Snowdonia Trail Half-Marathon 2017

For years I had promised my daughter that I'd take her to Wales to climb Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon), but it's one thing to say it and another to actually organise it. I needed to do something to help to make it happen, so I entered the Snowdonia Trail Half-Marathon which is hosted by Always Aim High. We booked a place to stay and that was that... we were going to Wales!

As you'd expect, the race features quite a bit of climbing, so during the early months of 2017 I started to work some hillier routes and races into my training. In February I ran the Valentines 10ish Mile Challenge and then in March I ran The Ridge 10k - both hilly courses and I was happy that the training was going well.

pre-race

At the end of March I developed a pain in my right ankle which was quite intense at times, so I almost stopped running completely and largely switched cycling instead. This helped to avoid worsening the ankle pain, but it still lingered on through April, May and June.

July finally came around and although I had sprinkled some more running into my routine, it was nowhere near the volume I would have liked before running a half-marathon. I made the decision to drop down to the 10k option, but when I looked on the Always Aim High website, I saw that I'd missed the 30 day deadline for changing distance.

waiting to get going

I decided that I'd just have to crack on with the Half-Marathon. I removed all thoughts of a time goal from my mind and got myself in the right mindset to just enjoy being on the mountain and try to manage my balance between running and walking in order to keep the ankle happy. The new goal was to get around the course without setting my recovery back further.

We set off for Wales on the Friday before the race and I had a nice easy run around Conwy parkrun on the Saturday with my friend Adam who had also entered the Half-Marathon. Race day soon came around and I headed off to into Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri (Snowdonia National Park) with my wife, daughter and father-in-law. My wife had downloaded the official tracking app to track my progress.

the first two kilometres

The race village was based in Llanberis and we parked in one of the car parks off of the main road for £4 which covered the full day (parking can be up to twice the amount in the more popular car parks). I walked the 200 metres or so to the race village and picked up my race number with in-built timing chip and I also stocked up on energy bars as I was instructed to take 'as many as you like'. I also picked up the technical race t-shirt that I had ordered when I had signed up.

The village featured a few stalls, mostly centred around mountain running gear, selling trail shoes, waterproof clothing etc.  There was also a stall selling fresh coffee and snacks, a truck with hot food and some inflatables to keep the kids entertained. Then there were around 15 or so portable toilets plus a few urinals to speed up the process for the gents.

the first real mountain path (2 - 6km)

Being a mountain race, there were a few items of compulsory equipment for every runner; waterproof jacket (with hood), and waterproof trousers - both of these were required to have 'taped seams'. Energy bars, hat, gloves and a mobile phone were also mandatory. It was also advisable to carry your own water, but there were water stations on the course. I had all of my gear in my running backpack which was feeling a lot heavier than I was expecting.

In addition to the half-marathon and the 10k, there was also a marathon and this race started at 9am. That left a short while to revisit the toilets, say my farewells and then get in place to listen to the Half-Marathon safety briefing at 9.15am. The half-marathon was started at 9.30am and considering my plan for the race, I started quite near the back of the pack.

The weather forecast was for a bright, sunny day with barely any wind and this really was a bonus.

snowdon ranger path

The race itself started off by heading through the streets of Llanberis and eventually onto a narrower lane where the climbing started. I dropped down to a walk as the road got steeper because those around me that were running were not moving any faster anyway. The first water station was on this road and I grabbed a cup of water to keep the hydration levels topped up. The road wound its way around and eventually at the 2km point we went off-road.

The path was generally flat to start with and I got myself running again - with the path being a little congested and passing possible, but not always easy, I stuck to running at a nice, easy pace and enjoyed the stunning scenery that I found myself immersed in. On my right was Foel Goch (605m) and the path ran along its contour lines as it lead us through Bwlch Maesgwm (pass).

snowdon ranger path (6 to 9.3km)

The rocky, mountain path gave way to a spongy, grassy section for a short downhill section and then, at the 6km point, the course joined the Snowdon Ranger Path and we moved along the southern side of Moel Cynghorion (674m). The view to the south was simply stunning. I'd already eaten an energy bar by now and all along the route I had been switching between running and walking - largely dictated by the severity of the incline or the will of the masses. It was quite fitting that the wind howling way up on the mountain sounded just like a dragon.

At 8km into the race, the real climbing began and it's difficult to see how anyone could continue running at this stage of the race. It was a slow plod and my Garmin showed my pace generally hovering around the 20 minute per kilometre mark, but there were occasions where it dropped much slower. Llyn Ffinnon-y-Gwas (reservoir) glistened below as we passed along the southern side of Clogwyn-Du-Yr-Arduu (cliffs whose north face is said to offer the best climbing in Britain).

reaching the top / view of snowdon's summit (Yr Wyddfa)

The climbing continued with the gradient regularly between 20%-30% (sometimes steeper). I ate another energy bar and got some water from my bag here. Underfoot the path had been stony, but changed to large boulders used as steps as the zig-zagged its way up. Then the boulders gave way to a looser scree type of surface and then the course crossed the Snowdon Mountain Railway tracks.

