Running with the birds or for the birds?

Diesel

Positive thoughts.. Keep them strong.
Here's wishing for speedy recovery !
Take care

outforarun

Shocked to read your last post (very brave of you to make that post). Thankfully there was a happy ending. I hope a full recovery is made soon. Best wishes.

csmi

Get well soon!
First aid training so important within any kind of sports clubs etc.

RAL3

Fairly shook when I read this Olwyn, so relieved that he is out of danger - very best wishes to you both

tang1

Hope your husband makes a full & speedy recovery. Best wishes to ye all.

Krusty_Clown

Just wanted to add that you are in our thoughts whenever we go running, so a lot of best wishes rolling your way. Hoping Joe will be back to full health as soon as he can possibly be.

opus

I sound like an echo here but sincere best wishes for Joe and hope that he makes a full recovery.

Was speaking to him in Donadea after I finished & he was telling me what a good run you were having & about the plan for Barcelona so hard to believe what happened subsequently.

Marthastew

Thank you all so very, very much for your warm wishes, Joe and I continue to go from strength to strength surrounded by love and support from family and friends. Writing about Joe’s cardiac arrest was very therapeutic for me and I am genuinely touched by the response to it. Thanks also to those of you who have emailed, pmed, texted, sent Facebook messages; although I have not replied to your messages I have gotten great comfort from them.

Joe is receiving expert care in St. Vincent’s, he had a cardiac MRI yesterday and will undergo another angiogram tomorrow, we will then move forward with a plan for his road to recovery. Although the future is still a little uncertain it is very bright and words could never describe how grateful we both are to the people who saved Joe’s life.

Our boys are doing really well, we keep focussing on the fact that their dad is so fit and strong and things are gradually getting back to normal routines. Quite naturally I’m not sleeping well with a lot on my mind so rather than lying in bed worrying I have been heading out the door in search of some running endorphins; sunrise at the Vico Road in Killiney is a great way to start the day and helps keep me strong and calm for Joe and the boys.
Don’t be concerned if there are no updates on here for a while, we are busy getting Joe back to full health and we know that you are all wishing us well.

Marthastew

Mr Stew is finally home safe and sound, the boys and I are overjoyed:D
Thank you all so very much for your support, prayers, warm wishes and positive vibes, they worked

Pacing Mule

Great news !

BeepBeep67

Marthastew wrote: »

Mr Stew is finally home safe and sound, the boys and I are overjoyed:D
Thank you all so very much for your support, prayers, warm wishes and positive vibes, they worked

Just heard from MrsBB - fantastic news, send him my regards

gerard_65

I've just read this now, was shocked at the news, but delighted J is recovering. all the best to J for a full recovery.

pgmcpq

Great news ! You've all weathered the worst and come through with flying colours.

Dory Dory

Whoop whoop!!!!!

digger2d2

I know that Josephine frightened the sh1te out of us but let's not lose sight of the fact that Meno had manflu last week and is also still with us

menoscemo

digger2d2 wrote: »

I know that Josephine frightened the sh1te out of us but let's not lose sight of the fact that Meno had manflu last week and is also still with us

