MARATHON? NEVER AGAIN......ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!
Quite a few FB running friends saying (as always) "Never again!" after toiling around the streets of London in the hottest ever marathon there; whilst others were battling wind and rain on Blackpool promenade. What a contrast! and I've done both. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL FINISHERS! Whatever the time. Many seemed to falter at the 35 K point succumbing to the heat in London today. Heat that came hard understandingly to the body having training mainly in the cold and dark of our British winter.
But did anyone else record negative splits other than the formidable Hannah Oldroyd?
Never again? Having run 2:25 and bits (London 1983), won a couple of regional marathons and several others around 2.30, I thought the BLACKPOOL MARATHON in 1988 would be my "swansong". It was a scorchingly hot day and having run solo from 14 miles to eventually cross the line in 12th placein 2:36 I said "enough was enough" as you do!
But the intriguing thought lingers doesn't it? There's still a buzz about the distance and you think , what if?
So lacking real preparation (and 'cos I was there!) I ran london again in 1994 finishing 1501st......2:56.25. That'll do. 25 run. Enough is enough.
Except I find myself in Amsterdam with an offer of a place in their marathon and you think, why not? Just one more before I'm 50.........it goes quite well until the last 5k when the weather turns nasty......2:50. Enough id enough, I say for one final time...and it was.
That's when I drew the line! 26 run under 3 hours.
Nearly 50.Time to concentrate on maintaining my speed at the shorter distances. Confident doing the long runs was blunting my speed.
I would continue to run halfs and tens of course.
But a 10K in 34.58 at age of 50 is one of my best performances ever......and would not have been possible if I'd have continued to run marathons. 26 was indeed enough.
Quite a few FB running friends saying (as always) "Never again!" after toiling around the streets of London in the hottest ever marathon there; whilst others were battling wind and rain on Blackpool promenade. What a contrast! and I've done both. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL FINISHERS! Whatever the time. Many seemed to falter at the 35 K point succumbing to the heat in London today. Heat that came hard understandingly to the body having training mainly in the cold and dark of our British winter.
But did anyone else record negative splits other than the formidable Hannah Oldroyd?
Never again? Having run 2:25 and bits (London 1983), won a couple of regional marathons and several others around 2.30, I thought the BLACKPOOL MARATHON in 1988 would be my "swansong". It was a scorchingly hot day and having run solo from 14 miles to eventually cross the line in 12th placein 2:36 I said "enough was enough" as you do!
But the intriguing thought lingers doesn't it? There's still a buzz about the distance and you think , what if?
So lacking real preparation (and 'cos I was there!) I ran london again in 1994 finishing 1501st......2:56.25. That'll do. 25 run. Enough is enough.
Except I find myself in Amsterdam with an offer of a place in their marathon and you think, why not? Just one more before I'm 50.........it goes quite well until the last 5k when the weather turns nasty......2:50. Enough id enough, I say for one final time...and it was.
That's when I drew the line! 26 run under 3 hours.
Nearly 50.Time to concentrate on maintaining my speed at the shorter distances. Confident doing the long runs was blunting my speed.
I would continue to run halfs and tens of course.
But a 10K in 34.58 at age of 50 is one of my best performances ever......and would not have been possible if I'd have continued to run marathons. 26 was indeed enough.
