Sub 3h15

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Comments

  • OO54OO54 ✭✭✭
    What can we say Gul, you absolutely smashed it. So chuffed for you.
    Keep defying the odds Badbark, I’m sure things will turn around for you.
  • BadbarkBadbark ✭✭✭
    Brilliant Gul just brilliant. I'm so happy for you! You did it!
  • DT19DT19 ✭✭✭
    Badbark, i tend not to listen too much if a gp says don't run. If a physio says it though i tend to. 


  • SBD.SBD. ✭✭✭
    edited April 2019
    The run of thread PBs has to stop at some point!

    So Boston US next.  The city has gone marathon mad but Monday at 10:02am is when the real business starts!

    Good to meet up with Lorenzo over a coffee close to the finish.

    All ready to go here. Breakfast at 6:00am and then a 15 minute walk to catch the bus to Hopkinton.  Nervous and excited at the same time.  With a tailwind now forecast, the weather, although wet and windy, may work to our advantage. 

    The last week of the taper has been incident free, the time difference has not been an issue and the carb loading has gone to plan.  So all to play for tomorrow!  I would love to get under 3 hrs but need to respect the course and the weather if it changes.  I'm taking my Sub 3 pace plan with me to Hopkinton but will play it by feel once I cross the start line!
  • Gul - you're a star. So pleased for you. Will hopefully act as an inspiration for tomorrow. 

    Great to catch up with SBD for a coffee after I'd manage to survive the bunfight at the Expo. Way way more crowded than all my experiences of the London Expo so after a few free tastes of peanut butter snacks I'd had enough!! No jacket purchases I'm afraid G-Dawg.

    Pleasant stroll along most of the Freedom Trail yesterday and end the day with a very good Ethiopian dinner - thanks for the recommendation Poacher!

    Gentle 3 mile run this morning to keep the legs loose, followed by a trip to Bunker Hill and then cheering the Red Sox to victory this afternoon.

    All packed up and ready to set off and brave the conditions tomorrow. Good luck SBD!
  • Gul DarrGul Darr ✭✭✭
    Good luck to SBD and Lorenzo today. Enjoy the whole experience and have a cracking race.
    Official results for Boston UK are in. 3:09:24 and 5th MV50-59 (51st overall).     :)
  • G-DawgG-Dawg ✭✭✭
    Always nice to have the results official, nice one Gul. Get that report sorted!!

    I'm all plugged in and ready to track the boys via the app.
    Hope the weather is in their favour.

    Just under 7 miles on the trails yesterday as a recovery run, legs felt strangely fresher than other weeks. 48 miles for what would normally be the first week of taper, that's my biggest total for 3 weeks out.

    Now the proper taper starts...
  • DT19DT19 ✭✭✭

    7 for me also yesterday and I felt surprisingly good given Saturdays 22. Biggest week ever done and legs feel bizarrely good for this stage. Sports massage booked in for Wednesday night.

    Best of luck Lorenzo and SBD. Hoping to get home in time to watch some of the coverage on the net before spin.

  • StevieWhStevieWh ✭✭✭

    DT - That's a massive week, impressed that the legs feel good after that. Now for Taper Time!

    G- Dawg - Nice 7 miler, enjoy the taper. What are the boys numbers? I will track them as well

    Glad to see you back running Badbark!

    Took the whole week off with just a couple of swims which I enjoyed. Has left me feeling quite refreshed so I'm ready to go again. Will get out for 4 easy tonight and go from there. Got 3 10ks booked in so looking forward to putting some faster training in

  • DT19DT19 ✭✭✭
    what 10ks are you entered, Stevie? 
  • StevieWhStevieWh ✭✭✭
    I've got the Two Castles Run 9th June, a track 10k at Leamington AC 20th June and then Northbrook 10k 14th July
  • nicko1981nicko1981 ✭✭✭
    Do we have SBD and Lorenzo's race numbers for tracking today? Could someone share please if possible.

