I'm in!

Ballot came through for the Berlin Marathon - and I'm in again!!  Very pleased as I thought I would not get lucky having done it this year.  It's a brilliant race so really looking forward to doing it again.

If you don't know, they went and introduced a ballot for the first time this year (for entry into the 2014 race).  Prior to this is was simply first-come-first-served, selling out in 3.5 hours.  If you got in quick, you could get a place, but this time you were at the mercy of the lottery!

Very happy to see that Dennis and Audrey have also got places :)  Just a couple of others I am waiting to find out if they got in.

The hardest decision now is how to plan my autumn.  I have my heart set on the Royal Parks Ultra (50k) but it is only 2 weeks after Berlin.  Whilst I could use that as my final "long run" I'm not sure if 2 weeks is adequate tapering time so i may do the half (would consider a charity place if not successful in that ballot).   I also have the Vitruvian Half Iron at the end of August, and still waiting to hear if I got into Ride London or not.

Some other races I have recently entered for next year: Surrey Spitfire 20 mile race (April) in preparation for the spring marathons, and the Marlow half iron triathlon (July).

This weekend I am volunteering at Parkrun (have been "promoted" to bar-code scanner!) but a little jealous as they were running the off-road route this time and I have not done that one yet.  Then on Sunday it is the Stevenage Half Marathon.  I have made the radical decision not to do any running this week until Sunday to give my legs some sort of chance to recover after Eden and the Great South Run.  They have give me a bit of grief lately - and I have just remembered that Stevenage has a 2.5 hr time limit and although i got a PB of 2.12 last year, I am not that fresh this year so cannot afford to be too sore and risk not finishing on time!!

On a not-so-good note I discovered the Bupa London 10,000 date has changed and it now clashes with the Liverpool Rock & Roll Marathon.  So looks like I will be unable to make that one now :(

Great South Run race recap 27/10/13

I love the Great Run series – they are very popular, well organised, and a lot of fun.  This time I did the Great South Run, in Portsmouth – 10 miles.  I had signed up for it a year ago – the date entries opened if I recall that far back.  I think I planned to do a decent PB at that time, but little did I know that I would have later signed up for and run the Eden Marathon a week beforehand.

Went down to on the coach transfer to Portsmouth on the morning of the race – a 4.30am start!!  It felt like we were going to be late as the traffic was really bad from as soon we left the motorway, but we still got there in good time.  It had been pouring with rain that morning when I drove to the coach pick up, and didn’t look all that much better.  I left it as long as I could to drop off my baggage in the store.  Luckily, we got really lucky with the rain holding off, and got blue skies for part of it.  The down side was the gale-force wind!

I thought the race would go one of 3 ways – very well (a PB having got super fit from 2 marathons), average (trotting round at marathon pace i.e. slow and steady) or really badly (cramping up, hitting the wall at mile 3 etc.).  Average was mostly likely, but option 3 was also a very real possibility!

It’s a big race, but soon our wave crossed the start line.  Set off really slowly (probably should have been in a later wave, but I went to the side to allow faster “white wave” runners to pass).  Legs felt like lead!!  I had done a really gentle Parkrun the previous day to loosen them off which probably helped, but was still tough.  I decided to go round at just under a 12 min mile pace if I could, and hopefully finish in under 2 hours (my 10 mile PB is 1.38 so quite a difference!).

The course was really nice – plenty of stretches along the sea front and saw some of the good sights.  Was great running past Spinnaker Tower.  It was very flat and on wide, closed roads, and although there were thousands of runners, it did not feel too crowded.  The spectators were great too – plenty of them out and about to make the most of the rain stopping.  There were several feed stations giving bottles of water and one giving out Powerade.  I had taken my hydration pack so didn’t bother, and had 2 of my own gels.

