Hereford Half Marathon - 2011

Originally the race was advertised as an early start, so we decided to stay overnight at the Premier Inn which is a couple of hundred metres from the start point. The hotel is next to a Beefeater so after a meal we retired to our room to watch the annual debacle they call The Eurovision Song Contest. Luckily there was a machine supplying Ben and Jerry's ice cream, we tried all the different flavours in an attempt to numb ourselves from the TV entertainment.

We awoke early to a cold windy day. We walked the short distance to the start. Organisation on arrival was below par and not enough sufficient signage, it was a case of aimlessly wandering around to determine what was available. We quickly determined there was nowhere to leave our bags. Staff at the Leisure centre told us we could use their lockers, but this meant we had to carry a giant sized plastic key around course. The start point wasn't obvious, it was the exit of the car park. If you’re after a PB you need to get to the front as there was no chip. The race was delayed by a traffic incident but this was communicated to us. There wasn`t any gun or obvious starter. One minute we were stood there and the next we were away and running.

The course starts immediately into an uphill road section running past our hotel which continued for three miles. I am not a big fan of long races that climb uphill at the start. Although it’s good to do this whilst you have energy, personally I prefer to stretch my muscles first. I was quickly left behind by the leading pack. My plan was to knock out an even pace of 7 minute miles. This went quickly out of the window because the course climbed continually till mile seven.

I was a bit worried that maybe this was a race too far, my energy levels didn't seem to be that good and the legs felt heavy. Only at the start of the race was the route traffic free. After that a motorbike was used to keep the runners on the traffic free side of the road. It was like being chased by a sheep dog. I saw a number of near misses, including a runner nearly being clipped by a cyclist who was travelling at high speed. Also a lorry came to a grinding halt in front of us. I turned into a country lane and was nearly run over by an emerging car. There were no marshals at this point. Also we had to cross a busy road without supervision. I had to try and slow down impatient speeding motorists on a number of occasions.

At mile six I suddenly found myself overtaking runners on the last major climb. My confidence improved and I realised that actually I was still on schedule for a good time. 

The second half was predominantly downhill, about mile 8 Rose Earl overtook me at such a good pace I decided to follow her as best I could. My tempo improved and each mile I got faster and faster (my second half split was negative 3 minutes), those runners who passed me with such ease earlier vanished behind me. I kept Rose in sight until the end.

The painful finishThe finish was a lurch into the race course which had the most hideous race surface ever. It consisted of mud and bark. This was strange considering there is a running track not more than 30 metres away. By the time the faster 174 runners in front of me had trampled this surface it was more like running on a sponge. I spotted half a dozen runners (including Rose) in front of me and with the aid of aggression and Simon Hazel's encouragement I passed them all with a good sprint finish.  I dipped at the finishing line and shared my time with runner 417 and one other who had slowed up.

There was no goody bag, and no medal. That’s Ok I suppose if you take into consideration the entry fee. The race t-shirt would have been better if it was wicked rather than cotton.

Amanda ThompsonAll in all a good days running but I had to work hard for it. A personal best time for me by three minutes, 1 hour 42 minutes position, 175 overall,  30^th in my age category. Just as we waited for Amanda Thompson the skies opened with rain. She came in with a great PB, 2 hours 7 minutes knocking off 15 minutes. We retired to the leisure centre for a shower and coffee after. We don't plan to try this race again in the near future, as the traffic was considerably worse for the slower competitors. The route was a mixture of tarmac main roads, country lanes and estate pavements. If we hadn't come away with positive times, this would have been a disappointing race.

