2013 Cardiff Half Marathon

The 2013 Cardiff Half Marathon just happened to be taking place on the same weekend I’d be home visiting family in Wales. Billed as “one of the biggest and best road races in the UK”, and being held in the city I was born and raised, it was one of the easiest signups of the year. Sure, my legs were still a bit jaded from the 12-HR Adventure Trail Race just two weeks previous, and after concentrating on the ultra scene for much of 2013, I headed into the race with zero expectation of a fast finish time and a main goal of enjoying the event and reliving some of my favorite running routes from 30 years ago. Yes, 30 years ago…

Ally and I headed into Cardiff Town Center rather early to snag a prime parking slot. Race day packet pickup for the international runners was quick and easy, and with everything collected, we headed back to the car to relax for a bit and stay warm. Pretty soon, however, it was time for one last bathroom visit and to make our way via the color coded paths to the start line. Unlike the 2011 event, I made it through to Corral #1 with 15 minutes to spare and enough time for some strides and a few dynamic stretches. After a hearty rendition of the Welsh National Anthem, the air horn sounded to signal the start of the race.

The first mile was fast, furious and a bit frantic. I usually glance down at my Garmin to get an idea of the pace I’m running, but with so many runners in close proximity, I didn’t want to risk a collision or worse still, a crashing fall to the ground. Instead, I focused on running the tangents and staying as relaxed as possible. Mile 1 – 5:54. Yikes, a bit quick.

The mass of runners thinned out just a little bit in the 2nd mile, but I still found myself in a big pack of club runners all charging along at a good clip. The cool, sunny conditions felt great and when the Garmin beeped to signal a 5:50 mile split, I grinned to myself knowing a special day was potentially on the cards. Sure, there was still lots of racing still left to do, but in the back of my mind I just had a feeling that my 1/2 Marathon PR of 1:18:25 was there for the taking.

Mile 3 was slightly uphill and a bit slower at 5:59, but I made back some time in the next mile with a 5:54. 4 miles down, 9 to go and everything feeling fantastic. Mile 5 had us running across the Cardiff Bay Barrage, and with a split of 5:48 it felt more like 10K race pace rather than that of a 1/2 marathon. I tried to put the “Have I started off too fast?” thoughts to the back of my mind, and just concentrated on staying relaxed and racing one mile at a time.

The Cardiff Bay crowds were great and no doubt helped me log another swift mile as I breezed through the 10K mark in 36:54 – just a few seconds slower than my finish time at this year’s Elizabeth River Run 10K. As the race went on, I noted that my Garmin was beeping earlier and earlier in comparison to the mile markers on the course, so it would be critical to keep the sub-6:00s going for as long as possible.

Mile 7 was long and straight along Lloyd George Avenue, but with more great crowd support I managed another 5:55. I think Mile 8 was the first time in the race I started to sense fatigue was setting in. Legs were just a little bit heavier and I struggled to maintain the same quick cadence from the early miles. Somehow I managed another 5:55, and with five miles left to run, I figured the PR was still there for the taking.

A couple more hard fought miles were soon behind me (5:53, 5:56), and with the thought of my family cheering for me at the 11 mile mark, I pressed on and logged another sub-6:00, crossing the 10 mile timing mat in 59:29 – ironically, only the 3rd or 4th time I’ve broken the magic hour for this distance. With the Garmin now beeping a full tenth of a mile before the official mile markers, I tried calculating how fast I’d need to run the closing 2.1 miles, struggled with the maths so focused on just running as fast as possible for as long as possible.

In the penultimate mile I ended up in a bit of a battle with another runner. We traded places several times along Lake Road West, which wasn’t exactly comfortable, but I’m sure helped me to a 5:50 12th mile. With just over a mile to go, I shook out the tension from my shoulders and steeled myself for a “leave it all on the course” effort. Mile 13 started with a cruel little “hill” on Fairoak Road which caused me to log my slowest half mile of the race (3:04). Ouch! I hoped I hadn’t blown my chances, but pushed on towards the last mile marker and the 90° turn onto King Edward VII Avenue where the finish line would finally come into view. With just a few hundred meters left to run, I kicked for home and sprinted as fast as my legs would carry me, crossing the line in a new personal best of 1:17:55.

Have to be honest, I’m not really sure where this race performance came from. I’d long given up on breaking 1:18 and figured aiming for sub-1:20 in future half marathons would be enough of a challenge, so maybe I should put my surprising finish time down to the the excellent weather, hometown course and family support?

Race stats:
Official finish time – 1:17:55
Age group position – 5th out of 1137
Gender position – 98th out of 8296
Overall position – 104th out of 14336

Photo credits:
Wouter Poortinga
Paul Sheppard