Rotterdam Marathon 2017

and still ricky villa

Name Bib No: PB Target Finish Time
slow_runner 10272 03:53 03:29
andstillrickyvilla 4445 03:09 02:55 03:29:37
neilthefunkeone 9564 3.58 03:29
EC1000 9662 03:09 02:59
Alan30 9906 04:11 04:05
snailsong 9011 03:06:52 03:03:33 3:03:43
dublin runner 8533 02:40:53 >2.34.59
Krusty_Clown 7864 02:33:03 2.30'ish or perhaps, maybe better
zico10 5251 02:35:51 <2:35:00 2:42:48
asimonov 8640 02:46:17 03:00:00
Alias G 9033 03:07:07 02:55:00


I've whinged a good bit in various places about my day but it is what it is.
Prepared well but ran out of luck on the day.

Was good to put a face to at least one name

Lostnfound

It was a tough Sunday for me. I aimed for a 3:30 and stuck with that pace until 35k when the wheels came off. The heat just took me apart and I had lost a lot of fluid. Got to the finish in 3:36 and in hindsight just happy that I finished. I've a fair few marathons under the belt by now so I know that there are good days and there are not so good days but no matter how much prep and how much fluid I took in over the days before I couldn't prepare for that!

As for the park near the end, I had heard about it in advance but it really did drag by.

It was a day of "if only's", if only the sun didn't shine, if only the weather was the same as Saturday or Monday.....

Saying that it's a great race and one that I'll do again. I went with the family and the kids loved it. As a city it is very interesting with lots to do and that's something I didn't expect.

Slow_Runner

Grab a tay.....
Rotterdam Marathon 2017 Report
Okay so here is my first attempt at a race report, hopefully somebody will find it useful and I can try to get my thoughts written down so I could maybe learn from this myself so here it goes:

Preparation:
Training for this race had gone unbelievably well. Before if I ever went over 30 miles per week something would break and I’d be side-lined with an injury. This time I started off the back of DCM16 which I ran with my OH where all my training was nice easy slow mile. I was able hold 55 miles per week with no issues (was quite comfortable actually) and I also found my speed work had improved greatly (at the weekly club track sessions I found myself running with a much faster group than I usually did along with not missing a single run. A sub 71min 10 Mile in Trim and a 1:34 HM in Bohermeen showed me a 3:30 was definitely on the cards (my previous pb was 1:53 in Dublin 2015) so I travelled over optimistic of a massive pb.
A good few from our club were travelling over and we stayed in Delft, a 10 min train journey from Rotterdam – a really lovely place to stay with lots of canals, restaurants and lunatic cyclists J
The day before the race did not go well, travelled over on Sat morning and between travelling to/from airports/hotels/expo the pedometer on my phone showed >19k steps by the time I got to bed and my feet were pretty tired but I put that to the back of my head – no point worrying about that now, whatever happens tomorrow, happens.
A broken night’s sleep was had as to be expected the night before a marathon but I felt pretty fresh heading down to breakfast where I had brought over my own porridge which the hotel kindly heated up for me, some strong coffee and we were set to go.
Got the 9am train from Delft which was pretty quiet considering it was marathon day (I’m more used to pouring myself onto the Luas heading into Dublin marathon!) and a short walk up to the Wave 2 starting pen. Plenty of toilets and no queues! This is my dream starting pen. Lined up at the front of wave 2 and 09:25 and ready for the off, 3:30 pacers right beside me. After a short wait “You’ll never walk alone” is sung by a famous Dutch singer (never heard of him) and the crowd join in – amazing stuff singing along with all the pre-race energy around- and the cannon for the first wave is fired. I was, wrongly, under the impression that all the waves started at the same time but after a 10 min wait at the start line my bladder was now full again and we were off!

Miles 1-5
8:13, 8:00, 8:17, 7:51, 7:57
The expected congestion at the start did not materialise (advantage of being at the front) but I managed to keep my head and take it easy for the first few miles. I quickly realised that the hat I bought at the expo would have to go as it was holding in too much heat (at least I had sunglasses as there was not a cloud in the sky). Really felt good going over Erasmus Bridge and spotting my OH and members from the club over shouting us on (dumped the cap here). I spotted a break in the supporters around here so I could veer off and take a much needed pits stop which accounted for the extra time in mile 3.
It was around the 3 mile mark where the 2 sides of the starting pens finally converged and now there was some slight congestion which suddenly became a lot of congestion with the first water stop causing a big pile up at the first table. I was able to swing around this and go the later tables and pick up 2 cups (my plan was to slow down at the water stops and take on 2 cups no matter what to deal with the heat), have to say the foam wedges really work a treat – so easy to drink from the cups and use the foam then to cool down. Miles 4 and 5 were bacg on and I felt good if a little warm.