Yes, well I didn't want to boast

Marthastew

3rd may 2014, Great Limerick Run

Background
Regular readers of my log will know that things have been quiet on here for the last few months because Mr Stew and I have been busy getting our lives back to normal after his collapse and cardiac arrest during a training run at the end of February. We are incredibly fortunate with how remarkably well he has recovered and as much as I have always appreciated our wonderful life I now have an even better sense of just how lucky we are. Quite naturally running (in particular racing) took a back seat in those first few weeks but I managed to get out for some easy miles for my sanity. Towards the end of his stay in Vincent’s I started to run in and out rather than sit in traffic and without even noticing I was keeping things ticking over. Once Mr S was home safe and sound and on the road to recovery I upped the mileage a little, I initially had no particular goal in mind but I found the therapeutic effects of a long run invaluable and after each run I’d return home feeling calmer having had a chance to process some of what had gone on over the past few weeks. I wasn’t really following a training plan but I was enjoying my running so I decided to use all those miles in my legs and race Limerick marathon.
Apart from the odd long run I’d occasionally meet up with ultraman and pals for a run in the Dublin mountains and Junior and I also popped up to a couple of parkruns. I had been warned to take things easy as shock can often manifest itself physically but with Mr S getting stronger by the day I also seemed to be doing well. I raced the Great Ireland Run and had an unexpected PB of 41.39. The Brian Boru 10 Miler was another confidence booster with a PB of 67.28 so it was all systems go for Limerick…..
Pre-race
Aunty Stew was minding our boys so Mr S and I were on a pass for the weekend. We got the train down on Saturday (this turned out to be a train, a bus, a train and another train due to engineering works on the line) and I made sure to drink lots and snack on plenty of carb-rich food all day. We had a big late lunch and headed out to the expo where we bumped into some of the wonderful MCI folks and I bought my gels for race day. Not having had a proper training regime I didn’t suffer from any of the usual pre-race taper madness and I was calm and relaxed. I was also very much aware that this trip could be hard on Mr S, our original plan for Limerick had been to pace the Half having PBed in Barcelona…. I needn’t have worried as Mr S, like me, is a “glass half full” person and he was in great form.
We got back to the hotel, relaxed for a bit, had a dip in the pool and then had an early dinner in the bar. I had eaten a rice dish at lunchtime so I opted for pasta. Heading back up to our room I felt comfortably full and was happy with how my nutrition had gone for the day.
We were treated to a fireworks display through our hotel window and I got to sleep just after 11pm. I slept better than I usually do the night before a marathon and headed down for breakfast at 6.30am; Coffee, yogurt, fruit and 2 slices of toast and I chatted with a lovely runner called Rose who was hoping to run with the 3.45 group.
Mr S and I arrived at the bag-drop area just before 8.30am, I had collected race packs for opus and artiefufkin so we had a quick catch up with them and some of the pacers. The atmosphere was calm and relaxed and everyone was in good spirits, running conditions were pretty perfect and we were all looking forward to a good day.
Down to the start area and I decided I better do a few warm-up drills and a few strides, it was only when I did these that I started to get a little nervous…. I was about to run a marathon and I was aiming for a PB:eek: I said my goodbyes to Mr S and I joined the 3.15 group, we were in good hands with drquirky and Paul and I was lucky enough to meet the wonderful bitterlemon:D A very relaxed countdown and boom… we were off……..

Stats in bold italics below are from the TDL site

A big, big smile on my face as I passed under the Start gantry and I realised just how happy I was to be racing a marathon. I’m always so grateful to be lining up at the start of a marathon but this time round I was really counting my lucky stars. Snailsong introduced himself and I was delighted to learn he had a similar plan to mine, I had spoken with opus before the start and he was also aiming for pretty much the same race as us (although I must point out that while SS and I were shooting for PBs he was doing this as training run for Comrades having raced a half the day before:eek:); we were going to stay with the 3.15 group and if we felt good we’d push on after 17 miles. It took me a while to warm up to the pace and after half a mile Tbl and I joked that we were in trouble if we were looking for our second wind before the first mile marker! Opus and I remarked that it usually takes about 5 miles to get used to things and sure enough I began to settle into the pace. Having cheered us on at the start Mr S popped up around 4 miles with plenty of encouragement and I passed my gloves to him, it was quite warm and humid and I knew I wouldn’t need them again later. With Tbl as our (temporary) windbreaker we were motoring along nicely all getting to know one another, all was well in the 3.15 group. 10K; 44.54, position 109th


The miles ticked along and I was really enjoying running in the group not having to watch the pace, we were averaging approx. 7.20/7.25 and it felt good. At each water station I grabbed some water and sipped a little and later in the race I also poured it on my head and legs to cool down a bit. I took my first gel at 10K and it went down easily. It was a nice distraction running over the bridge although it also felt a little weird. I really enjoyed running through the first relay point, we got some great cheers and shout outs and before long were at the portion of the route that runs through UL and doubles back on itself. This was really good fun as we could see the leaders and cheer them on, I counted 7 female runners and one of them was carrying a baton so I was hopeful for a top ten finish. It was even more fun when we turned around and got to see all the runners behind us and I really enjoyed cheering everyone on. I spotted Rose from my hotel just ahead of the 3.45 group and she was looking good. Somewhere along this part of the route PacerPaul tripped over a bollard, at the time he was heading over to say hi to a pal. Opus mentioned on the main thread about the safety issue with the bollards and I have to agree with him. At least our group wasn’t too big and we were all very good at communicating the hazards along the way but last year when I paced the 2.15 Half it was very dangerous.
As expected the pace still felt comfortable, occasionally I would drift off a little at the back of the group to chat with someone and other times I’d push on at the front if we had a downhill to take advantage of. I took another gel at 12 miles and continued with my water sipping. Mr Stew popped up again and I could hear him before I could see him! I was so, so happy to see him and I told him I felt good and strong. Again I loved running through the relay changeover point and before long we were crossing the halfway mat with everything going to plan. Half marathon; 1.36.30, position 95th


