MBNA Chester Marathon 2010

(From David in the UK)
For most endeavors there is a rule book. In fact there are 2 rule books. The first set of rules are to stop people cheating each other. The second set are to ensure you don’t cheat yourself out of your best performance.
After running my first marathon on May 31st 2010 I have found that this second rule book is best written after the event!
My planning for this race was pretty through. I had abstained from caffeine for 2 weeks to ensure it’s introduction into my race would be as effective as possible. I had trained for 16 weeks in rain, snow and a little bit of sunshine. I had learnt several lessons from my recent Chester Half Marathon, just 2 weeks before. I have to say, I was as ready as I could have been.
On the days leading up to the race I had rested well. My left knee had been causing problems for a few weeks, since my last 20 miler, but it appeared to be fine as I arrived at the Chester Rugby Club at 7.30am for registration. The only open question for me was which shoes to run in. All the rest of my equipment was the same as I had run in for the last 50 runs. I had taken my racing flats with me as well as my normal running shoes. I did this because in the back of my mind I had connected the pain in my left knee with the Asics Gel Cumulus shoes I had used for most of my training. At the last moment I decided to go with the Puma Cell racing flats. The have very little protection but I have never had any soreness before after using them.
The race was due to start at 9.30am. I had been watching the weather for the last few weeks as I am not used to running in the heat. Almost all my training happens between 5am and 7am. The temperature was projected to be around the 20C mark or 70F. There was very little wind which would mean keeping my core temperature down would be vital if I was to do my best. In order for this to happen I had decided to aim at a sub 4 hour finish. My ideal target, the one I had trained for was 3 hours 40 mins. All my training runs had indicated that I was capable of this. My last 20 miler had come in at 2 hrs 54mins, on target for a time of 3 hrs 45 mins and had been achieved at a nicely aerobic heart rate.
As 9.30am approached I had decided that I was going to keep my heart rate below 150 for the first half of the race then I would take my caffeine supplement and increase that to a 160 maximum on the return.
The race started at 9.30am.
It took a few seconds to cross the timing mat and we were off.
I tried to keep my Heart Rate down and not go off too fast, I knew I would pay for it later if I did.
Mile 1 was completed in 8 mins 20 sec. My Average HR for this mile was 138. Cadence, the number of steps I took, was good at 164 steps per minute, so I wasn’t overstriding. The course was pretty flat and with the run/walk protocol I was running, 9 min 20 sec running followed by 40 sec walking I had decided to use my mp3 player. I listened to Marathon Talk, one of my favorite podcasts. This episode was exactly 1 hr 53 mins long. If I was on target I should be at the half way point as the podcast finished. This was my plan.
Mile 2 was completed in 8.30 everything was going great. AHR was 142 and cadence was 164. I was feeling very strong. My walk breaks were having the effect I hoped for. My first walk break had dropped my HR by 14 beats from 143 to 129bpm. The second break moved my HR down from 149 to 135bpm. I had no pain and everything was looking good.
Mile 3 was completed in 8.50, a little slow but it did include a small hill. AHR was up to 147, reflecting the effort on the hill but this dropped off by 6 beats after the walk break.
Miles 4 through mile 13 were perfect. AHR was 147 and cadence was around 160. My time at the turn around was around 1 hr 55 mins.
My plan was to take my caffeine supplement at 13 miles so as to keep my energy levels high for the rest of the race. However, things didn’t go exactly to plan. I was feeling very strong but I had already used 4 out of my 6 drink bottles. The sun was also starting to tell as my AHR rose above 150. I had taken my caffeine and my mp3 player was now set to play the music I had selected for my return journey. The effect of this was to give me a boost which translated into a 8.10 mile and an average HR of 160! I remember feeling incredibly strong. Ooops, a moment of portent and an “opportunity for learning” ;)
I have always found, from previous races, that if my HR goes far above 150 it is almost impossible to bring it back down below that figure. Miles 14 to 17 saw my AHR at 154, 160, 162 and 161 respectively.
I was about to find out that you should never loose concentration in the marathon. This slip would see my plan in tatters. Miles 18, 19, 20, 21 saw my average pace drop from 8.40 min miles to 10 min miles. No amount of walking was bringing my HR down, and as soon as it dropped it rose straight back up the moment I started running. I was so disillusioned with watching my HR I decided to take my strap off!
Miles 22, 23, 24, 25 and 26 were about finishing. My average pace for these miles was around 11 min 30 sec.
I never really considered giving up but as my time goals fell away I was starting to wonder what I was doing! The encouragement of this crazy running guy was great. There were people I would target to catch up to but these didn’t seem to encourage me to run as they have in previous races. I remember looking at my right wrist were my yellow Livestrong band had reminded me of my Mum’s fight against breast cancer. Through most of the race it had encouraged me to push on. In these last miles my legs were so completely spent that standing up seemed an achievement. At no point did I stop completely.
My walk breaks were now coming every 4 to 5 mins and they were keeping my AHR, I had replaced my strap during mile 24, to below 140. By this time my muscles were so tired that I couldn’t get my HR above 150 even if I tried. Then, when I was confronted with the final hill up to the finish, and I felt all I could do was walk, I spotted my wife in the crowd by the side of the road. She was waving wildly as were my kids by her side. Somewhere, maybe the same place people find the strength to rip the door off a crashed car to rescue a loved one, somewhere I found some energy. I ran up to my wife, gave her a kiss, and ran off for the final .2 of a mile. I completed this section at 7.30pace. My wife has since suggested that she ride in a car 30 seconds ahead on me along the race coarse to pull me along on my next race!
I completed the 2010 Chester Marathon in 4 hours 14 mins and 41 seconds.
There are many lessons to learn from this race. In fact there are rules I shall write in my own personal rule book for the next time I run this, or any other race. Some of these will help me run safer and faster next time and others will help me to realize what is really important in my life.
Next race is a few months off, time for some biking.