Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie
Dublin Marathon 2016 - Mentored Novices Thread
Options
Comments
-
-
-
-
-
-
Advertisement
-
-
-
-
-
-
Advertisement
-
Sun 30/10 - Dublin Marathon, 26.2 miles @ 8:49 min/mile
Pre Race
Ok so I wasn't a marathon novice, but I was a Dublin marathon novice! So many things were different this time compared to Paris 2014; for example, my training had a proper structure, I wasn't playing football, and I didn't happen to move house the week of. In addition, being able to sleep in my own bed this time was another plus. I got most of the long runs done, but had been struggling with hip flexor, hamstring and ITB issues the last few weeks, plus I was sick for a few days over the last week or so.
All the gear was packed the day before. On a beautiful red sky morning, my wife dropped me to Leeson Street bridge shortly before 7:30. Even at this stage there were lots of runners heading in the general direction of the baggage area. I found a shop on Mount Street where I snagged some paracetamol for use later if needed. Got around to baggage and saw Firedance (she didn't cop me at first without the shades :cool:) so we had a chat before I continued on. Lots of waiting around ensued, but I had a heavy enough fleece on so wasn't cold at all. Eventually we were called forward, I left the top on the railings and tucked in about 20 yards behind the 3:40 pacers.
Miles 1-3
"This is your life, your time,
You gotta make it"
Boom! We were off! I saw a few people tearing up the road but I was sticking to strategy; keep the balloons in sight, if you're still there at 22, give it all you've got to the finish. Simple enough, right? Straightforward Mile 1, if a bit fast, before we turned onto Patrick Street and up the hill towards Christchurch. I spotted TFGR here and gave her a high five. Super fast downhill to the quays, where I kept the handbrake on before we started the long uphill drag on crossing James Joyce Bridge just before the 2 mile marker. A Porterstown parkrunner caught up to me just before Kavanagh's pub (caught out by the water being positioned here btw!) so we kept each other in check and the pacers at a safe distance.
Miles 4-6
"A rebel without a clue"
The entrance to the Phoenix Park was a major bottleneck as we passed Garda HQ and made our way around the back of the azoo, where a bit of downhill took us to the 4 mile mark. However, I knew there was a lot of hard work to come immediately afterwards. As well as that, the ITB was starting to act up majorly as we turned onto the open road of Chesterfield Avenue. There was a lad along here with about eight gels and a water bottle hanging off the back of him. Was he doing this as a warm up?
Meanwhile, as we approached Áras an Uachtaráin, I was feeling a lot of pain. The water station was badly needed, as I managed to extricate the paracetamol from the pocket of my gel belt before washing them down. Could I get through another 21 miles like this? If it was just another LSR, I'd probably have pulled the plug here. But it wasn't.
Miles 7-9
"And I thank you,
For bringing me here,
For showing me home"
As we exited the Phoenix Park just before the 10k mark, we were coming to what would for me be one of my favourite parts of the day. Coming into Castleknock, there were lots of friends from MSB and Porterstown parkrun out among the massive support. Best of all, my wife was on the corner at Myo's, and I managed to get over to her briefly before continuing up the hill to the highest point of the course. My leg seemed to be behaving normally again, which was a massive relief. We caught the guy carrying the Eiffel Tower just before the crossroads at Castleknock College and some badly needed downhill past Mount Sackville and into the Phoenix Park again at 8 miles. The pacers seemed to be well ahead of schedule, but I was holding up nicely as we headed for the Chapelizod Gate.
Miles 10-12
"It's been one hill after another,
I've climbed them all one by one"
After nearly two miles of continuous downhill, the fun was to be begin once more as we crossed the Liffey and swung left. I watchedn hundreds of runners making their way up the hill towards Ballyfermot, before my turn came and I kept it nice and steady without (as far as I could tell at this point) too much damage being done. There were quite a few people walking already! Another hill soon followed as we left Ballyer and headed up to the 11 mile mark at the start of Inchicore. Still in the game here though. Passing Kilmainham Gaol felt special for me, especially in this year with so much history attached to it, but would I be wearing that medal at the end? Downhill and uphill before turning left and heading for St James's Hospital whacked me harder then expected. Pacer balloons were still at a respectable distance however.
