So here I am, the final race of my set goal in achieving 50 competitive miles before I'm 50. The Down Tow Up Flow, Marlow to Windsor Half Marathon (July 26th 2015). I'm no stranger to this race as having run it a couple of years ago but this time I would be running with my wife Rachael.
This race was more of a social run, if anything a test for Rachael to see if she could complete the distance and for me passing the 11 mile marker which would clock up my 50 miles. No race time expectations, just a run to enjoy the scenery and the company.
The day did not get off to a good start as we were welcomed by rain which is no fun when you have to wait 45 minutes until the start with no real shelter other than what the trees had to offer. As soon as we were running, the rain was not an issue and as luck would have it the weather improved, well as far as to say it stopped raining. I felt a sense of pleasure as I passed through villages and towns that played a part in my history, Bourne End, Cookham, Maidenhead, Bray and on to Windsor. At the 11 mile marker it was good to have the company but a real effort was needed by Rach to see her through to the finish.
http://runkeeper.com/user/onlyrunner/activity/620902838
Let's not talk race times, let's talk quality time in the company of the woman I love and enjoying the fact that we can actually go out together and take part in an event without worrying about the kids.
It's done, 50 miles completed in readiness for my birthday and how do I feel....glad that I've done it but not a sensation of great achievement. So what to do about that....enter another half marathon, the Blenheim Palace Half Marathon in October.
I'll let you know how that one goes!
Monday 31 August 2015
Saturday 8 August 2015
50 by 50 - Race 2, the big challenge
Having completed the first phase of my goal, this next event was to be the big one, The Colworth Marathon Challenge (19th June 2015 to 21st June 2015).
I'm no stranger to this event and although not marathon fit my thought process was that if I break up the distance using this race format; 5 mile race 19th June, 8.1 mile trail race 20th June and Half Marathon 21st June a total of 26.2 miles and you guessed it a marathon, maybe I could survive to tell the tale. Again my training had been fairly poor this taking away from any thought about impressive finish times, so sheer stamina to see me through the weekend was the focus. My training plan consisted of using 3 weekends to run back to back distances, increasing the distance each weekend in an attempt to run the final training weekend, 8 miles on the Saturday and 10 miles on the Sunday. The intention behind this was to see how quickly I could recover in readiness for the next weekend training which did improve week on week and left me with a week of no running before the event. The reality of this training plan was 2 weekends, weekend 1; 5 miles & 8 miles, weekend 2; 5 miles & 10 miles. The longer runs saw me managing my 9.5 minute mile pace and the shorter runs achieving a 9.0 minute mile pace. On my final training run I was lucky enough to be collared by an old running colleague Mike Smith whom I had run the Colworth event with on a couple of occasions. He had also entered the event and this was his last training run so it was at that point we agreed we would be running buddies to see ourselves through the weekend.
Day 1 - Colworth 5
I made it to the race start having left work and travelled direct to the event, I met up with Mike and we made our way to the start line. It was only 5 miles but I needed to pace myself so that I could stay strong for the weekend, a point I made on more than one occasion so that I didn't find myself racing away or trying to keep up with Mike who had his own target. 2 miles into the race my chatting definitely faded as I concentrated more on my running at a pace which Mike had dictated and was if I'm totally honest a bit quicker than I had anticipated. Into the final mile and it was here that I had to let Mike go off and do his own thing, no last minute sprint for the line a steady finish in 44:06 minutes.
http://runkeeper.com/user/onlyrunner/activity/595819708
Day 2 - 8.1 mile Trail
The weather had been reasonably kind, only light rain which meant that the trail conditions should be good, namely not muddy. Always one to be slightly cautious, I chose to run in my off road shoes just in case some areas of the run had succumb to the rain and left the slippery, muddy stuff. This run although starting off with Mike soon developed into a lone run as I let Mike run off into the distance and I stuck to my guns running my own pace. The route had been changed from my previous races which I thought was a good thing all be it where you run downhill to the turnaround point and then back uphill to where a marshal directs you off on the final leg of the race. It's this run back to the marshal that seemed to go on forever and it took all my will power not to stop and walk. Having completed this uphill slog, the remainder of the race was bearable and I finished in 1 hour 16:52 minutes achieving my target pace of 9.5 minute miles. I had joked about no family support at the Colworth 5 and secretly although I had said it didn't matter it was great to see Rach there taking pictures close to the end of the race and then again at the finish.
