I can't believe it! It was my 6th application to the London Marathon, and 5th in a row. Surely I was guaranteed a place this time? No. Apparently not. This really snookers my plans.
I've been asked over to Atlanta, by a friend, to run in March. The choice was to the the full ING Marathon or the half maranthon. Ideally, I was hoping to run the half, as part of my build up for the London Marathon. By guaging my perfromance in Atlanta I would have had a good idea exactly how my training was going, and use that information to best prepare for 26 miles. Alas, this isn't going to happen.
This leaves 2 alternatives - Edinburgh marathon in May or commiiting to the 26 miles in Altlanta. Am still undecided, but I think I'll by opting for the American option. 4 years running in the Edinburgh race has been fun, but I'm in the mood for another foreign race. And catching up with friends will be lots of fun. So, it looks like Atlanta beckons.
Thursday 9 October 2008
Monday 6 October 2008
London Half Marathon (Run to the Beat)
The inaugural London Half Marathon, my fifth half marathon, and possibly last chance for a PB this year. Did I manage it? Did I heck.
A series of factors conspired to thwart my plans. London Transport started by having a train break down in the tube station we all needed to reach. This meant we all had an unforeseen 3-4 mile trek to the start line (at the O2 Arena). Luckily the race was postponed for 45 minutes to accommodate this. Then weather did its worst - it rained non-stop all morning. And finally, and possibly most importantly I hadn't trained as much as I would have liked. There were several reasons for this, none of which are any good.
The route was OK. Probably on a par with the Great North Run, taking place on the same day. However they didn't have a dreary mist to deal with, so they probably had some fine views. For us the Thames-side part of the our race was slightly less impressive than it could have been.
It wasn't all bad. Moaning aside, I was inspired as I was during the London Marathon by the local crowds cheering everyone one. Right or wrong, London people have a bad reputation for selfishness. Again, I saw otherwise. Through this I made it to the end, and even kept within 2 hours.
My time? 1hr 55. Not brilliant. And well outside my best. But all things considered, not a bad effort.
A series of factors conspired to thwart my plans. London Transport started by having a train break down in the tube station we all needed to reach. This meant we all had an unforeseen 3-4 mile trek to the start line (at the O2 Arena). Luckily the race was postponed for 45 minutes to accommodate this. Then weather did its worst - it rained non-stop all morning. And finally, and possibly most importantly I hadn't trained as much as I would have liked. There were several reasons for this, none of which are any good.The route was OK. Probably on a par with the Great North Run, taking place on the same day. However they didn't have a dreary mist to deal with, so they probably had some fine views. For us the Thames-side part of the our race was slightly less impressive than it could have been.
It wasn't all bad. Moaning aside, I was inspired as I was during the London Marathon by the local crowds cheering everyone one. Right or wrong, London people have a bad reputation for selfishness. Again, I saw otherwise. Through this I made it to the end, and even kept within 2 hours.
My time? 1hr 55. Not brilliant. And well outside my best. But all things considered, not a bad effort.
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