Edinburgh Marathon 25/05/08
First up Peter's report
Having done a fairly inauspicious time at today's marathon I was tempted to leave the reportage to those more favourably inclined to the experience, but since consuming a fair bit of running medicine (beer) I thought I might share a few thoughts. Not of the Victor Meldrew I-wuz-robbed variety but a few thoughts on the highs and lows of today's pain-fest.
My deep dislike of large events like these (okay a bit Victor Meldrew)(and I wuz robbed by the way) was confirmed at the “expo” which was so lame its not even getting a capital letter. Some £12 vests next to a Lucozade stall does not an expo make. In the goody bag they gave us a magazine with a London runner on the front. And the intro was from that fat pie-eating Scottish politician who wormed his way back into the public eye of late so we can probably learn a lot about running from what he has to say. Also there was a stodgy digestive-like crunchy granola bar that was a pertinent warning never to spend money on this gritty slab of grated cardboard.
Not even halfway and feeling stuffedHowever there was one thing that shone in this bag of crap (and leaflets I won't ever read) and that was a couple of splendid red potatoes from the sponsor Albert Bartlett. Ate them Friday night and thumbs up. In fact I have only good things to say about Albert Bartlett (who have sponsored the quality Glen Clova Half in the past): good 'tasteful' website and I think they must have paid for the quality medals which were heavy enough to swing round your head and clock the folk on the microphones shouting out at the start of today's jamboree Is there anyone here from Edinburgh? Is there anyone here with coloured hair? Okay we didn't have our medals at the start and that's probably why... Is there anyone here from a running club? Is there anyone here with trainers on? Lets have a cheer for 10 minutes till the start. You do find yourself surrounded by morons at these mass participation things. I'm surprised – astonished they didn't play chariots of fire. Does it have to be that way? It makes starting a race in the middle of nowhere with 65 other hillrunners a preferable option. (Okay? Ready, go...) And nobody feels the need to count down from 10.
The organisation seemed to go very smoothly: A bit of a squeeze to get your bag stowed and along to the right pen in Waterloo Place but okay. And plenty of drinks stations. (How / why do they make the lucozade taste so vile? Extra orange paint it tastes like. Is that orangy enough? No! Put more orange flavour in till it makes your toes curl and eyes water, then some more for the hard of tasting. That's what serious athletes want; something that tans you from the inside out.)
Bert on his home turf.As far as I remember there was only one short up hill (turn right after Meadowbank) and the rest was downhill, flat or negligible rise. So top marks for the route setters though 'dog legs' are never popular and a few remarked about the uneven chossy surface at Gosford House. I was hallucinating wildly by this point and getting mixed up with Gosford Park the film, expecting Maggie Smith to be eating cucumber sandwiches with Helen Mirren and what I believe they call an ensemble cast, commenting upon the hoi polloi scampering across the vista. “Make sure Jennings counts the silver when the last one's through.”
Shortly after Gosford Park I put the MP3 player on and James Brown dictated the pace like a sex machine. My mojo wasn't really taking it to the bridge with Mr Brown but I did enjoy the fact that we were finally turned and headed for home.
Paul had to stop with cramp
John dropped out due to injury
Mary had a good runI thought if I could just keep it together and do under 3.16 (Graham Henry at Callanish) then the £39 wouldn't be all in vain. (Oh I forgot to mention the t-shirt you get as part of the King's-Ransom entry fee but probably best to skip over that as well. Still, you could use it for cleaning and oiling bike parts.) I was just about to relax into 3.15.59 mode (20 mins off my original estimate) when someone shouted had I seen Andrew? With Bert and Scott H. (Starsky and Hutch) gone by, Jeske was probably next up and bye bye 10 championship points. With this as the sole remaining reason for not throwing in the towel I picked up the pace to a blistering 8 minutes plus per mile.
Scott: second Porty at the dog leg
Somewhere around here I noticed a 9.57 mile which would have been in itself reason to give up running – not just this race, but in general – but what I hadn't noticed was I'd done the mile previous in 6.37 making 2 badly measured 8.17s. So instead of plodding to the line I whipped myself along on tired legs all the way to Musselburgh where I've never been so relieved to finish a race. 3.13.00: I have run slower but not for a good few years. My teeth were chattering and whole body on the verge of cramping and I was in a poor state. First time I've ever visited the first aid station after a race. They said they couldn't do a leg transplant but I did get a couple of paracetamols. In there was a couple of bodies with towels draped over them, left like corpses after a battle.
Mary (who had a great run and did a considerable pb) and I walked most of the way home which was about the best medicine for aching legs. Well second best to beer which seems to be doing the trick nicely.
Thanks to all who supported and cheered on. I fear the Tourette's was unleashed horribly today and may have been turning the air blue as I expressed my thoughts about the conditions, though it did make Alan Aitch laugh as I ran past him at the Pans cursing like a mental.
I had lost the will to live by this point and was being overtaken by old men,
young girls and everyone inbetween.
Surprised I was still able to make it off the ground 5 minutes from the finishI hesitate to use the phrase never again so lets just say not for a while, while I concentrate my efforts in other directions. How about that – I didn't even use the “w” word.