Miles 6-10:
7:58, 8:14, 7:59, 8:01, 8:10
Everything still going to plan! The road is pretty busy in this section with some street furniture to keep an eye out for. We then turn onto a long (2 mile) straight path beside a canal. I feel like I’m getting caught up in the crowds here and I’m losing pace as there I no room to move however looking at my watch I’m still on pace only losing 10-15 secs on the water stations which I can make up – the 3:30 pacers are about 60 metres ahead – still feeling good if a little warm but I know I can do this. Meet an Eagles AC runner along here, exchange a few pleasantries, both of us wanting to conserve our energy.

Miles 11-15:
7:52, 7:57, 8:12, 7:53, 8:12
It’s starting to get warmer now but still all good, legs feel great even though they were so tired last night, start to claw back the pacers very slowly, still taking on plenty of water and sponging down however there is no escaping the sunshine – thank God I have sunglasses. Pass through the halfway at exactly 1:46:00, 1 minute behind schedule due to taking my time ensuring I get enough fluids in a 3:32-3:33 is an acceptable time considering the conditions – this was about to change….
Around the 15 mile mark it starts to get very hot very quickly and with no shade it starts to become uncomfortable and I’m noticing my energy levels are dropping and its becoming work to maintain this pace – way too early to start digging in so I decide to drop the pace slightly to see if I can get back to a comfortable pace – 3:30 is now gone – perhaps a 3:35? 3:40?, just want to get back across the bridge where mentally I feel I’ll be on the home stretch and that’s my priority.

Miles 16-20
8:07, 8:10, 8:39, 8:49, 8:38
Finally crossing back over the Erasmus Bridge and it is goose bump time, the crowds are 5 deep at the start of the bridge and all along the bridge the huge crowd s cheering you on, I meet the OH along here and with a smile tell here 3:30 is out but still feeling good. Checking myself – breathing: good; legs: good; energy – not good, 2 out of 3 ain’t bad I keep telling myself. The bridge has given me a big lift, I know I can do this – we turn back on ourselves and go through the underpass with the mass of drummers giving a real push. This is last of the good times……
We are now running against some of the faster runners who are 10km ahead and some of them look pretty shook! I start to get a bit disorientated here and begin to really struggle – breathing is laboured but I tell myself you’re at the 20 mile mark – just 10km left – then I look down at my watch – 18.44 miles! I am now officially broken the distance now seems unsurmountable – how am I going to do this? I have over 8 miles left and I’m f@*!ed! I struggle on and get some composure, now is not the time to be cry baby, forget about times, and forget about distance, all that matters now is the finish line and I will not stop running – my new goal is to not walk at any stage in this race. We have now entered th park and the crowds have gone, it’s just a handful of spectators, runners and heat, lot of heat.
Miles 21-25
8:43, 9:05, 9:32, 9:56, 9:33
The suffer fest has well and truly begun. My joy at keeping it under 9min/mile is now gone but no matter I’m now running by feel and I know (hope) once I get around the park and back to the urban area I will be on the home stretch, just keep running – there are a lot of people walking now and a few people on the ground being attended to by medics, as I pass 1 poor guy who appears to be unconscious with medics around him and an oxygen mask on I can’t help but think “lucky bastard!”, but no just keep running. My body temp seems to be fluctuating, 1 minute I’m boiling the next I’m freeing – I just need to keep sponging down when I can no matter how I feel.
Back into the city again and the crowds are back, on the home stretch, just keep running. I now start to see the people at the 30km mark and thank God I am through that section. Not long to go now but I keep screaming at my legs to keep running as the urge to walk is gathering momentum. Just keep running!