Was really feeling it by about 6 miles, but was well on pace and knew I would easily get in under 2 hours if all went ok.  There were a few out-and-back points where you doubled back on runners on the other side.  Hard on the “out” but makes you feel good on the “in”!  The final 2 miles were very hard – although a nice part of the course along the sea front, it was into a very strong headwind!  Think everyone slowed down a lot here and think people who were previously running quite hard has come to a very slow jog or walk.  The crowds were still good though and the radio station was out to cheer us on and give out jelly babies.  The finish line was on this last stretch – and thankfully rather sheltered for the final 500 meters!!

Good finish – managed a bit of a sprint – and finished in 1.56.04.  Given the timing of this one I am pretty pleased with that.

After the race I collected my bag and quickly got changed into warmer clothing as with that wind I was cooling down really quickly.  Got a tee-shirt, medal and plenty of food in the goody bag including a chocolate bar!!  Excellent!  Food is always good but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to lug the bottle of Powerade around with me as I only tend to drink the stuff at circuits class or cycling.  I was hoping to head to the shopping centre and/or go up Spinnaker Tower but I realised there wasn’t time, as the coach left at 3pm and time was getting on.  Instead I popped into the Alzheimer’s Society charity tent as I had made a donation to them on behalf of this race – they were very hospitable and gave me a cup of hot soup and another chocolate bar.   Also got a free sports massage courtesy of Bupa – a nice gentle one, rather than a horrible tortuous massage!  Was quite chuffed when the lady said she could not believe I had just run 2 marathons in the last month as had virtually no tension in my muscles (well it sure felt like they did!).  Was quite blissful to get a massage, need to treat myself to more of these!

Was late getting back, due to taking a long time to get out of Portsmouth and then slow traffic on the motorways but once I got home I was able to relax and have my post-run ice cream and a hot bath.

Eden Project Marathon - Race recap

My race report for the Eden Project Marathon

This was one tough race!  I’m still not sure whether they officially class it as a trail marathon, but I would certainly say it is.  One thing is for sure, it was nothing like Berlin or London!  Having just done Berlin and wanting to try a trail race, I was not setting myself any time targets (other than to not get disqualified for going over the time limit!).

I headed to Cornwall on Saturday, taking the train from London, and checked into my very nice guesthouse.  The owners were lovely and came to pick me up from the station, plus offered me a lift to the Eden Project the next morning for the race.  I had a nice evening carb-loading at a pub over-looking the harbour, then got my gear sorted and tried to have an early night. 

Unfortunately during the night I was woken up twice by torrential rain!! Going to be a very wet and muddy run!

Next morning I arrived at the Eden Project nice and early, and met up with Ryan and Lucy – Ryan was running his first marathon (2^nd counting a 26.2 mile training run!!).  We had a short briefing in the car park – there were about 300 runners – and then it was off to the start.  I was wearing a trail tee-shirt and capris, but was not cold at all – slightly worried I would get too hot.  The race started at the same time for both full and half marathon runners.

Set off at 10am, a good crowd, not too packed – although I was soon near the back.  Seemed to be mostly club runners, a small number of charity runners, and only 2 in fancy dress.  Straight into a steep downhill at the beginning – down into the valley, where no doubt we could only go up from here!

Very quickly we were onto the trails, through the woodlands and past a river.  It was amazing scenery, following the track of an old tramline.  I was well at the back expect for a few half marathon runners behind me so the back runner switched between running alongside them and myself.   We chatted a bit, but we would talk a lot more later.

The course was very hilly – there was only a few parts that were flat, so very difficult to get a pace going!!  At 7.5 miles the route split – full marathon runners going one way and the half’s turning the opposite way.  I actually only just made it by about 5 minutes in the cut off time for the full-marathon check point.  A few minutes later and I would have been forced to switch to the half.  I also was informed that the full marathon also had a total cut off time of 6 hours.  I was a bit concerned here, as I was sure I could do it – unless I was injured or hit the “wall” and I would have no contingency time to fall back on.  I really wish I’d know that when I signed up, but luckily although I was not pushing for a decent time, I knew I had very little leeway should anything go wrong or I was feeling too sore/tired after Berlin to give it 100%.