Miles 13-15
"We gotta get out while we're young"
Myself and parkrun buddy were still tipping along reasonably well, as we turned out of Dolphin's Barn, and onto the long slow drag through Crumlin. I was passing a lot of people here who were feeling the pace, but at the same time resisting the tempatation to get too close to, let alone pass, any of the pacers. It was feeling tougher overall though; my eyes were just zeroed in on the balloons in an attempt to maintain focus and stay in the game. Shortly after we passed Our Lady's Hospital, I turned around and my parkrun buddy was gone; I didn't see him again (since found out he finished in 4:03). Surprised at no water just after the Walkinstown Roundabout, coming to the 15 mile mark.
Miles 16-18
"Down down deeper and down"
It was round about Kimmage that I could feel the 3:40 plan perhaps not being quite so "straightforward". Even with a lot of downhill going through Kimmage and Terenure, I could see the balloons edging ever so slightly further away, without me being able or willing to respond. Only a few seconds a mile at this stage maybe, but enough to put the doubts in my mind. Milled the little bag of jelly beans I'd brought, but to be honest I needed a bit more than a sugar kick.
Miles 19-22
"First it giveth then it taketh away"
Downhill again onto Orwell Road, and through the 30k mark at the start of Orwell Park. The marker for Mile 19 was waaaay off here though. Thankfully I remembered it should have been at the end of Orwell Park. I deliberately slowed on the downhill approaching Milltown, then kept it at a slow but steady pace up the short but steep hill towards where the old Shamrock Rovers ground used to be. I still had the balloons in sight as I turned the corner towards Clonskeagh and passed nop98 and Firedance out with their banners
I'd love to say my pace picked up subsequently, but sadly it didn't happen like that through the up and down Mile 21. In fact it totally knocked what was left of my pacing; at this stage I was counting down the miles and minutes and everything else I could think of to keep going. And my leg was acting up again. At the start of Roebuck Road, I found an empty toilet for a badly needed call of nature. As I sat down, I felt a bit woozy, so took my time while I had a gel and a bottle of water to get my head together. On emerging some 2-3 minutes later, the pacers had long since vanished. I didn't care about that any more. I just wanted to finish.
Miles 23-26.2
"I know that I can make it"
To be honest, I thought I handled "Heartbreak Hill" fairly well. Lots of people walked up, but I at least ran up it without stopping, slow as I was. So only 4 miles to go now, and no more hills? Unfortunately it wasn't quite as simple. By now, I'd had to slow right down to find a pace where at least I was running as opposed to walking, that I could hopefully maintain to the end. As we crossed the UCD flyover, even the thought of "only a parkrun to go" felt like forever! As we turned down Nutley Lane and reached the water station opposite the Merrion Centre, I grabbed more water and walked as I drank. Only about 2 miles when I turn! "Is féidir liom, beidh sé go hiontach!" Thanks to RedRunner for the shout with about half a mile to go, just after I saw a guy's legs go from under him after the Lansdowne Road junction. I resolved that I wouldn't have that happen to me. Dozens of runners were passing me now. I didn't care, I just wanted to make sure I finished. Having said that I tried to pick up the pace just after passing the 26 mile marker. A bolt of pain through the leg instantly put an end to that strategy! Great support all the way to the end. No sprint finish or anything, I just crossed the line arms aloft with a smile on my face. I was officially a Dublin Marathon man in 3:49:01; a PB of just under half an hour.
Post Race
I got a badly needed rubdown in the massage tent before taking an age to put on my clothes and head for McGrattans. It took a while, but I eventually found the boardsies meetup (or rather Firedance found me). Well done to all, great to meet so many of you! I also ended up making a presentation to nop98 at a moment's notice (thanks kin9pin!) Fair play N, well deserved and a wonderful job over the last six months. Also special thanks to Firedance, aquinn, Myles Splitz and all who contributed to the thread. I should also mention TFGR made an appearance in McGrattans with flapjacks. Beautiful stuff! Best wishes to aceygray, who made an appearance with her sister and H2B before heading off into the sunset just 4 days before her wedding Lots of scoops here, followed by more celebratory pints in D15 later.
