Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie
2012 4 Races for 4 PBs
Comments
-
-
-
-
-
-
Advertisement
-
-
-
-
Platinum
3:18.43 and negative split. [1:39.47 + 1:38.56]
Cautious and controlled the whole way round. Waiting for a blow-up, but it never came. Thrilled with this. First time in 7 marathons that I didn't blow-up.
Finished feeling strong (but certainly glad to be finishing).
Pints are calling.
Garmin Link0 -
-
Advertisement
-
-
-
Perfectly executed, well done......outforarun wrote: » Platinum
3:18.43 and negative split. [1:39.47 + 1:38.56]
Cautious and controlled the whole way round. Waiting for a blow-up, but it never came. Thrilled with this. First time in 7 marathons that I didn't blow-up.
Finished feeling strong (but certainly glad to be finishing).
Pints are calling.
Garmin Link0 -
-
-
-
-
New Marathon PB of 3:18.43
Finished 127th of 1133 finishers. (or 12th in a race of 100)
Pre-Race
I woke on Monday morning and glanced outside, pale blue sky.
I pop downstairs to the hotel breakfast area. Two slices of brown toast, two Weetabix with some sugar, a croissant and 2 cups of black tea. I was feeling very full. Yesterday at lunchtime I’d eaten a large fillet of hake, some floury boiled potatos, turnip, carrots and peas. Then in the evening I decided against pasta and went for rice instead (a 72 at Wagamama). One glass of red Sunday night. Have I eaten too much?
By the time I got back to my room and into my gear the sky had darkened and the wind was picking up. I head outside with about 25 minutes to go. Pick up a 500ml bottle of water enroute to the start line. I’m not feeling very nervous, I’m feeling quite calm. The weather continues to dis-improve. I find a spot between the 3:15 and the 3:30 pacers. Smell of deep-heat. We inch forward and a few minutes later we’re off.
01K-10K in 46:52
Target pace is 4:42 [7:34], and even splits is the plan. There is quite a bit of congestion for the first 800ms or so. I keep the 3:15 balloons in sight and weave left and right until I find some clear road. Congestion ceases to be an issue once we leave the South Mall. I’m travelling too fast and I apply the brakes. Even applying the brakes I’m still travelling too fast. Target pace feels impossibly slow at this point. I remind myself that it won’t feel so easy all morning.
We make our brief visit into Blackpool and head back down to the quays. I have yet to see my target pace of 4:42 showing on the Garmin. I take my first gel after 6K. A marathoner tries in vain to encourage a relay runner to stick with it and not stop running. There is a wind blowing but I can’t recall running into any headwind for any significant length of time. Through the first relay change-over point and then we continue down the dual carriageway. I complete the first 10K without incident, I’m still moving a fraction too quick but the effort feels right.
11K-20K in 46:55
Just before the Dunkettle roundabout average pace finally falls to 4:42 [7:34]. Have I gone out too fast? Time will tell. Down into the tunnel and then the first proper climb of the day as we exit on the southside. I can feel the drag in the legs. Average pace has dropped to 4:43 [7:35], I up the effort slightly. Take on my second gel of the morning. Apart from topping up on fuel reserves the gels serve as a nice way of breaking up the run and distracting me from any protests from the legs. I’m back on target as we pass by Mahon Point.
I catch a relay runner on mile 10, she is breathing fairly hard and I realise that she is now making an effort to match me stride for stride. After a minute or two I turn to ask her what target she has in mind, then I realise she has earphones in so I don’t bother talking. We pass the 10 mile marker in 1:16 something. I see some fast splits over the next while, including a 4:29 [7:13] and I make an effort to ease up again, I’d been pushing a little since exiting the tunnel.
Take my third gel at 18K. We turn onto the estuary and into the wind. It’s a headwind but I don’t feel it’s affecting me too much, in fact it’s probably helping me slow down a little. Through 20K. I’m feeling ok. I tell myself that the next 10K should feel more difficult but should be doable. Through the halfway marker in 1:39:XX on the Garmin. All good.
21K-30K in 46:07
Down through the leafy railway line. This offers some shelter from the wind. I realise I’m overtaking some other marathoners along here. I’m conscious that my breathing is fine and my legs feel ok. Slowly slowly the average pace is picking up and it’s showing at 4:41 [7:32] when we exit onto the Marina. I’m happy that I’ve reached this far and that my efforts are still more about not running too fast than about not running too slow.
The wind is against us again down the Marina and Central Park Road. I’ve been running behind another marathoner for a couple of kilometres now and I’ve been letting him set the pace. He has glanced over his shoulder a few times so I decide I’ll overtake and let him follow me for a while. Doing this ensures that I pick up the effort again and when we get back to the crowds by Victoria Road average pace has risen to 4:40 [7:31]. I don’t push any more but I realise after a while that I am now aiming to hold 4:40 [7:31]. I like the fact that it gives me a little buffer over target pace, I tell myself that if it starts feeling difficult later then I have some scope to ease off. The guy I overtook never overtakes me and I think he fell off the pace.
We turn up the steep slip road off the South Link Road and head into Turners Cross. Every year this signals for me the start of the ‘real marathon’, at any point from here on things can potentially turn ugly. Mentally I’m paying more attention to the legs and to the engine. Will I run out of energy, this is my biggest concern. I take gel number 5 as we pass the 30K marker. Mentally I tell myself that I’ve only one more 10K block to go. That doesn’t seem too daunting. I’m feeling some level of confidence but I keep telling myself to just focus on the current kilometre and not think too far ahead yet.