Here I caught up with a guy going for his first full.  The back runner ran with us and we spent a while chatting.  Much more fun as it made the next few miles pass really quickly!  It started raining heavily for a while – I was too hot at first but now was actually an ideal temperature!  I had been listening to my iPod on and off but stopped it when we got chatting – plus I didn’t want it ruined by the rain!  We also got some ominous-sounding thunder and a few flashes of lightning.  Atmospheric indeed.

At mile 10 I lost them again (overtaking, at least) as we started the ascent of Helman Tor.  Good grief this was a shock.  Could hardly walk it – let alone run it!  Amazing views from the top as the skies has cleared by this point, but I did not get long to admire it as it was back down the other side. 

The next hour or so was just miles of thick, sticky mud, and not much of a view as there were high bushes on either side of the track. Plus it was mostly uphill and very lonely as although I had overtaken 2 people now (no longer at the back!) we were just so spread out that I didn’t see any apart from a couple of marshals.  By the way, the marshals were amazing – very encouraging and friendly, especially after standing in the rain in the middle of nowhere for hours on end!

Between miles 14 – 16 (I think) there was a tricky but beautiful route through the forest.  The first part was downhill and very steep, slippery with hairpin turns, but it did level out for a while and we ran alongside the river – this was one of my favourite parts of the race.  Plus always good when you hit 16 miles as into single figures for counting down the miles. 

At 17 miles the route goes back onto the first part of the route, which we’d ran earlier – we’d then do the rest of the route as the half’s did.  Although back onto (mostly) tarmac, it was even more hilly that I had remembered, and the bits I had managed to run up first time round I was now walking!  There were some great signs up along the way that the running club has created, saying “no pain, no gain”, and “keep smiling”.  Keep grimacing more like.  I was rather bored and weary by now do put my iPod back on.  I think I shall forever more associate “Up” by Shania Twain with the hills of this marathon!

At mile 23 my Garmin battery died.  Sure sign I was taking too long – I’d passed over 5 hours by now.  I was just wanting to get it over and done with, luckily the marshals were still really great and cheered me on, and offered loads of food including cake bars out of their own personal lunch which was just great of them.  I overtook one final lady in these last few miles, and wished her well in the final bit.  It was the first runner I had seen since the half way point.

It was good coming back towards the Eden Project, although miles 24-26 really felt like a lot longer!  The final bit is all downhill, but it actually quite hard work on your knees, and have to be careful on the wet pavement.  The final mile weaved down into the site so it was difficult to know how much further you had to run.  At this point there were a lot more people about – marshals, finished runners (saw first glimpse of the medal!) and members of the public visiting Eden.  FINALLY you reach mile 26 so just a 365 yard downhill dash to the finish line!!

Good a nice welcoming cheer home from those at the finish area, and a nice big shiny medal, tee-shirt and voucher for a pasty and a pint in the finisher’s tent.  The pasty was soooo tasty after that run!  I got changed and tried to clean up with baby wipes – very, very muddy! – then met up with Ryan and Lucy.  We went for a bite to eat at the local pub – had a cheesecake and latte, not the most substantial meal was delicious after the marathon!  It was a great day overall and so pleased to have done it, plus brilliant to catch up with Lucy and Ryan after quite a few years.  Later on once we had said goodbye (as all in need of an early night!) got to spent the rest of the evening relaxing in the bath and watching an old Nicolas Cage & Sean Connery action movie on Channel 5.

My official finish time was 5.48.00.  Big thanks to the Eden Project and St Austell running club.  I am not sure I’ll be doing it again anytime soon but it was well worth it and a great day out!

Circuits and short run

I went for a really short, easy run yesterday at lunchtime - I ran for about 20 minutes so doubt it was even for 2 miles!  I just wanted to keep sharp and make sure that a niggly hurt in my knee was not going to affect me too much while running.  Luckily I didn't feel any pain out at all.  I also wore my longer capris as I've not worn them since March, as it's likely I'll need something warmer than shorts for this marathon on Sunday.  Yesterday's run was very wet and rainy - I should have waited until after work when it had turned sunny!

