Race Report

Everything was fine for the race I had a good race plan, the course was flat and fast and the weather near perfect. So why isn't this blog post titled "PB"? Read on.

This is the first time I've ran this marathon so I wasn't sure exactly what to expect but I was very happy with the course. About a one third of it was on road and the other two followed the river up and back. It was paved in sections but mostly we were running on hard dirt.

It was 13 to 15 degrees and not a cloud in the sky a little wind but nothing that worried me. The times it gusted up I'd just slip behind some other runners. The plan was to do the first 8 to 10 K in 4:15 per K and if I felt it too slow after that drop to 4:05~4:10 for the last 10K.

Well things didn't go exactly to plan. I lined up at the very front because I was a little late getting to the starting area and it was either there or right at the back cause I couldn't find a way in the middle. There were about 2000 runners and the start was a narrow street fenced on both sides.

The gun cracked and we were off down a small hill and around a corner and up over a bridge and down the other side where a flat bitumen path stretched out parallel to the river.

I hit the first K in 3:52 carried along by the crowd I didn't think I was running at that pace I thought I'd slow down but frankly I felt fine and thought I just ignore coach Pat's and Clairie's advice to go out slower. The next 2nd K I did in 3:58 and the following in 3:55 that's the first 3K in 11:45. I was pretty happy with myself and felt strong and full of air so I pushed on with it.

I did the next two Ks in 4:03 and 4:07 respectively rounding off the 5K in 19:55.
the next 5K I pretty much held my pace but dropped down 10 seconds on the 6th K and a few seconds each K after that until the 10th K. The total for the 10K was 41:33 about 1 minute off my 10K PB.

Now for the next half I was going to take coach Pat's advice and pick it up a bit and come home strong. Well the 11th K I did but from the 12 to the 16th, where I stopped taking splits, I was slowly dropping a few seconds each K, the 16th and last Split recorded on my watch was 4:34.

The remaining 5 Ks were pretty ugly in comparison to the first 5 but gave me plenty of time to think what I dick I was. The last K, try as I might, I couldn't pick up the pace. My feet were hot, a burning sensation on the bottom soft part of the inner arch of my left foot, my dodgy ankle was hurting and I was almost all out of air.

I cross in 1:31:37 a reasonable time by my standards but not the time I was looking for at the 10 K mark. Anyway as they say "what doesn't kill me blah blah blah."

Ten minutes after the race I regained my breath and felt good enough to jog back 2K to meet my family at a shopping center. I couldn't believe I couldn't have just done the remaining 3 K a little faster but I was spent at that time and at the limit of my fitness.

Regardless I had a great run, enjoyed myself as usual, and learnt somethings about myself. One thing in particular I learnt was that I'm still a cocky bastard and I don't listen to good advice.

Not to worry, my 10K PB of 40:10 looks to be in jeopardy this coming January.