Where Do I Go From Here?
I have an entry for the Clontarf HM, but I think I'm going to bin it off and keep my powder dry for Jingle Bells if college commitments allow me. Other than that, between parkruns and XC races (club and BHAA) in addition to (for example) the Tom Brennan 5k and the Raheny 5 mile, I'll have plenty to occupy me through the winter. As marathons go, it'll probably be DCM 2017 for my next one, if I'm fit and healthy this time next year. Thanks so much to all of you, it's been a blast! Ádh mór.0 -
-
Goal time 4.30
Finishing time 4.32
Pre-race
Pre-race didn't go well for me at all, I had to walk for a good 20/25 minutes to get around all the barriers to Merrion square, then a combination of joining a queue for the toilets and meeting somebody I couldn't ignore meant that I didn't prepare for the race like I wanted to. I had wanted to find a bit of space on my own for ten minutes, clear my head and do some stretching, but that didn't happen and time ran out. I was supposed to be in wave 3 but ended up starting right at the front of wave 4, but that didn't really matter I suppose.
First 10k
From the start line to the top of Phoenix park I felt really good. I always get a few aches and pains in the first 5k but they cleared up and then I really started to enjoy things, it was a great day for running, the sun was shining, after 3 years I was finally doing this and all was good with the world! I was conscious of my pace at this stage, I knew I needed to hold back but at the same time, I knew I wasn't pushing too hard either, my heart rate was low and I was just ticking along, albeit at the higher end of my "allowed" pace range. This might have been a mistake, I haven't decided yet.
10k - 20k
Down through the park was a nice Sunday stroll, but through Chapelizod was perhaps the first time I started to feel a little out of sorts, my groin is always an issue and always a little sore but now I was starting to really feel it. I wasn't in bits or anything, but it certainly wasn't the breezy feeling I had earlier. It was also food time, I use the Cliff Bloks instead of gels so I took two of them at 10k, two at 15k and another two at 20k. Mentally I found it a benefit to take them at regular intervals, it gave me small targets to aim for and I would rather eat only 1 or two at a time than the recommended 3 or 4. For water I actually carried a bottle pretty much the whole race, sipping away regularly instead of gulping down a bottle at a water station. This was all preventative maintenance as far as I was concerned, I wanted to make sure I was hydrated and fueled for the later stages.
From Dolphins barn up Crumlin and to Walkinstown was just a drag, I have never liked that stretch so I put the earphones in and got on with it. The same for Cromwellsfort road, which is perhaps my least favourite road in Ireland. One thing that kept me going here was the thought of family I knew were waiting at Bushy park so I kept plodding on and finally got to them at the 28k mark. To be honest, I still felt pretty good here, I said hello and stretched the groin a little, took a few photos and headed on. At this point I was four minutes ahead of goal time and feeling pretty confident about the last 15km.
30k - 40k
Through Terenure I still felt good and my pace was still doing fine, but after Rathgar I had to stop and stretch the groin again, it was starting to stiffen up quite bad. Then I got to Milltown and things started to go wrong.
The Clonskeagh road has all the bad memories but the trouble all started at that hill in Milltown. I ran up it, stretched at the top but from then on my pace just nosedived. I didn't even feel that I was running much slower but the garmin said otherwise, suddenly I was a good 50/60 seconds slower than just a mile previous. From then on up Clonskeagh it was torture, just a real struggle to keep putting one foot in front of the other. I couldn't walk though, I slowed to a walk at one of the water stations and knew immediately that if I stopped I might not get going again, so I knew that I had to keep running. I was sick of the sight of them but I forced myself to keep taking the Cliff Bloks to try and have something there for the last stretch.
Its a blur for a bit there but I was determined to run up heartbreak hill so sucked it up and kept going. I was a little disappointed that they didn't have the big wall of support thing there this year, made it a bit anti-climatic but I got it done anyway and turned onto Fosters avenue. From there to Nutley avenue is just one plodding mess that chewed up my four minutes grace and spat my goal time out the other side.