On Tuesday I did the circuits class with Tri-Force which was good fun.  Sadly I can never manage all the exercises as my tailbone injury from last February (yes, nearly 2 years ago!!) can still be painful and I have to avoid things like burpees and other jolting exercises.  Running is always fine as it's so steady, but skipping and star jumps means it begins to twinge and others are just full on no-no.   I have no idea if this will go away any time soon but at least it doesn't affect my running, cycling or swimming!

I haven't cycled to work much this week apart from Tuesday, partly as it really has been quite dark and wet, and also as it's taper week so a good excuse to rest.  Today until Saturday are proper rest days and carb-loading before the Eden Project marathon on Sunday.

Going to be my first cool-weather marathon and looking forward to wearing my new trail top!

Tuesday round up: Half Iron Tri, Eden Project Marathon & Herts 10k

Just a quickish round up of what I've been up to since Berlin, and got coming up.  Been to a few Parkruns - last week following the marathon was really tough as my legs had clearly not recovered!  This weeks was much better though and knocked off a few minutes although still a pretty modest time especially for a 5k.  I'll work on my speed and getting closer to my PB when fully recovered from the long runs!

On Sunday there were a few of us doing the Herts 10k, a local charity race that supports a hospice charity called Grove House.  Very popular and good cause, about 3,000 runners this year and entries filled up faster than ever.  Good to see more and more people getting into running and that races are filling up!  It was a horrendous day though - poured with the the entire time and some parts of the course were very muddy and waterlogged.  Glad I wore trail shoes as there was no staying dry on this one!  Finished in 61 minutes, which I was fairly pleased with.  I wasn't expecting a PB in those conditions (I managed one last year at this race), and would have been very happy with a sub-60, but the mud and extra effort required for several kilometers meant it was not to be.  Happy to get under 62 minutes though (faster than a 10 min/mile pace).  I was almost on track for 60 minutes at 8km had it not been for the part where we left the hard path and back onto the mud and grass!

This weekend is the Eden Project Marathon.  I am both very nervous and excited about this.  I am going to take it easy and enjoy the scenery as there is no point in aiming for a good time.  I hear it is a very tough, hilly marathon though, so hopefully it won't wear me out too much!  My nightmare would be getting too weary and missing the full marathon cut off point at mile 8 and being instructed to do the half marathon instead (i.e. turn back).  Hopefully it all all be fine, though!  I will take the train to Cornwall on Saturday and then stay until Monday afternoon, the B&B I have booked looks really nice and the owner has promised to have croissants available on race morning for me!  I hear there is someone from skydiving also doing this one so will be good to see a familiar face!

Finally another bit of adventure coming my way is the Vitruvian Triathlon next August - which will be my first half-iron triathlon!  1900m swim - 85k bike - 21k run - bring it on!!!

Airkix, Park Run and volunteering at Royal Parks Half

Ah, that funny period in between marathons!  8 days since Berlin (the "serious" race) and 13 days til Eden Project Marathon (the "fun" race).  Needless to say I did not do any running for a few days after Berlin.  I was on my feet a lot the following day doing some touristy stuff and seeing the sights, but whenever there was a chair I grabbed the chance to sit down!  I'm glad the day involved a fair amount of walking though, as it probably helped ease the stiffness.  Wasn't impressed with being on the 3rd floor of the youth hostel though with no lift - going downstairs with a big bag was a nightmare!

I didn't really do any exercise til Friday evening, and having had the whole week of work it was a great excuse to take it easy and have some lie-ins and lazy sofa days!  Bliss!  I couldn't do it for long but there's nothing like having a duvet day knowing it's well and truly earned.  All the best things about being ill, without actually being ill.