Although it was quite warm and this part of the route wasn’t too nice I was still feeling strong. Along with the water I also had a few sips of the disgustingly sweet sports drink; our group was very good at sharing drinks etc. after the stations so it was never a problem if anyone missed a bottle. We caught up on another female runner called Tara, I think she was being paced by a Kilcoole runner who I recognise from out and about and we introduced ourselves. One of the locals out supporting on the side told us we were 4th and 5th female (in fact we were 5th and 6th) and Drquirky joked that he would open a book on which of us would finish first, he also made it clear he was open to bribes;) Tara had run London and was hoping to better her PB, she looked strong and like me was still in great spirits. Her Kilcoole pal told us that if we were talking we weren’t working hard enough so I decided to push on a little. I was delighted to see Snailsong and opus alongside me and we gradually left the 3.15 bus. It was tempting to pick things up a lot but we still had a long way to go so I was glad to have the guys for company and discipline. I took another gel just before we pushed on as I knew I would find it hard to stomach it later on. We began to count the runners we overtook and we wished them well as we passed. Some of them were really struggling and my heart went out to them, I’ve been in that position before and watching people pass is almost like adding salt to your wounds. 30K; 2.16.53, position 71st.

We aimed to bring the pace up to 7.10/7.15 and for the next few miles we managed this. Arriving back into town was SO MUCH fun and the support from all the other runners waiting to run was incredible, I really loved this part of the route, mile 21 was a tad too fast at 6.55 but it was mostly downhill and with so many people cheering us on it couldn’t be helped. Another reason it was so fast was Mr Stew popped up in this mile and by now he was hoarse from screaming support. Again I was overjoyed to see him:D Snailsong asked Mr S if he knew how far ahead the 3rd female was but he didn’t and as it turns out I was now 5th so a podium place was never in question.
The last relay changeover point was great fun and before we knew it we were crossing the bridge with only 5 miles to go. There was a DJ pumping out disco tunes and I danced my way across but as we turned up yet another incline I could now feel my legs getting tired and my energy dropping, Snailsong and opus were both staying strong just up ahead of me and occasionally we’d offer words of encouragement to each other. I took my last gel here and hoped it would keep me going to the end. We were still passing the odd runner and I was now starting to remember how tough it is to race a marathon.
My pace began to gradually drop during the next few miles, the hill at Thomond Park took a lot out of me and I was determined to keep Snailsong in sight. Opus was beside me and we were both focussing on the Mayo AC singlet up ahead. Mile 23 was my slowest of the day (7.30:eek:), I’m pretty sure that’s where the hilly housing estate is, I remembered how last year we lost a lot of people from our pace group in this area and I started telling myself to dig deep and stay strong. What goes up must come down and the downhill out of the estate perked me up, only to be greeted by another long drag:eek:
Lots of local support along this part made it a little easier and it was genuinely heart-warming to see the families with kids out cheering us on. “Not long to go now, just a parkrun left” I told myself and there was a band playing music opposite a pub. I noticed the runner up ahead (I think he was in a Clonmel vest) playing an air guitar as he passed, I was well impressed, all I could manage was a thumbs up. Not long after we passed our Clonmel friend. Occasionally the supporters would struggle with pronouncing my name as it’s so unusual and at one point I heard “Come on Olympia, you can do it” (Or maybe she thought I was Olympia Dukakis?;)) Another lady (who quite possibly had just stepped out of the pub) shouted “well done, keep it up fat people…. I mean fit people” and I started to laugh a little hysterically:D
Anyone who has read one of my marathon reports knows how much I embrace that raw feeling in the last few miles where all your emotions are exposed and the slightest thing can make you laugh or cry. Bang on queue Mr Stew popped up a little after the 25 mile marker and I lost the plot completely… Standing there yelling encouragement at me he looked so strong and happy and…. well… alive! There were tears streaming down my face, I was overwhelmingly struck by the fact that we were so, so lucky and how close we had come to a very different future. I began to remember those dark hours in the ICU, I also remembered what Gavlor had posted about not underestimating how much Mr S had had to fight to come back from the coma and I started to sob, holy merde I am such a drama queen;) Mr S ran alongside me for a small bit, and of course he is not supposed to be running yet (he was wearing his heart rate monitor, he was fine) and he told me he loved me and was proud of me and that I was well able to finish strong.
So I left him and after a minute or two I pulled myself together and focussed on the next runner up ahead. All the time opus was running along beside me and we once again exchanged words of encouragement. At this point I could hear a runner up behind us (turns out it was kerrylad) and I didn’t want to give up a spot on the finishing list so I focussed on staying ahead. We turned the corner and the river was in sight “It’s just over the bridge and we’re just about there” kerrylad said as he pulled up along beside us and we all picked it up a little across the bridge. Out of nowhere in the last 400M I suddenly felt like picking it up (Garmin has the last .37 of a mile @ 6.40 pace) but kerrylad beat me fair and square to the line:). I was overjoyed when I looked up at the clock and saw 3.12.XX I hadn’t looked at my watch since we pushed on and I only knew I had the sub 3.15 because quirky hadn’t caught us, 3.12 was such a lovely surprise. Chip time 3.12.52, overall position 53rd, 5th female finisher, F45 category winner:D

