Post Race Review
Ok, so I have not posted anything since mid-October but there is a perfectly good explanation for that and it is down to a career change.
Since deciding in August last year to become a teacher I have spent the past 6 months applying to become a Teaching Assistant, working as one, applying to become a Teacher, being interviewed, being rejected, being interviews again, being accepted and then finally running the Brighton Marathon.
Oh yes- Brighton and not London. Let me explain what happened.
Firstly I applied in April to be in the ballot for the 2014 London Marathon.
Secondly - I waited for the results and was unfortunately not given a place.
Thirdly- Luckily for me MNDA were on hand to give me a place in the Brighton Marathon, which took place a week earlier.
So there you have it, I was still in the running (mind the pun) for marathon medal and spent a lot of time training, completing cross country races, and attempting to stick to a marathon training plan whilst working at a primary school in a completely new environment that I have previously been used to.
Races leading up to the Marathon since October were as follows:
- October 27th - The Staggered Jog. A 10 km race held on the last Sunday of each month and this particular race I needed to win to cement my 1st place in the Club Championship. Which I did by beating Chris Rose by 20 secs.
- November 10th - Datchet XC (Cross Country). The first of 8 Cross Country Races held throughout the Winter and despite finishing 1st, I slipped and skidded everywhere in the mud which prompted me purchase a pair of Karrimior shoes, ideal for those conditions.
- November 24th - Sandhurst XC. Much easier with my new trainers and I finished ahead of Chris Rose (my Burnham Joggers friendly rival)
- December 8th - Handy Cross XC. The hilliest of all the races and on quite a mild day which made it a tough course. This was a Club Championship race with everything to play for. My shoes got stuck in the mud in one particularly muddy patch and I lost ground but luckily stayed far enough ahead to finish 1st from the club.
- December 22nd - Reading Roadrunners XC. A new race held for the series and one that had an impressive hill start. It was a double loop course, which although I am not a huge fan of, meant I got a good feeling for where to make a push and overtake. Another 1st place finish out of the club.
- January 12th - Tadley XC. Quite a few of our runners went to this race and we did quite well as a team. The route changed terrain quite a lot and this enabled runners to make up ground on the less muddier parts. It wasn't a fast race for me but I was yet again 1st from the club.
- January 19th - Bracknell Forest Runners XC. Our second Club Championship of the season and one I needed to win to give me a better chance of retaining the Shield. Not a lot of runners from the club showed which was a surprise but for those who did, it was a lovely day and again another double looped course. Although I did finish 1st, special mention goes to Rachel Sammes who despite starting 10 mins late, still managed a great time and position.
Marathon Training courtesy of Patricia Keene's training plan
Since the start of January I had been slowly increasing my distances and making headway on my own personal target which was to break sub 3:30. Everything was going well until the week leading up to my 30th birthday/engagement party and lost my voice and was not well at all.
I didn't take any time off work and had been running longer and longer distances in the hope I could burn out the illness. It wasn't to be and on my birthday I had to stay at home whilst the final Cross Country of the season was ran.
Never one to shield away in the corner, I was determined to come back fighting fit and sure enough took to the streets, running and building the pace back up. Jo had brought me a Garmin Forerunner Watch, which I desperately needed to help clock my mph pace. I first used it when we went for a Half Term break to Dorset and ran a 13.1 mile route up and down the valleys near to Bridport and even managed a 20 mile run along the Kennet Canal when visiting my Dad in Wiltshire.
Two half marathons in two weeks
- March 2nd -Reading Half Marathon - my 3rd attempt to break the 1:30 barrier and finally I achieved it in 1:28:05.
- March 9th -Milton Keynes Half Marathon - lovely flat course with a huge steep hill at the end. 1:27:30
I still needed to hit another 20+mile route so did so on March 16th and took plenty of water and a banana with me. The countryside route that I chose had a lot of downhill and some uphills, then I chose to go into Slough, along the Jubilee River and finish in Taplow. 22 miles in 3:10:02
With that in mind I factored in a quicker pace on Marathon Day plus the crowd and knowing fellow club runners will be there to spurn me on. sub 3 3:25 was looking like a good target.
Final preparations for race day
I started to taper my distances with a 17 mile then 10 mile run on the final two Sundays leading up to the race. Gel packs were being used at planned intervals and in my mind I was ready to get it over and done with.
Jo and I were staying in Littlehampton at my grandparents, which at only 30 miles is a lot closer to Brighton than coming from Burnham. We travelled down on the Saturday to the Marathon Expo to receive my race pack and number 299, visited some friends and family, and then headed to our final stop. It was a stressful night because there was hardly any information for the Elite Runners (I was given a place based on Half Marathon Timing) and a mix up with travel arrangements on the day meant that I had to quickly wake Jo up to take me to the start.
Race Day
About 300+ Elite runners met a mile up the road from the Mass Start and I was joined by James Quincey, who was also given a place. It was a nice atmosphere and I was privileged to have been put among the best runners in the UK and the world. Seeing the front runners warm up gave me encouragement that was duly needed.
At 9:15 the race began and it was an odd feeling knowing I was somehow right near the front, about to be joined by a huge mass of people jostling for space. My fears were not quite met and during the entire course I was never bumped into, didn't feel claustrophobic, and managed to maintain a steady pace with a group of the same runners including James.
The first 5 km was ran in 22:08 & this was a nice pace I thought - still with hardly any elevation at the time .
10 km came in at 44:10 and registered a second quicker pace per mile than the previous 5 k.
James and I were even all the way around the course and even managed to have conversations with fellow runners. Drinks were ample and due to the nature of the course, we could see runners coming towards us when we doubled back en-route. This helped us to encourage each other along the way and I saw a few of our club members including Liz Bemment, Chris Firman and Andrea Taborelli.
The half way point came at about 1:32 and both Jame and I were gearing up the crowd to cheer and clap. I even heard Jo's voice say 'Ben' as I passed under the only bridge used on the day to cross the race.
25 km was reached in 1:50:06 and still at an even pace. The same was said for 30 km at 2:12:19.
Things began to get tougher for me after 21 miles and James was slowly creating a big gap between us. Rather than be stupid and keep up, I slowed down a bit, took on gels and kept moving. I didn't try to work out my finish time because that would have made me speed up or slow down.
With 2 km to go at 3:00:46 I was (without knowing it) on course for a fantastic PB and despite struggling towards the end, managed to see the finish line and cross it in 3:12:20
I had smashed my PB by 39 minutes and my own prediction by almost 13 minutes. Training with a local club has helped me to achieve the best possible results and although I could have done a few things differently, I am still happy with what I did.
My fundraising for the MNDA is the only thing that matters and when meeting Jo at the Charity Village, I was met also by Anita Solan who has been championing me since the very start last year and is a vital employee of the charity.
Thank you all for supporting me every step of the way and my next challenge is to run two marathons in two weeks.
