27/09/09
So I showed up for the New Forest Marathon yesterday – a standalone marathon! which was a first for me. A hot sunny 20 degrees C day, a hilly 315 metres elevation gain and descent and 3 miles of cross country (mostly loose chip gravel!) - not the quickest course/conditions but a very good test. Finished in 2hrs 57 mins (ave 6 mins 47/mile pace) and 8th overall from 515 finishers. The winner finished in 2hrs 47 mins.
Finally won a trophy (and a kiss on the cheek from a pretty lady!) for being the 4th senior male (18-39) finisher.
Since early August I had put in an 8 week run block averaging 45 miles/week in the 5 weeks 8-4 out from race day and totalling approx 300 miles for the total 8 week block – not huge mileage, but running as fast as I could go for most of these miles (between aerobic and anaerobic threshold). My run form, cadence and speed improved as a result and I tested this with visits to the local 400m track – test run was 35 times around the track non-stop (= 14km) taking splits every 2km. I could handle the intensity and increasing faster pace due to a solid base after the season of Ironman training and incrementally started to strip huge chunks of time off my regular run routes and track times. Had also kept ticking over the swimming/biking and tapered down for a week before the race - I had swam 8 early mornings out of 10 up to 1 week before the race, ideally should have tapered down/rested up that week also.
Ran the first 13.1 miles in 1hr 24mins (6min 24/mile pace). Haven’t run that fast in my life! and at the halfway mark I felt good. I probably pushed a little too hard in miles 14-15 trying to catch and pass the guy up the road. At the 15 mile point I reached 4th position overall! and held this until mile 22. I had slowed a little from mile 19 due to MAJOR blistering on my feet and the continuous up and down was beating up my legs and feet (bones), particularly the downs! I found that aerobically I was fine, with controlled breathing throughout, but my lower leg (mid-shins down) and feet started to suffer big time at that pace (maybe partly due to some high volume, hard, low gear biking that I had done 4 weeks out whilst the family were away, 300+ miles in a week - big forces through the foot bones). The big learning point that I took away was that running at 6min 30/mile pace over 26 miles is very different from Ironman training/race pace and takes its toll on the legs. Continuing to incrementally build on run pace in training is the way to go and will put my legs in better shape in the second half of a marathon.
The aid stations only provided water (!) so I carried 3 powerbar gels (ate at 55 min, 1hr 50 and 2hr 40 marks) and 2 fuel belt flasks containing SIS Go electrolyte drink powder (topped up with water at the 1hr 30 and 2hr 15 marks).
With the late race start the last 6 miles were run with the clock approaching 1pm and with the sunny, cloudless sky it was very hot. As I approached mile 21 a small family was standing outside a cottage, the mother holding a running hose pipe and the father holding a black bucket. As I approached, the father shouted ‘free shower?’ to which I responded ‘just a little’ to which he proceeded to empty a full bucket of water on my head. A combination of his whoops of laughter and my speed caught him out and for a bizarre 5 or so seconds I was running along with an empty bucket on my head until he caught me up. I ended up with a cut nose but at least the torrents of water momentarily anaethesised the pain from the blisters on my feet!
All in all a great day out. The course and scenery were fantastic and it was a lot of fun to be up there right at the front with no other runners in sight for long periods. 30 mins quicker than my IM marathon PB and gets me good-for-age entry (sub-3) for London 2011 which will be a lot flatter! Importantly I gained a knowledge of what it will take to improve my marathon further.
I may have a beer next weekend.
Run Profile
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After rocking up to T2 in less than 7 hours I was brimming withanticipation of how I'd fair on the marathon. I was either completelytorched or anywhere between that and being able to run effectively. Iinstantly felt good and completed the first 5K in 22 minutes. I putthis down to training fatigued for long periods and two sessions a dayin/out of work for months. I was now feeling the benefits of notcatching the train to/from work since during Embrun recovery back inSept 04. The marathon was again three laps, each of just over 14K. Mypace was good for the first twenty miles only slowing during the 2km8% hill (and another headwind) on each lap. The last six miles weretougher as I started to feel the effects of pushing the first 20 butheld it together to run the 20th fastest marathon of the day afterstripping out the pros. The support along the run course closer totown was fantastic including the zulu warriors who were still goingfor it. They were pounding out a great beat and each time I passed Ijust tried to soak up their energy. All of a sudden there was thefinish chute and the clock was still on 10hrs 46, so a sub 11 finishwhich I still don't understand fully. I walked over the line with Leonin my arms. Not often that you feel that good.