Report Windbag Buchanan
Photos Amanda Henderson, Willie JarvieCuriously this was spotted in the online Evening News 23/05/08
Women's winner 47-year-old Falkirk Victoria veteran Fiona Matheson is back to defend her title against several English runners who have faster best times, while Portobello's Margaret Sandeman could win a podium place if she achieves her target of 2:50.00.
Presumably someone mistook a 2 for a 3.
Margaret's response...
I didn't quite make the podium, but did manage a pb (albeit by 1 min), finished in 3:52, absolutely delighted.Scott Ferguson, just a week after his triumphs at Cape Wrath, and with that tough marathon still in his legs came through the field to finish first Porty. Here is his report...
Chemical Imbalance!
After much careful consideration over the last few weeks I think that I might have a chemical imbalance somewhere in my brain… for some reason I forget how hard and tough these runs are moments after running them!!! I also think that it might not just be me. After watching hundreds of runners coming in at the finish, it was quite apparent that there are two groups; the ‘I've done it’ group and the ‘I could have done it better’ group. The ‘I've done it’ group are enviable as they had a great run and are today no doubt sore but happy. The ‘I could have done it better’ group, like myself, have analysed the run and found the ‘next time’ questions and comments floating around our heads.
Third Porty about halfway Scott kept a good steady pace.I had a great run. A great run that was until mile 18. I was quite happy doing a nice even pace, I even managed to spark up a conversation with a fellow runner from Bellahouston runners. I passed my parents on the water station at the up and down hill at Longniddry feeling great. Then like a puncture in my legs at 18ish I almost lost the will. I couldn’t believe the difference in how I felt… and it just seemed to go on and on… I think I am going to try and get them to rename The Marathon, The North Berwickathon, 22 miles and a lot kinder to my psychology.**
The only saving grace to my fragile mind set was the fact that on the last mile I could just about make out a Porty vest, could it be?!?!? The only way to find out was to speed up, the last thing I wanted to do! I managed to catch up to George and with the finish in sight I have never had to work so hard to keep moving.
With all the running that I have been doing I think I have earned a wee break now…till the next run… anyone with a sense of direction fancy scouting the seven hills???
Report Scott Ferguson
ps well done ‘team porty’
**Scott may get his wish for a shorter 'marathon'. The Edinburgh Marathon site has just put up a taster for the Kilomothon but with no other details other than its 26.2k (16.3 miles). No other info at present but you can sign up here to be first to find out more.
If anyone wants to write up their race please send your report to the email address on the left towards the top of the page. Similarly any photos.
Loads of great photos HERE at roadrunpics
Results here
This may be Bert's thumbSally's report
After managing to complete Edinburgh North Berwick in the same time as last year, I was hopeful that my foot injury from Edinburgh Half had finally healed. Stupidly, I continued to run 3 very high mileage weeks, which lead to the return of my ankle pain 6 days before the race. I went to 'Footworks' for gait analysis as my Brooks trainers didn't seem to be working for me anymore. Oddly, the diagnosis was that my gait had changed considerably probably due to the intense training of the last year, and the recent foot injury. I found myself looking in disbelief as I saw slow motion footage of my feet in neutral shoes running perfectly on a treadmill. Going from probably the most supportive control shoe in existence to a neutral shoe within a week of the race didn't fill me with confidence! However, they looked good, pink, girly and sporty and I no longer felt as if I had a brick attached to each foot.
As with the recent Ed - NB 22 miler, I felt very strong at the start and had no problem in maintaining a decent sub 7.30 miler for the first 13 miles. The wind was awful and I did try to shelter behind other runners (a trick I learnt from Amanda in Alloa a couple of years ago ;o)) to get some relief, but they were few and far between. The gravelly bit Peter mentioned had to be one of my worst moments. The feeling of pleasure to finally turn off the main drag and out of the wind lasted only a moment as my feet slipped on the gravel which felt like some sort of cruel quick sand. What actually did it for me was turning back into the wind at the top of the gravelly hill and having people sitting behind me so that I took the full force of the wind for the next mile or so. I kept slowing down in the hope that someone would overtake, but no, clearly I was wide enough to take the brunt of it!! gggggrrrrrrrrrr
It was great to finally be heading back to Musselburgh and also to have the distraction of spotting fellow runners on the other side of the road. I have to say that the wind had zapped a lot of my energy and I found myself struggling from about 20 miles. I hit 22 miles in 2.45, only a minute slower than Edinburgh - N Berwick, but I knew I was fading fast. Even the new 'go faster' trainers and streamline shades couldn't help me now. I actually resorted to stopping at 22 and 24 miles to down Lucozade sports, yes, things were really that bad. The last 4+ miles took 38 mins but I made it to the end in 3hrs 23, exhausted but more importantly, still injury free.
As usual, the support en route from the Porty crowd was fantastic. A few fellow runners commented on my popularity as I waved and smiled at familiar faces during the first few miles of the race. So thanks again guys, it really makes the world of difference.Report Sally Scott
Tom 'the brown bomber' Watson brings us up to date with his movements...
