Yes, I've entered. Blame Ian Evans and Brian Ashton who have managed to pursuade half the Aber AC club to join them this October for Europe's hardest 26.2 marathon event.
Look out for some blogs as we prepare. I'm not going to have a plan like London. It is not a fast course and so I'm going to go and enjoy the day with no target. I'll throw in a few long mileage runs in the run up and see what happens !!!
Tuesday, 7 June 2011
Tuesday, 19 April 2011
Job done
and finally....it's over.
Where to start? I suppose I'll start with the result - 3hrs 12minutes odd. Thats probably a bit faster than most thought I'd do. I secretly attempted a 2.59 on the day only to be shot down by the man with the hammer at 17 miles like so many others. I didn't blow completely, just a gradual painfull slowdown to 8min miles rather than the 6.51's until the last couple when i struggled not to walk.
My conservative estimation was 3.20 ish so overall .... I'm very very happy!
Dan also had a good one, our training definately paying off as he surprised himself too with a cool 3.18. We were together until 5 or 6 miles when he thought better of my suicidal pace and went into his own pace zone. Another two miles and he would have caught me. My last mile was a ten minuter!!
Lessons learnt - train longer! Our long runs were mostly 10-16 miles, which were great if you were running, 10 to 16 mile races i suppose!
The day started well. Well, almost. We caught the DLR to Woolwich and then the overground to Blackheath. The train was full and Dan spotted an empty seat. It soon became apparent as to why the seat was empty...it was next to the only non athlete on the train, a middle aged gent who was probably on his seventh can of Stella that morning (it was 8am after all).
The next 10 minutes was spent trying not to breathe in as he explained repeatedly that the ban on alcohol in snooker & darts was a farce as the players simply topped up whilst the cameras weren't pointed their way.
I nodded and smiled and Dan smirked probably due to the fact that he had the window seat. Thanks for that one Dan ;-)
The park in Greenwich was buzzing, and it was fairly cool with a slight morning haze - perfect conditions! We made our first beginners error by placing our finish bags in the lorry straight away whilst everyone else held onto theirs so that they could sit on the plastic so as to avoid a wet bum. Doh!
Time then stood still as it seemed like hours to wait until the start. Toilet visit after toilet visit and the nerves piled up. We entered the start zones, Dan in zone 3 and me in zone 2 due to the different estimations that we applied with. Not to worry, I headed to the back of zone 2 and Dan to the head of zone 3. The zones merged in any case as we walked towards the actual start area and we were united once again.
The race got underway and the expected slow down of pace due to the shear numbers didn't materialise too badly, probably as we started so far up the grip. The first mile was a 7.17 so not too bad at all.
The crowds continued to build, something I'll never forget. It seemed like a crowd from the mountains of the Tour de France, but it continued for 26.2 miles! In some places it even got emotional! The heat did unfortunately build aswell, culminating in a rather hot day and so it was a bottle of water every two miles without fail from 4 miles onwards!
The first 17 miles were perfect. No pain, feeling better than any run, ever. All the niggles gone, hydration - perfect, energy - perfect, pace - not a problem, breathing - fine. Every mile ticked off in precision at 6.40 - 7 min miling.
Only when I got back to Westferry did I start to realise the hamstrings were tightening. Not only them, but the thighs also. I ignored it at first but it became increasingly harder to maintain pace and so by 18 miles i was falling behind. I even saw Carwyn from Sarn Helen walking! Even the realisation that this may be my only ever chance to beat the mighty Sarn Helen runner could not prevent my slowdown!
This was not a pain I am used to. The only other time its happened has been Rhayader 20, so I suppose its an endurance muscular thing. In any case, 7 miles to run with this was impossible at the pace i needed. Maybe 2 or three would have been possible, but not 7 and so I surrendered and went into damage limitation mode. This worked a treat as I was still able to knock out some 8 (ish) min miles and although a horrendous last 10k where i didn't enjoy the crowds or the Mall one bit, i was still able to come home with a satisfactory time. A last minute look to check i was in a Burgess free zone set off a panic attack as the lad outsprinting me bore a resemblence to Dan, even down to the blue vest!
Like I said, his tactics almost paid off as he would have past me had there been another couple of km's in it.
