I wanted to do 2 10k runs last week to prepare for yesterday's HM, but I overdid the first run, and my legs were a bit sore so did a bike ride as well instead.
The HM itself started at 10 which was an hour’s drive from home, so I left the house about 7.45 to get there early enough. I like to make sure that there is at least an hour to spare so I can prepare, use the loo's psych out the place etc. I packed my stuff the night before, bringing a change of clothes in case I got soaked and some warm running gear if it got too blustery. I had rained here the whole week and didn’t want to be left cold as well as wet. Well, that was the plan, and it would have been a good plan if I didn’t put an opened bottle of water into the bag when I left the house…. I found that everything was damp from the water in the bottle (slaps forehead). I hung everything up to dry using the back of the car seats and anywhere else I could make use of.
I also had a bit of a lower gut problem yesterday morning and found my self visiting the loo 5 times that morning. However, I was very glad that it happened before the race and not during it like my 30k easy run the previous weekend.
The start unlike the previous hm was very easy to find this time and started on time. I read on their fb page that the times were from the gun time and not from when you crossed over the mat, so I never sure that I was near the front. There was a brief introduction speech, and we were off. I took this photo when the when the gun fired.
The plan was to run first 3/4 in zone 3 and not on pace, it's only my second hm and I'm not experienced enough for a pure race. Anyway, the point for me is to celebrate the fact that I can do this and enjoying it.
I was if course passed a good few times and used a few people as pace makers but the course was quite hilly and I found myself going into the red of zone 4 quite quickly and had to slow down a lot more than the previous hm. I found a good stride on a flat bit at the 8k point until there was a hill that was so steep, I nearly needed to climb it. I just slowed right down to almost waking pace instead.
Part of the course was through a forest trail about 5k form the end, I felt well and truly exhausted at that stage but was determined not to walk and keep on going. A fellow runner ahead of me however was doing the running and walking, I’d catch up to her and pass and she would then start running again and passing me stopping again a few again a couple of hundred meters ahead. I so much wanted to do the same but forced myself to carry on. My eyes were also stinging quite a bit form the salt in the sweat, my glasses were soaked as well so I took them off and ran without them. Luckily, I only really using glasses for driving and don’t rely on them yet which is quite good for someone who has been working with computers either repairing them or working in an office using them for almost 40 years.
The last 2k of the run was an absolute torture, I really had nothing left but relented on to the finish line at 1:57.31, which was a minute slower than my last hm. I looked at my watch for the distance, I thought it wasn’t at the HM stage and was determined to go on for a bit until the dammed distance was completed. I stopped briefly to bend down to receive the medal and went on my way to complete the distance. However, I was a bit delirious and couldn’t even make out the distance on the watch and couldn’t run much further than 20 steps, so I gave up, stopped the watch, argued in my head that I was going to finish the distance as you have come so far, pressed start again, ran 5 more steps and found that I was well and truly done. I stopped the watch and pressed save. That was me done.
I was aching all over and I also had bad chaffing at the top of my legs, I wore a different type of base layer shorts this time so I could put my phone in the pocket it came with and probably didn’t pull them up all the way from visiting the loo beforehand. So, I was walking like a strange cowboy for the rest of the day ha-ha. Apart from the aches I recovered quite quickly, I did a couple of stretches and went to the table area and got myself a few melon slices, water, banana, and orange slices, sat on a low wall and had a bit of a feed. I took a few selfies; I feel strange doing this, but I don’t want to regret not marking the occasion. Sent a message to herself to say it was over. I started to rain at that stage, I welcomed it at first and went into the building which was a primary school for shelter when it got heavier grabbing a few more bits of food on the way. I wated in the hall, there were a couple of other runners there discussing PBs and what others got and matching times from other countries they had run in etc.. I finished my food and went to find a WC to wash the salt from my face. The doors on WCs were in Irish, the first one was leithreas na mban ladies toilet so I walked passed that one and went into the next, found a sink and started soaking my face, someone came out of one of the cubicles washed hands briefly and went, another came in went into the cubicle the previous person was in, came out straight away and went into the next one. I thought that that was a girl, shrugged my shoulders and dried myself off, there were probably 2 ladies toilets together but I didn’t care at this stage.
I went back to the car and was going to get changed into tracksuit bottoms but I somehow managed to soak them as well with another bottle of water. I doubted I would have been able to bent to get them on anyway.
I drove home chatted to herself about the event and went to check my phone as you do for the times etc. Nothing was there, I briefly swore out loud, tried to recollect if I had pressed save, started ranting and raving and then my phone displayed that my run was ready and did I want to view it. What a relief….
So that was my second Half Marathon. I only intended to write a small post in reply to nowster May quest post but it went on a bit too long so posted it here instead.
The event was very well organised, it was very efficient and there were plenty of marshals on route and lots of refreshments afterwards.
The medal was for the 2020 event which never happened due to the lockdown. I made a bit of a jibe about it on Strava pretending that Mayo was a bit behind the times and this proved it, another runner replied that they were from Mayo and said that the year there was approximately 2006 haha.
Good Night.
P.S.
By the way, I did complete the distance I was just so delirious at the end I never realised. I also got a few PBs as well - Half Marathon 1:57:15 (last one was a minute quicker but GPS didn't cut the run short as it frustratingly does) 20k PR 1:50:24, 10 mile PR 1:27.14 and 15k PR 1:21:14.
My first half marathon
So pleased I’ve run my first Half Marathon! 😊
My first half marathon distance 
HUHM virtual 10 Mile Run Report (+ 2 bonus miles!)