Gareth Rees

London Marathon 2011

This was my second Marathon, my first being the Welsh (Tenby) marathon last spring. My first aim for the Marathon was to complete it, second to get a personal best time and third run the course in under 4 hours. We were all dropped by coach about 8 AM at Blackheath. There were loads of people with their race bags making their way to the correct zone. This was dependant on your race number, which we had collected the day before at the Excel Marathon Exhibition. There were hot air balloons of all sizes and shapes tethered on the heath as we left the coach. We followed large illuminated arrows to our correct zones. As we walked into the red zone, I had my photograph taken with two complete strangers who the photographer though were connected to me. We tried to explain but the photographer didn`t seem to understand. In the end it was easier just to let it happen. As I walked into waiting area I met Jonathan Edwards, the Olympian working as a BBC sports presenter who was interviewing random runners. He was happy to shake hands with the runners around him and this included me. There was about an hour and half before the race start. By the time I used the toilet facilities and met up with the Muscular Dystrophy runners including Jonny Jackson the time just flew by.  About 30 minutes before the race started we were asked to take our bags to the baggage lorries and make our way to the pens. We watched the women’s race start on the big screen, a big cheer went up from the waiting masses. I went to pen 9 as I had misread my number and was sent to the correct one pen 6. I was looking at my number the wrong way up duh!!

We chatted amongst ourselves, everyone was in good spirits. Whilst waiting I realised I wanted to use the toilet. But no one was allowed in or out of our pens. We watched the Goodyear Blimp fly over and then we all waved at the television helicopter. There was a huge crane with a cameraman at the very top filming us, rather him than me. Then came the race countdown from speakers around us. The wave of people moved and the stopped about three times before we finally got going. The clock read 7 minutes as I crossed the line and I started my stop watch. Note to self : remove the auto stop function from Garmin. I hadn`t remembered about the auto pause. This would haunt me later. As soon as I crossed the line, myself and hundreds of others decided we needed to take a quick break. If you watch the TV highlights you will see the cameraman moving swiftly away from this area.

I found the race was mentally and physically tough. You can`t prepare for running with so many people. I had people fall over in front of me; there was a lady who stepped on a plastic bottle who pulled up right in front of me with a twisted ankle. There was a guy in front of me who ran into a bollard; I managed to pull him towards me. This saved him from hitting the deck and me from then falling over him.  As the race progressed there were runners who couldn’t run any more, they seemed to think they could walk on whatever part of the route suited them. They certainly had no consideration for others trying to get passed them. I found that by asking the runner in front to let me through seemed to work. A girl to my left decided to try and go to the water station on my right without looking and thought she could run through me. I had to push her out of the way or I would have fallen over. I tried to keep an even pace when I caught up with Allan Jones from Brackla Harriers. I ran alongside him for a few miles. It made passing the slower runners alot easier by working as a pair. Eventually Allan went ahead and I didn`t see him until the end of the race. I was pleased with my running at the start of the race; I kept a constant pace and got to halfway in 1 hour 56 minutes. I was carrying a hydration pack and I drank 1 and half litres by mile 18. After that I had to pick up fluid from every drink station because I was so hot. I even resorted to pouring it over myself. One of the runners in my Muscular Dystrophy team was walking in front of me, so I slowed down to see if he was OK. His ankle was bad; I encouraged him to run with me. He kept up with me for a mile before falling behind and I lost him in the sea of people. I hit the wall at mile 24 and my times plummeted. I went from 8 and half minute miles to almost 12. The crowd support was amazing and they were shouting my name. There were thousands of them, it was quite humbling really. From this I was able to find some extra energy.