One hour and fifty minutes into the race and I finally reached the point where the Snowdon Ranger Path meets the Llanberis Path - it's highest point of the course. My Garmin recorded the distance as 10.3km (almost halfway) and the elevation as 968m above sea level. The race does not go all the way to the summit (it's about another 500 metres along the path and over 100m higher), so I took a moment to admire it before continuing with the race.

llanberis path (10-11km)

The course now follows the Llanberis Path all the way down, and you might think that going down would be easier. It is not. The first few hundred metres had a slight camber to the left and as I ran over the loose slate fragments there was a constant pull to the left - it was really odd. The decline became steeper and the stones and slate that make up the path were hazardous with the risk of slipping pretty high.

There was a fantastic view across the Llanberis Pass towards the Glyderau (I climbed Tryfan, Yr Garn, Glyder Fach and Glyder Fawr about ten years ago) from the 11.7km point which is where the Llanberis path goes underneath the railway line for the first time. After this the path switched from loose slate to large boulder stepping stones - these were no easier to negotiate and I came down quite heavy on my right foot causing a little pain in my ankle on more than one occasion.

view across to the glyders from the llanberis path

The path continued down at a gradient between 20%-38% (according to my Garmin) and the thought of twisting my ankle badly lead me to take these parts a little slower than I had imagined I would. The runners had really spread out and there were times where I couldn't see any other race participants. At about 13.5km I passed the Halfway House and received a few cheers from the hikers that were resting on their way to the summit.

The path generally got easier to run on the more I descended and I eventually caught up with another runner who informed me that he had already taken two tumbles on his way down the mountain. Every now and then there were some more sections of uneven rocks to negotiate and again I came down heavy on my ankle. Fortunately I got away with it again.

further down the llanberis path (11-16km)

The view to the left across the valley was just sublime - the Afon Arddu (river) was glistening in the sunshine and all that could be heard were the sounds of the passing steam trains and sheep bleating. As I neared the end of the Llanberis Path, the view to the right opened up and in the distance I could see the Dinorwic Slate Quarry which is where I would be heading shortly.

The end of the Llanberis Path was almost perfectly aligned with the 16km (10 mile) point of the course and my watch says I reached this point at around two hours and thirty-two minutes. With the uneven ground behind me for now and the smooth tarmac road still heading downhill, I quickly gained some speed and started flying past other runners.

tarmac path back to llanberis and the slate quarry steps (16-18km)

Into Llanberis, across the road and then through a bit of woodland behind the Royal Victoria Hotel, I ran just metres away from Dolbadarn Castle before popping out on the road that leads towards the previously mentioned slate quarry. At the end of the road I was directed into a small alley way (18km) which turned into a slate staircase which zig-zagged its way up the side of the quarry.

Given that I had been taking the race at a pace well below my ability, I was full of beans here and wanted to attack the steps, however I was stuck behind a long line of runners who had most-likely given everything they had already and looked totally knackered. At the end of the staircase, I was in a forest and running mostly on dirt trails.

finish area (21.1km) [note: clock showing time since start of the marathon]

Every time an opportunity presented itself I would move forward a place. There were rocks and other hazards on the trail path but it was a lot of fun here and while I was still moving slower than I would have liked, I was at least now back to running. This climb was the most frustrating section of the race for me and it took over 17 minutes at snail's pace to cover the 1km part staircase / part trail path of ascending (most of that was spent at a painfully slow pace on the staircase). By the 19 kilometre point the forest trail path was generally starting to head back down. It twisted and turned, was pretty technical, but above all, brilliant fun.

At the bottom of the path, the course returned to downhill tarmac and passed The National Slate Museum, again I opened up my stride and my pace quickened, overtaking plenty of runners who had been reduced to a shuffle. My ankle felt ok and I put in a honest effort over the last kilometre, finally turning onto the field where it all began, giving a thumbs up to my family and then crossing the line.

food / medal and t-shirt collection

The first thing I did after crossing the line was grab a drink and dive into the trays of food that had been laid out in the finishers' area. Crisps, oranges, biscuits - I took quite a lot and kept on eating - I was so hungry. After about 10 minutes of eating and drinking, I finally moved onto the commemorative t-shirt and medal collection point. I went for the extra small t-shirt and it fits really well.

The results were available instantly via the app and I received a notification on my phone. I had crossed the line in a gun time of 3.16.35. Given that I started fairly near the back, my official chip time was faster at 3.15.37. I had finished in 235th position out of 518 participants - still well within the top 50% despite taking it easy.

the hoops conquered the mountain

I was then reunited with my family and my friend Adam who had put in a great race effort and finished around 45 minutes earlier than me. We had a few photos taken and then Adam and his wife esther had to leave to head back to Dartford. We took things at a slower pace and wandered around Llanberis for a while before hitting the road back to our Welsh accommodation.