31K-40K in 46:48
The crowd support is important as we approach the 20 mile mark. There are a few short nasty climbs around here and I can feel them in the legs. I notice now that I am checking ahead more often to see where the road drops or rises, a sure sign that the effort has become more demanding. All the time though the average pace is holding solid at 4:40 [7:31] and the further I travel the more comfort I take from knowing that I can ease up a little if I have to.
I enjoy the drop down toward Dennehy’s Cross. I know there’s less than 10K to go, I’ve never felt this good this far into the race and I have to keep my optimism in check. The climb up Model Farm Road will give me a good indication of how the legs really are. And the climb goes fine. I ease off the effort slightly, no point in pushing up hill, the descent down to river level later will compensate for any time lost. Average pace never changes from 4:40 [7:31]. For sure I can feel the effort in the legs, in particular in the calves, but it’s manageable.
The 1:30 half marathon pacers pass us around here and I hear one of them saying to the group that they just need to get as far as the Carrigrohane Road and that from there we’d be blown the whole way home. This is hugely encouraging, I had been trying to figure out if the wind would be with or against us on that final stretch. If I still felt ‘ok’ at the start of Carrigrohane then if the wind was with us I felt I might just hit sub 3:20 for real.
At some point along the Model Farm Road, dance music is pumping out from the roadside, Prince I think. The legs involuntarily pick up the rhythm and I find myself bounding along for a 100ms or so literally with a tingle down my spine. We descend down towards The Orchards and I take my final gel of the day. There’s more music as we turn onto Carrigrohane Road and though my legs are aching they again respond to the music and I’m aware that I still probably look quite strong.
While I can’t say for sure that the wind was at our back, it certainly isn’t in our faces. I do see some slower splits along here, a 4:45 [7:39] and later a 4:49 [7:45] but the average pace is stuck on 4:40 [7:32] and this ensures I stay calm. Down the Mardyke now and I’m passing some runners who are struggling. I think back to the last 3K of my PMP run in the heat in California, I definitely felt worse on that session that I do now, this is very encouraging. I tell myself that that last gel is probably kicking in around now and that I should be good for energy, I tell myself that I can drop average pace a little and still come in on target. All this puts me in a very positive frame of mind.
41K – 42.53K in 12:00
Don’t get too cocky, keep calm. Just keep doing what you’re doing for a little while longer. There are some encouraging shouts from the spectators along the river walkway: “Well done, looking strong, great marathon!” I tell myself that it’s not a great marathon yet.
Onto the quays. Legs are sore, calves are particularly unhappy, but it’s still not as bad as California. I pass some more runners who have been reduced to a walk. I look at the Garmin and it shows 3:15:XX. I can see Patrick’s Bridge up ahead, surely the sub 3:20 is in the bag now and I figure surely I’ll hit platinum. A mate of mine shouts encouragement as he runs past heading for a 1:32 half marathon. I turn onto Patrick’s Bridge, look at the Garmin and finally allow myself to believe I’ve done it. I hear the announcer calling people home in 3:18 up ahead. I see the finsh clock showing 3:18:5X. I cross the line and hit stop – 3:18:41 on the Garmin.
Job done
Post Race
Immediately on crossing the line I chat with my Half Marathon mate and I realise that I feel fine. I still have energy, I don’t feel like sitting or lying down. I’m not particularly hungry, the bananas and fudge bars that are available aren’t as super-inviting as they would have been on previous editions. My sister is at the finish line with a bottle of Coke and a Mars bar. These would normally have been guzzled down but today I just sip at the coke and skip the Mars.
The weather helped I reckon, I was still carrying the 500ml bottle I’d bought before the race and there was still some water in it. Normally I would have finished those 500ml along the course and at the finish line I would be carrying one of the bottles from a water station.
I feel more content than elated. Every other marathon I’ve run I’ve blown up with 4 to 6 miles to go, and in those cases I was always hugely relieved to have arrived at the finish and would feel so happy just not to have to run anymore. Blow-ups cause strong emotions over the last few miles and consequently reaching the finish is just that bit more emotional.
Today I didn’t need to drag myself over the line. Today I felt in control over the closing miles. Today I felt like I’d executed my race-plan to a tee and so rather than elation at the end I instead felt a huge sense of satisfaction at a job well done.
I’m thrilled to have gone sub 3:19 and to have hit my platinum goal. But more than this I’m thrilled to have avoided a blow-up and to have held race-pace right to the end. This is how I want to run marathons. After 6 blow-ups of varying severity I did wonder if maybe my body just wasn’t suited to marathon distance. Now I know that I can maintain a target pace to the end.
The weather was instrumental in allowing me do this but I think two other factors were as important:
Firstly; training for a target pace (sub 3:10) that was faster than my target pace (sub 3:20) on race-day. This formula I believe worked for the legs and, maybe even more importantly, for the head. The confidence gained from running PMPs at 4:30 [7:15] in training, knowing that on race-day I would target 4:42 [7:34] was hugely important. This is a formula I intend to stick with.
And secondly; getting a really good night’s sleep two nights ahead of the race, eating a lot of food the day before the race, having a good breakfast 90 minutes before the race, and consuming 6 gels during the race. This recovery and fueling has been noted and I will aim to repeat in future editions.
I probably left a couple of more minutes out on the road on Monday, but this honestly doesn’t bother me. This felt like a break-through marathon for me. I am definitely more excited and confident about marathon distance now than I’ve ever been before.
I can’t wait for next year.0 -
-
-
Advertisement
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Epic stuff. Really enjoyed reading it - you must be so pleased. There are so many, many good tips and pointers in your report and log for less experienced runners, if only I could remember it all
Well done again.
Thanks nop98. Fairly pleased alright. I wouldn't claim to be logging any great tips, I just try follow P&D to a tee and log my thoughts while doing so. Very much paint by numbers.0 -
Advertisement
-
Advertisement