Tenzing Hillary Everest Marathon 2013

Words cannot do justice to how ridiculous and fantastic this "race" is! The time is of no interest to any international participant as the local Nepalese will finish hours ahead of us as they are better acclimatised to the conditions; the common goal of the internationals to "just finish before dark and without breaking anything".

Some would argue that just making the start of the marathon is an achievement in itself, the majority in my group were suffering from either altitude or general sickness as the previous ten day trek had left all of us in less than perfect condition for the main event (no tapering, relaxing or staying well fed prior to this race).

The marathon itself starts at the bottom of the famous Khumbu Ice Fall at Everest Base Camp; at 5634m above sea level not only is there 50% less oxygen in the atmosphere but the first 5k is on the icy moraine of the Khumbu Glacier. As the race started I got caught behind a train of Yaks along the moraine of Base Camp which held me up for 15min until I could find somewhere to pass them (not the usual marathon bottle neck then). Having, eventually, got past the Yaks I soon got into my 4mph stride, anything faster than this had me gasping for air and my legs feeling like they were on fire.  

I was soon out on my own, not keeping up with the runners (who I thought had gone off far too fast!) but leading the trekkers, and often found myself asking passing porters for directions to the next check point to avoid getting too lost. As I got towards halfway I was having difficulty eating any solid foods, trying to breathe was difficult enough without shoving anything else down my throat. The good news was I was catching up some of the earlier runners who were now suffering and realising that running at altitude is significantly more challenging than they had given it credit for.

The half way point is mid-point in a 6km loop, added to make the marathon distance up, with the first 3km having a long 350m ascent. I made it to the half way checkpoint in 4hrs 40min and things looked good for a respectable sub 9hr finish (I was starting to pass more and more of the earlier runners who by now were struggling to even walk up the minor inclines).

Knowing that the final 10km included two climbs (one a 250m steady stepped ascent through a rhododendron forest and the second being a brutal 500m valley ascent) as I got towards the 28km point I decided that I should take a carbohydrate drink to make up for the lack of food I had been eating; unfortunately my body decided to reject the drink and after 10min of heaving up whatever I had in my stomach I gingery continued on my way.

The final 10km took me the best part of 4hrs to crawl along, the 500m valley ascent was probably the most horrific ordeal I have ever put myself through and I often found myself muttering Canadian Dougs' mantra "it's okay to cry, just don't quit!".

So, as my race certificate states... "Mr Robert from UK has successfully participated in the 60th Diamond Jubilee Tenzing Hillary Everest Marathon, running the worlds highest altitude route from Everest Base Camp (5364m), Gorakshep (5140m), Lobuche (4930m), Dingboche (4530m), Tengboche (3867m), Namche Bazar (3440m), covering the distance 42.195kms held on the 29th May 2013, completing the race in 10hrs 48min 17 sec, to commemorate 60th anniversary of the first successful ascent of Mount Everest by Tenzing Norgay Sherpa and Sir Edmund Hillary on May 29, 1953".

As an aside:

1. A group of Aussies stopped at 30km overnight in a lodge whilst two guys ended up in a Yak shed and another lady ended up in a cave as they all got lost in the dark!

2. The race distance was also somewhere around 44km and would, technically, make this my first ultra!

3. Although it sounds as if this is a downhill route it is still the Himalayas and actually had the best part of 1100m of ascent as well!

4. The race results aren't out yet but I believe I finished in the top 100

5. I took a photo every 10min through the route and I will add a link to the slideshow once I've compiled it...

Training for Comrades

Hi Clapham Runners!

Just enjoying my tapering in the lead up to the Comrades marathon on 2nd June!! Can't believe there are only 2 weeks to go! Here is a blurb about the race (courtesy of Wikipedia):

The Comrades Marathon is an ultramarathon of approximately 89 km (approx. 56 miles) which is run annually in the Kwazulu-Natal Province of South Africa between the cities of Durban and Pietermaritzburg. It is the world's largest and oldest ultramarathon race. The direction of the race alternates each year between the "up" run (87 km) starting from Durban and the "down" run (89 km) starting from Pietermaritzburg.During the event an athlete must also reach five cut-off points in specified times to complete the race.