The only thing we were a little disappointed with was the TDL Event Services app which sounded as if it would give regular updates as I reached certain points of the course - the official race website called it the 'Live Tracker'. The reality was that it just gave a notification that I had started and then another when I had finished, along with my finish time.

the course hill profile

That aside, from my point of view the race seemed to run flawlessly and the course was just spectacular. The fact that it was such a tough course actually made it easier for me to use a run-walk method so that worked out much better than I had imagined. Although not the longest distance I have run, this was the longest amount of time I had ever spent out on a course so it was new ground for me.

If you are looking to enter this race I think you need to plan to take at least 1 hour longer than your usual half-marathon time if you are towards the sharp end (sub 1.30 half-marathoner). If you are further back or not very good a running uphill, it could well take you a hell of a lot longer. For the record, the last runner logged a chip time of 8 hours.

my official race stats

I recorded the whole race using my Garmin and you can view the course GPS file, here: Snowdonia Trail Half-Marathon 2017. The total elevation gain recorded on my Garmin was 1,183 metres and the highest point of the course was recorded as 968 metres. Interestingly, my data reports my 'total moving time' as 3 hours flat (I stopped quite often to take photos). You can also view my Relive video of the course, here - Snowdonia Trail Half-Marathon 2017

Full results: Snowdonia Trail Half-Marathon 2017
Official chip-timed result: 3.15.37
Overall finishing position (gun): 235 / 518 (234th by chip)
Gender position: 186 / 317
Age group position: 29 / 51

Related blog posts from my visit to Wales:

• Conwy parkrun
• Penrhyn parkrun

Canterbury Half Marathon 2014

The Canterbury Half Marathon is organised by Nice Work in support of Pilgrims Hospices and is supported by the Canterbury Forest of Blean Rotary Club. It is run on undulating, and at some points hilly, country lanes just to the south of Canterbury town centre, in Kent. The running surface is 100% tarmac so road shoes (I wore a pair of my NB1080v3) were the order of the day.

Merton Farm [photo:7t]

This event took place on the August Bank Holiday Monday. I had made a note about it in my race calendar a number of months in advance of the event, but I didn't enter it until about a week beforehand. When I finally entered, I did so through the runbritain website and paid the affiliated fee of £16. Unaffiliated runners had to pay an extra £2.

The event hq was clearly signposted from the main road in the town centre and free car parking was available on an open grass field within the extensive grounds of Merton Farm. The toilets were provided in the form of portaloos - they were mostly single occupancy units but the addition of a male urinal-type unit which could accommodate about six men at a time was a welcome addition.

queue for the portaloos [photo:7t]

Race HQ contained the number and timing chip collection desk, the late entries desk, an official race t-shirt retail area, and a massage area. These were all under gazebo-style covering right next to the start/finish, which was handy because it was absolutely pouring down!

The race start time was 10am, which was a good time for me - it meant that I didn't have to get up too early to make it there in time. As I understand it, there was a 2 mile fun run and also a children’s race. They were both due to take place once the half-marathoners had set off.

#teamslgr kit on and out into the rain [photo:dani]

The Half Marathon itself got under way on time and despite starting a little too far back, I managed to head out at a reasonable pace. In order to filter all of the runners over the timing mats, the start line was quite narrow, so it took a little longer than I would have hoped to reach and filter through the start line.

The good news is that as it was chip timed each runners’ individual time was not actually affected by this - it’s just a little disheartening watching the runners ahead of you charge off into the distance while you are still standing still. Anyway, that’s how these things work and the fact that I've mentioned it shouldn't be taken as a complaint.

the start area [photo:7t]

The course is best described as a lollipop (although not quite in the traditional shape). The stick part is run at the beginning and the end of the race with a big loop (the sweet part) run during the middle miles. It’s hard to remember every detail of the course so I’ll run through it the best I can remember.

The first kilometre was slightly downhill with the following 3 kilometres taking the runners on a gradual incline. There was then a 500 metre or so downhill section that got very steep at one point - most of this part allowed an increase of pace, but the steepest point saw the brakes come on a little as the marshals were warning of slippery patches.

during the race (409) [photo: funk dooby]

The course flattened slightly before returning to a downhill where the runners entered the village of Petham. It’s only a small place but it was really great to see the locals out on the street in the rain supporting the runners - I gave waves and thumbs up as I passed to show that their support was appreciated.