Friday I went to Airkix Basingstoke for a Scrambles competition.  For non-skydivers, this was a fun competition event in the brand new indoor wind tunnel, involving teams of 4 trying to out-fly other teams.  We had a really great night of flying and was great to catch up with and fly with a fellow triathlete/skydiver as well!  Need to fly more often as the months have gone by doing so much running and tri that I forget how awesome the tunnel is.  Our team "Anything Cheesy" came 6th out of 12 so not bad but it was all about having a good night out and flying with new people of different levels.  A couple of hairy moments involving unintentional backflying and a scrum on the net, but it would not be a proper Scrambles without that sort of thing!

I wasn't sure if I'd make Park Run on Saturday morning given that I didn't get to bed til 2am on Friday night, but I ended up being wide awake at 6.30am and couldn't get back to sleep so thought I may as well get up and give Park Run a go.  Was planning on doing a short, easy run sometime over the weekend to check the legs still worked and always more fun in a big group.

Park Run was good fun, even though my iPod battery died 10 seconds into the run (not reliant on the music, but nice to have).  Went round gently in a very modest 33 minutes, legs felt alright - not stiff or sore but was finding it quite hard work, like running uphill or as if it was a very hot day.  The coffee and cake at the park cafe with Rich and a couple of others was well enjoyed afterwards though!

On Sunday I was volunteering at the Royal Parks Half Marathon.  This was a great day out with my friend Pat, we were at the finish line firstly setting up the goodies/drinks/water etc and then handing them out as finishers crossed the line.  Saw all 16,000 runners start and finish the race!  It was totally manic for about 2.5 hours handing our bottles of Lucozade and bags to everyone, literally didn't stop and the time just flew by.  Hugely impressed by each and every runner, from the first man through to the final runners walking/hobbling through the finish line at 1pm.  Great to see that side of things and does give you a new perspective on running as you see how people cope with the distance, whether it's aiming for a PB or just wanting to finish.  Congrats to Matt too with an epic PB of 1.23, he came through very early and well before the rush of the masses came in!

Today it's back into the Tri-Force training schedule but think I will try and get away with not putting in 100% effort this week, hopefully they will understand!  Swimming tonight will be good as be nice to do some exercise which doesn't involve pounding the streets on poor sore legs.  Circuits tomorrow might be a killer though if doing squats!  That is out of the question!  Might also try for a short 2-3 mile run this week.  By Sunday I am hoping I will be find to do the Herts 10k, this time last year it was also 2 weeks after the Loch Ness Marathon and I'd recovered enough and got a PB so lets see if I can get my time back under 1 hour.

Berlin Marathon - Race Recap

Well I'm pleased to say I had a brilliant race at the 40th Berlin Marathon 2013 - and yes, at long last, got a new PB!  Really, really pleased!

So I headed to Berlin on Friday, taking the Eurostar and intercity express trains to the city centre.  It was a long day and a lot of travelling, but an overland train journey across Europe has been on the bucket list for some time so it was well worth the long hours.  Plenty of time to relax and less stressful than taking the plane and worrying about baggage allowances and security measures.

I headed to the Expo on Saturday, to pick up my race number and so a bit of shopping.  It was a huge expo, well over twice the size of the VLM expo and totally packed  Loads of overseas runners!  I think about 50% of entrants are from outside Germany.  Got my race pack (number, timing chip, info, tee-shirt, and strangely the finisher's shirt).  On the way out they put a wristband on you for security.  I did not look too much at the finisher's shirt in fear of jinxing it!

That night I slept ok, but not great - it was like Christmas Eve!  Woke up very early and had a light breakfast of croissants and tea.  My running gear was to be an Adidas Aktiv vest top, black shorts, hydration pack, iFitness race belt and sunglasses.  2 packs of Clif Shot Bloks and 4 packs of Clif Gels.  Headed off to the start area, an impressive area in front of the Riechstag building.  It was packed already and took me ages to work out which tent for dropping off my baggage!  Long queue for loos, but there always is (ended up going in the bushes right before the start too!  It has to be done!) then finally made it to the start.  The start is stunning and a huge affair, 40,000 runners on a tree-lined street in Berlin's beautiful Tiergarten park.  The start was in waves, so less crowded - it was a long wait before we set off, but once you were running it was pretty much clear.