It had started to get light at 6.30am and noweverything was in full view. Wetsuit off and bike gear on. I made myfirst and last mistake of the day, I realised I had left my sunglassesbehind after 50 metres of cycling.The 185km bike course is breathtaking. Not only for the 5000m ofaltitude climb but also for the sheer beauty of the landscape throughout. After 100m you are already into your first climb, up to 1250m. For me this is a good thing as I like to get my climbing legson early. The views of Lac Serre Poncon give you a big lift and myfirst rendez-vous with Kata and Leon was planned for 8.45am - 9.15amas the bike course passed straight past the hotel after the initialloop and back past Embrun. I made it here at 8.50am and as Kata wavedher arms and went crazy, Leon just looked up at his mother wonderingwhat the hell was going on. Fortunately all of the time ranges atcertain spots that I'd estimated were borne out on the early side andso there was not too much waiting around for them. After passingthrough Embrun we were off into the mountains. The temperature wasrising, there was not a cloud in the sky and it ended up being a 34degree C day. Bike nutrition consisted of Powerbar Bars and Gels,bananas, Electrolyte/Carbohydrate drink, water and coke. Once onto theslopes of the Col de l'Isoard the numbers of spectators spectacularlyincreased. Their enthusiasm was astonishing. Allez! Courage! C'estbien! C'est superbe! Allez Paul (pronounced 'Allez Pul' which becamemore and more endearing as the day progressed). The french holidaymaker is a wonderful sight, the whole family camped/sat by the roadside, the obligatory chien wandering around, table set up withfull picnic, parasol etc. Allez!! The Isoard is a relentless 2 houreffort, there is not one inch of flat and the road varies from 3 -20%. At various points there were guys keeled over with medicalassistance on hand, administering drips, as their bikes were leftabandoned by the roadside. There were holiday maker cyclists tryingtheir arms on sections of the mountain decked out in US Postal shirtsetc. I found I was leaving these guys for dust which together with theshouting of the crowds spurred me on.
On reaching the top (after 6hours 10 minutes of racing) I felt slightly delerious however this quickly disappeared as I was acosted by two french guys one of whom unzipped my race top to shove a newspaper across my chest then zipback up (to protect against the wind on the way down), and the otherwho brought me my special needs bag. I made sure that I unwrapped the2 ham sandwichs (a treat!), I had prepared in the bathroom earlier,from the foil before starting the descent, took a bite and put them inthe pockets on my back. Also in the bag was a fresh litre ofElecrolyte/ Carbohydrate drink and various energy bars/gels. I was away and all of a sudden clocking 70km/hr on the bike computer.'Concentrate' I remember saying as I approached the first turn. Thefeeling of delerium was still with me and I went round the third turntoo fast, like a speedway motorbike racer, losing the back endcompletely. Not crashing was a miracle and was a firm reality check.There are no safety walls on the mountain and next stop after a crashis somewhere down the mountain side. The descent actually takes yourbreath away, like being in some horrendous fairground ride as youcling to the handlebars trying not to be catapulted off. Oddly I thenfind myself completely alone and cycle for something like twentykilometeres without seeing another racer (apart from one guy who hasparked his bike and is sitting in a village water fountain lookingdazed). The heat at this point is considerable so I concentrate on mynutrition and hydration. At around 140km there is the 2km 15% hillthat I have feared for some time. It springs itself on you with nowarning and you are out of the saddle instantly. There is no way I amgetting off and walking up this. All I remember is seeing the roadlooking like a wall. I make it. I can now do any hill on this courseand no longer fear the bike course. The remaining 45km is a blurapart from the final 5km which is a cruel 10% hill. I make my way upthis as though it is not uphill, I feel like I can climb anything nowand the legs are on autopilot. As I approach the Park Velo in Embrun Ispot Kata and Leon which was a hugely welcome sight, this means thebike is over. As I approach the transition area I almost struggle torealise that I have to stop cycling now. My bike split was 8 hrs28mins. Good.The transition area was like a furnace such was the