If I remember rightly there were 4 opportunities to pick up some water on the course, and with the weather being cool and raining, they were more than sufficient. In fact, I only took water at two water stations and even then I didn't actually drink that much during the race. There were a few people out on the course supplying unofficial jelly babies or something similar but as I couldn't be sure if they were suitable for vegetarians, I just ran straight past.

the stick part of the course [from the official webpage]

At around 9.5 kilometres into the race, the route passed through the village of Waltham before heading out deeper into the countryside during the rest of the loop. On the course not all of the roads were closed but they were extremely quiet. The drivers that I encountered were all very respectful of the runners and most had pulled to the side of the road to allow space for us to pass.

I hadn’t set myself a specific time goal for this race because I had read that it was a tough course and approached it with a ‘see how it goes’ mind set. However, as I approached the halfway point, I worked out that I was on target for a possible sub-1.30 finish time - something that I hadn't even considered when reading about how hard some of the hills were.

the lollipop part [from the official webpage]

One of the most memorable parts of the race came around the halfway point. The course reached its highest point and the views from here were breathtaking, and that is coming from someone that had glasses covered in raindrops on a day when the cloud cover was low and thick. On a clear, sunny day this could be one of the nicest views from any race I have done so far.

The descent from the halfway point came in the form of a long, fast downhill section. It lasted for around a kilometre and when I glanced down at my Garmin I saw that I was flying along at 3.20 per kilometre pace (5.22 minutes per mile). I didn't glance for too long as I didn't want to risk slipping on the wet surface.

the hill profile

After this, I started to think about the uphill sections that were to come. And before I knew it, I had completed the loop and was heading back through Petham - this time it was uphill, and much steeper than I had remembered as I had descended into the village a short while earlier.

The road flattened out for a brief stretch and then began the hill that I had read so much about in previous years’ online reviews. I slowed down, kept my effort level the same and forgot about pace. As I reached the steepest point I was barely moving faster that walking pace, but I was firm in my intent to maintain a running motion and not to be reduced to a walk.

finish area [photo:dani]

In the end, it wasn't as bad as I had prepared myself for and I then hit the 3 kilometre long section that had been slightly uphill on the way out. Now being slightly downhill, and with only 4kms left to go, I naturally opened up my stride and began running a series of sub 4 minute kilometres - It was an amazing feeling and I loved this part of the course!

Then as my Garmin beeped to notify me that I had reached 20 kilometres, the final steady incline started. Some sections felt steeper on the way back than they had at the beginning of the race but I soon saw the 13 mile marker, and then the finish line appeared. I crossed it, collected my participation medal and wandered over to race HQ to find some water.

all done [photo:dani]

In addition to the water, I was pleased to see a few sweet treats so I tucked in before chatting to some fellow runners and then heading back over to the car to change out of my dripping wet kit. About an hour later I had worked my way through a couple of bouts of back seat cramping (don't ask) and finally managed to get into something dry and headed off.

The official results were up online later that day. I completed the course in 1:28.49 - only five seconds off my personal best which I set at the Paddock Wood Half-Marathon earlier in the year. There were 446 runners listed in the results and I was the 38th runner to cross the finish line (35th fastest if you go by the chip times), meaning that I finished well within the top 10% (8.5%).

medal [photo:7t]

I was pleased with my performance but at the same time I'm slightly disappointed that I hadn't realised how close to setting a new personal best I was going to be and in retrospect could have pushed a little harder during some parts of the course. However, given that it was a undulating/hilly course, I think that overall it will still go down as my best Half-Marathon performance to date.

The participation medal was nice and I really liked that it was a bespoke offering rather than one of those generic ones you get at a lot of races. I thoroughly enjoyed the race and would definitely run it again. I would just request a nice clear day so I can really enjoy that view at the halfway point!

Tivoli Lauf Halb Marathon 2014 (Aachen, Germany)

I've had 'run an overseas race' on my to-do list for as long as I can remember. So when I seriously started looking for one, I naturally looked towards Aachen in Germany to see what might be on offer. My thinking was that I could kill two birds with one stone. Firstly, I get to tick 'run an overseas race' off my to-do list and my daughter gets to see her Omi (her Grandmother on the German side of the family) who lives in Aachen.

the new tivoli stadium

So I went ahead and signed up for the race. At 16 euros (£12.96), I thought the price was extremely reasonable for a half-marathon. Of course there were the Eurostar and Thalys train fares to add on top, but we would have to pay the train fares to get there regardless of whether I was racing or not. Believe it or not the website was in German, but I was able to read some and translate anything I was unsure of by using the power of internet translation services.

the schedule for the day's races

We travelled to Germany on the Saturday afternoon and stayed at my Mother-in-Law's house. On the day of the race she was kind enough to drive us across to the venue. The race is centered around the New Tivoli football stadium and is where Alemannia Aachen Football Club are based. Car parking was provided right next to the stadium, and once inside there were toilets and refreshments available. Spectators were able to sit in one of the stands to view their running friends passing through the stadium and also when finishing.