Mile 26:
9:31, 2:49
I relax a bit knowing the finish line is close, looking at my watch and trying to calculate potential finishing times I quickly give up trying and start to look around and soak up the atmosphere. The crowds along the last couple of miles are brilliant. When I pass the 1000m to go sign I know I will finish this without walking. Around the final bend and 500m to go I’m looking out for my OH who I spot around 100m from the finish line – a big wave and look of pride on her face – I couldn’t pursue such a selfish hobby without her support so that look makes it all worth it. I can see the finish line but I don’t have the energy to pick up the pace any bit, I can just about raise my hands in victory for the photographers before crossing the finish line. You can stop running now. And when I do my left leg buckles from underneath me, I’m caught by a medic and helped up. I look beside me and a guy is being lifted onto a stretcher, not me, not today so I gingerly walk on and keep walking. I feel relieved and elated. 3:42:30, a long way off 3:30 but still an 11 min pb and more importantly I ran the whole race, I had beaten the distance, sunburnt and sore but not defeated. Then a lady puts the medal around my neck and 26.2 miles of emotion coming back and I start to cry. Well I would have if there was any fluids left in my body, all I’m left with is me making some strange faces that look like crying while trying to eat a bananaJ.
 

Aftermath:  
After downing the nicest pint I ever tasted in O’Shea’s we grabbed some food from a stall and headed back to Delft where after a shower and some rest/phone calls home we all headed out food and drink. So how do I feel now about it? I’m still delighted and have no regrets. I know if I went out at a 3:40 pace I would probably have come in comfortably and in 3:3x but I gave it a shot. Now if I didn’t have a huge pb in the bag I might feel different, I don’t know.
Lessons learned from this – training was brilliant, I had a good base from DCM16 training and every day I religiously did a 10 min S&C routine in the morning and 15 mins of foam rolling before bed every night and I think this was a major factor in being able to maintain the mileage.
Next time I’m traveling to a marathon I will go over on the Friday as all that walking around on Saturday probably did not help my energy levels.

Only problem now is I know I have a 3:30 marathon in me (it took 4 attempts before I got sub 4 and I wouldn’t rest until I achieved it) so I can’t rest now until I reach my new goal. Only 1 thing to do so, just keep running.

hf4z6sqo7vjngi

Well done SR, your 10 mile and HM times point towards a sub 3:20. Focusing on some long progression runs with some MP/HMP towards the end of these should help you no end.

I am surprised everyone suffered so badly in the heat, I found the conditions very manageable. In saying that I have raced in 34-38 before which is not nice.

Slow_Runner

Brayson Tight Magenta wrote: »

Well done SR, your 10 mile and HM times point towards a sub 3:20. Focusing on some long progression runs with some MP/HMP towards the end of these should help you no end.

I am surprised everyone suffered so badly in the heat, I found the conditions very manageable. In saying that I have raced in 34-38 before which is not nice.

Thanks, will definitely include more mp miles next time, had 5 * 20 milers done this cycle (1 with 13 mile @ PMP) but the heat really sapped the energy - saw a lot of people really suffering. You must be one of the lucky ones who isn't badly affected by warm conditions.

Slow_Runner

Brayson Tight Magenta wrote: »

Well done SR, your 10 mile and HM times point towards a sub 3:20. Focusing on some long progression runs with some MP/HMP towards the end of these should help you no end.

I am surprised everyone suffered so badly in the heat, I found the conditions very manageable. In saying that I have raced in 34-38 before which is not nice.

Thanks, will definitely include more mp miles next time, had 5 * 20 milers done this cycle (1 with 13 mile @ PMP) but the heat really sapped the energy - saw a lot of people really suffering. You must be one of the lucky ones who isn't badly affected by warm conditions.

Krusty_Clown

Slow_Runner wrote: »

Thanks, will definitely include more mp miles next time, had 5 * 20 milers done this cycle (1 with 13 mile @ PMP) but the heat really sapped the energy - saw a lot of people really suffering. You must be one of the lucky ones who isn't badly affected by warm conditions.

Or weren't running to capability! I found it quite cool in the shady stretches but knocking out race-pace miles in the direct sunshine was tough (and I reckon I got a lot of heat acclimatization from training in a hot environment). But yeah, I've raced a couple of hotter marathons (26'C - 30'C), and this was certainly not as bad as those conditions, but still sub-optimal for a marathon PB attempt. The winner's times tell us all we need to know. 2:06:01, on a course that has seen 2:04:27, where other marathons are courses have seen 2:02-2:03.

