Sibling Rivalry - victorious, for now

The 10K sibling rivalry has been decided, for now.

Despite crappy weather, I really enjoyed yesterday's 10K race in Staines. Not known for being the most exotic part England, I wasn't expecting too much from the local 10K race. However I was happy to see my expectations exceeded in what was a well-orgasnised and marshalled race. And, brotherly rivalry has, for now, been happily laid to rest.

After meeting the crew from British Gas (yes, my brother, Fraser, works for one of the UK's 'favourite' companies) we had a wee warm up prior to the race. We all had different aims. Some of us after good race times, some just looking to finish and others, most importantly, looking to better their novice wee brother on his maiden run. After loosening up we readied ourselves for the race.

We were off. Avoiding the bollards which floored one runner (that must have really hurt) we headed out of the park onto the streets. Then, before I could pause for thought, the worst happened. My brother passed me. Stepping onto the road he was somehow ahead. Nightmare!

Luckily the nightmare quickly ended. I passed my brother well before the 1km mark leaving him well behind. Or so I thought. I ploughed on through, miserable wind and rain and occassional threatened sunshine. All the way, no sign of my 'bother'. Then over the line with a respectable time of 47.53. Nice! I had beat him.

I thought I had left him miles behind. Haha. Not quite. 2 minutes later I heard a familiar voice call out for me. It was him, having just finished with a very respectable time of 49 minutes. I had beat him, but by no great margin. It seems like I have some family competiton.

It looks like my summer running is going to be interesting. Fraser has decided on another 10k on July 12. I'll be runnig the same day, but elsewhere. I should, by experience, do better, but it is by no way guaranteed. I'm really going to have to run my socks off to ensure another victory over the novice. Lots of training beckons.

Staines 10K - the battle nears

It's only four days now to my first 10K of 2009. Not really a major deal I'll admit. However this race is a little bit different from others - I have one of my brothers taking part. Battle beckons.

It's his first race, but I'm not in the mood to give him any chances. Having been persuaded to run by his workmates, he's been training for 3-4 months now. And if he's telling the truth, he's progressed quite well. With training runs up to 10K and a target time of 55 minutes he's on target for a respectable finish.

It's anybody's race. Having recently run a marathon I should by rights have not problems finishing ahead. However my two week holiday after that has really dented my fitness. I've been catching up with my efforts and it looks like it could well be a close one on Sunday.

Virgin London Marathon 2010 - application sent

Once again I've applied for the London Marathon. This is the sixth year in row that I have tried for a place, having been unsuccessful in the five previous years. However this time should be different. London marathon rules state that if you apply for five consecutive races and are unsuccessful on each occasion you receive preference in the ballot sixth time round. Notably they stop short of ensuring a place, but I am hopeful.

London Marathon 2001 was my first 26-miler. The race was a tough slog for me, having never run any running event previously. However, the atmosphere was amazing! The constantly cheering crowds, egging everyone on, was truly inspiring and ever since I've been looking forward to running the race again. 2010 will be that year. I can't wait!

Post-marathon - training begins again

The Jungle Room, Graceland

I always find post-marathon training a bit of a struggle. After working up to 26.2 miles and enduring and enjoying the thrill of the race I like to take a wee break from training. And after the Georgia marathon was no exception.

Being on holiday I had the perfect excuse. Trips to the Georgia Aquarium (biggest in the world I'm told), Graceland, Nashville, etc all provided an ideal distraction. Although I had my running gear ready most days, it was never used. It was fun, but not good for races ahead. Now I have to sort myself out for summer - 10Ks and all.

So far things are going OK. Two runs in I am up running about 3 miles without any real problem. However with a 10K race 3 or 4 weeks off I need to 'up' that just a bit. Wish me luck :-)

Marathon No.9 - The Hills of Georgia

It's taken me four days to get round to typing this up account of the ING Georgia Marathon. Pain and disappointment hasn't helped. The target was 4 hours. The outcome was somewhat different.

Aiming to break the 4 hour mark, I positioned myself with the 3:50 pace team. The plan was to keep up with those guys, allowing myself a 10 minute cushion for the later part of the race. That would hopefully take me to the finish within my target time. However, my hill training has been sporadic to say the least, and I was about to come unstuck as a result.

Atlanta, and around, is not known for being hilly. However, it's not far from the Appalachian Mountains, so a few hills shouldn't be unexpected. Well, there were a 'few' hills. And a few more. And by about mile 13 I was beginning to feel the worse for the apparent never-ending up-and-down of the route. There are some worthwhile site en-route to the finish line including Martin Luther King's Birthplace, the Jimmy Carter Center and the Miss Daisy House (from Driving Miss Daisy), but I missed all those in face of the onslaught of hill-hell.

As for my time. Hmm.. Well, it was a 'little' over 4 hours. I did have fun and I'm still having a great time here in Atlanta/Georgia, but my next marathon is going to be somewhere a lot more flat. That I promise.

Georgia Marathon, training done

My Georgia Marathon training is done. 17.5 miles round south London saw the end of my efforts to be ready for the race in Atlanta. Has it been enough? Realistically, that doesn't matter. Enough or not, I have to run. But I am quietly confident. After all it is my ninth marathon.

I fly off on Friday. This gives me two days to recover from the flight and sort myself out for the race. As ever, there is an obscenely early start - 7.00am. That means up at 5.00am. Hopefully my brain will still be on UK time, i.e. 5 hours ahead, so it won't feel so early. At least I should be done by 12.00 - time to enjoy a slap-up meal and few beers. Mmm... Nice.

Carbo-loading gone awry

My pre-marathon carbo-loading isn't going well. It was bad enough that I had to cut my (penultimate) training run short when I came over all dizzy.

I've probably been taking in the wrong types of sugars/carbohydrates. Mixing up isotonic drinks seemed like a good idea, but it's really not cutting it if I feel 'hitting the wall' pains at 14 miles. At the same time I have to admit to not increasing my starch intake. Bread, pasta and rice consumption has been static. And I'm paying for this mistake now.

I've two weeks to fix matters. That's two weeks of heaps of pasta, rice and (because its an easy snack) bread. I'll have to wait until morning though, as the corner shop is closed.