The last few months have been fun. I can't confirm nor deny that Dan has burnt his trainers, but hopefully we'll see sense in a few days and plan to use this for more running adventures later in the year :-)
Where to start? I suppose I'll start with the result - 3hrs 12minutes odd. Thats probably a bit faster than most thought I'd do. I secretly attempted a 2.59 on the day only to be shot down by the man with the hammer at 17 miles like so many others. I didn't blow completely, just a gradual painfull slowdown to 8min miles rather than the 6.51's until the last couple when i struggled not to walk.
My conservative estimation was 3.20 ish so overall .... I'm very very happy!
Dan also had a good one, our training definately paying off as he surprised himself too with a cool 3.18. We were together until 5 or 6 miles when he thought better of my suicidal pace and went into his own pace zone. Another two miles and he would have caught me. My last mile was a ten minuter!!
Lessons learnt - train longer! Our long runs were mostly 10-16 miles, which were great if you were running, 10 to 16 mile races i suppose!
The day started well. Well, almost. We caught the DLR to Woolwich and then the overground to Blackheath. The train was full and Dan spotted an empty seat. It soon became apparent as to why the seat was empty...it was next to the only non athlete on the train, a middle aged gent who was probably on his seventh can of Stella that morning (it was 8am after all).
The next 10 minutes was spent trying not to breathe in as he explained repeatedly that the ban on alcohol in snooker & darts was a farce as the players simply topped up whilst the cameras weren't pointed their way.
I nodded and smiled and Dan smirked probably due to the fact that he had the window seat. Thanks for that one Dan ;-)
The park in Greenwich was buzzing, and it was fairly cool with a slight morning haze - perfect conditions! We made our first beginners error by placing our finish bags in the lorry straight away whilst everyone else held onto theirs so that they could sit on the plastic so as to avoid a wet bum. Doh!
Time then stood still as it seemed like hours to wait until the start. Toilet visit after toilet visit and the nerves piled up. We entered the start zones, Dan in zone 3 and me in zone 2 due to the different estimations that we applied with. Not to worry, I headed to the back of zone 2 and Dan to the head of zone 3. The zones merged in any case as we walked towards the actual start area and we were united once again.
The race got underway and the expected slow down of pace due to the shear numbers didn't materialise too badly, probably as we started so far up the grip. The first mile was a 7.17 so not too bad at all.
The crowds continued to build, something I'll never forget. It seemed like a crowd from the mountains of the Tour de France, but it continued for 26.2 miles! In some places it even got emotional! The heat did unfortunately build aswell, culminating in a rather hot day and so it was a bottle of water every two miles without fail from 4 miles onwards!
The first 17 miles were perfect. No pain, feeling better than any run, ever. All the niggles gone, hydration - perfect, energy - perfect, pace - not a problem, breathing - fine. Every mile ticked off in precision at 6.40 - 7 min miling.
Only when I got back to Westferry did I start to realise the hamstrings were tightening. Not only them, but the thighs also. I ignored it at first but it became increasingly harder to maintain pace and so by 18 miles i was falling behind. I even saw Carwyn from Sarn Helen walking! Even the realisation that this may be my only ever chance to beat the mighty Sarn Helen runner could not prevent my slowdown!
This was not a pain I am used to. The only other time its happened has been Rhayader 20, so I suppose its an endurance muscular thing. In any case, 7 miles to run with this was impossible at the pace i needed. Maybe 2 or three would have been possible, but not 7 and so I surrendered and went into damage limitation mode. This worked a treat as I was still able to knock out some 8 (ish) min miles and although a horrendous last 10k where i didn't enjoy the crowds or the Mall one bit, i was still able to come home with a satisfactory time. A last minute look to check i was in a Burgess free zone set off a panic attack as the lad outsprinting me bore a resemblence to Dan, even down to the blue vest!
Like I said, his tactics almost paid off as he would have past me had there been another couple of km's in it.
The last few months have been fun. I can't confirm nor deny that Dan has burnt his trainers, but hopefully we'll see sense in a few days and plan to use this for more running adventures later in the year :-)
Monday, 11 April 2011
A New Hope / Hop
Going into the final week and it's neck and neck between the two Aber AC lads for bragging rights. I had a fantastic 10 miler during the week when everything went well for once. It was a joy to be running and the zone was definately entered as I stomped round in 1.09 without feeling it too badly at all.
