Race Report South Downs Marathon

Marathon #51 was a bit of a worry from the start. I have not run more than 10 miles in the last 2 months and have been getting in junk miles. However I entered this with the trepidation of a lamb to the slaughter and you might well want to douse my quads in mint sauce this evening!

Up at 4.45am this morning with a couple of bacon and egg butties and off down to not far from Portsmouth. Arriving at the finish at 7am, I boarded a coach to the start. From 7.45am until 9.30am I sat, stretched, ate, watched the relays go off and pondered in quite contemplation with Chichester and the sea on the horizon. 2 mins before the start I bumped into Helen. My favourite runner to run with ever was looking good off the back of the SDW100. This day was all about her as this was marathon #100. I take my new cap off to you my good running buddy!

I ran with Helen from the gun to the top of the first hill. Anyone who has done this knows that there is a 750ft grind over 4 miles. We chit-chatted but near to the top, Helen was clearly in form. I ushered her onwards recounting the 30 miles I had ran in the last 4 weeks! I was in no state to be competitive but just happy to bimble along in the middle of the pack rather than search out a top-30. Helen was only about 100m ahead for the next 3-4 miles or so. At CP1 I remembered that water was pretty much the only fayre at CPs. After 6 miles we were up on the South Downs Way and running into a god breeze. I really enjoyed the next miles up to the halfway point at Cocking Down. I was in probably a runners high, breeze in my face, sun beaming down and flitting around puddles in the trees, occasionally chatting to runners. Cocking came and I paid close attention to the point where I clipped a rock and face planted on the SDW100 last year. Judging by the gradient, I was lucky to have a visit to A&E and only a bruised arm, black eye and bleeding retina!

Mile 13 to 18 was about digging in. A caffeinated  gel held me together but I was starting to realise that I didn't have enough miles in my legs. The hills were brutal. I had to walk some of them. Whizzing up to Harting Downs and a chance to take on my last gel and some water, I realised that after a positive start, this was just about the finish. Uphill allegiances were forged and then lost on the downhills as I overtook runners. The clock was ticking and in the last few miles struck up a conversation with Sam who was running his first ever marathon. What a marathon to choose!

Coming into the finish was great. I forgot how good a big finish was! Helen wand Peter were at the finish waiting for me. Helen finished just 10 mins in front of my 4 hours 30 and Peter in 3.50. After a boiling hot beer we got back on the way with some chit-chat in the car.

Only 5 marathons/ultras done this year. This was #51. Done! How good to return to my beautiful new daughter and amazing wife after such a good day.

Pegged Back

I'm feeling a little lost right now. Running, for me has not been in a worse shape since I broke my leg. The difference is then that the steely determination to get back to running again after the consultant at King's College Hospital in 2010 told me....."Marathon? No you'll be lucky to do some light running on the treadmill...." 16 weeks later Marathon I did and then a year later my first sub-24 100. Now where has that steely determination gone?

Mileage has been an issue. A gorgeous new baby and a 50 (sometimes 60) hour week are taking their toll on fitness. My heart rate has increased, lactate threshold decreased and stamina........got up and went about 4 months ago! I haven't put on any body mass though. A small crumb of comfort.

So, focusing on the short was a way forward. Slowly, steadily my Parkrun 5k time dropped and dropped and dropped. Not yet at my 19 min 2008 5k best but close to a sub 20 with 20.23. Then....that began to slip also....21.29, 21.34 and now 21.36. I've tried some different things, hill reps and different routes. The one thing I have enjoyed is getting out on the trail. Something I need to do more of. I have a marathon coming up in the next few weeks. No training, the last time I ran over 17 miles was the 3FM 27. In the last month, the furthest I have run is 10 miles.

I think I have passed the low point and am now on a very very long uphill curve. It will be a struggle. I have less of a steely determination...more of a slow burning desire for improvement. This marathon is a bimble; a chance to get a long run in and by no means a speed test, more a test of my mettle to do this when the morale is low and for a boost. A chance to feel positive about my fitness again.

Less pegging back and more fingers crossed.

Catching up

It's been a long time since I blogged and perhaps it is well overdue that I catch up with what has been going on. This little darling has been taking up my year so far.......

So I have been on a running downward curve for the last 5 months. Believe me, it is totally worth it and both Susie and I are loving it. So instead of blasting for podiums and doing crazy miles I did some putting back a few weeks ago. After doing my fastest parkrun PB since my 19 min 5k in 2008, I was only focused on the short stuff. A lot of junk miles.....nipping out for silly distances like 4, 5 and 6 miles where I can has now developed into trying to run home.....a decent 12 mile run.

