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2010 Dublin Marathon Novices/Sub-4:30 Mentored Thread
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Congrats to everyone here that reached their goals and to those that didn't-there's always next year!
I am so delighted with myself! Got in at 4.09 and still cant believe it! I am my own worst enemy when it comes to my running ability and I was always second guessing myself whether I could actually achieve running the marathon...and guess what?? I did!!!
It was a glorious day, couldn't have asked for better. Nice crisp morning with the the sun shining.
Running through Phoenix Park was fab- it was one of my highlights. I had the great company of MrSlow (who was far from running slow!) for a while which was a great distraction-although I'm not sure if I was even making any sense half the time!
The last two miles were really really tough but if I could only bottle that feeling of crossing the finishing line I would be rich. All those tough LSR's and speed training was so worth it and really paid off.
Thanks to everyone here for all your advice and virtual company
Bring on DCM 2011
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nachoqueen wrote: »digger i think well done to you for finishing , you dug into unknown depths im sure to keep going, that will stand to you. i think this will just give you more hunger to nail it next time, and there will be a next time.
you did a great time in the half, for what its worth i did my first marathon in 430 and the last one in 3.41 , was just in a a much more experienced place.
even though my back is banjaxed i feel i have loads more runs in me, and so do you !
Thanks B. 0 -
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digger, did you see Maeve Higgins out supporting??! I was delighted but spent the next 6 miles thinking "she was definitely mentioned on the thread. why were we talking about her?". my head was wrecked thinking of it! seriously, it did my head in til the end. (ans=she posted tips for headcolds on her fb)
Nah, didn't see her, pity, could have done with a good laugh
...I saw Des Bishop though... 0 -
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Next time I'm taking a week off to recover! Didn't sleep a whole lot over the last two nights and my early taxi this morning was a nightmare... Not quite like a zombie sitting at my desk but I'm sure come 6/7 o'clock that's exactly how I'll feel!
Was having a think earlier what my next one will be - big change from the 'never doing a bloody marathon again' thoughts I had on Monday and yesterday 0 -
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Next time I'm taking a week off to recover! Didn't sleep a whole lot over the last two nights and my early taxi this morning was a nightmare... Not quite like a zombie sitting at my desk but I'm sure come 6/7 o'clock that's exactly how I'll feel!
Was having a think earlier what my next one will be - big change from the 'never doing a bloody marathon again' thoughts I had on Monday and yesterday
Really felt bad for you on Monday S, glad you're looking forward.RacoonQueen wrote: »You're doing Barcelona.
You must be on commission.;)0 -
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chinguetti wrote: »RQ, i ain't doing Barcelona before you sign me up. However i will assist in the lsr on Saturdays and Sundays as before.
Back to back LSR's? I love them! 0 -
Turns out I didn't have taper madness and am just a general idiot without any excuse (unless there's post-race madness?) cos I arrived back in Waffleland today having left my wallet, keys and phone in the car at Dublin airport! penniless and phoneless, I blagged my way from Charleroi to town (tears and crap French were the clincher) and am now in my office on my day off waiting for one of my roommates to come home to let me into our 6 storey house where my room is on - guess which floor? well the fifth, but bad enough.
time now to gather my thoughts
Saturday: not nervous. excited to be home. arrived in expo. felt a bit of a fraud. was thinking "these are all runners, what are you doing here?". went home. noticed new signpost at the bottom of my road: "Trim (right) 6km, Dublin (left) 41km". thought this was funny, but I'm easily amused.
Sunday: not nervous at all, just thought "what's the worst that can happen?". got a good night's sleep.
Monday: great excitement at the start. met Jemily in the startup. and a woman who was touching 70 and doing her 10th dublin marathon. my gameplan was to do 11 min miles throughout with the exception of the first three cos I wanted to run a bit with my friend who was goin for a faster time and who roped me into all this in the first place! the first few miles were a nice warmup. my plan to slow after mile 3 then turned into "definitely after mile 4" and then "i feel fine i'll slow after 5". i eventually copped on and realised obviously i was feeling fine cos it was only 5 miles out of a 26 mile race! also i reeealy had to pee at this point. after talking about it for two miles i eventually settled on what was the perfect tree - close to the road but also good coverage - and so i parted with my friend and mile 6, cos of toilet stop, was my first spot on timewise with 11mins. (as it turned out, it wasn't the 'perfect tree'. squatted down. looked up: woman right in front of me out for a stroll with her 3 kids. niiiiice.) after mile 6 and a half Jemily x 2 passed me by and I'd another reality check re speed "has she really been behind me for an hour? flip."
miles 6-13 were hard enough. I missed the company of my bud and I was hot and thirsty, needing water more often than they were giving it to me. this was my own fault also. i'd bought a cheap hoody I'd planned to bin. I was warm enough by mile 10 but I quite liked it and knowing my family were gonna be at mile 13 I hung onto it. when they were nowhere to be seen at mile 13 I cursed them to hell for never showing up to anything and threw my beloved €11 hoody to the ground. (after 100m I had to retract all these sentiments as there they were! i smiled for the camera...then gave them short sharp directions to the whereabouts of the jumper). These miles, i wasn't feling the love for the running too much. I kept thinking I'd passed 12 miles and then I'd see the 10 mile marker approaching. and I actually contemplated how easy it would be to just duck out unnoticed! was very surprised at how many people were walking at this point.