Fast forward to Saturday and Burgess turned on the reserve power he's been storing and left me for dead on the cycle path in true sub 7 min mile style.....
Now its all about getting the logistics right, making sure we actually remember all the nitty gritty things that you only need to remember for London. The usual local race attitude must be left behind. No turning up by doing doughnuts around the bends of Cwm Elan to make the 5k with 3 minutes to spare, sign on and pin your number as the starters gun goes off. We need military planning and the ability to catch trains and the like at silly o'clock in the morning. It's gonna be tough. The running will be the easier part!
Where will Olwen watch? Her sense of direction is worse than mine. Do we attempt to plan her some multi vantage points knowing full well that this will probably mean she'll miss the entire event due to being stuck somewhere near the Thames barrier? Shall I pack my phone in with my competitors finish bag?? All questions that we'll need to nail down over the next few days.
I had been worried about how i was reacting to all the traning, but that one run, which i admittedly did after a few easy days, did show that I'm more efficient and fitter than before. If I feel like that on the day, then I should have a good chance of turning in a good performance.
Next weeks report will be the final one in the saga. No matter how it goes, it will be a good one to read as I try to make sense of this crazy event and how we all got on.
Fast forward to Saturday and Burgess turned on the reserve power he's been storing and left me for dead on the cycle path in true sub 7 min mile style.....
Now its all about getting the logistics right, making sure we actually remember all the nitty gritty things that you only need to remember for London. The usual local race attitude must be left behind. No turning up by doing doughnuts around the bends of Cwm Elan to make the 5k with 3 minutes to spare, sign on and pin your number as the starters gun goes off. We need military planning and the ability to catch trains and the like at silly o'clock in the morning. It's gonna be tough. The running will be the easier part!
Where will Olwen watch? Her sense of direction is worse than mine. Do we attempt to plan her some multi vantage points knowing full well that this will probably mean she'll miss the entire event due to being stuck somewhere near the Thames barrier? Shall I pack my phone in with my competitors finish bag?? All questions that we'll need to nail down over the next few days.
I had been worried about how i was reacting to all the traning, but that one run, which i admittedly did after a few easy days, did show that I'm more efficient and fitter than before. If I feel like that on the day, then I should have a good chance of turning in a good performance.
Next weeks report will be the final one in the saga. No matter how it goes, it will be a good one to read as I try to make sense of this crazy event and how we all got on.
Monday, 4 April 2011
2 weeks to go
It's the start of the official taper period now, although actually I started tapering last week due to an extreme post Rhayader / boredom / worn out knees comedown which resulted in only 18 miles last week!!
Time to pick it up a bit this week and try to get out every day for at least a few miles, but nowt too crazy.
The Cambrian News got wind of Aber AC's marathoners and photos were taken of the four ladies, plus myself and Dan at last weeks training session. The shoot lasted as long as the training session and was a lesson in stamina itself. Suffice to say the headbands were in full view although come race day, if its a hot one down there, we'll have to have a re-think. Maybe we'll get someone to hand them to us with a mile to go for the money shot. Whether we'll have the strength to put them on is another matter.
Donations have been coming in well on my Just Giving site (www.justgiving.com/shelleychilds), and I've raised close to £750 so far which is much more than I anticipated. Dan has now got his site up - and I beleive it's http://www.justgiving.com/Daniel-Burgess0.
He's raising for Beacon of Hope.
My vanilla flavoured 'Nocte' nightime recovery super drink has arrived to replace the Crohns inducing chocolate flavour, and I'm already feeling the benefits. My workmates say that Nocte is rumoured to be the cure for all man-flu like illneses and possibly far worse conditions. I'll reserve judgment for a while but it's doing the trick by getting me out of bed in the mornings despite my severe & prolongued jet-lag symptoms due to the change to British summer time last week.....
Time to pick it up a bit this week and try to get out every day for at least a few miles, but nowt too crazy.
The Cambrian News got wind of Aber AC's marathoners and photos were taken of the four ladies, plus myself and Dan at last weeks training session. The shoot lasted as long as the training session and was a lesson in stamina itself. Suffice to say the headbands were in full view although come race day, if its a hot one down there, we'll have to have a re-think. Maybe we'll get someone to hand them to us with a mile to go for the money shot. Whether we'll have the strength to put them on is another matter.
