Dublin Marathon 2016 - Mentored Novices Thread

Well done to all marathon runners! Yesterday was an amazing day. I'm really enjoying the race reports. Chin up Max, you finished the marathon despite all the obstacles you faced. That's determination and drive. You can be proud of yourself for that!

I had a great weekend and now that I'm home can finally reflect on it. I'm not even going to attempt a race report as I can never remember much so I'll do a little synopsis instead.

Travelled to Dublin on Saturday and collected number and had a quick look around the expo. It was starting to feel real. Dinner and into bed early, slept fairly well then it was breakfast time.

Headed into the start about 8:15 and was in my wave ready to go by 9. I stayed a good bit behind the 4hr pacers as the plan was to go easy for the first few miles. Then it was time to go. The first few miles were great. I couldn't get over the support- amazing.

I'm not from Dublin so I didn't know where I was running or what to expect. The first few miles were handy enough, mile 1 was 9:30 and by mile 6 average pace was 9:11. I was feeling good. Took a few sips from a gel at about 8 miles but was feeling a slight dodgy stomach so didn't overdo it. I drank lots of water and poured even more of it over me. It was hot out there!

Got to halfway in just over 2hrs and started telling myself I could do it. This was my second marathon but first DCM and the support definitely helped. At mile 20 average pace was 9:07 and I was still going. Things were tough after that but I kept telling myself that this was my chance to break 4. About mile 24 my hamstrings started to cramp so I was afraid to push the pace. The last 1.2 miles seemed to last forever and at this stage I thought I might miss the sub 4. Eventually I saw the finish gantry and looked at my watch. It was gonna be close. I forced myself to push on and finally it was done. I almost collapsed on the poor volunteer waiting there but 3:59:46. Unbelievable!

I'm still on a higher tiday, despite the aches. It's a day to remember.

Thanks to nop, Firedance and the backroom staff for all the advice and encouragement. I've followed the Novices thread for a few years and am delighted to have been part of it this year. I'm not a big poster but I've gotten so much inspiration and tips from this thread. Thank you everyone

bucketybuck wrote: »

I can't wait until next year. I'm going to stand at the top of Milltown hill and think to myself, "Glad I'm only cheering people on this time"...

Laughed My Arse Off !

Brilliant report and it was great to meet you. I swear I was laughing at the " supple" on your back for at least 5 miles before I caught you. Those three pacers were amazing. Massive congrats. ..There is something about going over that distance that takes the fear out of it now. Still respect it that 26.2 though!

Fbjm wrote: »

He passed me in the last mile the fecker, so I'm gonna guess 5:18 or so since I was 5:19:16 :pac:

Thanks for that , I had a good chat with him, He told me he didn't think he would get under 5 hours because he had not done many long runs with the backpack.

Great report btw , loved the determination to keep running.

kin9pin wrote: »

Passed the Eiffel Tower guy on Acres just as he clipped the tree. The "Oooohhhhh" from the pack was funny until I saw how heavy that thing was.

...

I caught up with Olwyn just after we crossed the Liffey. I knew we had the hill coming up and loved the way she was shouting for people to save their energy. I think it was at this point she ran under a branch and her balloon popped.

We must have been practically running shoulder to shoulder for this period, shame I don't know you to see!

kin9pin wrote: »

Same here, someone has replaced my quads with slabs of concrete.

It's the calves for me, must be a result of all the cramping but they're in shreds. I walk like I need crutches.

DCM 2016 Report
I can't sleep so no time like the present to write my report and I have had a bit of time to think about yesterday by now, the good and bad points for me, lessons learned, etc, etc.

Pre Race
I drove up from Portlaoise Sat morning and got to the RDS just after 10am. Traffic was fine, went in and collected my race number and had a little look around before heading back to my brother in laws apartment which I had the use of for the night. I spent the rest of the day relaxing, watching a bit of sport and watching inspirational sports videos on youtube to motivate me and for something to think about when the going got tough the following day. I went to bed at about 10 and got to sleep pretty quickly, I woke a few times during the night and got back to sleep very easily thankfully so had a good nights rest.
I finally woke at 5.45, just before the alarm, allowed myself a few minutes to think about my day ahead and made a promise to myself to enjoy the day, not get stressed about the little things but to also leave everything I had out there.
I had my usual breakfast of porridge with peanut butter and a small bagle with some peanut butter on that too and a cup of tea. I had been hydrating very well the past two weeks so my intake of water on the morning was just some sips here and there before it all began.