from mile 17 the miles were slowing to 12 and 13 min miles but I didnt mind cos I was enjoying it again. my goal changed a lot throughout: 11 min miles, 4 hours 45, 5 hours, finish without walking...JUST FINISH!!!
at mile 20, my watch said I'd 73 minutes to finish the race to make it under 5. quick mental calculation said it was doable but I was also realistic: the miles were getting longer and anything could happen in the next 6.2 miles. I was flagging a bit but remembered an article mrslow had posted about hitting the wall (dont think i hit wall during the race. became tired obviously but nothing as instantaneous or dramatic as "THE WALL!") which recommended speeding up. I decided to do this and "invented" a second wind. the next three miles were back on track to my planned 11 min miles. even at the hill in clonskeagh , most people walked but i put the head down and sprinted up it. somewhere round clonskeagh a man announced "that's the end of the incline' and i was shocked and said "oh was there an incline there?" - I'd say I was NOT popular!! but was delighted I hadn't noticed it!
Nutley Lane was very dissapointing supporter-wise and this was when I needed it most. mile 23-24 was my toughest. I saw a park bench and thought a lie-down would be nice right now. I settled for a sit down. and was sitting about 5 seconds, enjoying the race go by, when a man in a Craughwell AC shirt barked at me to get up and keep moving so i jumped up and ran on ( i didnt mind at all and was very grateful to him! i actually think he might have finished his own race and come back to help others cos he had a red number and seemed to be solely coaxing others along). really hard at this point though and I walked for about a minute and a half, thinking: "at least you're moving forward". at one point I stopped and a woman turned round and saw me and told me to walk to avoid cramp. I ran along but my run was the same pace as her walk. around this point also i was causing heads to turn with the groans I was letting out of me.
at mile 24 i just repeated "you can do this you can do this" and i found my third(?) wind and upped my pace again. the crowd was fabulous and i was glad i was wearing sunglasses cos with every "c'mon you're doing great" I was welling up :cool:. at mile 25, i gazed longingly into my old boozer, the Gingerman, and pushed on with my pace again, all the way round Trinity, strong up Nassau Street til the 26 mile mark when I went for the sprint finish and over the line, came to an abrupt halt. an ambulance volunteer was right there to ask if I was ok and I was.
i loved the whole race. but for me, the start and bits in between were more enjoyable than crossing the finish line. I just didn't get that euphoric feeling at the end and just thought: "so that's that then".
chip time: 04:57:30
first half: 02:29:11
second half: 02:28:19
couldn't fault the organisers on a single thing. the whole day was spot on.
26.2+: the walk to mcGrattan's was sloooooow. by the time I got there, my parents had already been a while. no running experience between them but they'd been there long enough to have picked up enough tidbits to be convinced they'd actually run a marathon. I arrived in to my dad doling out running tips to two guys in finisher t-shirts and my mam positively flirting with Eamonn Coughlan. met a few boardsies: mr and mrs slow, rainbow, ray, xebec, chinguetti, emer911. but was generally unsociable (sorry!). too tired to eat or drink, i was napping at the table.
of all my goals of the day, by far the most ambitious was thinking I'd be in Coppers at 3am - yeah roysh! was in bed at 9:15 and was delighted to be!!
I started this running lark to lose weight. not overweight medically speaking, just vain, strictly speaking. Lost a few pounds, definitely not a fair trade for 500 odd miles! unfortunately I got hooked along the way. so I will defo see you round races in the future! I dont think anything will ever compare to this first marathon though. I loved it. the weather and the people and the city and the atmosphere and the novelty. I'd say 24 out of the 26 miles were familiar to me as places I'd lived, studied, worked, played...and I just loved all of it (even if I thought I was hating it at the time!)
Highlights
-my dad asking me my marathon number so he could 'recognise' me in the race - "my face is fairly recognisable Da and you know that"
-the national anthem at the start. a nice touch. psyched me up and couldn't resist an aul "c'mon Meath"
-finding that tree
-seeing a friend out to support in the Park
-Tina Turner "Simply the Best" blaring in the Park
-spotting the seallions
-trumpets of support from the elephants
-the very enthusiastic 10 year old ambulance volunteer who said "if there's anything hurting at all folks, we have vaseline in the truck" and then getting a thump from an older volunteer. so cute!
-the guy out with his guitar serenading us
-Maeve Higgins out in support
-all the supporters, esp the ones at Terenure. they were the loudest and it gave me a great lift.
-highfiving every kid that offered me their hand
-all the free food. like trick-or-treating. i didnt miss one thing on offer!
