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MBNA Chester Marathon 2013
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Thanks Chester for a great run & atmosphere....the sunburn on the shoulders is a bonus!
2nd marathon, ran it as near to as well as planned. Took 38 mins (yes mins) off my previous which was London in April.
Would I run it again next year....Oh hell yeah!
Anyone know when photos are normally ready? Want to see my beautiful sweaty red gurning face.
My wee bald head is red raw too. I can't have got sunburnt in the forecast 17C. So, I'm guessing that it was somewhat hotter.
yet again Chris and Andy have proved why this is the best marathon in the uk this year i went with 3h45 pacer stayed with the group forhalf way manged to go non stop for nearly 21 miles got 3h57 finished just loved will do this race every year
Well done Compo. It was ace wasn't it.
great where you at the permier inn across from Sainsburys i was in room 67 will be back next year after doing Huddersfield/Wakefield and Halifax marathons
got woodland challange this Sunday near Brighouse on my 42 birthday i say if you want to do something do it
From another site loads of pictures here http://www.flickr.com/photos/nozzawales/sets/72157636255642854/
tonights easy club run was not
Dave
Just found myself on first page. 1552. Look a bit silly.
Isn't that near the end 15W on the way back to the racecourse - no wonder you were feeling it there
Race report, for my second marathon - now that the euphoria level has dropped far enough for me to be able to reflect sensibly!:
Essential target was to break 4 hrs... but training had gone fairly well, my HM pb is 1:47:xx, so I hoped to get around 3-53, with stretch target of 3.50.
I ignored the pacers (never even clapped eyes on one after leaving the racecourse). But kept my own steady pace not far off around 8:35... expecting to lose a bit in the second half of the race.
In short, I just kept going and going and going. Chatted to quite a few people en route. Waved at the wonderful crowds and marshalls. Hardly had a mental or physical wobble.
I now feel really terrible to say it, because it's clear that lots of people had given their all by the time they hit the hills, and writing this sounds almost arrogant, or uncaring.... but if you want an honest race report, I welcomed those hills, which gave me a chance to dig in, use different muscles, and mentally start charging for the finish. [The hills in my previous marathon were much tougher, and even later in the race, so by comparison, these were easy ]
I was ignoring the distance field on my Garmin and at the 24 mile marker, I looked at my watch and couldn't believe that 3:45 was, from nowhere, a certainty.... Relaxed for a short while but then went through a confused period... somehow not believing it.. seeing my Garmin distance was under and wobbled a bit between pushing on, and mentally settling for a more relaxed finish (sure of a 3:4x:xx finish by then). I really dug deep along the river.. but seeing my chance breaking 3:45 was well definitely gone, I entered the race course and absolutely loved the canter round track to achieve a thrilling time.
A slight negative split (half a minute difference)... If I do a marathon next autumn, it will be this one... and maybe looking to break 3:40 then!
Thanks Andy & Chris. Superb stuff. A less sickly energy drink next your though please!
I am immediately looking to my next marathon so it must have been good! Definitely want to do liverpool rock n roll in may but will be doing it with my chap and he not doing so much training but we will want to enjoy it together and probably take about 4 hrs 30+. Soooo .....I am thinking of one before that to challenge me again! Anyone done blackpool....flat I know....and am I ok to do that seriously some months after chester and then do liverpool relaxed a couple of months later? Am I mad?
Yes. Very mad. There is also Greater Manchester Marathon in early April - that is pretty flat and fairly well organised (well...they've had a few teething issues in the past).
Morning all and well done everyone! Thank you for all the support and advice from all of you guys to help me to complete my first marathon. It was a lot hillier that I thought it was going to be but I really enjoyed it, came in at 4:03 so really happy with that especially my aim was just to finish. Got Birmingham half next week so hopefully I will be ready for that.
Looking forward to sub 4 at my next one, can't wait, halfs used to be favourite but I think I like full more now.
Thanks again.
Despite it being my best ever result, I'm still pretty sure that Chester was my last full-marathon.
It isn't really the pain (he said nursing still rock-solid quads). It is just that it isn't fair on my lovely wife.
Apparently the Romanian guy who won the mens race, and who is a member of Altrincham AC, came 26th in the london olympics.
