The closest that I’d got to a plan was to stick with the 4:15 pacer for a while and then try and break away further into the race. The start process was split into four phases. I arrived for phase one at my allocated time but passed through the phases much quicker than scheduled (it was chilly so I didn’t want to hang around). So, I was through the start and running about half an hour earlier than scheduled (and, therefore, half an hour before the 4:15 pacer was due to set off). So, the only semblance of a plan that I had was in the bin by the time that I started.
The 4:00 pacer was a little way in front of me so I hung around at the back of that pack for a while. Although it would be great to run a 4 hour Marathon, I don’t think that’s within my ability (yet!) I’ve given up trying to use the “real time” pace on my watch at the start of events so I just ran at a pace that felt comfortable. Which pretty much sums up the first 30k or so of the race for me! There were a few undulations, mostly for bridges over railways and waterways; on these, I eased my pace back on the way up then took advantage of the downhill for some extra speed.
Checked the time on my watch at the half way point and realised that I’d achieved an HM PB! Whoopee! Then, hang on a minute, an HM PB half way through a Marathon doesn’t bode well for the full distance. In fact, it suggests that I’d overcooked it and was likely to struggle later on.
Anyhow, I managed to maintain my comfortable pace up until the last 10k or so. It then became a bit of a struggle to hang on. By this point, I was using my watch as a guide, putting in a little extra effort if my pace dropped below 6 mins / km. Although it required some effort and my legs were starting to feel a bit tired, I managed to hold on like this. I was, however, in much better shape than I was at the end of the Newport Marathon so, with about 300m to go, I managed to put on some extra speed. Not the all-out sprint that I’d managed in Yorkshire, but a noticeable pickup none the less.
I finished with an official time inside 4:16 so, not quite as quick as I might have hoped but still a Marathon PB by about six minutes (and an HM PB to boot!)
As seems to have become a habit for me, I did a ParkRun the day before. Unfortunately, the hole that I’d worn in one of my socks had become big enough to let the whole of my big toe through which resulted in a blister. That was a bit of a worry for the marathon. As it turned out, a sticking plaster and some thicker (and intact) socks prevented that from being a problem.
I thought that my pulse rate graph was interesting, showing steady for the whole race apart from a peak right at the end where I put in some extra effort.
Swansea half marathon race report
Lisburn Half marathon race report; a new PB!