-seeing my family half way and at 20 miles
-the man who answered his phone "hiya, yeah i'm doing the marathon"
-the auld one in the race who said to the auld one in the street "howya Peggy, I'll be in for a cuppa tea after"
-the man with the sign "you're all brilliant and insane"
-the four Polish guys at mile 10 out to support, drinking Miller
-the little girl at mile 10 out to support, in pyjamas and roller skates
-panned out on couch three hours later and opening the goodie bag to find a box of jaffa cakes. they lasted 40seconds.
lowpoints
-seeing that family after i'd found the perfect tree (lowpoint in my life actually)
-trying to think why we were talking abut maeve higgins
-missing some of the mile markers. very unsettling!
-rounding the corner after Chapelizod to face that hill and thinking " 'slight incline' my arse!"
-the yankee doodle dandy supporter that said "great JAWWWWWWWWGING" - fcuk you lady, i'm not jogging i'm running
-spotted a guy midrace with an LMFM microphone. I offered him the opportunity to interview me. he turned me down.
-the km that had every 100m marked. for me, just highlighted how far apart they were!
-the RTE mast never getting any closer and knowing that RTE is still a good feckin way out of town!
-my tried and tested pants giving me a wedgie the whole way round
-the medal. don't like Molly on it.
(y'all are lucky I left my watch in the car too, cos I could've given blow by blow for every single mile then :P)0 -
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I've done up a more detailed report of my race below.
Hope other people enjoy it as much as I've enjoyed reading everyone elses.
DCM 2010
I only decided to do this in late July having had no running experience other than a couple of X-country events in school. 12 weeks of hard work and maybe I could go under 4 hours were my original thoughts. Training went well and I gradually saw myself getting faster as my times started to improve. 1:25 for the 10 miler. 1:47 for the half. Did the Athlone 3/4 in 2:38 but felt I injured myself in the last 3 miles as my left leg really started to hurt. Last 2 weeks of training didnt go so well as I had abandon my last 2 LSRs to rest the leg in the hope it would be ok for the big day. Last week before the DCM I felt nothing on my last few short runs so was relatively confident going into Monday. Set myself a new goal of sub 3:40 which I felt was achieveable once my leg didn't play up again.
Now I just had to decide which pace group to go with. 3.30 for as long as possible and try to hang on or the 3.45 and try to pick up the pace in the last few miles. I decided the 3.30 option was the best one for me. Lined up about 10 yards behind the 3 pacers at the start and was feeling fit and ready. Lost about 60-80 yards on them due to congestion in the first 2 miles but manged to get back into position by the time we had reached the Park gates. Running with this group was a terrific experience and the camaraderie was unbelieveable. The pacers hit every mile almost on the button and one of them would inform us of our progress followed by a roar of "Come on the 3.30". Brilliant stuff. I felt really comfortable at this pace and didnt even notice the miles going by. I was passing under the halfway mark at Walkinstown before I knew it.
Down Cromwellsfort Road, Kimmage Road and onto Fortfield Road. We had now passed the 15 mile mark and I was feeling my first semblance of pain. My dodgy left leg was playing up again. The pace was now hurting but the loud roar as we passed mile 16 inspired me to stick with them. Coming down through Terenure I started to slowly fall behind. Pain was getting greater and they were moving further ahead. Passing the 17 mile pole I knew I had to let them go. I might hold on for 2 or 3 more miles but not 9.2.
Now I was on my own. But I knew sub 3:40 was still on. Once I didn''t stop to a walk I felt it was achieveable. It was very lonely from then on but the support from the enthusiastic crowds lining the streets through Milltown and Clonskeagh kept me moving at a consistent jog. The hill at Roebuck Road/Fosters Avenue was a real struggle. I would like to thank the elderly man who informed me that once I got to the traffic lights it was all downhill from there. I hadn't got the energy to do it at the time. This really perked me up and once I got there I seemed to glide through the next 3 miles down the dual carriageway, over the flyover and down past RTE. Just over 3 miles to go now. I can do it. My body is aching. Feels like it's constantly telling me to stop and is punishing me for disobeying. It was getting really painful now.
Past the 24 pole and onto what felt like the biggest climb on the course over the canal. Approaching the 25 pole I can hear the crowds cheering and the sound of the mega-phones. I'm nearly there. A glance to my left and I see runners going the opposite direction to the finish. Right turn coming up. Torture! So near, yet so far. Up Pearse Street and around the bend at College Green. At least I'm heading in the right direction now. Managed to pick up the pace for 200 yards as I neared the 26 pole. I'm in agony at this stage. I pass the 26 and I still can't see the finish. Where is it? When will this torture end?
Finally the finish is in sight. I'm running on empty. Must be pure adrenaline keeping me going. I pass under the clock and it reads 3:40:xx. A quick glance at my own watch says 3:39:xx. I did it! My first thoughts are: "Never again. Why would you volunteer to put yourself through that pain?"
Eight celebratory pints and a nights sleep later and I want to do another one. Where do I sign up?
This running lark is addictive!
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