Brentwood Half Marathon

 Hey,

 Just wondering if anyone is doing or has in the past done the Brentwood Half Marathon on Sunday 15th March?? Im running this as my first half marathon ahead of the Great North Run which I was lucky enough to get in to. What is the course like?? Pretty flat?? Im travelling down from Cheshire and have only been to Brentwood once before so dont know the area well.

 Thanks

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Comments

  • Track down Julia T, it's her first but she's local.

    GULP just entered my first half marathon ; oh b6g7er, can't get link to work but that's the thread name.image

  • Hi Matt, have done Brentwood for the last couple of years.  It's relatively flat - the first mile and a half are downhill and the last mile or so is uphill so if you've got carried away in the early miles it'll tell towards the end!
  • I'll be there - number 911 - which seems ominous
  • Hi Matt and everyone else <<< wave wave >>>>>

    I'm doing it as Foxy says, first HM for me and don't know the course but training is going well so far. I'm no 247. Looks like the entry is full as well so quite what it feels like to be amongst 2000+ other runners I don't know! Scary!

    Mr T said we should drive round the course as it's fairly local to us. Thought I might hop out and try and run the last couple of miles. I'll let you know what happens....

  • Hi Matt,

    I live just by the start of the course and have been running it as part of my training for the Edinburgh Marathon (and am running the race next week). It's a pretty undulating course - the first two miles or so are downhill but there are plenty of ups and downs along the way. Leave something in reserve for the end too - the last 3/4 of a mile are a gradual uphill drag!

    Good luck for next Sunday everyone! 

  • Hi Essex Eagle - my daughter lives in Edinburgh (home town Colchester) so I am full of admiration for anyone who is able to tackle those hills!!!!!

    Another daughter and I are doing the Brentwood Half for the first time.  Would like to park a mile or so away from start so the walk can start our warm-up.  Any suggestions?  Don't want to inconvenience the local people but also not keen on parking in what I assume will be very busy car parks.

    Weather supposed to be with us all.  Not liking the sound of the last mile - don't like hills!!

  • Lots of carparks liz, the multi-storey is probably the biggest and is halfway down the high street. I'm going to drive the course tomorrow so i'll let you know about the hill at the end. Someone said it's not too steep, more of a longer gentler incline.......image

    My first half marathon. Have done loads of training and am really looking forward to it!

  • Thanks for that Julia.  Only live down the road in Colchester so should have driven it I suppose but think its probably better for me not to know!

    This is my 3rd half marathon - about a month beforehand I swear I'll never do another one, then love the feeling at the end and my daughter who I run them with (well we start together and meet up at the end!) just reminds me of that when I'm struggling with training.  You'll love it! Good luck. Weather supposed to be good.

  • Yes, nice sunshine by all accounts. I'll give my verdict tomorrow when we've driven round. may need our image
  •  Well Im preparing  my bags for the trip down to Essex. Very Excited for my first half marathon!! Thanks for the tip about the last mile being uphill. Wont push too hard the mile before that. Hoping to go round in 1 hr 45mins but mainly just want to enjoy it with it being my first race. Cant remember my race number but will have a look when I get in later on. Good luck everyone!
  • Hi everyone, drove round the course this morning and it's very pretty, couple of nice villages and lots of daffodils out. (will we be looking at those on sunday?.........i wonder!). My overall impression was of more downhill than up but of course that's impossible, but none of the uphills seemed particularly steep, just long gentle inclines. I came away with positive vibes and as it's my first HM I hope you all feel better now!

    image

  • Tracey GTracey G ✭✭✭
    Julie - just done run too fast in the first mile of so down hill.
  • Julie - sounding good.  Picking my daughter up from Shenfield station tomorrow as no trains into Colchester, so might have a sneaky look but hills sound fine.  Did a couple today just to make me feel better!!

    Once I get to mile 8 I shan't be noticing the daffs or the villages but will make the most of them till then.

    Do hope you enjoy it.

  • Ok Tracey, it did look very tempting at the start! Still we can get into the groove comfortably at the start and i'll keep checking the Garmin to keep to race pace.

    Liz I would say inclines rather than hills. Although they always look different in a car image

    Good luck and have fun everyone image

  • Tracey GTracey G ✭✭✭
    Julie - you don't notice the slight incline in the car, but on tired legs they feel like a mountain.
  • No, No Tracey - negative thoughts - not a mountain - near the end!