    Badbark must be good to be back on your feet although not at your usual mad mileage and pace - agree with DT - Doctor's would probably not recommend running marathons anyway!

    Big week DT, enjoy the taper now. Strangely jealous of the Londonites; I should really be relieved I don't have another to do....

    Looking to get back onto some miles this evening now that the toe has healed up a bit, the usual monday night progression run. Planning to do some specific 5k training for a couple of weeks; see if I can improve in time for the Masters relays in May.

    Hoping to do Cotswold relays as well which look fun; then need to look for an autumn challenge - possibly push the Gower CTS into mara or ultra distance instead of the usual half; and redeem my disastrous squirrel run at the Royal Parks Half by returning there for a normal run, see if I can get a minute or two off my 1:25.
  • G-DawgG-Dawg ✭✭✭
    Here are the numbers for the Boston boys:

    Lorenzo - 8251
    SBD - 5203

    Good luck, lads. Wind getting up to 40mph near the end, hopefully in their backs...
  • nicko1981nicko1981 ✭✭✭
    Thanks G-Dawg, oof that wind will be nasty; the gusts were getting to that at Vitality half and it felt like running into a wall.
  • Gul DarrGul Darr ✭✭✭
    What time does Boston MA start? Come on boys, you can do it!
  • Gul DarrGul Darr ✭✭✭
    Boston UK Marathon Report Part I

    The Boston UK marathon had been on my radar since it started several years ago for 2 reasons; it's local and it's flat. But given the first, the second is pretty much a given ;) It was certainly great to have breakfast at home and get to the start in under an hour rather than driving for several hours to an over-heated hotel room and not getting any porridge.

    Mrs GD and I set off from home not long after 7am and arrived in Boston around 8am. The car park was at the finish and there was short walk to the Market Place for the start. I had most of my kit already on. Just sorted out an arm-band with gels, racing shoes and an extra layer to try and keep the wind out. All was going well, until... I got out of the car and had terrible pain at the top of my left leg. A ten-minute hobble into town, did nothing to alleviate it. I really thought I might have to DNS, but would just have to wait and see how I felt with a bit of warm-up. Fortunately the pain eased up and was soon forgotten. Phew.

    There was a bit of confusion as to which direction we supposed to be running, but it just turned out that the start had been set up with the word "Start" on the opposite side to where we lined up. I took my first gel a couple of minutes before the start and joined the other runners. The route headed off across the Market Place up a bit of a High Street before opening out again. I spotted Mrs GD and waved; feeling nice and relaxed. Glancing at my watch to get a handle on the pace, but it was jumping around a bit, so just ran to feel. After a short distance the route turned east out of town, briefly crossing the A16. Mile 1 marker appeared; watch read 7:00. A bit faster than planned, but nothing to fret about.

    We headed on through a bit of a housing estate, with a few people cheering us on, and the second mile was completed in 6:47, but my GPS was a bit short of 2 miles, so nothing serious, but needed to take care not to get carried away. Managed that successfully with mile 3 in 7:13, which was more like my target pace (7:15). Now out of town, the wind began to pick up and we ran on a smallish road through farm-land and into a village with quite a few people supporting the runners on. Mile 4 in 7:04 (but only 0.96 miles so a tad fast).

    The countryside was flat and open as you would expect for this part of Lincolnshire and I could well have been running somewhere just a few miles from home. So of course there was no shelter from the wind and even when we changed our overall direction and started heading north, it always seemed like we were heading into it. 