Donations have been coming in well on my Just Giving site (www.justgiving.com/shelleychilds), and I've raised close to £750 so far which is much more than I anticipated. Dan has now got his site up - and I beleive it's http://www.justgiving.com/Daniel-Burgess0.
He's raising for Beacon of Hope.
My vanilla flavoured 'Nocte' nightime recovery super drink has arrived to replace the Crohns inducing chocolate flavour, and I'm already feeling the benefits. My workmates say that Nocte is rumoured to be the cure for all man-flu like illneses and possibly far worse conditions. I'll reserve judgment for a while but it's doing the trick by getting me out of bed in the mornings despite my severe & prolongued jet-lag symptoms due to the change to British summer time last week.....
Monday, 28 March 2011
Heads, Shoulders Knees & Toes, Knees & Toes.......
A tough week post Rhayader 20. I expected everything to ache a bit so wasn't surprised when my body stubbornly refused to function at the start of every run last week.
To be honest, after a couple of miles, everything loosened up and I was back to almost normal again, until getting home, when within minutes of resting, everything would sieze up once again. Must stretch more!
I've taken lots of advice from various runners this week and have decided to taper early. I know from previous that I can perform when a tad over rested, but will have no chance if overtrained, and I am on my knees at the mo. So maybe one more fairly long run now, in these last three weeks mixed in with much shorter outings to get the spring back in my legs by London.
Back to the week gone by, the main plus has been the weather. Running around Aberystwyth these past few evenings has been a joy. It all came to a head on friday night, which caused both myself and Dan Burgess to ponder what on earth we are doing. The sun was out, students were on the beach and in gardens having BBQ's and beer as we ran past house after house of people relaxing. I'd had a bad night of stomach problems and hadn't been able to eat all day and was dying on my legs. Dan was mumbling under his breath about where he would rather be (anywhere but running) and we both ended up walking up Consti, but luckliy made it over the top without turning left ;-)
I've found out I'm allergic to the chocolate recovery drink that I take and so I'm gonna have to ebay the lot and buy a different flavour! Thats right, I've been off chocolate since December and even the powdered flavouring is now out. I'm clinging onto the hope that I can sneak chocolate sprinkles past without my stomach noticing...? Here's hoping.
Dan's trainiers now resemble a prop from Spartacus but he is stubbornly refusing to swap them this close to the big day. My insoles are at least two years old with bits falling off them, but I'm keeping the faith! No blisters are good blisters.
To be honest, after a couple of miles, everything loosened up and I was back to almost normal again, until getting home, when within minutes of resting, everything would sieze up once again. Must stretch more!
I've taken lots of advice from various runners this week and have decided to taper early. I know from previous that I can perform when a tad over rested, but will have no chance if overtrained, and I am on my knees at the mo. So maybe one more fairly long run now, in these last three weeks mixed in with much shorter outings to get the spring back in my legs by London.
Back to the week gone by, the main plus has been the weather. Running around Aberystwyth these past few evenings has been a joy. It all came to a head on friday night, which caused both myself and Dan Burgess to ponder what on earth we are doing. The sun was out, students were on the beach and in gardens having BBQ's and beer as we ran past house after house of people relaxing. I'd had a bad night of stomach problems and hadn't been able to eat all day and was dying on my legs. Dan was mumbling under his breath about where he would rather be (anywhere but running) and we both ended up walking up Consti, but luckliy made it over the top without turning left ;-)
I've found out I'm allergic to the chocolate recovery drink that I take and so I'm gonna have to ebay the lot and buy a different flavour! Thats right, I've been off chocolate since December and even the powdered flavouring is now out. I'm clinging onto the hope that I can sneak chocolate sprinkles past without my stomach noticing...? Here's hoping.
Dan's trainiers now resemble a prop from Spartacus but he is stubbornly refusing to swap them this close to the big day. My insoles are at least two years old with bits falling off them, but I'm keeping the faith! No blisters are good blisters.
Tuesday, 22 March 2011
Do the Ickey Shuffle
Well, the Rhayader 20 miler is done and dusted. My first run at a distance over half marathon which I thoroughly enjoyed, but from a performance perspective, I had a bit of a 'mare at the start mixed with bits of good running and lots of mental torture as the miles went by.