    Whats everyone eating today - always the best bit of training for me

  • My thoughts exactly Liz, a mere incline. Then you get round the corner and it's downhill image ready for the sprint finish!

    Porridge this morning, gonna have a cheese toastie now with wholemeal bread. Dinner is spag bol with wholewheat pasta......maybe i might check that the jelly babies are ok as well......

    What about everyone else?

  • Spag Bol tonight for me too.  image  Off to the cinema in a min with the kids so it's popcorn time!!!!!

    Must remember the jelly babies tomorrow, though i'm not sure how i'm going to carry them, i usually only take them on the bike and my cycling stuff has better pockets.  Not sure if I've even got any pockets in the running top I'm thinking of wearing image

    I've cycled up that 'incline' many times, I agree with the positive vibes idea but must admit I'm not looking forward to it at all......

  • Spag bol for me too + choc pudding!  Jelly babies plus sports drink ready and waiting for tomorrow morning although might ditch the jelly babies - very small pocket = sticky jelly babies! Think i'll have porridge + banana in the morning.

    Good luck everyone - weather/wind looking good.  Look both ways before crossing A12 (!!)

  • Yes, porridge for me in the morning too, i'll have to get up early enough for it to go down tho! I suspect that i will be up VERY early actually!

    Good luck to us all image

  • Always have porridge on a race day.  Good excuse to put lots of honey or golden syrup on it, yum!!!!

    Spag Bol on stove now, I need to update my ipod and decide what running gear I'm wearing then I'm all set, early night I think.

    Good luck everyone running tomorrow.....image

  • Hi all

    I ran brentwood yesterday,just wanted to see how everyone else found it, I paid no attention to the downhill start.....image ran the first three miles way to fast, that will teach me for placing myself in the 1:45 section. Still, after a couple of `walk breaks` i managed a 1:50 . I`m running London this year ,so this was in my schedual,thought the weather madeit a good day, thought the A12 was a bit awkward especially as I/we had to stop tolet traffic through.to be fair the organisers did let us know about this...

    hope everyone else had a better run

  • Hi Chipsy, it was my first HM and i was well pleased with 2.29.28, as i'd wanted to get under 2 and a half image

    I paced the start ok i think and luckily did not have to stop for traffic, although the bit around 10 miles along the main road was horrible as lots of cars whizzed passed and i had to keep overtaking a girl who was run-walking! Fair enough i suppose but i must have passed her 9 or 10 times which was hard work on a busy road.

    Well warm too! But overall i had a fabbo day and hope to be there again next year image

  • well done julia,image its a great buz getting under your goal ...now it`s all about  PB`s...image...Have you anything else planned this year? 10k`s? another half? ..........
  • Well, funny you should mention Chipsy, we are off to the Isle of Wight at Easter so i've entered the West Wight Three hills. A mere 8 miles...........with 3 hills..........! I started a thread to see if they minded me coming last but I don't think anyone saw it!

    The i've a 10k, a Race for Life and 3 or 4 5K's in the summer followed by , hopefully another HM in October. Then I'd like to try a marathon.....

    It helps me to have things booked, keeps me out running. I only took it up a year ago so feel i've come a long way!

    So you are doing London? FANTASTIC! I'm helping at a water station at mile 4 so i'll look out for you! I'd love to do it next year but it's getting a place that's the problem!

  • Hey Julia- how did u get a place helping out with the water station? that sounds like excellent fun!

    x

  • Well done everyone.  It was a brilliant day wasn't it?  Thought the organisation good, crowds - especially in blackmore - really encouraging, weather glorious - hill at end not needed!  Traffic not as bad as I thought it was going to be having never done a hm with traffic.  I kept overtaking the same people walk/running so they must have been sprinting past me at some point! 

    I did 2.15 which was a pb - was hoping to do 2.11 and was 2 mins under that until about mile 9 (not sure about that) and then obviously lost the plot!  My daughter did 2.02 with a pulled knee muscle from mile 12 - she was gutted as well as in pain as was hoping to crack the 2 hrs.  However, good time nevertheless.  Always something to aim for!

    We're doing the asics 10k in July in London and hopefully the Royal Parks hm in October.  So, speed training for me till July!

    Well done again - its such a buzz at the end isn't it.

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