heat. I reappliedthe factor 50 to arms and shoulders. I was completely white comparedto the French, Spanish and Italian guys who all looked as though theyhad been lying in the sun for months. On with the white reflectivecap, sunglasses, 600ml of electrolyte drink downed and I am away. As soon as I start running I think ' I do not want to do this, my legsfeel like they have been pummeled with baseball bats, it is boilinghot, my stomach feels like a tombola, I want to stop etc'. This lastsfor less than a minute and I then say to myself 'just get on with, youknow your running legs will come in 10 minutes or so'. The usual then.Once out of transition you are hit by a 50m 15% hill, I actually startlaughing. 'This course is ridiculous'. I can see three guys walkingthis. I run it, and end up not walking any part of marathon includingall the hills contributing to the 400m vertical climb you achieve onthe two lap run course. Gradually I begin to feel good. I now feellike I am running fast and decide to keep pushing, in the hope that mynutrition plan will see me through. I have one power bar gel withoutfail every half an hour with around half a litre of water, and havebananas and coke + more water at all the other aid stations. I wasamazed at how quick that half litre gets absorbed. At first it feelslike you've just finished your dinner, then within three minutes itfeels like you are empty again. After circling the lake you arestraight into the 1500m 5% hill up to the top of the cobbled streets of Embrun. Loads of guys walking, hobbling here. Some guys are justkeeled over on the road-side. I run up and this plus more cries of'C'est bien ca, bon' from the roadside spur me on. Now it's a longstretch out to the the River Durance and my pace is good. I'm nowthinking a four hour marathon is possible and a sub-14 hour finish ismaybe on the cards. Thinking about this race back in January, thisseemed an impossibility. Now it was reality, as long as I couldcontinue to push at this pace. 'When will I blow up, it must come'went through my mind many times. The section at the Durance ishorrible. It's an out and back with no shade. Ambulances littered thissection and some guys looked really bad here as they lay down, againwith drips attached. I hope they made it OK. The section after theDurance is a never- ending hill up to Baratier, again I don't walk atall and pass many runners. The first lap is almost done. The crowdsare incredible. Whole families line the roads, the kids running at youwith sponges. People seem to know who 77 is and as soon as I arrive everyone is saying 'Allez Pul!', an advantage of being one of the onlynon-french in the race (the race programme contained the racer numbersand names/nationality). Some people go even further all the way to oneperson shouting 'God save the Queen!'. One italian woman shreeks 'CheBianco'..('look how white he is'). Going through Baratier there is agroup of around 40 people all screaming Allez Pul! Bloody amazing atthat point in the race. As I run back to the finish to start my secondlap I see Kata and Leon again, who are parked up in the shade, andthen off up the 15% stomach churner again. The second lap is a greatmemory. I maintained pace and pushed to the limit, I could not have gone faster. Out on the River Durance section I pass a guy also on hissecond lap who was staying at the same hotel as us. This guy was tall and built for speed, he looked a bit like a cartoon action hero. The day before, Kata said that he looked like one tough cookie and startedworrying about me doing the race. I would definitely be telling herthat I passed him! and at speed. This Frenchman turned out to be avery nice guy, talking to him the next day back in the hotel, hefinished 32 mins behind me, but he did finish, he is now an Embrunman.Back up the punishing hill to Baratier, into Embrun, around the lakeagain and I am 1km from the finish. I know a 4hr marathon is close anda sub 14hr finish is possibly on. I don't look at my watch. I am absolutely sprinting for the line with no let-up. I don't see anyone(apart from Kata, and Leon, who shouts out as I pass) although thatfinal kilometre was absolutley packed with people going crazy. I cutthe tape in 13 hrs 59 mins 42 seconds and have run a 4 hr marathon.
This race was breathtaking, everything I expected and more. By thelength of this report you can probably tell that it meant a lot. Thisrace attracts the best IM Triathletes in France + around 100 international guys and I finished 198th from a 600 start list. Now for a rest!