bib and tee-shirt collection point

I had to collect my race bib upon arrival and it was a swift and easy process. At this point I also picked up my souvenir Brooks race tech tee-shirt. The only real problem with the tee-shirt is that the smallest size they had was a medium, which is huge on me and although nice to have, is nothing more than a souvenir rather than something I can wear to run in. It's shame because it feels like a pretty decent one. I then checked the entry list and saw that I was the only GBR runner here today, which meant that I'd definitely be the fastest (and slowest) finishing brit of the day! (I'll take what I can)

there i am on the start list #soletsgorunning

The race start time was 10.30am, so a short while beforehand I wandered away from my little group of supporters, visited the toilets - this is a football stadium which is used to hosting thousands of people so the facilities were ample, it made a nice change from the 30 minute wait to use a portaloo! After that I had a warm up around the stadium before getting a decent spot at the start area.

so let's go running in aachen

Being in Germany, a country known for being precise and punctual, it came of no surprise that the race started, with a bang, right on time. The only criticism here is that there could have been a countdown so that I could have been better prepared to hit the start button on my Strava app to record the race. Anyhow, we headed off.

hanging around for a good spot at the start

My plan was to run a decent time, but not completely ruin my legs for the rest of my week-long break in Aachen. I settled on aiming to run a sub-90 minute time, which was a happy medium between leg ruination and just taking things too easy. I had printed out two pace wristbands (89 and 87 minutes) and wore them both to help me to see how things were coming along as the race progressed. As this was a European race, the half-marathon distance would be marked in kilometres rather than miles.

and we're off on our first loop of the stadium

After running one-and-three-quarter laps around the outside of the stadium, we finally joined the approx 5km loop that we would be running four times. The lap takes the runners on a snaking, twisty loop of the Sports Park Soers area which the stadium forms part of. Underfoot is mostly tarmac, but on a couple of occasions it changed to gravel or cobble stones. On lap two I got stone stuck in the sole of my shoe during a gravel section so had to stop to prize it out!

go #teamslgr

During the loop there is one point that is almost scenic, where runners could look to their left and see some horses in a field. Apart from that, there is not really much to look at on the course. There are a few stadiums en-route, including the Deutsche Bank Stadion and the Hauptstadion, which hosts the popular CHIO Aachen horse show, there's also a point where the course passes through a car park (closed to traffic) and a short tunnel. Coming through the stadium at the end of each lap was really good - a nice touch was the announcer reading out the runners' names as they entered the stadium. Although, I always tend to become 'Schteven Schtockvell' when in Germany.

the bridge

A special mention should go to a footbridge that the runners have to cross four times in each direction. The ramps are very steep and slightly gravelly, so it was a case of getting up, having a quick breather and then preparing for the fast exit, not easy on the slightly gravelly surface. The rest of the course was almost flat, with just slight gradient changes every now and then. While we're on the subject of special mentions - there was also music! Outside Tivoli Stadium there was a band playing all sorts of popular songs and at other points there were some sound systems pumping out dance music to help runners on their journey. 

that looks like a smile (water station in the background)

It was a really warm and sunny day, so I was nervous that the on-course water supplies could feel the strain. There was one water station which served runners running in both directions. Plus there was a sponge station a bit further on. It seemed to work pretty well. There weren't many places to run in the shade and the unbroken sunshine definitely made this run a little bit tougher than it could have been.

getting a hi-five while passing through the tunnel

From the very beginning, I didn't really stick to my race plan. I went out on the hard side of sensible and passed the 5km marker in 20.26, which was just slightly faster than the 87 minute pacing wristband said. However, it did feel a little fast. I maintained the pace and hit the 8km marker in exactly 33 minutes. One second off 87 minute pace, but still well within the 89 minute pace which was serving as my plan b should I not feel up to sticking with the faster of the two options.

live coverage

By the time I hit 10k, I was falling behind the 87 minute pace, so I adjusted my pace by about 10 seconds per kilometre to reflect the 89 minute plan. After a slightly slower 11th kilometre (my slowest split) to recover, I started to feel a little better and focussed on catching a runner ahead who I had been slowly gaining on. We ran together for a while before I pressed on. At the 17km marker, the watch said 71.40 (1.11.40). Glancing down at my 89 minute pace band, I saw that I was only two seconds ahead of it and started to worry that if my pace was slowing, I could miss my sub-90 minute goal.

it looks like four #teamslgr runners were out on the course

After realising that, I started to work harder - the pace stayed largely the same, which was fine. At least I wasn't slowing! I didn't see any more km markers so just continued to push towards the finish line. As I entered the stadium for the fourth and final time, I headed straight towards the finish where I saw the clock slowly edging towards 89 minutes. I crossed the finish line with the clock showing 1.28.52 (88.52), which was only 8 seconds slower than my current (as of May 2014) half-marathon personal best. It's interesting how the two completely different approaches gave me almost identical times. I then grabbed some water and quite possibly more than my fair share of banana segments from the refreshments table.

just a few metres left

My gps data tells a slightly different story as far as my splits and finishing time are concerned. First of all, it had me passing the first 5k point in just under 20 minutes and 10k in around 40 minutes. It calculated the course as being 21.6km with my half-marathon time being 86.56 (1.26.56). The gps must surely be wrong because I doubt the organisers would have made such a mistake with the distance (I will however keep an eye out for other people's data to see what the overall consensus is). I'm also having a little trouble with it displaying a really odd total time and pace on Strava, even though the splits are recorded properly. I've also transferred the file to my other log and the total time is ok. It still shows as 21.6km though.