Yeah, I'm with Nick. Get rid and get another one on marathondating.com
bev hart - Congratulations! That's an awesome time for FV60.
metro gnome - From a quick look at the splits you must have overtaken the leading MV60 between 40km and the end. I hope you paid due homage to him. He finished in 2:59:27. I was the second V60, 22 minutes behind him. I'm going to see if I can get his picture to inspire me/worship at!
My run sounds similar to yours Stephen. I came in just over 3:40. I've just been looking at my mile times - virtually all up to 13 miles were under 8 minutes a mile then after 21 miles they were all over 9, the worst (the one with that evil hill) being a truly horrible 9:48. People I hadn't seen since mile 5 were overtaking me looking fresh as daisies. I'm going to look at how I can take this to the next level for Manchester in April. I did five 20 mile plus runs in training so that wasn't the problem. I've a nasty feeling the answer is much higher intensity running, rather than comfortable long runs. And it's probably time to stop making up my own training plans! Anyway, well done all on your good times and to everyone involved in making such a top day.
Sam - I recommend the P&D book. Works for lots of people who are serious about imprving marathon times. You probably need more of the quicker stuff.
Sam - It looks to me like you were moving up the field until the 40km mark so there's no need to feel down at all!
If you want to raise your level, and you haven't already tried it, my suggestion is to try Pfitzinger and Douglas (P&D) 18 weeks up to 55 miles. I used it, though with longer long runs until 5 weeks out (and I was very poor at the interval sessions). I ended up with a pretty flat split, first half 1H40/ second half 1H41. My feeling is that until you've done an evenish or negative split you've no idea how much it raises morale to be overtaking in the last few miles.
I guess 15W might agree, though he's a higher-mileage P&D runner and a real inspiration to me!
There are other well-regarded plans. My own experience is that there's no substitute for running lots of miles at sensible paces. Apart from anything else it builds confidence. It helps if you don't mind getting up early.
Brilliant, will check out that book now. Sounds ideal.
Book = bought. Well that's the hard bit done!
SGB, yes ideally I'd love an even-ish split time like yours. It must be lovely coming in feeling relatively strong rather than as if you might not make it over the line alive. I hadn't looked at the race positions before though, that was gratifying to see. It clearly wasn't just me flagging!
Hi Sam,
Not sure how bad 3:40:xx is for you (it sounds bloody good to me!). I'd certainly agree that something like the P&D plan would do you loads of good, but a first observation I'd make is that even without any extra training, you could have been 7 to 10 minutes quicker by running slower.
I'm probably teaching grandma to suck eggs here, but when you ran the first 13 miles under 8 mins, you were surely running too far above your aerobic running zone... and slowly accumulating lactate products in your muscles, and depleting your energy stores. So by mile 20, your body couldn't process its waste products fast enough and it had to slow you down.
Maybe if you'd run 15-20 sec per mile slower in those first 20 miles, it could have allowed you to carry on steadily throughout the race.
Compared to Sunday's run, it might have added 4 minutes to your the first half split... but I'd guess you'd have got that back over the next 10K... and then in he last 7 miles, you'd have had a much nicer time, and saved at least a minute per mile.
Obviously, I'm guessing a bit at the numbers, but the principle is there. The P&D book takes you through all this stuff in a detailed by clear way.
Good luck!
Sam - you bought the Advanced Marathoning book, right? I ask as hey have another book which covers multiple distances so is less marathon specific.
SGB - what a nice thing to say. I have never been an inspiration to anyone!
I reckon a lot of people did positive splits in that race...even the winner slowed towards the end (just going off tracker splits). It was starting to get pretty warm in that sun, and also got more hilly.
Cheers Runny, very interesting thoughts. It seems counter intuitive to say I should have run the first half slower but you could well be right. I must admit I've never paid much attention to the science but I'm going to put that right! 3:40 isn't bad for me at all based on my limited long distance experience; I just felt like the wheels came off towards the end so I must have planned it all a bit wrong somehow.
15West - yep Advanced Marathoning (2nd edition).
SGB I didn't notice the M60 guy, but yeah must have passed him near the end. I was in a world of pain/elation at that point and just glad to get in under 3. Some performance for an M60 though!