I see way behind in getting report in, just like Sunday, at the back!! (Not true on either count Tom)
It was a rather emotional day for me, it being my first race since my accident almost 2 years ago. Understandably I was very nervous, but as soon as I met up with fellow porty runners all happy and so pleased to see me back racing again, I soon forgot about nerves and took in the atmosphere. I had absolutely no idea what time I would do ( I knew for sure I wasnt getting a 3.10 for certain, well not until someone gives me a new left leg!! ) I decided to to run easy/comfortable all the way and keep old George Armstrong in sight, well, that was the idea, and follow him in around 3.40. OK, so I lost him around 15 miles, but I did enjoy the banter from fellow runners, never experienced this before because I was always so focused on getting a fast time and running myself into the ground. How refreshing to actually enjoy the whole experience and run/chat with people running for great charities ( these people weren’t serious runners, just enjoying the atmosphere, is that what its about? )
My fellow porty runners, those running and those spectating were absolutely fantastic, the support was amazing ( and that what makes porty such a great club to be with )
Anyway, by the time I had me pooh stop at gosforth and got going again, felt great and relaxed all the way to the finish ( even allowing for some banter from Alan Aitch n Ricky about me sunbathing on the route ) finished in around 3.50, never felt better after a race
When I think back to Jan 2007, I could barely walk 1 mile, my sincere thanks to Eric Foster who got me from barely walking a mile to running a marathon, Bert Logan, who having gone through similar, gave me so much encouragement to get back, and again thanks to absolutely every porty runner for their support and understanding over the last 20 months
And I can't finish a report without the usual excuses; there is no point in moaning about the fact that we had:
i. a headwind for most of the way
ii. the race was 26.4 miles long ( how many of you checked distance on your garmin?
iii. I needed a pooh stop at 19 miles, cost me around 5 mins ( a marathon isn’t complete for me unless I have the compulsory pooh stop )Report Tom Watson (now wash your hands)
Mary's version of the day's event...
I was running scared this marathon. The training all went well and the Edinburgh to North Berwick 22 miler was an encouraging pb. I managed to dodge all the people with colds while I was tapering and I was injury-free, fit and well. The only problem was the wind was going to be blowing in our faces for 14 miles.
I ran faster than I should for the first 4 miles but it was all downhill so I considered this “money in the bank”, a little time cushion for later on when things were bad. Then I threw in some 7.30 miles – I couldn't actually tell you why – just scared about the effect the wind was going to have on me – and in my efforts to catch up with the people ahead so I didn't get left on my own in the wind I just kept pushing. I crossed the half-way mat (just before rather than just after the 13 mile mark!) in 1h 40 mins and the real half way probably in 1h 42mins. A reasonable half marathon for me.
I knew I had pushed too hard and there was such a long way to go that I had to just not think about it and try to keep my pace up. Every mile under 8 min/mile pace I told myself I was fantastic and every mile over 8 min/mile pace I told myself to speed up “just a bit”. I could feel the beginnings of cramp in my legs and didn't want to make any sudden moves. I passed Jon Pickard who had slowed to a jog just before the dog leg. There's nothing you can say really. I gave him a pat on the back!
Mile 18 heading home and with the wind behind it felt really hot. I was hot and dry but didn't want to drink much in case I got a stitch or something. Just a few sips at every station.
It was horrible to see the chimneys of the power station just before the Pans still so far away!
I think it was Seton sands when I saw and passed Paul who was trying to stretch the cramps out of his legs. He straightened up and ran with me for a while but then had to stop and stretch again.
At mile 22 I was a minute faster than I had been at North Berwick, which was encouraging. I couldn't do the sums any more but I knew I'd figured out after North Berwick that I could have dropped my pace and still come in under 3hrs30mins. I couldn't afford to relax too much though! I was having trouble getting my legs and arms working together. I threw in an 8.07 mile and then an 8.08 mile and then 8.23! Yikes! The next mile went by somehow and seeing the Jarvies at the corner pulled me back to the task. Also, just a little further along the road, Sheana my ward clerkess was out with about 20 cronies all giving me massive cheers as I went by! I managed to make one last effort to up the pace and finally got under that blue gantry thing in about 3.28.38 chip time or 3.29.57ish real time, with Queen blaring We are the Champions and then went and gibbered incoherently at Toby and Scott F. as the full realisation of just how sore my legs were set in!
I met a guy, Richard Ginn, who had been on the Everest Marathon trip with us last winter. It was good to see him but I couldn't stand still for long as my legs needed to keep walking. Peter and I walked to Portobello which eased things up a bit before catching a bus.
The Porty support was so nice all along the way, and lining up at the beginning with Tom, Jon and Paul was really good fun. Well done to everyone who finished and everyone who didn't and thanks for all the encouragement along the way.
Meanwhile in the Western Isles Richard, Graham, Ben and erstwhile Porty Julia Henderson have been having some adventures, but I'll let them tell you about that themselves...
Report Mary Hunter
