I didn’t really have any expectations going into this race, and with my annual sub-3:00 marathon attempt safely in the bag (March 27th – 2:59:26), pressure was off, so the plan was to just use the event as preparation for a couple of upcoming local ultramarathons in December.
Summer training wasn’t the best. I ran a 5:16 mile race in early August, but the following day hurt my lower back doing “hill repeats” at the Jordan Bridge – the only location for miles with a hint of elevation. Recovery was frustratingly slow. It took a couple of weeks of rest/gentle walking before I could run relatively pain-free, then a further couple of weeks until I could log back to back 10 milers to cap a rare 70 mile training week.
I averaged a decent 9 miles a day for the following 5 days, but didn’t run much at all for 2 weeks as I flew home to the UK for a family holiday split between Wales and Scotland, returning to the US late on October 3rd with just 5 weeks to go until race day.
I managed to string 4 solid training weeks together leading up to the marathon (57, 65, 81, 76 miles), each with a 20 mile long run where I could practice sub-3:00 pace and potential race-day fuel (Tailwind Nutrition). The training wasn’t easy, but it did give me some confidence that I could race 26.2 miles without majorly blowing up.
Taper week dragged somewhat, but race day eventually rolled around, and before I knew it I was lining up for my 56th marathon in pretty much ideal conditions – 10C at the start, but with a potentially blustery wind which could make things interesting on both of the 6.5 mile stretches back to the start/finish line.
As is typical in most marathons, the first 3 or 4 miles felt effortless – 6:50, 6:46, 6:48, 6:46. I ran with a couple of friends and the mood was pretty upbeat as we settled into race mode. The next couple of miles also felt good (6:44, 6:39) and as I approached the turnaround point at mile 6.55, I made sure to sip some fluids and squeeze down a gel.
It was definitely more challenging heading back to the start/finish, but with the extra effort of fighting the headwind, I noticed my pace speed up into the 6:30s (6:44, 6:41, 6:39, 6:39, 6:32, 6:39, 6:34). Hopefully not too much, too soon!
The halfway point of a marathon is always a bit of a relief. Crossing the timing mat in 1:28 I still felt good, but was aware that things can turn south very quickly. I made sure to down more fluids and consume another gel before heading out for the second half.
The moderate tailwind felt great and provided a welcome boost, not just to my morale, but to my pace as well (6:39, 6:27 for miles 14 and 15). The next mile was a frustrating 6:52 due to a much needed pitstop at the side of the road, but I was soon able to get back into the groove and reel off 4 confidence boosting miles (6:24, 6:23, 6:21, 6:28).
Somewhat annoyingly, at the final turnaround the wind had noticeably picked up (hence the previous 4 fast miles I guess!), and it took a huge effort to stay strong and maintain decent pace. I just told myself it was “only” about 10km to go and to stay focused and keep ticking off the miles as best as possible.
The last 5 or 6 miles are a bit of a blur to be honest (6:31, 6:30, 6:21, 6:25, 6:29, 6:20). Everything was hurting and I just wanted to get it done. The course is incredibly flat and straight as a die (you can check my Strava activity here if you like), which is fine for the most part, but means you can literally see the finish line with a couple of miles to go. It’s strange – as fast as you run, the finish never seems to get closer, until all of a sudden you’re passing the 26 mile marker and it’s almost over.
I crossed the finish line in 2:53:08 – my fastest marathon since 2017, and, I think, my fastest age-graded marathon of all time (2:28:08 if the online calculator is accurate). Hopefully this bodes well for a crack at another sub-3:00 marathon in 2022, and of maintaining my streak of at least 1 x sub-3:00 marathon each year since 2005. It’s not getting any easier, that’s for sure!
Race photos courtesy Tidewater Striders