    My watch threw a bit of a GPS wobbly somewhere around here, because I remember seeing my current pace as 4:00/m at one point (checking the stats afterwards my best pace was 2:58/m!!!) The 5 mile marker came after just 0.88 miles according to my watch and I did it in 6:19. Time for gel no 2. Mile 6 was 7:34 (1.03 miles), so maybe I did run the 4th mile at a bit of silly pace? Who knows. I tried not to push too hard over the next few miles into the wind to keep a bit in reserve and hoping that there would be more of tail wind on the return leg. But even so I did get a bit discouraged over the next stretch as I started to be overtaken by a number of other runners. Mile 7 was 7:26, 8 was 7:23 and 9 was 7:28. I chatted to a few of the other runners and they seemed to be resigned to losing 5 mins or more due to the wind and I think it started to affect my mindset. My splits were now more in line with 3:15 rather than 3:10. Mile 10 was a bit short, but only took 6:52. Downed gel no 3 at the start of mile 11, which was pretty much direct head wind and I took 8:00 dead.

  • Gul DarrGul Darr ✭✭✭
    Boston Marathon Report Part II

    Either the wind or the course changed direction quite a bit here and it was for me the turning point too. I didn't noticeably increase my effort, but had a real boost from not battling the wind. Mile 12 in 7:05, which was more like it. I stil had doubts though. I wasn't even halfway. Could I really keep this up for another 14 miles? I started to reel in all the runners who had been over taking me (very slowly mind you!) and it boosted my confidence. This is not my usual marathon experience! If I could just keep a sensible pace there was no reason why I couldn't do it and I was determined to give it my best shot.

    Mile 13 was 7:19 (1.02 miles), but there was no halfway marker. Estimated halfway split was 1:34:xx. I maintained a steady pace for a few more miles. 14 in 7:14, 15 in 7:15, another gel, 16 in 7:12, 17 in 7:07, 18 in 7:26. By now I was mentally visually running home from Sandringham. I did slow down a bit but the route wasn't straight and there was a bit more headwind again, I think. 19 in 7:38, 20 in 7:38. I heard the marshalls call out to someone behind me, "First lady". I took my final gel and thought, right this is it. This is what you've been training for all these years, there is no way you are going to blow it now. 6 miles is nothing! Go bring it home.

    Something gave me a final boost (Mrs GD told me later that she had got fed up shopping and walking round in the cold and had started praying for me, bless her). I started to hit the right pace again. Mile 21 in 7:22, 22 in 7:25 and 23 in 6:50 (0.95 miles). We were coming back into civilisation now and Boston Stump (the church tower in the market place) was coming into view. The mile markers were probably not as accurately placed here - guess it's easier on a grass verge in the middle of nowhere rather than a random lamppost!

    Really starting to enjoy this now and still passing one or two runners. Mile 24 in 7:25 (1.04), 25 in 6:43 (0.93). Almost there and a quick calculation confirmed I was on for sub 3:10 - yes! We turned onto the road which led up to the finish at Boston College and I could now hear the first female runner really giving putting in a great effort going by the noise she was making. Final mile marker in 7:12 and now just the last stretch to the entrance, a right-hand turn and the finish. Mrs GD is on the final bend and gives me a big cheer and I look up to the see clock 3:09:xx. What an amazing feeling. I mess up stopping my watch as I shout for joy and go over to some railings on the side and cry my eyes out. My watch is on auto-pause. D'oh! Final split was 1:52, although I guess it should have been a tad less, but it's all academic. A big hug from Mrs GD and she insists that I go and stand on the winner's podium for a photo.

  • JoolskaJoolska ✭✭✭
    Oh, Gul, that is such a lovely report to read!  So pleased for you to nail that pb and sub 3.10 in style: and because you kept the faith.  Who needs Boston MA when Boston UK can deliver in spades?!  Hope the legs are feeling ok today and that you are beaming from ear to ear :)
  • StevieWhStevieWh ✭✭✭
    edited April 2019
    Really enjoyed the report Gul! Sounds like a fantastically executed and paced race. Well done again!
  • nicko1981nicko1981 ✭✭✭
    Great report Gul, congratulations again. Sounds like you put it all together and the emotional moment at the end must have been a whole lot of angst in the lead up coming out. Kudos to you.