Pietermaritzburg is my home town and I used to watch the runners run past my house as a little girl thinking that I would run it oneday! I told myself I had to run it before I turned 30 and, cutting it a bit fine, I'll be on the start line 9 days before my 30th birthday!!

I've done a few races to train for it, including: London Ultra (along the Capital King Route), Silverstone half, Tunbridge Wells half, Rome marathon, Hamburg marathon and the Malvern Hills 40 miler. Coincentally I managed to win the Malvern Hills race as majority of the field elected to do the 52 miler, leaving me with 2 cohorts who ended up pulling out! Gold medal Steven Bradbury style!! (If you don't know who that is, I suggest you watch this youtube clip for one of Australia's most momentous winter olympic medals:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Z6GnUTVAF0 ).

Here are some pics from my training runs (I'm still trying to get over the fact that a marathon is classed as training):

Well done to all the London Marathon runners - give us a blog!! Looking forward to reading about Rob's Everest adventures soon too! Watch this space!

Happy running!
Fi

Upcoming events

Hi Clapham Runners!

With many of you signed up to (or thinking about) Spring marathons, I thought I'd post some links for upcoming races in the hopes you may be interested in entering one of these:


London Ultra 50km - 17 Feb 2013
http://ultrarace.co.uk/events/route/?eventid=122

Tunbridge Wells half - 24 Feb 2013
http://www.twharriers.org.uk/racing/tw_half_marathon

Silverstone half - 3 March 2013
http://adidashalfmarathon.co.uk/

Rome marathon  - 17 March 2013

http://www.maratonadiroma.it/

Hamburg marathon  - 21 April 2013

http://www.marathon-hamburg.de/index.php/en/race-course

And if none of the above distances/dates float your boat, have a look at runners world: 

http://www.runnersworld.co.uk/events

See you at the track!

Fi

A well earned Guinness!

Clapham Runners' excellent 2012 achievements have included marathons completed in London, Edinburgh, Cork and Berlin.  Last Monday (29/10), Dublin was the latest venue in our international series.

In a moment of pre-Olympic madness I’d entered with my friend Angelina, figuring it had good PB potential given its likely temperature range and largely flat course.  I also thought training mainly in the summer would make a pleasant change from the VLM and it wouldn’t require me to tap up my friends and family for sponsorship yet again!

My marathon training proper started during the Olympics and then averaged c.50-60km a week, with more emphasis on interval training than longer runs compared to my previous build ups.  This built on a reasonable base from training fairly consistently this year with many of you at club sessions and doing several parkruns, etc.

 

My rough race plan was to keep at a little under 5 min/km pace for as long as possible and then hang on in there such that the time I'd “bank” below 5 min/km would not all be eroded in the latter stages.

Conditions on the day proved ideal; around 8⁰c, overcast and little wind.  As I was just about to cross the start line my concern for my race plan not being thwarted by my temperamental Garmin, was quickly overtaken by a realisation that my gel belt was heading south (schoolboy error in not compensating enough for the weight of my extra gels!) - so a hastily improvised knot in the belt and I was off.

I felt pretty good early on and was on plan as I negotiated the attractive Phoenix Park (4-8 miles) where I was first cheered on by our resourceful support crew, Annie and Peter.  They'd hired Dublin's equivalent of Boris bikes which enabled Annie to see me at an impressive five different points on the course loop!

Although this was my first marathon in an anonymous T-shirt, on several occasions the crowd were nevertheless shouting my name.  I soon realised that I'd been running close to my namesakes at various stages..... the Irish must be keen on their Steves!

I was still going strong in the middle of the race, completing the 1st half in 1:38:40 (av. 4:41 m/km) - giving me c.6.5 mins “in the bank"- possibly a bit too fast in hindsight…  The next phase is where I'd struggled most in previous marathons but this time an improved carb-loading and gel strategy seemed to help me better maintain my form.  So for the next 10k or so I managed to keep on track by averaging just on 5m/km.