Anyway, I had a brilliant time running the half marathon. However, I do have another couple of gripes. At the end the organisers removed all of the runners bibs, which contained the timing chips. So I have no bib as a souvenir of the race. Also there was no participation medal at the end. I'm not that fussed about the medal because they quite often tend to be quite generic and not really of any use, but I find the bib is a great item to have as a reminder of the day. When I'm old and reliving my youth through my race box memories it'll be like the race never happened.

ready to race

I won't dwell on that because after the race an even more exciting thing was about to happen. My daughter was running her second race! She had signed up for the 'Bambini Lauf' (children's race) which was for children under 7 years of age and absolutely free to enter! There were also 2.5km and 5km races for the slightly older children. The organisers even printed the children's names on their bibs for them. The race was about three quarters of the way around the edge of the football pitch inside the stadium and finished at the same finish line that the half-marathon had finished an hour or so earlier. 

go lime! #teamslgr #team7t #teamgbr

In total it worked out that she ran about 350 metres. At the end all of the children were given a few little souvenirs (a frisbee, a water bottle and some sweets). For me it was great that this race took place after the main race had finished because it gave me the opportunity to watch her, unlike at her first race. It was brilliant and I was so proud of her!

approaching the finish line

Another good thing was that all the bambinis got a free tee-shirt. Matilda didn't wear hers during the race because it was too big. A few minutes after setting off, she came back around to the finish.  The finish area was very crowded with parents, we stayed as far back as possible to give the kids some space. Eventually we had to dive in to pull her out of the sea of people.

picking up some post-race goodies

All done, the two #teamslgr runners from GBR had a special photo taken with the stadium in the background before heading off to spend the rest of the day chilling out. Well deserved all round, I think. Lastly, a big thank you to the rest of team7t who were supporting me and who took most of the photos for the blog.

teamslgr /  team7t

Update: The results are now online. I finished in 13th position out of 286 participants which means I was in the top 5%. I was indeed the first finishing GBR runner, but I wasn't the first finishing non-German participant. That honour went to a runner from the Netherlands who finished a couple of minutes in front of me. Something that partly makes up for the bib being removed after the race is that you can print off a certificate from the results page, so I might just do that for my race box.

screenshot from the results page (13th out of 286)

7t

Half-Marathon Recovery (a work in progress)

My first half-marathon was tough on my body. I thought I'd write about my post-race aches and pains. It may not be very interesting to anyone else but it will provide me with a good source of information for when I race my next half (or any other longer distance race).

The most unexpected pain that the course inflicted on me is in my toe next to my big toes on both feet (does that make sense?). I'm putting this down to these particular toes taking a bashing inside my shoes on the downhill sections of the course. They hurt most when I press down on the toe nail (or if my socks do the same).


In the days leading up to the race:

• Left hamstring had been slightly tight.

Sunday 25 Sept - During the race:

• IT band twinged every so slightly every now and then. (possibly due to downhill sections).
• Towards the end of the race the ball of my left foot began to hurt (This is new).
• My right shoe rubbed the top of my foot near the ankle (not the first time it has done this).
• I did not have any problems with my left hamstring during the race.

Sunday 25 Sept - Post-race:

• Left hamstring felt tight straight after the race.
• Two of my toes were hurting, one on each foot.
• Ball of left foot was still hurting.
• Extremely thirsty.
• Extremely tired.

Monday 26 Sept - Rest day:

• DOMS in hamstrings (plus left hamstring still tight).
• DOMS in quads.
• DOMS in calves.
• Toes were still hurting but not as much as the previous day.
• Underside of left foot still slightly tender.
• Still quite tired.

Tuesday 27 Sept - Ran 5.6km at easy pace:

• Left hamstring was still tight.
• Toes were still hurting - I stubbed one on the rug and now it hurts more.
• The DOMS was still present. Fairly mild. When I say mild, I mean mild for me. I lift weights so am used to having DOMS somewhere in my body almost all the time.

Wednesday 28 Sept - Ran 12.3km at easy pace:

• Left hamstring was still tight - Running uphill seemed to make it feel worse.
• Toes were still hurting.
• The DOMS had pretty much gone.