Taxi picked me up and dropped me to Flyefit gym next door to McGrattans which I had booked for a day pass, thinking it was a great plan to use as a bag drop (using the lockers) and for a shower afterwards. Turns out the locker room is closed on Sunday and it really isn't a full day you can use it for, once you go in and out, no going back in again. (Fitza knows the story behind this) Minor annoyance but had made a promise to myself to not let the little things stress me today, I had much more important matters to be handling today!
I was there pretty early so after this, I went for a stroll and then bumped in to Fitza which was nice to have some company for an hour to settle the nerves. We had a little chat about the Tullamore Half and the fact we were going for a sub 4 even though after Tullamore we had been saying that probably wouldn't happen! I done the half in Tullamore in 1.52 so it didn't look good for a sub 4 Marathon. After the bag drop, I made my way towards the sub 4 group, had a quick pit stop in the toilets and then did some dynamic stretching before it all started.
The pacers were just across from me, bumped into Fitza again here and had a little chat before we took off. The pacers were a nice little bit ahead of us when we got moving towards the starting line and there was too many runners in the sub 4 to get closer to them before we reached the starting line so I remembered the advice on here to keep them in sight and slowly reel them in.

Miles 1 to 6 - 9.11, 8.53, 9.06, 9.01, 8.55, 9.01

I was finally here, at the starting line of a Marathon, something I could only dream of last October when I started my C25K adventure and then we were off, I was running a Marathon!

The pacers were a few hundred yards ahead of me so I was happy with that distance, it was too crowded to be wasting energy trying to catch up with them to sit in along side them so I stayed where I was and kept my line so not to be wasting precious energy.
The first couple of miles just flew by, it kind of felt like a warm up. I spotted Fitza again up ahead of me and the pacers were a little bit ahead of her again so I kept Fitza in sight as I knew her pace was very similar to mine and I kind of used Fitza as my pacer for a good 8 -10 miles I think (Thanks Fitza )

I had some ITBS issues which had me out for the best part of 3 weeks during training which were still causing some issues leading into the last week. I had seen a Physio on Wednesday before the marathon who done a terrific job but couldn't promise no pain on the day but said I should get through it on the day but obviously couldn't guarantee anything.

Somewhere in mile 2, my knee started up, I couldn't believe it, 2 bloody miles in! I was frustrated, we had practically just started and I was having issues. Other than the knee, I felt completely fine. I thought to myself, it usually loosens out a little after another few miles when it does flare up and then comes back in waves, just keep plodding along and forget about it, its going to be a tough day but I already knew that before I started, pain is your friend I kept saying to myself over and over!

Somewhere after NCR and entering the park, I think I had stopped noticing the knee and was checking my breathing and running form. I tend to have my hands and shoulders slightly too high when running which causes very bad stiffness in the shoulders and neck so every now and then, I would just loosen myself up to try and prevent this as I keep slipping back into this no matter how I try (something I need to correct in the near future!)

The next few miles flew by, pacers were in sight as was Fitza and I felt completely comfortable. Pace was bang on and breathing was perfect. I noticed people passing me in the park and passing Fitza who were breathing very heavily, I couldn't believe people were running way beyond their capacity at this stage. Before joining this thread, my inexperience would have led me to chasing after people passing me which would have led to be blowing up too but thanks to the advice on here, I have learned so much and just had to put it into practice on the day.

Mile 7 to 13 - 9.02, 8.56, 8.46, 8.54, 8.40, 8.47, 8.51

I hit the 10k mark in 56.59 and then up to Castleknock. There was a great atmosphere here, really enjoyed this, put a big smile on my face. I actually enjoyed the downhill section in the park before hitting Chapelizod. It was quite here and you could hear everyone's feet hitting the ground as we plodded along but the sun was out, it looked so peaceful and it just put a big smile on my face, I was really enjoying myself now, didn't feel any pain and the pace felt perfect. I took my first gel on the hour mark and my strategy was one every hour, I also had Jelly Babies for other times if I needed a kick.