40 - Finish!
Previously the toughest mental challenge I ever had was the final overnight ascent of Kilimanjaro, but the last 5k of the marathon might just come close to rivalling that. And it is purely a mental challenge. I knew from my training that regardless of the distance, once I knew I was coming close to the end I tended to get a little impatient, constantly checking the garmin and watching the distance travelled creep up. But a watched pot never boils and it just makes it harder to keep going, for that last 5k I just wanted this whole thing to be over, I was never in any danger of giving up, that was just never going to happen but there was nothing fun there at all. I saw a poor lady sitting at a bus stop in tears, St Johns ambulance people closing in. There was about 2k left at that stage, I hope she got some fluids in and was able to get to the finish.
The last 800m was surreal. I was barely moving, but I was moving and thats the main thing. I had expected a crowd but hadn't realised just how many people would be there, I know they weren't there for me but it was a humbling feeling all the same. I got to the 26 mile marker and I have to say, the finish line seemed like a long, long way in the distance. :pac:
Then I crossed the line and finished a marathon.
Random thoughts
- I'm a little disappointed that I didn't hit my goal time, simply because it wouldn't have taken much more to do so. I guess perhaps I was quicker than I needed to be in the first 10k but I'm not actually sure if that is what hurt me later. Maybe had I ran at 6.20/km instead of 6.00/km I would have hit the wall anyway? I know someone who ran slower than me and collapsed just as bad, so who knows. I don't think its going to eat at me too badly though, whats two minutes among marathon runners!
- Life goals achieved, I beat a minion and Elvis in a foot race. Couldn't catch Sonic though.
- Double take of the day was spotting the poor young girl walking home through Chapelizod, still in the black dress, high heels, makeup and the head hanging on her, clearly a dirty stop out about to stagger in front of a massive crowd. Poor girl, hope she had had a good night at least.
- Finally, I would like thank everybody in this thread who helped us get to this point, my aching legs salute you. Thanks to Nop, to everybody who offered advice and congratulations to all my fellow marathon runners!!!0 -
-
-
-
Moderators, Category Moderators, Entertainment Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Regional East Moderators Posts: 18,345 CMod ✭✭✭✭
Join Date:Posts: 17087
-
-
-
-
Advertisement
-
bucketybuck wrote: »If it makes you feel any better, you were sick, you had muscle problems at half way, you were cramping up constantly, and you still finished it quicker than me!! Fair play to you for toughing it out.
Heh, thanks, but that's not how it works. You ran a much better marathon than me relative to your training and goals! 0 -
-
-
-
Finished on 5:26 and I'm happy with that. I found some parts difficult. Started to cramp up earlier than expected, the last 8 miles were very slow. My ankle wasn't an issue either, I done a very big taper so maybe that helped. The main problem was walking it off for a few yards in the later stages and then trying to jog again - which is tough going. I ran some parts well though and didn't stop to walk for the last couple of miles. I kind of figured I wasn't making 5 hours so I used the toilets a lot and took a couple of breathers. Also, I won't overdo do it on the lucozade next time, had a small stitch from it! I'm very sore today but taking it easy so that's no harm.
A big thank you to Nop and everybody on this thread. I was pretty much doing this on my own so to read your advice and experiences was invaluable to me.
Also, I couldn't get over the level of support from the pedestrians, stewards and Guards. The best of the best were out cheering us on yesterday and it really is a sight to see. It really restores your belief in mankind to be honest
That was my first race yesterday. I'll take a week off and ease my way back in. I'll look at doing Belfast or Rotterdam in April and build from there. Hon the boards!0 -
-
Just checking in! I'm still alive - barely!!! Things fell apart from me just before the 20k mark, my hip went at the hill and I was struggling to walk. I expected it to go at some point but had done 21 miles just a few weeks ago and it had been fine
I wondered how long it would take me to walk it in from this point - 6 or 7 hours?
I text my other half and told him I was thinking of dropping out at the next water station. Before he could reply I text again saying I'd give it 10k more and see how it went. I really wanted to run - not walk - thru Walkinstown roundabout as that's where my friends and family were, so I forced myself to start running again. It was amazing to see them! Himself was here and he ran with me for about 5 mins, I had some flat Pepsi and half a banana and felt a little better.