Then I was lucky to be given the opportunity to mark the last third of the NDW50 in late May. I took my good running buddy Phill Beecroft who is tuning into a tidy runner over ultra distance himself. Unfortunately for me, every time we go training together, he beasts me into a jelly-legged turd but luckily for me, every training run in the world doesn't count for podiums and race day strength, which is why he still hasn't beat me in any race yet! He will no doubt beast me again after my lack of training but we will still have a beer and a laugh I'm sure!

Anyway marking the course was a real laugh until we realised that what would be a normally quick run, with the addition of stop-start, mark, go back, check if it can be seen.........13 miles of course marking became 18 miles and about 5 hours.......so we found a pub and had a pint of local ale. Super.

Feeling fresh, the next day Susie, Audrey and I went to the 38 mile CP and met James Elson, race director and also new dad. It was then a chance to finally meet Bryan (@ultraDHC) and plenty of other equally lovely runners and to wish through the runners. Typically Ewan Dunlop's nemesis Johnny Melbourne came in 3rd place through the CP and on form, motored to 2nd for the 50 miler. This chap beat Ewan and I to the top spot on the Norman Conquest 50 so I knew he was hot......so I was well pleased to see he sneaked the 5 min deficit on the chap in front in the last 12 miles!

All in all, a good day although the last time I managed a run over 15 miles. Daddy duties are definitely taking over at the moment and falling out of form is much quicker than getting back on form. I actually have no plans for the summer other than some pencilled-in dates of maybe-races but this is all about ticking over for another few months until I can pick up again in the autumn. I've been averaging 12 marathons and ultras a year over the last 4 years and not running these distances does feel a bit weird. All I know is that next big race is more of a mid pack bimble than a back-of-the-front-of-the-pack-and-occasional-lucky-break-to-get-a-podium race. I can't wait to get back into it, especially hearing stories from the likes of Immune's 100, Ewan's #podiumpals exploits, Jenni's sub 8 first ever 50, Beecroft's northern fell runs and Bryan and Paul's GUCR races. I'm getting itchy feet just thinking about these future events but until now, much of the running is with my running pram.......

3 Forts Challenge Marathon

I've not been blogging anything like I have done in the past. No time. Not really ever. However I thought it was high time I fed back on the race I completed today as it was a special one. Marathon #50. A belated BD pressie to myself.

A good Saturday evening carb load and a reasonable sleep followed by a decent brekkie and I was en-route to Worthing in the cold but clear sunshine. On arrival I was surprised to see the largest field I've seen on the 4 3FMs that I have done. I had to park miles away. This lateness and a queue to pick up my number meant that a fleeting conversation with David Thompson at the start was all I could muster before the klaxon. The start is always a great leveller, with its narrow 734ft climb up to Cissbury Ring. The last 2 years I have lamented this climb, having run the Bewl Marathon the previous day. This year, I enjoyed the run up it.

No sooner that I had crested then a welcome hello from Jen who I had met at the Tanners 30 earlier this year. She was looking on form with her 'A' race of the NDW50 coming up in 2 weeks. We ran together on and off for the first 8 miles or so, mainly punctuated by a long chat with Steve Barnes who I didn't know who was running. Always good to catch up with Knockholt's self-styled hellraiser himself and glad to hear his training is on good form.

Between us lay the formidable 720ft climb of Devil's Dyke, from sea-level tidal River Adur. Upon crossing I recalled the 50 mile point that I retired from the SDW100 in the summer needing to go to A&E after smashing up my face and arm 15 miles back in a fall. Today, buoyed by caffeinated gel and sunbeams, I realised I had run the first 8/9 miles faster than my lack of training would carry me. I dropped down a gear and ground out the undulating climb punctuated by steep descents up to Devil's Dyke switchback, mainly now with Steve. A recurring 'shoe malfunction' set in. Something where the insole of the Invov8 popped out and up my Achilles, driving its foamy wedge into said tendon. Race admin required on the first of 4 separate occasions.

Back down to the Adur was a welcome high 5 with John Kipps, on marathon 98. Congrats to come buddy! I then entered a 5 mile grind fuelled with dehydration, thousands of horrible flies (particularly near the ever expanding pig fields above Botolphs) and a headwind. I struck up conversation with a couple of chaps but neither they, nor I, appeared to be in the mood. Calling upon the Dark Arts of race focus, a period of walking was soon far behind as I began the ascent of 792ft Chanctonbury. The top revealed a checkpoint, where copious juices were quaffed, cake washed down and from this 21 mile point, the chance to run with my awesome running buddy Helen Smith. We exchanged plenty of banter, except when she went into insane downhill mode and it took nearly a mile to catch up with her. We got a real good clip on which oddly, except for miles 2-7 was my fasted of the race. I love this last 6 miles or so....perhaps as much as any marathon I've run. After Chanctonbury, a 2 mile descent, a 500ft ascent and then some flats, all at good pace, followed by another ascent of Cissbury with a welcome last checkpoint at her base.......a swift climb and then Helly and I went for the brakes off brain off 2 mile 700ft+ descent, overtaking at least 20 people in the process. Utterly awesome! The time was not amazing. 4hrs26 for the 27.5 mile 3800ft course. However faster than my 4.32 last year (although that was the second of my B2B marathons) and bearing in mind on no training, I've got to be pretty pleased with that. Still don't know how I did 3.43 on this track?!