I took the first mile a little slow (about 12 min/miles) to just enjoy it.  It was a fantastic course and loads of support.  The weather was perfect - blue skies, slight cool wind and not too warm.  It was not very crowded and I felt like I had plenty of space.  The course was very fast - flat with long, wide, straight roads with very few sharp corners and no annoying u-turns or hairpin bends, so the crowd of runners flowed very easily with no congestion.

Paced myself using my Garmin, taking it a bit easier than I did at London where I followed the sub-5 hour pacer who sadly was a bit too fast for me.  Good to see that at 5 miles I was at about 55 minutes.  At 10 miles I was feeling really good and comfortably under 2 hours so picked the pace up slightly.  Knew if I got under 3.55 for the 20 miler I would have a good shot at the PB.  15 miles still all going to plan.  The water stations were nicely spaced, although I took small sips from my hydration pack in between.  Took a gel every hour and blocs 2-3 times an hour, plus apple or banana when offered.  Pace was faster now, around 11.15 min miles although wasn't sure if I was going to keep that up after 20 miles!  Still, at mile 18 had my best mile by far (10.45ish) as I heard Wilson Kipsang had broken the world record!  I passed through a big media area and there was a guy holding up a board with the news!  It was really exciting knowing I was part of a WR-breaking race so really wanted to break my own PB.

20 miles was a new PB for that distance at 3.49 and I knew a PB was on the cards, and maybe, maybe a sub 5 hour.  Only problem would be keeping up just over an 11 min mile pace for the final 6 miles.  Although was still feeling pretty good by then, it wasn't getting any easier and by 22 miles I was slowing down.  Told myself it was totally normal and it was just stiffness, no injuries so just carrying on pumping the arms and keep going.  A sub-5 was really touch and go, and I'd need to do the final 5k in just over 30 minutes if i was to achieve it.  My Garmin was also playing tricks as well, as it appeared to be ahead of the official mile markers.  So I was concerned that it had me at a faster pace/further distance than I was.  I may have run further due to weaving in and our or taking the long way round corners, but i wanted my official finish time to be sub 5, not just the Garmin.

The final few kilometres are really teasing - just like London - as you do several turns, each time expecting to see the famous Brandenburg Gate in front of you which marks roughly 42km and the very final finishing stretch.  After turning through the new Berlin city we finally made it to the long stretch with the Brandenburg Gate in the distance!  This part of the race was incredible - the crowds were huge, TV camera everywhere, music playing, just amazing.  My Garmin was indeed fast - it ticked over 26.2 miles (in just under 5 hours, grrr!!!).  Still really enjoyed it though, even when the watch passed 5 hours, as I knew a PB was practically guaranteed now.  Semi-sprinted to the finish, passing through the Gate with hundreds of runners, a real once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, running past the cameras and hearing someone in the crowd shout my name, and "wow!, Go for it!" in English, and crossing the line!!

Literally couldn't believe I'd finished - it was all over!  I'd felt really good and had not hit the wall at all - until I stopped running that is!  Then my legs seized up and I had to hobble through the finishing funnels.  I was really happy when the volunteer put the medal round my neck and i was handed my goody bag consisting of all food/drink (good!).  Walked slowly back to get my bag, feeling so happy and letting it all sink in.  My final time was 5 hours 3 minutes (2 mins 44 secs of my Loch Ness Marathon time) so very happy.  Not quite under 5 hours, but it's now a real possibility.

Had a lazy afternoon, watching the end of the prize giving ceremony and slowly limping back to the hotel for a nice shower and watching a few films on my tablet!  Would have liked to go to the marathon after party but being there on my own I wasn't up for it, plus was totally worn out and needed an early night!