The day began with a pick up of Ian and Gron from Plascrug in the morning. Fearing a ban from Aber AC due to the state of my car interior, I gave my shed-on-wheels it's bi-annual full valet on Friday night.
I didn't quite realise the scale of the race - over 400 runners and lots of carnival style activity in the town itself. We still managed to find seats in a decent cafe pre-race where the Aber contingent talked about the upcoming punishment.
As the starters horn sounded, they say it's all in the head, but the first 6 miles were unnecessarily hard and i ended up walking a part of the big hill. Hills are usually my strong point and so I was so annoyed that my legs just didnt work properly at the time when I should have been passing people. Every now and again the fronts of my calves scream with lactic acid in the first few miles of a training run, a very locallised but quite uncomfortable pain which usually goes away with a bit of a breather. You can't really stop in a race so I just slowed and walked a bit as my right foot was also going numb, and then the descent restored full power and I was away.
I'm hoping more warm up and stretching will sort the problem in the future!
As for the race, its was a great ding dong betwen myself, Dan & Louise all the way to the line. After the big initial hill, my early lead over Dan was wiped out by the top and Louise was up ahead but within view.
Dan & I crested the hill together but his superior descending skills (or is that superior weight advantage?!) meant he had caught Lou by the bridge at the bottom. The descent had sorted my calf problems out and I was feeling good and clawed my way up to the other two. This set the tone for the remaining 13 miles, yep 13 miles which Lou pointed out as we passed the 7 mile marker!
The scenary was stunning in this 'Welsh Desert', not a bush in sight much to the annoyance of Brian Ashton who was speaking from experience back in the cafe before the race....
After around 8 miles the humps began again and whilst I tried to climb ahead on the raises, Dan escaped past me on all the downhills, to the point that he had carved out a 50 metre gap between 9 & 14 miles. Lou was also closing in as we navigated the hairpin bend descent.
As we hit the feed after the hill at around 14 miles, Dan seized up, time for his body to throw a hissy fit. As I neared he got it back together and we then ran the next four miles in serious discomfort. This was the business end of the race for us and Barker was about to scalp!
As our strides shortened, we struggled to maintain pace and I suggested that from behind, we probably looked like a pair of more mature ladies at the back end of the Race for Life field rather than runners in the Rhayadetr 20! Louise later confirmed this to be true.
We were caught at around 18.5 and the three of us ran together until, fortunataly for me, there was a great big hill at 19 miles (they seem to give my cycling legs a breather!). My legs came good and I managed to carve out a small lead. Dans cramp returned and he had a bit of trouble in the last mile. I caught a few more runners on the outskirts of town and with one more runner in the distance, Jos literally 'seargant majored me' from the sidelines to catch the guy. "One more place!!!!" he kept shouting. It certainly worked and I came into the home straight feeling tired but thoroughly satisfied with a time of 2.32. I'm not sure what this would equate to in London, its hard to tell, but now i know how hard the marathon is going to be. At 18 miles, myself and Burgess could easliy have curled up and died, so we're gonna have to beat these thoughts and pains on the big day!
The day began with a pick up of Ian and Gron from Plascrug in the morning. Fearing a ban from Aber AC due to the state of my car interior, I gave my shed-on-wheels it's bi-annual full valet on Friday night.
I didn't quite realise the scale of the race - over 400 runners and lots of carnival style activity in the town itself. We still managed to find seats in a decent cafe pre-race where the Aber contingent talked about the upcoming punishment.
As the starters horn sounded, they say it's all in the head, but the first 6 miles were unnecessarily hard and i ended up walking a part of the big hill. Hills are usually my strong point and so I was so annoyed that my legs just didnt work properly at the time when I should have been passing people. Every now and again the fronts of my calves scream with lactic acid in the first few miles of a training run, a very locallised but quite uncomfortable pain which usually goes away with a bit of a breather. You can't really stop in a race so I just slowed and walked a bit as my right foot was also going numb, and then the descent restored full power and I was away.
I'm hoping more warm up and stretching will sort the problem in the future!
As for the race, its was a great ding dong betwen myself, Dan & Louise all the way to the line. After the big initial hill, my early lead over Dan was wiped out by the top and Louise was up ahead but within view.
