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Greater Manchester Marathon
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sounds like another run like Chester might be good for you HO2. Manchester was my first marathon and I am looking forward to running another one next year as I too have felt a bit low since. Loved aspects of GMM but because of the weather didn't run my best time. My family were having a tough time standing round in the rain watching. It was a case of gritting teeth and getting on with the job. I never enjoyed the usual atmosphere of the race village as I huddled under a tree sheltering at the start then whisked away at the end as the family had had enough and I was so cold. I do think the people of Manchester and the marshalls were brilliant in their support. I wish I had taken my i pod for the section after Dunham Massey (I am just too law abiding), I was driven to singing to myself! But depite all this I did actually run a marathon and raised a great amount for charity
Hope you begin to feel better about it all soon HO2
BP yes, almost forgot, The 20th is upon us again, I'm going for my 4th run in this event and my annual PB
Thanks Lilly. Very kind words. It too was my first marathon but I have ran the distance before on my own faster! Never mind, as a runner we should know that these things happen but it was so extreme after training for months to be dealt such a shit day in every way! I shall see what happens re finding a place for Chester. It seems to be a VERY popular half and no-one has come up with a place yet. However I have a feeling the closer to sunday, the more people will end up pulling out (hopefully not because of injury though...).
I got my bag back on thursday, happy to be reunited with my stuff... but then got an e-mail from the organisers yesterday to say sorry but they have lost my possessions. They still can't get organised even in their own offices....
Did anyone see this gem;
http://newsmanc.co.uk/2012/04/29/manchestermarathon/
H - that is brilliant - it is exactly as I remembered it!! Hope you are over your injuries now.
That's pretty funny, but I reckon I can beat it.
This week I actually received a request to complete a customer satisfaction survey for the Manchester Marathon.
EG - Yes got that as well but as one of prizes was a free entry for next year I thought I had to do it!!!!
I sent it in, but it would be just my luck to go and win it!
That spoof is wonderful! I didn't get the satisfaction survey - not fair!
In other news, I managed about 15-16 miles along the North Downs Way on Saturday (slow, with some horribly steep sections and some deep thick mud, but I also saw several partridges, a roe deer, a shrew and a stoat), then did a 10K on Sunday and sparked off piriformis syndrome on the other side... the physios are doing well out of me... I now have a whole raft of exercises to do to try to get my glutes working properly. I seem to be okay if I only do slow runs, so hopefully I can still get properly fit for the 30-miler in July and NDW50 in August.
How's everyone else's running going?
I can't believe the nerve sending out a satisfaction survey, but I guess they had to really. I've got the Manchester 10k on Sunday, then the Dukeries 30 miler the following Saturday. I have concentrated on longer distances and the glutes suffer, I need to get back to my weekly Parkrun again
I too got the customer satisfaction survey! I have to be honest, because I didn't leave baggage, I have nothing to complain about so it would be unfair to say anything bad on it. However whether I can be arsed or not to reply is another thing entirely...
Debra, you are madder than I am. I did Chester Half Marathon on Sunday, hilariously I got a PB by 1 second! Still laughing about that. I have rested yesterday and today and will be starting some trail running I think, I need to mix it up.
EG Graham - bloody hell, you are giving it some too!
I know, Dukeries will make it three marathons in 5 weeks since Manchester, maybe I screwed my diary up this year, I think I got carried away with the 12 in 12 challenge
to be fair the satisfaction survey is the one way they can improve the marathon.
I dont think it is going away and any way they can improve it the better.
I enjoyed it and didnt loose my bag (for long).
I think the survey is an excellent idea - and will help improve things for next year. I have had a slight injury worry in my foot, thought it was PF but has gone away and I am back running normally now. Have Manc 10k this weekend, then no other races planned till summer and autumn (Chester marathon).
Glad you got a place to run Chester HO2
I filled in the survey, good to give my opinion on the positives and my thoughts on how things can be improved. Keeping up my running, trying to run shorter distances faster! Two 10k races coming up then hopefully another marathon next spring.
I filled the form in. I think I was pretty balanced and separated the genuine problems from the bad weather which I'm not sure I was objective enough to do on the afternoon after the race.
Good course (even the dreaded DM would be OK in decent weather), great support but baggage and gels for the later runners needs sorting.
I complained about baggage, the fact that the course went through a track, some narrow lanes and an underpass which was not made public, and non sending out of race numbers (or the fact that this wasn't more clear when signing up).
I only complained about the baggage... didn't min the DM part at all. I hope they learn from all this, it could be a really good race if they do. Where did you say had best support, I couldn't remember what happened at all the places?
I voted for Altrincham as best support because the cheers as we came over the bridge and into the main street were amazing. It might have been because we were one of the pace groups and so there was a fairly large bunch of us.
Have been on a few runs of varying distances and this weekend am heading to Wythenshawe parkrun to get my daughter into this running malarkey as well.
Yep, Altincham got my vote, Coming down the incline into that wall of sound was amazing.
Has anyone looked at the Lancaster Marathon in 5 weeks? I am dithering about it - looks quite a tough hilly one.
H2O,
I did a 10k race last Sunday and have a Half in 5 weeks (Freckleton). I strugged in the 10k and I expect to struggle at Freckleton. We're all different but I couldn't ,manage a decent marathon in that time. I know you're an Ultra runner so maybe you could use it as a training run and a good time at Lancaster wouldn't be that much of a problem?
Gaz
Alty was the only place with a really uplifted roar of the cloud. But it was in the later. grimmer stages I most appreciated support. Not sure if was Urmston or Stretford (so voted for both in addition to Alty). It was a truly miserable day to stand outside cheering, and friends, families and locals should be proud of their own endurance achievement.
I agree with Keep left, those amazing people who were still out cheering and encouraging after over 5 hours, I salute and thank you. I remembered cheering at various stages but Altrincham didn't stand out for me as I think I must have been running through after the crowds had left. I just remember the long up hill high street. I really did appreciate seeing my family and them giving me much needed gels outside Tesco!
I thought the support in all the towns was excellent - but Altrincham was probably the loudest and most enthusiastic, so they got my vote.
I also suggested they do away with the VIP tent with it's warmth, wine and string quartet, and spend some money on the non-vip runners (i.e. 99.9% of us). Right comrades?
My training schedule for next marathon in autumn starts in a few weeks!
None of this happened in London 1981 despite having twice the entry and being over 30 years ago.