I remember watching the fly through of the marathon course on Youtube and thinking, forget about Heartbreak Hill, Laurence's hill looked like a tasty one and it was steep, nothing too drastic but I think mentally, hills are worse on people so I just followed my plan for the hills, slowed slightly, shortened the stride and pumped the legs and felt completely fine after it, I did see some struggling, they probably had gone out too fast and were paying the price now! The next bit is a bit of a blur, I know I still felt fine at this stage and then I remember hitting Dolphin's Bar which had great support out, heard my name shouted a few times here which was really encouraging.
Things were still good and I hit the half way mark at 1.59.08 which was a little too fast if I wanted a negative split but not too bad and I had the pacers right in front of me so I was just sticking with them, I had actually caught up with them by 10.5 miles in and was by then, right along side them.

Mile 14 to 19 - 9.21, 9.12, 8.54, 9.03, 8.56, 8.50

I am not from Dublin so don't know a lot of parts very well so I can't really describe much in terms of location for the next 5 or 6 miles. From looking at my splits, miles 14 and 15 suggest that I slowed a little here, particularly on mile 14 but nothing too drastic, my average pace was still well within range of a sub 4.
I was still with the pacers, in fact, I had passed them but only by a few yards to get some space as it was pretty packed behind them and occasionally found myself behind someone who wasn't in the same rhythm as myself and it was difficult to pass them without disturbing someone else so I decided to use a little energy to push up ahead but only just and to give myself some space to keep my own rhythm going smoothly.

I think it was during this section that my incident at a water station occurred. I thought they were a little manic to be honest, people were tripping over each other and you nearly had to come to a stop to grab a bottle which was fecking up my rhythm and I found myself wasting precious energy here. I was nearly knocked over, it obviously wasn't intentional but I was still pretty annoyed but no damage done so I just carried on.

The fun started at 16.5 miles in for me, the issue with my knee had returned with a vengeance. There was a real mental battle for a few miles with this, the pain was much worse than earlier, I started telling myself I loved pain again and thinking of some of the inspirational videos I had been watching the day before, my promise to myself that morning, and of my family, this wasn't going to beat me, I couldn't let it beat me!!
I started remembering Nop's post about the marathon and splitting it up into 10m.10m.10k. This really helped, I told myself I had only 2.5 miles to go and then I was in the home stretch. The pain didn't go anywhere but I had won the mental battle and hadn't lost my pace. I was still with the pacers and my breathing was still perfect, it was my legs that were starting to let me down!

My stats tell me I crossed the 30K mat at 2:49:54. I had the pain under control and I was sipping water every now and again and felt pretty good. I got chatting to another runner somewhere around here, he told me he was doing New York next week so we were chatting about that for a few mins and I realised I could have done with someone to chat with all along, at least in moments when you needed to take your mind off things that weren't going right. He slipped back behind me as he realised he was going a bit too fast at this stage so we said good luck to each other and carried on.

Mile 20 to 22 - 8.58, 9.11, 9.26

I was approaching Milltown now and started to feel a little bit of pain in my feet, specifically around my big toes. I knew this had to be blisters as I got some under my big toes during training but they weren't too bad in training, very manageable. It was only a little uncomfortable but an unwelcome distraction. I think I saw Nop and Firedance around the spot they mentioned but I was on the other side of the road so if it was them, they couldn't hear me shouting hello as I passed. It was around here that I felt a sudden twinge in my Quads which frightened the life out of me as I thought, that's it, this is going to go and then I am fu**ed, no sub 4 if this goes now! I slowed slightly in case, took on board some water and poured the rest over the area where I felt the twinge. I lost the pacers here, not by a lot but enough to make me doubt myself especially with the new pain that was promising to turn into a cramp!
I came to the famous Heartbreak Hill which didn't look too bad but with my new condition and the developing blisters, it looked like a mountain. I put the head down and looked no further than 3 feet ahead, shortened the stride and pumped the legs and I was up it in no time. There was a lot of people walking here so this gave me a great mental boost! The breathing was still fine thankfully, the knee I could handle, the blisters were just an unwelcome distraction, it was the possible cramp in the Quads I was worried about. I slowed myself down to try and help with this and it started to feel good again so I upped the pace again but I could feel myself tiring!