Thursday 29 Sept - Ran 5.3km at easy pace:

• Toes were still hurting, but noticeably better.
• Hamstring still tight, possibly slightly better. Avoided hills during the run.
• No DOMS at all.

Friday 30 Sept - Scheduled rest day:

• Toes almost completely pain free.
• No noticeable tightness in hamstring but had complete rest day. Will continue to take it easy.

Saturday 1 Oct - Parkrun 5k (tempo run):

• Toes (right is back to normal / left is 99% normal)
• No noticeable pain in hamstring before the run, the tempo pace was about as fast as I could go without risking turning the tightness into something worse. Sat in cold bath once home, felt fine but will keep runs at easy pace throughout the next week.

Sunday 2 Oct Ran - 17.4km at easy pace

• Hamstring felt fine during the run but I did take it easy and I avoided hills as much as possible.

Monday 3 Oct - Ran 5km at easy pace

• Hamstring felt worse today. Decided to not run for the next few days.
• Used frozen peas to ice the hamstring during lunchtime.
• Used a freeze on the hamstring patch in the evening

Tuesday 4 Oct - Rest day

• I did not run. Hamstring felt ok, but still clearly not right. Needs more rest.

Wednesday 5 Oct - Rest day

• I did not run. Hamstring felt ok, but still not right.

Thursday 6 Oct - Scheduled to run short and easy

Run if feeling ok, if not rest and ice.

Friday 7 Oct - Rest day

Rest and ice.

Saturday 8 Oct - Parkrun (Race if possible)

Ice

With the exception of the tightness in the hamstring I have completely recovered from the half-marathon. The hamstring issue was not caused by the half-marathon.

Steve.

Tonbridge Half-Marathon 2011

The Race:

I was awake and filling myself with toast just before sunrise. I wanted to make sure I ate something but didn't want to eat too close to race time. Once I had done that I had time to kill so fired up the laptop to do a bit of early morning tweeting. Thanks for all of the good luck messages!

Once I had managed to drag the two ladies in my life out of bed it suddenly dawned on me that race time was drawing near. We only had to walk down the high street to get to the start line but we were cutting it extremely fine. We arrived at about 9:43 (not that I was checking my watch or anything). I immediately said my goodbyes and went into the start funnel. The wife whipped out our lovely camera so she could capture lots of photos for the blog. As usual I am extremely grateful.

waiting to start (aka the sun always shines on 7t)

There was supposed to be a system in place where runners line up in certain zones, each zone corresponding to an estimated finishing time. By the time I arrived the funnel was already backed up to the 2:30 zone. I did my best to filter through to the sub 1:45 zone but could only get as far as the back of the 1:45-2:00 zone. Not the best starting place for me, but I was happy enough to had got that far considering my non-early arrival time! To be honest, I think a lot of runners were ignoring the system. Another thing quite a few runners were ignoring was the ruling that personal music players were not to be used during the race.

Wrapped up in my own pre-race nerves while the speeches took place I fiddled with my phone, making sure my GPS tracking app was ready for action. Dame Kelly Holmes took hold of the mic and got a really good reception from the crowd. The people of Tonbridge really love her and it showed.

dame kelly holmes

Then we were off, or at least the people at the front were. From my position it took 22 seconds to shuffle through to the start line, I know this because I started my stopwatch when the air horn was blown. In retrospect I should have started it from the start line, but it didn't matter because I only used it as a rough guide while I was running.

The weather was amazing, although not necessarily good for racing. Most of the course was in direct sunshine, so when there was a chance to escape into the shade, I did. I had taken a bottle of Lucozade sport with me. I shouldn't have bothered because I couldn't drink it on the move. I managed a few sips but my stomach wasn't happy with receiving liquid while running at race pace. I should have just thrown the bottle away at one of the water stations but I kept hold of it in case I needed it later.

The course was really nice, but it felt hillier than the google maps hill profile that I had been studying for weeks had suggested. Once I got into some clear air I locked myself into a comfortable pace and admired the beautiful Tonbridge countryside. Living in the centre of the town it's sometimes easy to forget the beauty that is just a few minutes away.

course map

 I continued like this until I reached the village of Leigh (pronounced: Lie), where the reception was amazing! People had lined the streets and I waved as I passed them. I think I saw a gazebo on the village green. It was like a mini summer fete! Then the route took us on a huge loop before returning to Leigh to start the final 4 mile stretch back into the centre of Tonbridge. Just after this point I saw the last placed runner. He had just reached 3.5 miles (just over 5km) as I was approaching 10 miles (16km). He was going to be out there for a very long time. (In the results he is listed but doesn't have a time, I think they packed away the timing gear before he got back).

