It started at 6:30 am with my alarm. Had my wife not nudged me, I would have switched it off, turned over and gone back to sleep. Thanks dear. I got up, had some toast, coffee and tried to eat my porridge but didn't finished it. I was feeling a little queasy. Nervous I guess.
The drive to Margate was easy enough. 90 minutes and I arrived before 9am. I sorted myself out and chatted to some people before walking down to the beach for 9:50. After a short briefing, we were off.
The first mile was along the beach and it was ok. Some pools of water and a little uneven but the sand was compacted and firm underfoot. This was going to be alright. It was then briefly onto the promenade before going back onto the sand. This time it was a little softer. The sand was looser and gave way underfoot, there was seaweed and stones you had to avoid. This lasted 3 more miles.
Up a sharp hill and onto the cliff top, the first water station and then back on the beach. This was a really hard section where the beach was completely covered in large flints and stones. It was very hard on the ankles.
It was then on sand until mile 7. Some of the sand was hard but there were many soft patches that really sapped your strength. It was then up a large flight of steps onto the cliff top and the turn around point.
The return journey was mostly the same and I was doing ok. I had a gel at mile 9 and kept my pace somewhere around the low 9 minute miles until mile 11 when we rounded the headland into the wind. The westerly wind was strong and it was all I could do to concentrate on each step and just keep going. I focused on the person in front and just tried not to lose ground.
It always feels like a race will never end and this was a prime example. The miles ticked by very slowly and with less that a mile to go, I could actually see the finish but it didn't seem to get any closer. I realised I was in with a shout of sub 2:20 so I had a 'sprint' finish and sneaked it.
I was really delighted with my effort. Its great to know I could run 15 a lot quicker or run 18-20 at the same speed and I've still got 8 weeks until the marathon. Happy days.
Time: 02:19:22
Distance: 15.00 miles
Pace: 9:17 minute miles
Elevation Gain: 162 m
Weather: Partly Sunny & Windy
Hey Simon. Sounds like a challenging course. I did some running on a boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey last year and I love running by the ocean, but I haven't run on sand in ages. The last time I tried, it felt great, but I ended up with a terrible cast of shin splints. I hope all is going well with you and best of luck with your upcoming marathon!
ReplyDeleteCheers Allan.
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