This is the first time I've had stiff quads for ages. Normally I don't get them. However I am looking for a sponsor for sun tan lotion. I had factor 50 waterproof on today. Burnt to a crisp! Anyone recommend a factor 100?!!

Marahton #50 DONE!

Race Report Essex Walker Purleigh Marathon

Sometimes when you get up you know that you are just turning up to make the numbers. There is no fire in your belly. Today was one of those days. I'm not saying that I didn't enjoy myself as I did, but you know when you KNOW, if you know what I mean?

So after a few pleasantries with a couple of folk that I vaguely knew I bumped into fellow Twitterer Vinny Purdy on marathon#97 looking fresh and focused. The field overall was small, 200 and this included those that went off early. Potentially there were about 80 at race briefing, many familiar faces and good to get into conversation with runners who know the area. My folks moved about 25 miles away from here and I haven't really run the landscape apart from Mersea Island and NE Essex. We set off at 10 with the sun already beaming down. There were about 15 of us in a group at the front for the first few miles and after a couple of wrong turns (LDWA early map reading issues) we settled into a good clip of about 10 guys and a girl. Running down to the River Crouch was lovely. I forgot that I wasn't really in the mood for this earlier......after a roast dinner on Saturday lunch, I didn't eat in the evening, breakfast was cereal and there was NO CIDER CARB LOADING!!

Two chaps (the one in the orange compressions) and another chap started smashing it along a disused railway line and then along the coast path. Annoyingly, this was like the Mersea Island back 8 miles where the path is about 4 inches wide and calf deep in grass. I don't like running like a princess as I've got big bollocks and they need some room to manoeuvre. Anyway these knobs obviously had no balls as they shimmied away at silly pace.

I then ran a bit silly. Buoyed up with fresh conversation with some chaps who had done the SVP100 and the Saltmarsh 75 and had won or come in the top 3, I blasted away until 15 miles. We came in off the coast and I started having a paddy. Wrong shoes, out of water, not enough food.....no balls.

Cock!

And then 3rd place went to 4th and la la la la la la

10th

I don't even know where the 1000ft of climb came from as we ran in and out of rivulets and inlets for about 10 miles??!!

So I took some pics of petrified trees as I had no water and no food for this part of the race

So as I was told as I was being overtaken that these had been written about in the Doomsday book. Well I was beginning to think that I would. Piss poor consideration of my own hydration and feeding had led to me reaching the 21.6 mile CP4 having only downed a 500ml drink. Tosser. I felt a bit shit but was on autopilot and enjoying the last few miles.....I watched the top few guys go into the distance and settled into a bimble with 3 looks over my shoulder coming off the estuary seeing nobody behind for about a mile, I trotted home with a feeling that this wasn't a big race and it was just some training under the belt with many more runs to come.

Marathon #49 DONE.

Catching up

old versus new - greenwich. the empire and globalisation, a photo by ultraBobban on Flickr.

I haven't blogged for a while. I've been busy with work and fatherhood. It's all been a bit of a blur and the aside from a significant Parkrun 2 weeks ago, where I equaled my PB, although chatted to Cookie and Phil for the first 3.5k. Still, it is 45 seconds slower than my actual 5k PB which was way back in 2008. Having said that, I haven't been working on my speed for a while!

This morning I have a really good 15 miler with Eric. We haven't had a proper catch up since the birth of Audrey so it was nice to cut through the chill of the spring air with a blast down to Greenwich along the Waterlink Way and back via Nunhead, Peckham Rye Dulwich and Sydenham Woods and Crystal palace. Really good banter this morning which is something I have missed. I have to pick and choose my runs and this was definitely a good Sunday session. I've got potential plans for a quiet training marathon next week. I want it to be low key, so that I can tick off some miles. I can't now do the Liverpool-Leeds Canal 130 miler in the summer as Glenn and Sue are getting married on the same day. I've altered my running schedule to not have an 'A' race and to use this year to just keep on top of the running and to aim for a marathon or ultra every 6-8 weeks minimum.

Having said that, there are a few that I will do in the holidays so that the impact of racing on a weekend is reduced. I don't think its fair to disappear for the day on a weekend when I work a 60 hour week which impacts on the family enough as it is.

Plans will be close to my chest for the moment, but I shall be trying out a few new events to whet my appetite, whilst aiming to blast some favourites too.