I was thrilled to meet a very unbitterlemon in the finishing chute and with a 3.10.02 finishing time we were sure he’d got his 3.09 goal (he did of course) Snailsong, opus and I were delighted with our finish, I didn’t get a chance to chat to kerrylad. Tara finished less than a minute behind me and she was naturally over the moon. The 3.15 group arrived just behind us and they were all tired but happy. I popped into the massage tent and was very happy when Ray told me he had ran a sub 3 and I was even happier when ecoli told me he also ran a sub 3 PB:). Rose from the hotel ran 3.44 and I bumped into lots of very happy finishers on the way back to our hotel.
It was great fun catching up with lots of boardsies and meeting up with even more new folks in The George. Apologies to anyone who had to listen to my ramblings in The Locke, yet again I was reminded of the fact that red wine isn’t exactly good recovery fuel:eek:.

The good news is that I feel great today after a swim in the sea and a Pilates class and the stairs are no problem.

My next main goal is Berlin and I’ll see how the summer begins to pan out before setting a goal. I plan to be a racing ho;) over the next few weeks, Terenure 5 mile, Wicklow Way Relay, WMM, Enniscorthy Half but I also plan to listen carefully to my body and if I feel tired I’ll ease back.

No race report of mine would be complete without a quote, the following one sums up my last few months…..


Where there is love, there is life
Mahatma Gandhi

pgmcpq

Great to see you back, well and most off all happy. Fantastic result off limited training.

Murph_D

Great report, O. I was almost in tears myself. And what a run. Kudos. Might see you in Terenure.

PDCAT

Great performance and great result. Super report.
Well done

ultraman1

He told me he loved me at mile 12....

pointer28

I'm a grumpy sod but your log always makes me smile.

Great to see you back.

AuldManKing

by all accounts, everything about that is wonderful. Seriously.

AuldManKing

I especially like the bits about TbL breaking wind
and the fact that Gavlor made you cry.
The lack of a mention of Menostew is a tad worrying though

drquirky

I think I told you this in the pub but I'm pretty glad you were nowhere near me when you and Mr. Stew ran together @ 25- I'm a cynical bastard but that would have probably had me pretty choked up.

The world is a better place with the two of you in it. Fantastic, positive people. And one hell of a running display on the day as well.

Congrats.

digger2d2

Ecoli broke 3 hours..... You're remarking on a Gavlor moment of seriousness... What the fcuk is the world coming to?

Ferris B

Super run O. Your 'crew' obviously also did a superb job.
Also good to see you back on the typewriter.

Might see you in terenure.

Cleanman

Simply delighted for both you and Mr S. Well done O.

Part of your success surely comes down to TBL (temporarily) replacing Mr S as a wind breaker:)

RedRunner

That report is the second thing to bring a tear to my eye this week! You make it sound so easy, well done on a great result.

ecoli

digger2d2 wrote: »

Ecoli broke 3 hours..... You're remarking on a Gavlor moment of seriousness... What the fcuk is the world coming to?

Don't worry Chaos theory still reigns supreme...... Beaten by a Bro's Pearse runner

Well done again O. Was probably the most earned PB of the day (no offence to anyone else before I get a torrent of abuse). Even looking at the pictures there is a great smile on your face and your strength and determination and attitude would inspire the most cynical of people (evidence of this is quirky)

I have grown up thinking of times and the competitive aspect of the sport but efforts and support such as what was shown on Sunday are the true characteristics which make sporting endeavours great.