I won't do the mile by mile, it got worse but I kept running, snails pace but I didn't think of stopping again. I thought about TFGR's blog and her quote became my mantra - I said Hello to pain and then I said Goodbye to pain. My wonderful Club were manning the roads & water stations at heartbreak hill and their cheers kept me running - I don't remember the hill at all!
I finally made it home, 17 minutes behind my goal but so happy and proud that I had made it 0 -
-
-
Advertisement
-
Moderators, Category Moderators, Entertainment Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Regional East Moderators Posts: 18,345 CMod ✭✭✭✭ Join Date:Posts: 17087
TBO vs. HHN1 vs. DCM 2016
Haven’t actually hooked up my Garmin to the PC yet, here’s what the tracker says:
10k 00:59:22 @ 9:34 mi
Half 2:03:27 @ 9:22 mi
30k 2:58:38 @ 9:54 mi
Finish: 4:17:23, @ 10:24 mi average
@ 9:49 mi average
Well.
Saturday. Got texts from my manager and a colleague wishing me good luck. Started to wind down with Netflix, stopped reading the thread at 8pm, read a book for a bit and was in bed around 9:30. Woke up at 1am due to a returning airport traveller, nothing I could do.
Sunday morning. Was awake before the alarm. Had porridge, granola and some yoghurt. Half a cup of water. Drove in, parked in Whitehall, got a taxi and was in the city by 7:10. Had a banana. First toilet trip, then wandered up to McDonald’s on Grafton Street for another. Figured it best to forgo a hot chocolate as I had not practiced with it as a morning routine. First weird thing was coming out of the first toilet trip and how much the sky had brightened up in those 3-4 minutes. Headed over to towards Merrion Square, hung back a bit before dropping my bag at about 8:20. Followed the channels for the wave divisions, then a final toilet visit – the queues were pretty short at this stage. Was spotted by A Neurotic and Extrasupervery here. Headed up to the barriers and saw the 3 sets of pacers for 4:10, 4:20 and 4:30. Was pretty close, but not on top of them. Heard the national anthem, wheelchair and other starts over the PA. Happy with the temperature whilst waiting around, ditched the old jumper and black plastic sack once the barriers for wave 3 opened. I think the announcer said about 12,000 had already been through in the first few waves, impressive.
And we’re off. Didn’t know when the gun was going to go even though I wasn’t far from the start. Thought some people would be bursting out in front from general enthusiasm and in a bid to catch up with the 4hr balloons, but didn’t notice much of this, tbf. First little half mile or so and the left leg felt like it contained super glue. Atmosphere was good, couple of people already hitting the toilets at about mile 2. Down the quays and on towards the Phoenix Park, this was the warmest part of the morning, I think. Almost like it was warmer in the park than on any training run, save for a few clammy Saturdays. Said thanks to one of the 4:10 guys for pacing, he recognised my t-shirt. Somewhere in the park he spotted a guy with 100 marathon t-shirt, pacer asked him how many he had done, chap said about 160. Saw a few British people with similar shirts later in the race. Out of the park, still happy with the pace, started to recognise sections Max, Pompla and I covered a few weeks back. Back into the park and the sun had tucked itself away somewhat. Was recognised by ToriV somewhere in here. Around mile 9 is when a group of people to my left started singing Old McDonald.
My plan was to keep the 4:10 balloons in sight so that the black writing was visible. They were in view within the lens of my glasses. That was pretty straightforward for the first 10 miles, between their toilet visits and the three of them being a little spread out at times I was happy to sit somewhere in the middle of them. I can’t recall which, but one of them said they were averaging or hoping to average 9:27 or 9:32 and now and then they’d give an update on how much we were on track. They were great at encouragement too.