Mile 23 to 26.2 - 8.59, 8.48, 9.03, 8.56, 8.40

The next 3.2 Miles was the toughest experience of my life to date. 5k to go I said to myself, keep the pace, I love pain, don't let this slip now, my average pace was still within sub 4 time, I was catching the pacers, slowly!

I poured water all over myself to cool myself down, took on board some Jelly Babies and started working hard, not too fast, just enough to claw the time back over the 3 miles. I said to myself, you will have a sprint in you near the end to claw back even more precious seconds, just keep it steady and don't blow up now.

The crowds in those last 3 miles were incredible and badly needed for that last bit of motivation to carry you across the line, inch by inch. Al Pacino's speech from Any Given Sunday started hitting my mind now, I needed something in my head to spur me on now, the mental battle was immense in the last couple of miles, my body wanted to give in so much, the pain was becoming unbearable in my knee, I just shut it out and kept pushing. People were really struggling around here, I was passing a lot out, some were now walking and others were receiving treatment or had cramps, I didn't notice anyone in too much distress as I noticed Crogerso mentioned this earlier and I think I came in about 14 seconds after Crogerso so I hope whoever they are, that they are ok now.

It was about now that I noticed that my watch said I had done 26.4 Miles and I still couldn't see the finish line!! I thought to myself, where the f**k is this finish line already, I am going to collapse :pac: The sub 4 pacers were only just ahead of me when I saw the finish line, finally! They were stopped, encouraging people to get across the line to get in on time. I knew I had done it as I had crossed the starting line about 45-55 seconds after them so I had enough time left to creep in. I made an attempt at a mini sprint which didn't last long but made it across in 3.59.07, I had done it, I made my A goal of sub 4, just!!

Post Race

I actually felt pretty good when I finished, I had a look at the Asics videos earlier and saw my finish and I looked pretty fresh. Within seconds of that though, I started to seize up and could feel the pains everywhere, knee, blisters, quads, shoulders and neck :pac:

My stomach felt pretty ok, definitely started feeling hungry pretty quickly so I had the bar from the goodie bag to help calm that and to give me some energy. I received my medal and t-shirt and started making my way towards the bag collection. I stopped half way to do some stretches and realised I couldn't lift either leg to do anything :pac:
Myself and the runner alongside me who was also attempting to stretch had a good laugh at ourselves struggling to do this and chatted about our experience.
I then slowly made my way to the bag drop and sat on the steps just across from there and took everything in for about 15 to 20 mins. I got chatting to a few others here and shared some of our stories of the day, there was great camaraderie amongst us and it really was a special moment in my day. It was starting to really sink in that I was now a Marathon Runner!

I am so sorry that I missed out on McGrattans, I did get over there but didn't see any pool tables and didn't know anyone to see except Fitza who I didn't spot. My knee was in agony and I could barely walk so I decided to get some food and make my way back to the apartment for an epsom salts bath which was heaven.

I will never forget my First Marathon, it truly was an unforgettable experience!

For any future Novices looking on, 26.2 miles needs to be respected as it will chew you up and spit you out if you don't put in the proper training and even then, nothing is guaranteed on the day. I was lucky on the day in that I wasn't feeling unwell, I had a good taper, no colds or flu to zap my energy, if any of these things had hit me slightly on the day or the days leading up to it, it would have been a completely different day for me. I wouldn't have been able to contend with any of that on top of the issues I face during the run so I feel so lucky to have got through this in almost one piece and to manage to get my A goal. This isn't too put off any future Novices, in fact, I am already looking forward to my next one as this was one of the most rewarding things I have ever done so I would highly recommend this to anyone thinking about it, it's just going to be bloody hard work The main thing would be to adjust expectations accordingly if anything goes wrong, even leading up to it.

There is one thing I would have loved to have done before all of this training for the Marathon started and that is a Strength and Conditioning program for my core and lower body. My advice to any future potential Novices who have potentially already started running would be to look into something like this now and possibly something like Pilates well before any Marathon training starts so your body is fully prepared for the tough task ahead. This is something I am going to be looking into very soon myself and hopefully it will make me much more stronger for the next one!