    FYI the less important Boston starts in 90 mins (3PM UK time)
  • BadbarkBadbark ✭✭✭
    edited April 2019
    Super report Gul! Huge congratulations!
    Happily my back feels fine after yesterday's 10k. I rested today but will run tomorrow, so fingers crossed.
    The Boston Marathon is soon  to start on the US NBC Sports Network. I'm going to enjoy watching it and following SBD and Lorenzo. Smash it guys!
  • G-DawgG-Dawg ✭✭✭
    Great report, Gul. That feeling of achievement at the finish line is fabulous. Well done, Sir.

    Brilliant to see you defying the Docs and coming back your own way Badbark. Don't rush anything, keep that recovery curve shallow and upwards.

    One hour to go in Boston and the weather looks terrible (reported by Washington Post). Still time for it to change...
  • Gul DarrGul Darr ✭✭✭
    Boston Marathon Post Race Report

    After the photo-shoot, my legs decided that they would go for IMS rather than DOMS. Instant Muscle Soreness. I collected my goody bag to go with the medal and eased my way back to the car. I must have looked rather comical getting in. And then about a minute later, I spotted an acquaintance of TR walking by, going by the number on his vest. TR had recommended him as someone who would get me round in the sort of time I was looking for, but I had totally failed to spot him before or during the race. So I hobbled out and introduced myself (it was him fortunately). He said he was gaining on me at the end and finished a minute or so behind me, I think.
    Mrs GD drove us home via a garden centre and she found what she had been looking for unsuccessfully in Boston. We also had a spot of lunch on the way home. Legs were not good, but gradually improved throughout the rest of the day. However, Mrs GD did spot some blood in my armpit. Looks like the gels sticking out of the arm-band had been chaffing my skin and also digging in a bit where I tightened it up (it just drops off otherwise as I'm such a skinny wimp). It's still sore today, but the legs feel in reasonable nick.
    The official results today have promoted me by one place to 50th (but still 5th MV50-59). Looks like there were a few more quality runners than last year. I reckon I got a positive split of just under a minute (1:34:15 + 1:35:09?), which is a massive improvement for me. 3:09:30 gun and 3:09:24 chip time. It's still sinking in... :)
  • DT19DT19 ✭✭✭

    Gul, lovely report. Always great to see how much this sort of thing means to someone.

    Badbark, sounds positive.

    Yep that wind looks pretty nasty to say the least.

  • Gul DarrGul Darr ✭✭✭
    Praying that wind is going to die down in Boston. They must be about to set off...
    The results from yesterday keep changing. Now back to 51st, but 3rd MV50-59?! More importantly, still the same time :)
  • G-DawgG-Dawg ✭✭✭
    SBD first to cross the start line.
    Boston twitter account says that the weather is wet but warm, which is something, I guess. Just hope the wind is from behind.

    Come on lads! Right on Hereford, left on Boylston!!!
  • nicko1981nicko1981 ✭✭✭
    Watching it on NBC - find it a little weird that they set off the 50 or so elite men on their own before the first wave proper.
  • BirchBirch ✭✭✭
    Wonderful report, Gul - your splits indicate a perfectly executed race - and well done for controlling what must have been 10 mins of high stress beforehand !  
    To repeat, (and I have, ad nauseam, I know) ;)   but we really did have faith in you - and you've now delivered.  All the laps of the field, all the silly o'clock starts, have paid off  - you never sought a short-cut, never looked for a "magic bullet", or put your faith in a gadget, you simply did the hard miles, the long runs, the sessions, you (politely) ;)   told adversity where to go, and the reward is yours.   (and, it seems, podium too) !!!   

    Cheers, Dave
  • DT19DT19 ✭✭✭
    That'll be a hell of a tail wind if so. SBD suggested it could be. The elites will have finished by the time I can get home and get it on.
  • G-DawgG-Dawg ✭✭✭
    Solid start from both. One just under sub-3 pace, one just over...
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