I'm no stranger to this event and although not marathon fit my thought process was that if I break up the distance using this race format; 5 mile race 19th June, 8.1 mile trail race 20th June and Half Marathon 21st June a total of 26.2 miles and you guessed it a marathon, maybe I could survive to tell the tale. Again my training had been fairly poor this taking away from any thought about impressive finish times, so sheer stamina to see me through the weekend was the focus. My training plan consisted of using 3 weekends to run back to back distances, increasing the distance each weekend in an attempt to run the final training weekend, 8 miles on the Saturday and 10 miles on the Sunday. The intention behind this was to see how quickly I could recover in readiness for the next weekend training which did improve week on week and left me with a week of no running before the event. The reality of this training plan was 2 weekends, weekend 1; 5 miles & 8 miles, weekend 2; 5 miles & 10 miles. The longer runs saw me managing my 9.5 minute mile pace and the shorter runs achieving a 9.0 minute mile pace. On my final training run I was lucky enough to be collared by an old running colleague Mike Smith whom I had run the Colworth event with on a couple of occasions. He had also entered the event and this was his last training run so it was at that point we agreed we would be running buddies to see ourselves through the weekend.
Day 1 - Colworth 5
I made it to the race start having left work and travelled direct to the event, I met up with Mike and we made our way to the start line. It was only 5 miles but I needed to pace myself so that I could stay strong for the weekend, a point I made on more than one occasion so that I didn't find myself racing away or trying to keep up with Mike who had his own target. 2 miles into the race my chatting definitely faded as I concentrated more on my running at a pace which Mike had dictated and was if I'm totally honest a bit quicker than I had anticipated. Into the final mile and it was here that I had to let Mike go off and do his own thing, no last minute sprint for the line a steady finish in 44:06 minutes.
http://runkeeper.com/user/onlyrunner/activity/595819708
Day 2 - 8.1 mile Trail
The weather had been reasonably kind, only light rain which meant that the trail conditions should be good, namely not muddy. Always one to be slightly cautious, I chose to run in my off road shoes just in case some areas of the run had succumb to the rain and left the slippery, muddy stuff. This run although starting off with Mike soon developed into a lone run as I let Mike run off into the distance and I stuck to my guns running my own pace. The route had been changed from my previous races which I thought was a good thing all be it where you run downhill to the turnaround point and then back uphill to where a marshal directs you off on the final leg of the race. It's this run back to the marshal that seemed to go on forever and it took all my will power not to stop and walk. Having completed this uphill slog, the remainder of the race was bearable and I finished in 1 hour 16:52 minutes achieving my target pace of 9.5 minute miles. I had joked about no family support at the Colworth 5 and secretly although I had said it didn't matter it was great to see Rach there taking pictures close to the end of the race and then again at the finish.
looks more like a power walk session than running, I've looked better
Day 3 - Half Marathon
and so the final day, I had managed to get up on Sunday morning and have myself prepared to run the final leg of the challenge. Did I feel tired, a little...did my legs ache, a little...could I give this race a miss, ABSOLUTELY!
It was not to be, this half marathon was about to be defeated via sheer grit and determination. Again Mike had his own plans for the race of which I'd already said he's on his own, the sub 4 hour for the overall event was not on my mind. I'd survived 2 days and now all I had to do was survive the final day. Distance was not an issue, having the strength and stamina to run the distance after having completed 13.1 miles already was another matter.
The race started, bye bye Mike I said as he ran off and I settled into my steady pace with the idea that as this was a 2 lap race if I was feeling strong by the second lap I'd pick up the pace. The running conditions were good, a slight drizzle help to keep you cool in the warm temperature. Lap 1 completed and I could see Mike who had slowed down and I eventually managed to catch him. He was feeling the results of his quick early pace and although I ran with him for a short while he encouraged me to run on as I appeared to be of a stronger state. I'm not normally keen on races that consist of more than one lap to complete the distance but in this case I found it mentally stimulating as you knew where you were with regards to the finish and also what to expect which allowed you mentally set milestones. This did the trick for me, I felt capable of finishing strong although my pace slipped but still averaged out at an acceptable result.
2nd lap, closing down on fellow runner
The final run in was a welcoming sight knowing that I'd done it and a full family turn out to see me finish was a major bonus. I crossed the line in 2 hours 6:58 minutes which I feel is a respectable time based on my MK Half Marathon result based on the fact that I'd completed 13.1 miles on the previous 2 days. Mike finished not too far behind me, I'd managed to get the better of him on one of the races.
we've done it...see you next year...maybe :-/
So my overall time for the Colworth Marathon Challenge was 4 hours 7:56 minutes which surprisingly is better than my first attempt at this event in 2007 which was 4 hours 21:41 minutes and also the lack of training for this event as opposed to my build up in 2007. That being the case, I can't be unhappy with the result.
2 events down and 39.3 miles completed, roll on the final event to see me through the 50 competitive mile goal.
50 by 50 - Race 1, let my target commence
So with the goal set I proceeded to progress my target with the selected races being my competitive mile opportunities. The running mojo was still yet to be found, the desire to run at my best didn't inspire me, it was more to prove to myself that I was still capable of achieving the distances and as such pace was not the focus, just stamina.