I just realised I have been typing for way too long and that this post is too long so apologies for the long post and I would like to say thanks again to Nop and his backroom team who have been incredible throughout this amazing journey and to all the graduates on this thread, it has been one hell of a ride

Slept 100% better than Sunday night (think I was still buzzing from the day)! Legs feeling a lot better but not tackled the stairs yet!

Off again today so will get my race report done at some point.

The Black Oil wrote: »

How's everyone today? I slept very well, hips feel a lot better, stairs in work will be tackled...

Pomplamousse wrote: »

My garmin has chosen the best possible time to crap out, right before I went to upload my marathon data. It's all gone. So so annoyed :mad:

Ah crap. Are you totally sure it's gone? What happened?

An Epic End to and Epic Journey DCM 2016
Finish Time 3:46:44

Apologies in advance for the ramble, nothing I can put down here will do justice to one of the toughest and most rewarding days of my life!

Morning

Actually slept better than expected was wide awake @ 0545 (pretty normal for me so nothing new!) Had my normal porridge breakfast and sipped on some water. Triple checked my gear (OCD here as it was well checked on Saturday!!) tried to relax a bit and watch the end of the golf from China, this didn't work as the nerves were kicking in. To be honest the second week of taper was an emotional roller coaster for me, emotions ranged from doubt, what the hell am I doing to total excitement!! Kit on Vaseline applied and tit tape stuck where I never though I would apply tape (great laugh in the house when I was reminded of that

Pre-Race

mrsscotindublin kindly volunteered to drop me in so was dropped off at the back of Trinity College and made my way to meet a few lads at the Davenport Hotel, have to say I was bricking it at this point. Once I met up with the lads and got chatting the nerves settled. The buzz around the place and I really started to think "sh*t this is actually happening". The crowds going to the staring pens were massive and the atmosphere was brilliant. Got chatting to a few lads from work and headed to the start of wave 2 with the 3:40 pacers in view. Thankfully at this point there was an eerie calm and I felt ready to tackle this. My very ambitious plan (novice mistake #1) was to try and stick with the 3:40 pacers. On training runs I tend to get fixated by my watch so decided to let the pacers do that and only checked at the mile marks.

And We Are Off

Miles 1-5

The gun was fired and we were off, was probably a good 50 meters or so behind the pacers, the first couple of miles were pretty congested and really became aware of the obstacles on the road (traffic islands/bollards thankfully no motorbikes like the elites!!) just went with the flow of the crowd and we were soon down on to the Quays and up Stoneybatter (a few great signs here "You are running a worse race than Donald Trump" and "This is long and hard.....when has that ever been a bad thing" raised a chuckle). Was right between the pacers heading up Stoneybatter and the NCR.....the first water station was carnage and spooked me a bit (didnt grab any water here (novice mistake #2). I was on a very familiar part of the course so was feeling good, into the park and then the drag up The Avenue no wind was a huge bonus, was a little surprised how quite the crowds were here.
Mile splits 08:14; 07:58 (novice mistake #3);08:16; 08:08; 08:16

Miles 5-10

Nothing to report really coming up the last part of the Avenue, out onto the Castleknock Road and through 10k (51:03)......then boom all I can say is WOW.....how good was the crowd in Castleknock!!! One of the highlights of the day for me an incredible wall of noise and really was hairs on the back of neck stuff. Got through 7 miles and knew there was some respite coming up....passed Mr Eiffel Tower here not sure how he got around!! Took on some water at mile 7, down the hill and back into the park, everything was still feeling good at this point....still nicely around the pacers here....there was a great moment when one of the pacers veered off course for a pit stop coming down Lower Glen Road.....many shouts of "do we all need to stop here"...thanks for the laugh PaulieC!! Got a nice lift coming out of the park as I had family waiting in Chapelizod....spotted them as soon as I turned left over the bridge and my Dad got some great pictures of me going passed them, grabbed an protein bar from them here, didn't eat much of it though (novice mistake #4).
Mile splits 8:07;8:23;8:05;8:30;8:02