Marathon splits! (Clock/Time/Min per km/ km per hour)
5 km 09:52:31 00:36:55 36:55 07:23 8.13
10 km 10:29:14 01:13:38 36:43 07:21 8.17
15 km 11:05:34 01:49:57 36:19 07:16 8.26
20 km 11:41:47 02:26:11 36:14 07:15 8.28
Half 11:49:41 02:34:05 07:54 07:12 8.35
25 km 12:17:44 03:02:08 28:03 07:12 8.35
30 km 12:52:25 03:36:49 34:41 06:57 8.65
35 km 13:27:33 04:11:57 35:08 07:02 8.54
40 km 14:03:45 04:48:08 36:11 07:15 8.29
Finish 14:18:37 05:03:00 14:52 06:47 8.86

Goodies:  1 x technical ladies fit race tee-shirt.  1 x cotton ladies fit finisher's tee-shirt.  Beautiful medal with 40th Anniversary decoration on the lanyard, with space for engraving on the back.  Croissants, energy power sachet, nuts, salty twiglet things, apple, energy gels, bottle of water, pint of beer, box of pasta, magazine, several vouchers.

Photos below
Looking down at part of the route in Potsdamer  Platz
The Brandenburg Gate
My race number and medal
Finisher's medal - front (says "Berlin. Run once.  Run Forever")
Finisher's medal - back
Me in my finisher's shirt with medal and number
Wilson Kipsang - men's winner and new world record holder!

 

3 Days to Go!

This will probably be my last blog post before the Berlin Marathon, so wish me luck!!  I only had a half day at work today so left at lunchtime, I leave tomorrow from St Pancras, taking the Eurostar/train to Berlin, and arriving tomorrow night.  Saturday I'll go to the expo and pick up my race packet!  Sunday is the big day!  I can't wait.

This week I have taken it pretty easy.  Having done the 20 miler at the beginning of September, and then another 20 and two half's in a short space a couple of weeks ago, I'm really confident about the distance.  I decided not to do a "long run" at the weekend though, instead I did a very gentle 3 mile jog round the fields on Saturday, and a sprint distance triathlon (pool based) with the club on Sunday morning.  I didn't want to over do it on Sunday though so took the triathlon pretty easy.  I also marshaled at Park Run on Saturday which was good fun and will certainly help out again soon.

On Monday I didn't do much, cycled to work as usual but didn't go swimming with Tri-Force in the evening.  Tuesday went for a run with Darren before work and did just under 5 miles, probably a bit faster than I'd have liked too so that'll be my last medium-effort run then!

Wednesday was also quite relaxed, I only cycled to work, and this morning I did a VERY easy 20 minute run with a walk to start and cool down.  It was probably under 2 miles altogether - spending longer getting ready than I did running!  I wore a new vest that I may need to wear on Sunday, along with my Camelbak, to make sure it was comfortable.

Started sorting out my stuff for Berlin including printing out the runner's guide off the internet, marking all the important points on the map and making a list of clothing to take.  Yet again I am torn about what to wear top-wise.  Every marathon I am undecided for the simple reason that it's nearly always going to be warm, which means wearing a vest, and none of my vests are that comfortable for 26 miles (and I have at least 15 in my wardrobe that I've bought over time so it's not like I haven't tried and tested many different makes!  I just prefer sleeves!).  This time I will be running with my camelbak, which chafes the back of my neck and needs to be worn over a top with a high neck.  As mentioned above I FINALLY found a high-necked running vest from TK Maxx.  Only problem is I have only jogged 2 miles in it so really hope it does the job for 26.2.  Never a good idea to run in new gear but anything must be better than the backpack taking the skin off the back of my neck for 5 hours!  Anyway hopefully it will be fine, after 18 miles I will probably not care much by that point anyway.

So now I just need to think positive and know that I've done as much training as I can.  They say 90% of running a marathon is in the training, so this will just be the icing on the cake...