It was on this last section that the course took it's toll on me. At the 10 mile mark I remember thinking, this is good, we can have a nice sprint finish. But somewhere in between that point and the 11 mile mark I had completely changed my mind. All of a sudden just keeping going got considerably harder. I passed a couple of people that had resorted to walking and one that looked like he was about to see his pre-race meal again.

During my long training runs I had always wondered what the end of this race would be like. I had imagined myself smiling and sprinting towards the finish line. 'Bring it home' was always the phrase that came to mind. But today none of that happened. At 12 miles I was done, everything had gone. I had no energy, no smile, and my feet were hurting. The easiest thing to do would have been to stop. I honestly wanted to. I would never have forgiven myself if I had slowed down to a walk, let alone stopped completely.

approaching the end

I pushed on. The route came off the main road and onto a narrow country lane. Towards the end of the lane some people had gathered and were encouraging the runners by pointing out that the finish line was only three minutes away... My thought was 'I have to keep running for another three minutes? Oh crap!'. Then I reached the end of the lane and out onto the final 300 metres.

The 'bring it home' from my training runs didn't even cross my mind. I enjoyed and was thankful for the cheers from the crowds but everything I had went on trying to stay upright so, and I feel sad to admit it, I didn't interact with the crowds at all at this stage of the race. I was completely focused on reaching the finish line. Then, at last, I could see the blue timing chip mats on the floor up ahead. In the past I have commented on being glad to reach the end of a race, this was no different.

the end of the race

I crossed the line, relieved that I could finally stop running.

As expected, Dame Kelly Holmes was there to present the runners with their medals. She may have said something to me but I honestly can't remember. Everything was fuzzy. I needed some water, and I needed it straight away!

the wife tried to get a photo of dame kelly holmes giving me my medal

 I was glad there were marshals to tell me what to do because, with my mind in its current state, I had no idea. At some stage someone removed my timing chip, then I wandered along the finish area and saw some volunteers holding out goodie bags, so I took one. I was very specifically told 'there is water in the bag'. I must have looked like I needed it!

I left the finish area and went into the school grounds adjacent to the finish line. And there I saw a whole table full of cups of water. I took one, then another, and then another. Thirst partially quenched I turned around to find the wife and the baba approaching me. I presented the wife with the many things I had accumulated since the end of the race. The I popped back to grab another cup of water!

still a tad confused (why am i wearing a medal?)

I heard an announcement that the first batch of runners' times were now online. Unbelievable. So impressive.

After a brief sit down on some steps to rest (which I thought may be my final resting place) the wife showed me something special she had managed to get while I was running (see photo below).

a message from dame kelly holmes

We then went off to pick out a souvenir tech t-shirt, which were being sold for £12:50 each. I really didn't have much brain power left for shopping, but I was faced with a decision. They had lots of different colours to choose from. There was a really nice green but that was only available in the women's fit. I then narrowed it down to a deep red and a navy blue before finally scrapping that idea and going for a royal blue one.


Now for some stats:

I checked my stopwatch at each mile marker, these are the ones that I can remember. The times below reflect what my stopwatch said, which was based on gun time and not my chip time, not that it really matters.

1 mile - 0:08:00
2 miles - 0:14:32
3 miles - 0:22:30
6 miles - 0:44:??
8 miles - 0:59:53
10 miles - 1:15:??

In addition I have checked my GPS km splits and I am very pleased with the way that I held quite an even pace right until the end. I won't list them here but you can take a look at my runningAHEAD log for the km splits if that kind of thing interests you.

• Overall: 98/820 (or 94/820 if you go by the chip time) Top 12%.
• Gender: 80th / 514.
• Senior Male: 46th / 233
• Age Grading: 59.55%
• Steve/Steven/Stephen: 3rd/20 - I'm pushing my luck here.

My Time: 1:39:42

Other things:

• There was a race programme. It had a list of all of the competitors names. That was a nice touch.

• The race director stayed in regular contact via email in the run up to the event and sent an email out the day after. I liked this.

• The race pack included everything required to race. Meaning that I could just turn up and run without having to queue to collect the timing chip on the day. 

• In my opinion the event ran very well. There were loads of marshals, the course was clearly marked, the volunteers/marshals were all very friendly and offered loads of encouraging words as I passed them.

• The results were available online almost instantly. This was impressive.

• The only piece of information that I didn't see on the website or in the race pack was whether the course would have mile markers, kilometre markers or both. In the end it was mile markers, which I thought it would be. I would have preferred to see both, I love to check my splits as a go around.

• The goodie bag wasn't as good as at some other events. But this event did have a much more reasonable entry fee, so it makes up for the lack of goodies in the bag.

• My only real disappointment was that my name was not called out at the end of the race. I heard a marshal radioing my race number to mission control and was listening for my name but I didn't hear it, neither did my wife. I had been looking forward to that.

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Are you still here?

Thanks for sticking with it, I know it was long.

Steve.

P.S. I enjoyed it thoroughly and will definitely be back next year! 

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