Miles 11-15

Knew the climb out of Chapelizod so started what I will call "the death stare" into the back of a lad in front wearing a Bray singlet and focused on him until we reached the top.....great shouts of "oggie oggie oggie" coming through the two bridges towards Inchicore, this is where something strange happened, it felt like my brain was bouncing around in my skull at this point! It wasn't sore just a weird feeling! Attacked my fruit pastilles and grabbed water at 11 miles was still nicely in line with the pacers, I was keeping an eye on their running form and was amazed how "bouncy" they were if that makes sense! Turned right int Dolphins Barn then bang.....smacked in the face by another wall of noise, really brilliant here felt like a rider in the Tour De France. Through the 1/2 mark in 1:48:50 (novice mistake #5). 1/2 way and 5 things learned, I am going to take that as a positive learning experience!! Knew that 13-15 was going to be a drag and there was a few spots that were eerily quiet, this is where I first saw people have to walk/stretch out and start to struggle. I lost a bit of time at the water station at mile 13 as I was bang in the middle of the road and tried to get over for water without breaking anyone's stride Was glad to get onto the Walkinstown as again the crowds were great here . Took on my first gel somewhere around here not 100% sure where.
Mile Splits 08:20;08:30;08:34;08:37;08:14

Miles 16-21

At this point I really started to focus on getting to the 20 mile mark, the pacers were about 30 meters ahead of me but I was happy with that as I felt I was keeping pace with them, really just concentrated on getting through the miles here, crowds were great and really fed off them, kept focusing on the pacers and made sure they weren't moving too far ahead. I think it was around mile 19 that I got a feeling what something was quite right both hamstring were twinging a bit and I was sure cramp was on the way. Tried to block it out and kept plodding along.

Mile Splits 8:15;815;8:15;8:25;08:20;8:36

Taxi for scotindublin 21-26.2

Bang 21 miles and cramp sent in to the hamstrings tried to keep moving but had to walk looking at my Garmin I think I walked for about two minutes one of the lads from work was here so he ran across the road to see if I was ok, told him I was feeling fine just that cramp had set....walked past the water station here and got loads of encouragement to get moving so tried to get moving again.....not sure if I saw you nop as I shuffled but I honestly don't thing Heartbreak Hill registered on me, crested a hill then started down hill bang both legs into cramp calves and quads, physically couldn't get my right foot to straighten out I am sure that I looked ridiculous! This was a panic moment as I had never experienced this before!! Wasnt sure what to do tried to slam my foot into the ground as hard a possible!! Knew from here that it was going to be a real battle....3:40 wasn't even in my thoughts it was now survival mode!!

It was starting to look like the living dead around me there seemed to be bodies everywhere and lots of funny running styles! Nice few words of encouragement and words of advice from a work colleague coming up the UCD slip road.....had two more small walk breaks of about 30 seconds....then gave myself a good talking to....I wasn't going to walk over the finish line! Really had to guts it out for the last couple of miles, saw a girl from work outside the RDS and was moving forward at this point, through 25 miles and knew I was almost there (I think this is the first time I checked my pace on my watch!) where the f*ck is the 26 miles marker, my watch was a good bit off by this point, and there it was like an oasis in the dessert come on you have got this run tall and get there (I am sure this is not how I looked!!) family were on the course about here....didn't see them as I was fixated on the finish line.....the crowds were going mental at this point really lifted me and there it was in the distance the end of an epic journey.....It was over I was a marathon runner!!!!!!!!! Stopped the Garmin at 3:44:50; official time 3:46:44

Mile splits 10:08;9:34;10:10;10:00;9:28;8:39 (for the last .3 according to my watch)

Post Run

Picked up my medal/t-shirt and goodie bag made sure to thank everyone and as I got to the barriers that was it could barely move cramped up again!! Had arranged to meet my family outside the Davenport Hotel,walking down I was really holding back the tears got very emotional, got there and they weren't about so had a few minutes to myself before they arrived.....then the floodgates opened! Calmed down and headed to Mulligans to meet some lads from work had the nicest three pints ever!!

Did I make mistakes? Yes Will I learn from them? Hopefully!!

No longer a novice now a graduate!! Really proud of myself for sticking to the training and getting that done.

What a great experience and the encouragement here has been incredible......also raised a nice amount of money for charity!

To you all a massive congratulations!! And well done on getting through that post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is a bit long.. sorry!

I cycled into town to substitute as my warm up – the route in is all downhill so I knew I could use it to get the legs going and it wouldn’t take a lot of energy.. Then I headed into work for a shower and to change into my race gear (they kindly opened the place to allow any employees access to services).