Dan & I crested the hill together but his superior descending skills (or is that superior weight advantage?!) meant he had caught Lou by the bridge at the bottom. The descent had sorted my calf problems out and I was feeling good and clawed my way up to the other two. This set the tone for the remaining 13 miles, yep 13 miles which Lou pointed out as we passed the 7 mile marker!
The scenary was stunning in this 'Welsh Desert', not a bush in sight much to the annoyance of Brian Ashton who was speaking from experience back in the cafe before the race....
After around 8 miles the humps began again and whilst I tried to climb ahead on the raises, Dan escaped past me on all the downhills, to the point that he had carved out a 50 metre gap between 9 & 14 miles. Lou was also closing in as we navigated the hairpin bend descent.
As we hit the feed after the hill at around 14 miles, Dan seized up, time for his body to throw a hissy fit. As I neared he got it back together and we then ran the next four miles in serious discomfort. This was the business end of the race for us and Barker was about to scalp!
As our strides shortened, we struggled to maintain pace and I suggested that from behind, we probably looked like a pair of more mature ladies at the back end of the Race for Life field rather than runners in the Rhayadetr 20! Louise later confirmed this to be true.
We were caught at around 18.5 and the three of us ran together until, fortunataly for me, there was a great big hill at 19 miles (they seem to give my cycling legs a breather!). My legs came good and I managed to carve out a small lead. Dans cramp returned and he had a bit of trouble in the last mile. I caught a few more runners on the outskirts of town and with one more runner in the distance, Jos literally 'seargant majored me' from the sidelines to catch the guy. "One more place!!!!" he kept shouting. It certainly worked and I came into the home straight feeling tired but thoroughly satisfied with a time of 2.32. I'm not sure what this would equate to in London, its hard to tell, but now i know how hard the marathon is going to be. At 18 miles, myself and Burgess could easliy have curled up and died, so we're gonna have to beat these thoughts and pains on the big day!
Monday, 14 March 2011
6 Nations disease
Not a great weekend of miles!
A trip to see friends up north meant a rushed 10 miler on Saturday morning and a hangover on Sunday...
The problem is the six nations rugby, and watching Wales games with friends. It's a great evening out and although I've managed this very well so far this campaign, the wheels fell of slightly for the Irish game.
Sunday's mild hangover meant a rest day, and so Monday becomes long miles night this week.
'Luckily' the french match is late on this coming saturday, and more importantly after the Rhayader 20. I'm hoping to make it to the pub but all will depend on whether i can walk or not after 20 miles of tough terrain.
I've had some advice to 'just get around' this daunting race and some who say that I should tackle it head-on. It's a long enough gap until London, but going flat out may harm the ability to do some decent training next week. Decisions decisions, but fact is I'm still at 15 miles for the long runs and so I simply have to do this race!
Weekly mileage is around the 40mile mark these days. A bit low compared to some, but I am getting out almost every day now and am feeling pretty good with a bit of spring in my legs..
Luckliy Burgess also succumbed to a few beers aswell which perked me up no end. I'm also plucking up the courage (gradually) to see the physio again. I need a full leg massage, problem is that I know this could well be the single most painful experience of my life (including walking on an upturned plug) , and I'm paying for it.
Time to train.
A trip to see friends up north meant a rushed 10 miler on Saturday morning and a hangover on Sunday...
The problem is the six nations rugby, and watching Wales games with friends. It's a great evening out and although I've managed this very well so far this campaign, the wheels fell of slightly for the Irish game.
Sunday's mild hangover meant a rest day, and so Monday becomes long miles night this week.
'Luckily' the french match is late on this coming saturday, and more importantly after the Rhayader 20. I'm hoping to make it to the pub but all will depend on whether i can walk or not after 20 miles of tough terrain.
I've had some advice to 'just get around' this daunting race and some who say that I should tackle it head-on. It's a long enough gap until London, but going flat out may harm the ability to do some decent training next week. Decisions decisions, but fact is I'm still at 15 miles for the long runs and so I simply have to do this race!
Weekly mileage is around the 40mile mark these days. A bit low compared to some, but I am getting out almost every day now and am feeling pretty good with a bit of spring in my legs..
Luckliy Burgess also succumbed to a few beers aswell which perked me up no end. I'm also plucking up the courage (gradually) to see the physio again. I need a full leg massage, problem is that I know this could well be the single most painful experience of my life (including walking on an upturned plug) , and I'm paying for it.
Time to train.
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