As I reached the top of the hill around the edge of University College’s grounds at c.21 miles I knew a decent time was within reach as it was mainly downhill or flat from there.  However, this last stretch proved far from plain sailing - I really had to dig deep to keep some sort of rhythm going in the last few miles and whilst I was obviously slowing up it was a question of whether I had enough in the bank and in my tank to still reach my goal.  Rather than looking ahead longingly for the last few mile markers to come and go, I was now head down “in the zone” counting up repeatedly to 400 as my estimate for each mile, with far too many runners now passing me…

 

Having been enthusiastically screamed on yet again by Annie at both 24 and 25 miles, I took one final look at my watch at the 25 mile flag and with almost 3:16 gone I knew a final effort to hang on in there would now be enough join the sub 3.30 club.  I was mightily relieved to manage this and crossed the finish in 3:28:41 (averaging 5.27 m/km for the last 10k) – thankfully my Garmin did behave but unfortunately not for long enough for me to retrieve my km splits afterwards.

So a PB by some 18 mins, which I was very chuffed with and subsequently celebrated with a most welcome cold pint of Guinness followed by a fun slap up boozy meal with my much appreciated support crew and the unfortunately injured Angelina.  All in all a great day and I’d thoroughly recommend others to have a crack at the Dublin marathon, not least for the craic!

Cheers, Steve.

PS My efforts, however, were not a patch on the chap who propelled his son around in his buggy in 3.05!  So, with Krysia’s permission, therein may lie a challenge for Martin and Clapham Runners’ latest recruit Seth!

Berlin marathon

Dearest Clapham Runners,

Here is my report from Berlin marathon that I managed to complete last Sunday.

This was a race I genuinly did not expect to finish as I was feeling really unwell in my last couple of long runs. I would have pulled out if it hadn't been for a non-refundable hotel booking...No choice then but to give it a shot and see how far I could get.

David and I arrived in Berlin late Friday night and went around the city on a beautiful Saturday morning, giggling at all runners dressed already in full running gear going around Berlin in excitment and anticipation.We had a lovely lunch by the river and off we went to pick up my number.There I found the medical unit and asked them what to do in case I wanted to stop (i know it's obvious but I needed some reassurance) and the lady said to me, I hope you won't need us, see you at the finish.

On the morning of the race I was up at 6 to make it for breakfast at 6.30. By 6.25 we were downstairs waiting for the dining room doors to open. By 6.35 me and many other fellow runners were attacking the buffet and devouring our food. Everyone looked really fast, determined and confident. I also noticed the beautiful site at the table next to us, a  father and son, two generations running together, eating in silence, the tension and concentration written on their faces.

When David and I reached the park at the start, he was not allowed to come in with me and I got a little bit tearful kissing him goodbye on the other side of the fence. My first marathon where I was going to the start line on my own. I kept going though as I was there and had to dance. Found my bag drop and my starting position and soon we were off.

The first kilometer was really fast but was followed by a loo stop (yes, that soon) that calmed things down. The first half of the race went ok but I kept thinking what a long way I still had to go, lacking a bit in mojo. I passed the half point at the slow time of 2.09 or something, 10 minutes later than at last year's race. Oh well, I kept reminding myslef that this was a race I was not after getting the time I wanted, but to getting through. However, from around mile 17-22, I felt on top of the world. I found it the nicest part of the way, I had loads and loads of energy, I high fived all the kids and waved at the people of Berlin and they shouted my name. It was absolutely great. And while at the beginning I felt that most people were overtaking me, by now I was leaving them behind. After mile 22 I did start getting a bit tired, but I have to say, not that much really, my legs were fine. I was just getting mentally tired more than physically. It was also a bit frustrating that by that point when every meter counts, although my garmin was showing I had covered a certain distance, the race marks were saying I was 800m behind. Must remember to follow the blue line better next time.
Finally, the Bradenbourg gate appeared and I passed under it-the end was now near!

This was a race of 3 loo and 16 refuelling stops-it was a cloudless day and every time I was offered water and isotonic I took it, which was every 2 km after the 10k point, while walking everytime I had a drink in my hand as they were in cups. This is something I need to watch out for next time. This is not an opportunity for me to eat and drink!!Get on with it woman.

