Here is a excellent report from club stalwart Aidan Buckley. Aidan is a marathon machine clocking 70-100 miles a week on a weekly basis. He has run 2 sub three hour marathons and has run a number of marathons in the 3 hour to 3.10 range. He take's his heavy metal music very seriously too. Read on.....................................
Background:
My name
is Aidan Buckley and have being running with Mallow AC since January 2008.I did
my first marathon that year in Cork in a time of 4:07:36.This years London
marathon was my 15th and my aim was to break 3 hours after running 3:01:33
there in 2012.
Training:
Training
for this marathon was very inconsistent since the new year, I missed the first
two weeks due to a head cold/chest infection. My first race of note was to be
the Dungarvan 10 which I hoped to run in 68 mins but struggled home in 72:06.I
managed three weeks of training before getting a repeat of my chest infection
and missing a week,went back training before it cleared and had no choice to go
on antibiotics and take another week off.Next race for me was the Ballycotton
10,aim was to run a comfortable 68 mins and finished in 67:54 feeling good and
fresh. Two weeks later was our own club race the Mallow 10,aim for this was to
run 65 mins which I competed in 65:17 but had to work hard to achieve it. My
last race before London would be the UCC 10k which I would do a progression run
starting off doing 3 10k runs,2 before the race and the race itself starting
off slow and each loop increase the pace and do the race itself at my proposed
marathon pace. It was a cold and windy day and was just outside by target but
worse I was starting to doubt I could do a marathon at that pace. Only two
weeks to the race and i got another head cold which I trained through as I was
on my taper.
London
Marathon:
Got up at
6:15 morning of the race and headed for breakfast already full of runners from
a mainly South American tour operator. Head back to room and shave and shower
before getting into my running gear. Have to go to Charring cross to get a
train to the red start area,get into the station and straight onto train and
manage to get a seat.The trip takes about 20 minutes and is rammed with runners
a lot of whom look a nervous as it's their first marathon ,One lad is in fancy
dress with his name on the bottle. I listen to a few songs on the phone on the
journey. We get off at Greewich station and it's about 15 minute walk over to
the red start area.As I'm making my way to my allocated starting pen I look
back and see the streams of people coming up the hill behind me.This start
section is roughly the same size as the entire Dublin Marathon field. I am in
the Good for Age so will be starting in the first pen,we also have a separate
enclosure to the rest of the runners with free tea,coffee,water and lucozade
drinks.there is changing tents and loads of portaloos in this area too. About
30 mins to race start and stewards ask us to take our bags to the trucks to be
transported to the finish. With 15 mins to race start I enter the starting pen
but stay back a bit feeling a bit nervous about what pace I can hold and not to
get caught up with fast starters. A few minutes to the race off and there is a
30 sec period of silence in remembrance of the victims of the Boston marathon.it's
is observed with great dignity by all and as the whistle blows a large cheer
and round of applause go up. Out over the P.A the Elite men are introduced
before the starting gun goes and we're off.
It takes
me roughly a minute to cross the start line and I settle into a group around me
going through the 1st mile in 7:02,happy enough with that and the way I'm
feeling at this stage. First few mile are through a mainly residential area and
there is a few spectators out. Mile 2 and 3 come in at 6:46 and 6:41,we join up
with the blue and green start wave just before the 3 mile mark. the next three
miles go by in 6:38,6:44 and 6:48 and I pass the 10k mark in 42:19 and then
turn right and pass one the many landmarks on the course, the Cutty Sark is on
my left and there's TV cameras on booms swinging over our heads but it's the crowd
that catches your attention. Next three miles take 6:48,6:45 and 6:45 crowds
are big on this section of the course,still feeling comfortable at this stage
pace wise and miles 9-12 go by in 6:51,6:45 and 6:45.There is a slight pull up
to Tower Bridge. The noise on the bridge is deafening with both sides lined 5/6
deep it truly gives goosebumps, you turn down right after coming off the bridge
head down toward the 13 mile mark which comes in at 6:48.On the other side of
the street here I see some paralympic blind runners and some of the slower
Ladies elite field who are approaching the 22 mile mark.I go through the
halfway mark in 1:29:28 still feeling good.
13-14
takes 6:42 and the next mile goes by in 6:36.At the start of mile 16 you go
through an underpass and you lose gps signal,This threw me off last year but
this year i'm expecting it and the watch shows mile 16 as taking 7:32 which
would turn out to be my slowest mile but I doubt this is right as I don't seem
to be struggling yet .mile 17 is through a quiet enough section of the course
and comes in at 6:56.I'm still around 45 secs inside my 3hr target time.I get
to 18 mile mark in 6:50 and a 3hr pacer passes me so I try and latch on to
him,we catch up with another 3hr pacer and stay with them for a bit,all of a
sudden the pacer that passed me previously just walks of the course. My head
starts to wander at this stage as a slight gap has opened to the other pacer
and he's just getting beyond my reach, I go through mile 19 in 7:14.In my head
I'm putting the mile down to the fact of the twisty nature of Canary Wharf, It's
nice and cool here in the shade of the tall buildings.next up is the 20 mile
mark which i get to in 6:59 happy to be sub 7 again, We get out in the open
again and I start to struggle a little again, this mile takes me 7:03.there is
a nice pull up along here that passes the 35k mark and I've to work hard to
maintain a decent pace, I pass 21 mile mark in 7:03 and I'm still barely on
target by a matter of seconds, as we're heading towards the 22 mile mark you
see the other side of the road full of people heading towards the halfway
point.I spot the 4hr pacer on the other side and try and keep going but my legs
are suffering, I look left at the stream of people coming off Tower Bridge and
then the course flattens in front of me and I decide to get rid of my grab
bottle. At the next waterstop I take a bottle of water and empty it over my
head then I pass the 23 mile mark in 7:11.I'm down 25 secs on my target time
now but all I want is to be able to keep going and not stop.At the 24 mile mark
is a Lucozade station and you pass under a small bridge offering a little shade
before you come onto Embankment. There are lots walking at this stage and it's
so easy to stop and join them but I battle on, there is huge support from here
to the finish. I get to mile 25 in 7:10 and there in front of me is Big Ben I
turn right onto Birdcage walk knowing at this stage I'm not going to break 3
and just push as hard as I can to the finish.There is markers from 800m to go
and they seem to take forever.The crowds really give you a boost and I reach
the 26 mile mark outside Buckingham Palace in 7:13 and go under the footbridge
at 385 yards to go the two more right hand turns onto The Mall and the finish
of my journey,I pass under the middle finishing arch with the clock reading
3:02:28 and a chiptime of 3:01:28 beating last years time by a mere 5 seconds. I
get my chip removed and collect my medal to add to the clothes hanger.
Walking
back after the race and everyone you pass congratulates you and are so nice,the
people of London deserve great praise for they way they supported the marathon
especially after all that had happened in Boston a few days previously .If
you're on the fence about doing this race I can't recommend it highly enough as
everything is top class.If you have to go by sports International as I did last
year it's worth every cent.As i write this next years ballot is already full
and I know why as it is a fabulous race.If you were lucky enough to have
entered it I wish you the best of luck.
On
reflection I was very happy with the race as I wasn't confident going into it
with the way training went,would have been happy to run 3:10 but I had a crack
off 3 and wasn't far off in the end.now comes the next decision do I find a
different spring marathon next year or go back and hope for 3rd time lucky!!!.
No comments:
Post a Comment