Leaving there at 8:30 I thought I would have loads of time to get to the starting pen – I was wrong. The usual 12 minute walk was a lot longer than normal – people were everywhere and the layout of the roads led to a lot of slow zombie walking… I had my nervous pee – and then I pee’d again twice more! And headed towards the big-red pacer balloons but then I heard what sounded like a notice to start running and the hoard started moving. ‘Ah they are just moving forward surely’ I thought. Nope. They were running! I had to abandon any pre-race starting habits and get myself moving. I was about 100m behind the 4hr group.

So we turned onto Patrick street and I was happy with where I was – I could see the pacers and the crowd was busy but I accepted it and kept shuffling all the way up the hill and towards the park. As we jogged into the park I was looking for a bit of clear-way in front of me and kept jolting right and left looking for space, every time I found a bit someone else bunched in beside or in front of me – eventually I found some, a nice bit of space all to myself, no one pushing or rubbing elbows with me, bliss. It was a bit quiet, I couldn’t hear Olwyn or Joe shouting anymore… Then I looked back and they were behind me in the distance – sh!t. I was running at 5:30/km. ‘What was I doing’. ‘Why am I doing it.’ ‘Don’t fall into this trap.’ I thought all the right things but for all my will and might I couldn’t slow down, everytime I tried to I looked down seconds later and my watch was back at 5:25. I hit the 10k marker over 1 minute quicker than where I should have been.

I passed my other-half for the 2nd time in Inchicore and I told her in a flying statement that I was running too fast, expecting some sort of mircal from her but she shouted what anyone else in the world would have and what I was already shouting at myself “slow the fug down!” – why can’t I slow down. ‘This is so irrational – just slow down’ but I couldn’t.

At the halfway point I started to feel sore, I was tense and annoyed but I was coming to familiar territory – I was looking forward to seeing my family on cromwellsfort.
Passing my family home was tough, I was thinking of how easy it would be to duck in and hide for a few days then a mile up the road I passed my own house – the exact same feeling… would anyone know…? I’d know.

18 miles in I wasn’t feeling great I knew I’d have to stop soon, my calves were about to cramp and there was nothing I could do about it, the Lucozade wasn’t helping nor the gels or the water – ‘let me get to mile 20 please’ I thought.. bang goes the calf, about 18 and a half miles in. I had to stop – checking my watch I stopped and stretched it for as long as it needed which was unfortunately a hole minute – but I had 3 minutes banked, I was fine.. off I ran again and more gels and more Lucozade.. bang – other calf went.. same deal, slow down, stop, stretch, run. Bang, hamstring. Then I heard familiar shouting, it was Joe, the 4hr pacer – he wizzed by.. Off I set running again, I can’t let them get too far ahead.. The pain subsided temporarily, I think it was the buzz from seeing the 4hr lads that got me going for a while until the hills reappeared and I was back to stretching. I seen my running trainer from work on heartbreak hill and she gave me some kind words and that fired me up for a while then a good friend giving me an orange at mile 21 kept me running for a bit too. He told me that the 4hr lads were about 1 minute up the road.. a quick calculation made that a 4:05 finish if I didn’t have any more cramps – not possible. ‘What’s the plan now’ I thought… ‘just get over the line’ …. ‘it’s the same medal either way’..

I kept on marching, just after the 22mile marker I had to stop again, stretching out on a traffic cone while you are really tired wasn’t the brightest idea but the stupidity of it made me laugh a little. Then I broke the rest of the race down into small goals ‘get to the lamppost’…‘get to the bus stop’.. all of a sudden I was at the RDS then another blink and I seen my other-half standing with a big green inflatable hand waving me on ‘nearly there’ she shouted – I forewarned her of the dangers of shouting that to someone if they are not in-fact ‘nearly there’ I must be close I was thinking – then the nicest sign I have ever seen in my life 800m.. People started to bolt ‘too soon’ I thought.. then the 400m sign came and I was free, the crowd cheering felt like I had just scored a winner in a champions league match, the best feeling in the world – What felt like a sprint brought me over the line and I was done. Never again was my first thought. That was harder than I thought was my second and why do I have a lump in my throat was the third.