I once again made it, 13 minutes further away from the 4 hour goal than I was last year (finish time was 4.33). The finish line video sums up my feelings. Happines when crossing the line and shaking my head in disappointment when looking at my watch. But surely the fact that I went around this race in absolute comfort must count for something. Sometimes we should remember to be grateful for what we have and for the fact that we can run and try to enjoy it.

The taxi driver that took us to our hotel on Friday night, was very sympathetic about what my country is going through and at the end of the ride shook my hand and said: Lady, good luck on Sunday. I hope you get to the end. I am so happy I did not dissappoint.

See you all in a couple of weeks.

'Clapham Runners' does the Alps

Unfortunately I have no epic tales of heroic marathon feats to share with you, just a simple advert for the 'Clapham Runners' proving the brand has made it as far as the Matterhorn in Switzerland.

Several mountains were summited before childish enthusiasm got the better of me on a bad weather day which led to a minor scooter accident http://vimeo.com/48230147; if Jon asks, no, I hadn't been drinking!

My running adventures should recommence in the near future, could you let me know if you know of any short distance (5k or 10k) off road races from October onwards...

Cheers, Rob

Cork City marathon June 4 2012

Seems like and age ago now so I`ll have to see if I can remember all the gory details.

Well when I got to week 7 in Jon`s training plan my body was starting to complain and by week 8 I was starting to break down, my plantar fascia to be precise. So with very little running over the next two weeks and a few visits to the buthcer of pimlico(who`s a physio in case you were wondering!) I was hopefully going to make it to the start line. On the evening before the race I was walking round the city with my parents and with my foot feeling slightly sore, I was beginning to question my sanity and wondering if I would make it round the 26 miles the next day! and that if I did I would be retiring from marathon running because my body wasn`t up to this malarky.

So after a good nights sleep I was as ready as I was ever going to be. We took the park and ride into the city centre as the main roads would be closed off  for the marathon and  also this would ensure us a quick getaway back up the rocky road to Dublin. So we lined up at the start line with blue skies above, which was the last thing I had expected. At 9am we set off, 1500 marathon runners along with 600 relay teams and would be joined 2 hours later halfway round by about 2000 half marathoners.

Cork is quite a hilly city but they`ve managed to route the course in a way that avoids any serious ones. So I bedded in with the 3.30 pace makers running quite comfortably but every now and then would feel a twinge in my foot which was a bit of a worry. Around mile 4 we started to head out of town running alongside the river Lee with the sun beaming down. At this stage it got quite congested around the pacemakers so I went ahead a little bit. After about 7 miles in I was starting to feel quite comfortable and this was also the stage where it got quite boring running on a duel carriageway and then through an underpass going under the river.

 A few miles later we were runing  near the river mouth with the sun still shining and was thinking I should have put some sunscreen on before. The forecast was for a dry day and in Ireland a dry day and a sunny day are  usually worlds apart! So taking care to take on enough fluids and chomping on a nak`d bar I made it to the halfway point in 1.44.54 and at this stage had forgotten that there`d been anything wrong with my foot.

So now I was flying and started to up the pace slightly which I would pay the price for in the last few miles. We started heading back into the city centre and apart from the crowds getting bigger it was pretty uneventful up until mile 20 when about 15m after a water station two young whipper snappers racing each other on their relay leg, clattered into me knocking my water cup out of my hand but at this stage there was only one direction I was going in! This is one of the reasons I don`t like marathons which have relay teams but I guess it has to be done to make it viable for the smaller races.

So about mile 23 I was starting to pay the price of my cockiness earlier as my legs turned to lead and I just wanted it over with. Another disheartening thing at this stage is that I was starting to get overtaken, even if it was mainly by half marathoners. Then at the start of mile 26 the pacemakers passed me and I thought I`d blown my chances of a sub 3.30. I just gritted my teeth and plodded on oblivious to the crowds that were quite big as we approached the finish. So with the finish line in sight I had a quick glance at my watch and clocked 3.28 and for the last couple of hundred metres I tried to sprint which at the time probably looked like a gentle jog. I crossed the line in 3.29.36, exhausted, sunburnt but chuffed.

As soon as I got my breath back I knew I`d be doing another one, definitely not this year and where? to be decided. London? See you down the track!

Damien.