EC1000

Brayson Tight Magenta wrote: »

I am surprised everyone suffered so badly in the heat, I found the conditions very manageable.

Just looked at your finishing time and it seems you were taking it easy on the day. I'd imagine it would have been different if you closer to your limits?

Singer

http://www.nnmarathonrotterdam.org/2017/race-report/

The temperature stood at 12 degrees Celsius at the time, but seemed to rise with every step. This ultimately became the second-hottest NN Marathon Rotterdam in history.

snailsong

Well done, s.r., on toughing it out. Not always easy to do when the pb is gone. You were well entitled to go for 3:30 off a 1:34 half. You should nail it when the conditions suit you better.

Like others, I didn't think it was awfully hot, especially in the shade, but my heart rate was high from early on so I'm guessing that was the effect of the heat. Having trained through the winter might have made it worse, we might cope better in an autumn marathon.

Slow_Runner

snailsong wrote: »

Like others, I didn't think it was awfully hot, especially in the shade, but my heart rate was high from early on so I'm guessing that was the effect of the heat. Having trained through the winter might have made it worse, we might cope better in an autumn marathon.

Strangely I didn't really "feel" the heat but it definitely drained the energy stores for me, although the sponges were great in keeping the core body temp down. My OH said around midday it very suddenly got very very warm which probably caught a lot of people out (me included).

and still ricky villa

snailsong wrote: »

Like others, I didn't think it was awfully hot

My comedy sunburn tells a different story

hf4z6sqo7vjngi

EC1000 wrote: »

Just looked at your finishing time and it seems you were taking it easy on the day. I'd imagine it would have been different if you closer to your limits?

That is a fair point as I was jogging around pacing Mrs JB.

and still ricky villa

Slow_Runner wrote: »

and the cannon for the first wave is fired

I'd forgotten about that
If I wasn't awake beforehand, I was after that monster was fired

Arsecati

Sorry to resuscitate an old thread, but after a disastrous result at yesterdays DCM, I've just booked Rotterdam for 2018!! Reading this entire thread from beginning to end has well cheered me up!

and still ricky villa

I was just about to post something similar.
I had my first enjoyable marathon in a long time yesterday and will return to Rotterdam this year. I won't be making any grand pronouncements this time round. Get in the best shape possible and see where it gets me on the day is the plan

Arsecati

I had actually set myself a fairly ambitious (well, ambitious for me! Haha!) target for yesterday, but messed it up big time. I only did my first IM back in July, but after that, I just couldn't find the motivation to do the required speed/fartlek training I was going to need since then. I naively hoped that I could maybe divert the brute endurance into speed on the day........ well, that was a pretty dumb idea! Rotterdam was always going to be the plan should I have failed yesterday, so this afternoon - Rotterdam was booked! (Now, no skimping on the fartlek over winter - no excuses!)

candyman

quick question here lads on Rotterdam. i signed up a few weeks back but have since incurred a decent injury in training so will not be completing it. is there a way to get a refund back on the entry fee or can i transfer it to someone else? thanks and yes i know this thread is from 2017 and im talking about 2018 rotterdam but thought i would check with you guys anyway....thanks

boydkev

candyman wrote: »

quick question here lads on Rotterdam. i signed up a few weeks back but have since incurred a decent injury in training so will not be completing it. is there a way to get a refund back on the entry fee or can i transfer it to someone else? thanks and yes i know this thread is from 2017 and im talking about 2018 rotterdam but thought i would check with you guys anyway....thanks

That's a pity to get a injury with only 8 weeks to go.

When you entered there was a option which cost a extra €5 which would allow you to cancel your entry and get your fee back, So if you didnt avail of this when entering i assume you cant get a refund.

candyman

@boydkev I didn't take out the cancellation insurance at registration (mental note for next time :-) ) so I guess I can't claim it back from the marathon organisers.

Looking at the general conditions, it states "Transfer of an Agreement to a third party is possible up to 5 days prior to the Event".
So I guess I can still transfer it to another person, so if anyone wants to give Rotterdam 2018 a try, please get in contact with me. I paid 72e to enter but would be happy to make something back on this if at all possible.

Thanks a mill!