Anyway, after the first 10, things were going well. I felt comfortable, no stress. Had a gel at mile 6, an energy bar at 8. Had been taking on water with a zero tab apart from that. At mile 11 I thought I’d nudge forward, which was a mistake (catch the 4 balloons, said I). Mile 13 was unpleasant, but it was 16 where the pacers caught up with me and started to move on to the point where I’d eventually lose sight of them completely somewhere around mile 18, I’d say. I simply didn't have the stamina to maintain the nudge forward. I think A Neurotic had been more sensible and kept tipping away with the pacers and whilst I didn’t see her later on, ToriV seems to have been equally wise.
Creeping up on mile 20 was a bit tough alright, but my confidence came back a little here only to slip out of my hands, then return around 22. This was probably much of the story of the third hour, up and down. Talked to some randomer and he said it was his 4th marathon, we shook hands. Good stuff. Seeing the 35k sign was a huge boost! Crowds were great, kids out giving a hand. Mile 23, oh the soles of the feet were angry. After mile 24 I decided not to look at my watch again and didn’t until the finish. Didn’t want to know. Didn’t care, didn’t want the internal pressure…let the legs do the work. Still felt there was fight in them once the bastard of mile 23 had passed. Got a great and unexpected shout out from my aunt at mile 25, had no idea she was going to be there (for her OH - he started in wave 2, I never saw him on the course, but finished ~4:26, I think). Was passing people out a little and being passed out myself, definitely people stopping too. Wanted to encourage them, but wasn’t sure what to say. 800 metres to go sign was soothing, so many people out cheering. Won’t lie, had to keep it together emotionally near the end and thought I’d be jabbering wreck in talking to the medal and bag collection volunteers.
Somewhere one of the 4:10 balloons popped, so I guess it hit a lamppost or something. Much respect to the pacers as evenness clearly is the way to go. Has nop patented “stick to the plan” yet? My thanks also to Neady83 for her encouragement by PM in recent weeks. She had warned me about the ‘carnage’ she saw in 2015 and how it might be visible from mile 20 - it was out there alright. :eek:
Eiffel Tower guy, unreal. What was that thing made of? Scratch that, what was he made of?!
Hobbling about afterwards was a bit sore, almost like my legs and hips had been in some sort of gravity experiment. Cleaned up with some travel wipes after the bag collection. There was pair of runners abandoned at the railings where I changed.
Fuel: Approx 4 gels, 2 energy bars, 600ml water bottle with zero tab, 4 water station bottles in the middle portion and final third. Did feel stitches twice after some bar or gel intake, can’t remember which. Definitely a little bit of the gels feeling like gunk in the stomach factor too and that's partly why I didn't bother with the third energy bar.
Highs: Many things. No blisters. This thread. The course. Whilst I did make a mistake, I don’t feel I hit the wall, as in, a mental or physical dead end. From training I had a fair idea I would be unlikely to stop for physical reasons bar something unforesson and it was all about the mental game in the later stages. Couple of negative thoughts started to swirl around, that’s normal. Not being terrified of the 16 still to go after I had done 10. Amazing little things like some woman running to a guy (cramp?) trying to sort himself at a pillar outside a house fairly late on. Respect.
Lows: It was that change I made from mile 11 that was the main factor here, it cost me, but with any risk you open yourself up to hiccups, that’s life. I’m not resentful and don’t view it as a failure. Saw a few people upset, being consoled and looked after by ambulances, one or two stretchers. Depletion of your body’s resources once you get well into the double digits, a bit like a car without much oil. Must keep going. Seeing the full suite of full time emergency services in response mode was humbling.
Future: Pretty confident if I followed the training next year and stuck with the pacers all the way I’d be on track for 4:10. Next time, stick more closely to the second part of the three tens and be race smart.
After McGrattans (flapjacks), taxi back to my car. Asked the driver when he started, talked about house prices, his having gone back to college and whether he gets angry customers, he said yes, and it tends to be young fellas. They bang on the windows, are loud and mess with the radio. Eejits…
Quick shower, then dinner. On duty for a work thing. Wanted to sleep on a cloud of air rather than a mattress. Woke up a few times during the night. Sore head, otherwise OK.
P.S. I ran a marathon. :pac:Moderator: Television, Psychology and Dublin County North.
CMod: Entertainment
0
Advertisement