The first race was the Milton Keynes Half Marathon (4th May 2015) an event that forms part of the larger Marathon event a race which was supposed to be my original goal but not a realistic objective based on my training commitment. The race conditions were fairly good be it a tad warm but for 13.1 miles I felt this would be bearable. On the lead up to the race my longest run had been 10 miles so I was pretty confident that the additional 3.1 miles were achievable especially as I was looking at running a manageable pace of 9.5 minute miles. The event spirit was high even to the point where I started to think that perhaps I could track the 9.0 minute mile pacer and this is how I started. The pacer was in my sight, how hard could this be? perhaps a bit harder than I thought, my pace dropped as did my sight of the pacer :-( but hey no worries, 9.5 minute miles was my target. The route was well supported thanks to the weather and the decision by the race group organisers to utilise more of the roads surrounding the main shopping area. As per my longest training run the 10 mile marker was reached with confidence and now the mind set was only 3.1 miles left, a lap of Olney, how achievable is that. Very achievable as it happens although the final mile found me digging deep and the run in at the MK Stadium saw my pace quicken if only for the crowd ;-)
Race 1 completed, 13.1 miles clocked in 2 hours 2:20 minutes which having not really trained was a satisfactory result in my eyes.
The first race was the Milton Keynes Half Marathon (4th May 2015) an event that forms part of the larger Marathon event a race which was supposed to be my original goal but not a realistic objective based on my training commitment. The race conditions were fairly good be it a tad warm but for 13.1 miles I felt this would be bearable. On the lead up to the race my longest run had been 10 miles so I was pretty confident that the additional 3.1 miles were achievable especially as I was looking at running a manageable pace of 9.5 minute miles. The event spirit was high even to the point where I started to think that perhaps I could track the 9.0 minute mile pacer and this is how I started. The pacer was in my sight, how hard could this be? perhaps a bit harder than I thought, my pace dropped as did my sight of the pacer :-( but hey no worries, 9.5 minute miles was my target. The route was well supported thanks to the weather and the decision by the race group organisers to utilise more of the roads surrounding the main shopping area. As per my longest training run the 10 mile marker was reached with confidence and now the mind set was only 3.1 miles left, a lap of Olney, how achievable is that. Very achievable as it happens although the final mile found me digging deep and the run in at the MK Stadium saw my pace quicken if only for the crowd ;-)
Race 1 completed, 13.1 miles clocked in 2 hours 2:20 minutes which having not really trained was a satisfactory result in my eyes.
Tuesday 3 March 2015
Find my mojo......
Hello 2015, time to find my running mojo that has deserted me. A target of three runs per week, first completed today, a lap of Olney (about 3 miles) and not timed...done!
Saturday 4 January 2014
Wave goodbye to 2013 and say hello to 2014
So the year 2013 has come and gone and so here starts a new year with new challenges. A quick recap of 2013 found me running the MK Marathon but failing to achieve my sub 4 hour target. On a plus side I managed to complete 50 Park Runs and now of the pleasure of owning a 50 run shirt. Three half marathons under my belt, the first being the Colworth half, part of the Colworth series and boy was it easier just tackling the one race. The second being the Up Tow Down Flow, Marlow to Windsor half which although not achieving a new PB was definitely an attractive route along the tow path of the Thames. My final half marathon to end the year being the Bedford half which although again not achieving a new PB did see me run a pleasing 1hr 49 minutes.
I've started the new year a little heavier and a little rounder in shape thanks to the Christmas and New Year festivities. My target is yet again the Milton Keynes Marathon to achieve that sub 4 hour race time. My focus will purely be on achieving this goal and as part of the build up losing those unwanted pounds and turning the round figure of a man into a lean running machine. I'm already in a good position having kept up the running so have a head start on putting in the base miles so it's all about pace and strength.
I will focus on producing a training plan referencing my new found knowledge having treated myself to the book "The Art of Running Faster" by Julian Goater and Don Melvin. Motivation has been lacking of recent so I have registered with Jantastic 2014 http://www.jantastic.me/ to give me some inspiration over the next three months. I have registered a team; Gordon's Gophers so feel free to join me.
Hello 2014, let's see what the year brings!
I've started the new year a little heavier and a little rounder in shape thanks to the Christmas and New Year festivities. My target is yet again the Milton Keynes Marathon to achieve that sub 4 hour race time. My focus will purely be on achieving this goal and as part of the build up losing those unwanted pounds and turning the round figure of a man into a lean running machine. I'm already in a good position having kept up the running so have a head start on putting in the base miles so it's all about pace and strength.
I will focus on producing a training plan referencing my new found knowledge having treated myself to the book "The Art of Running Faster" by Julian Goater and Don Melvin. Motivation has been lacking of recent so I have registered with Jantastic 2014 http://www.jantastic.me/ to give me some inspiration over the next three months. I have registered a team; Gordon's Gophers so feel free to join me.
Hello 2014, let's see what the year brings!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