I didn’t see the clock when I passed the line nor did I look at my watch.. I was happy I finished but at the same time I was sore and the pain was very fresh. I found my other half and friends and my first words were “that was harder than I expected” – I didn’t mean that to be funny, I was serious, that was really fuggin hard. I asked the tough question, 'what was my time' .... 4:03.. midway between plan A and plan B. I’ll take it.

A shower and celebratory pints and they lived happily ever after.

What went well with your training plan?
(Myasics plan) I liked the fact it was non-intrusive, I only ran 3 days per week and it didn’t impact my daily life too much. I supplemented the 3 days per week of running with gym work and cycling.

What would you do differently with your training?
The plan only had me do one 32km run, I would have liked a second one for confidence.

What went well about the race?
This may sound a bit narcissistic but I didn’t think I had that much power or stamina, I should have been defeated at mile 22 but I pushed on and didn’t need to stop again, kicking pain in the balls.

What would you do differently if you could start the race again?
1. Get to the start line earlier, I was rushed
2. Set a target window, not a target time – a marathon is not an occasion for specifics in my opinion, there are too many variables.
3. Keep with the pacers.

Pomplamousse wrote: »

Just tried that but it's telling me that all of the .FIT files that are there aren't activities. Thanks anyway for your help.

Sorry to hear that Pomplamousse, maybe do a quick google or check on youtube about it, you never know, you might find something that could help.

This guy Gary O'Hanlon had a fall and wrecked his ankle at 4 miles:
https://www.facebook.com/garyohanlon12/posts/1314922505198598

He still finished, and in 12th place overall :eek:

Race Report - the abridged version

There is a more detailed report on my log but I am unsure how to link it, here is a shortened version anyway.

Training
Could have been better, in hindsight, missed too many runs and was more stop/start than consistent.

Pre-Race
Plenty of sleep, was well hydrated and fueled, usual routine on Sunday morning. Aside from the cold that threatened to descend on Wednesday, was perfect.

The Race

Started a wee bit behind the 4:30 pacers, didn't find it as congested as I thought it was going to be. First 10k was comfortable, running steady, in hindsight too fast (rookie mistake). Crowds in Castleknock were amazing but got caught up in the atmosphere and knew I was going too fast.

Second 10k, continued too fast, what the frack was I thinking?!? Hill at Ballyfermot wasn't too bad although I think this might have been my least favourite part of the course under the tunnel.

Starting to slow a smidge, hit halfway fairly on target but shortly afterwards SPLAT. I didn't so much hit the wall as run full tilt into it like a bug against the windscreen on the motorway. After this pace dropped dramatically, had to resort to walking a fair few times, was an emotional wreck but somehow managed to keep moving forward. Legs never cramped but had pre-cramp sensations all down back of my legs from ass to ankle, glutes were screaming at me and my right knee was not a happy camper at all. But kept moving and eventually got to the finish 5:08 hours after I started. Never been so relieved to see a finish line.

Post Race
Once I stopped I felt okayish, got medal, bag etc, found BF who had really kept me going in the tough sections, popping up all over the course on his bike. Got very very emotional here, eight years ago I had hurt my back so bad I couldn't even contemplate running for a bus and I just finished a marathon!! So had a little cry, hug from BF. Went to McGrattans, managed half a bottle of beer, had some chats, lovely to meet some of you, went home and had epic pizza dinner after a few hours.

Lessons Learnt

What went well with your training plan?
The first half, and knowing I had covered 32k in training meant I knew I could cover the distance even if it wasn't going to be pretty.

What would you do differently with your training?
Be consistent. I missed too many runs, and my legs lacked the strength needed to do what I wanted them to do. I also ran many of my easy miles too fast, basically I have no discipline, only stubbornness.

What went well about the race?
I think I fuelled and hydrated well. Took a gel every hour, grabbed water at every water station, never felt like my body had no fuel, the problems were elsewhere. In saying that I do wonder had I put a zero tab or similar in water at some stage might it have prevented some of the almost cramps? Or was that just fatigue, I'll just have to run another to figure it out!

What would you do differently if you could start the race again?
Slow the frack down!! And then slow some more. Seriously, wtf was I doing?

Huge thank you to all the contributors to this thread especially our mentors. All the errors were my own, definately can't say I wasn't warned. Haha.