As I ran up the Mall I I knew I would finish, as I ran across the finish line my watch read 3 hours 57. What a relief. All I could do was hold onto the barrier for 10 minutes. My head was spinning and I just couldn’t move. The medics came up to me to see if I was ok. After you clear the finish area there are rows of guys who remove your race chip. I couldn’t even offer them the correct foot. Next I collected the cosseted finishers’ medal and goody bag. I kissed mine with relief and gratitude. I had been dreaming of that moment for a long time.  From here there were photographers waiting to take official shots. Really it was the last thing I wanted to do. I was wringing wet and only wanted to sit down. Next it was time to collect my personal baggage. I was so drained I couldn`t read my own number because it was upside down and my brain wouldn`t work. I just wandered aimlessly up the line of Lorries, until this guy thrust my personal effects into my hand. I then collapsed in a heap on the floor and sat there until I could recompose myself. In the bag was a much needed cereal bar and isotonic drink. I couldn`t get up off the floor. Luckily a big strong security guy offered me a hand or I would probably still be there. I made my way to meet up with the Muscular Dystrophy team who led me to The Corinthia hotel in Whitehall; here I got a massage, a much deserved shower and a pasta meal. I met up with a number of the guys in the MD and then went off to meet up with the club runners in the Old Shades, a local hostelry. Later that day the results were posted on the internet. It read 4 hours 51 seconds; to be honest I was gutted. The stop at the start of the race had taken away my sub 4 hour time. But when I looked at my watch it said I had run 26.8 miles half a mile further than the distance. So I`m happy that when I got to the 26.2 marker it would have been under 4 hours (an official time will have to wait). I loved the occasion and the support, it was totally amazing. I have raised £1800 for a good cause and ran the whole marathon (not everyone can say that). I believe I achieved all my aims. But next time I will carry two watches and take a spare pair of socks to change into at the end. All in all a good day was had by me and thousands of others.

Gareth Rees

Derby Kilomathon - 20th March 2011

Hi - more of a result than a report.

I did the Derby Kilomathon (26.2Km, 16.3miles) on Sunday March 20th in 2:10:20, which made me third F45-55.

There were rather more inclines than I had anticipated and a bit of a chill in the headwind, but at least it was dry. Other than the novelty of the distance, I wouldn't recommend this race - very expensive to enter and over commercialised, definitely not worth the money.

The race has a staggered entry fee dependant on how much you're willing to raise for charity. With no charity donation it is £45, with an addition for paying by card. - Ed

I could have done with more crowd support and some more water stations as well. They were significantly down on their numbers from the previous year - not surprised, given the poor value for money. But an interesting experience, nevertheless, and I was pleased to get round in just under my target 8 minute mile pace.

Judi Rhys

Dublin Marathon 25 October 2010

Thinking of doing the Dublin marathon in 2011? 

If you want a well organised marathon, this is it.  Signing on, collecting numbers, road closures, mile markers, marshals, nutrition and hydration all spot on.  Results available on line straight away.

If you want a good course, this is it.  Mostly flat, a few ups and downs (best down being a long trundle downhill in Phoenix Park at seven-ish miles, when you can still enjoy it; worst up being around 21 miles, a short sharp hill when you can overtake enough runners to enjoy it without overdoing it).  Phoenix Park was particularly good, just above freezing but sunny – and everyone still fresh enough to chat.  The rest is streets and streets, like any city marathon.  Overall quick enough to get close to a pb.

Into photos?  Available within a day – but so was the dvd; video of you running at 10K, halfway, 30K and the end.  This is what you look like as you get more and more tired . . .

Want to be supported?  Lots of warm support from the locals, especially Vikings outside every Spar.  Pillaging not what it used to be, I guess.

Is it cheap?  Not this year (£60) and neither is Dublin as a city break – but both are worth doing at least once.

How did the race go? 

The plan was to follow the 3.15 pacer and decide at 16 whether to leave him; or at 20; or at 25 (depending); or if he had left me by 16 (or 20 or 25) to run the best rhythm I could.  In the event, at 16 I thought best to leave leaving him til 20 as I was running well but another 10 seemed a long way to go.  At 20 he was about 2-300 metres in front of me and I was concentrating on keeping him in sight and just running well.  At 25 I’d forgotten all about the pacer (what pacer?) and was focussing on finishing (please).

What did I learn?   Even-pacing works.  I was two minutes quicker than my last road marathon, but comparing my mile splits I didn’t overtake myself until 23 miles – and it was my most evenly balanced marathon.  You really can lose a lot of time at the end if you don’t get it right.  And since for me it was a comfortable 23 miler followed by a slow 5K there’s still room for improvement. (Last time it was a comfortable 20 followed by a slow 10K).  So next time more miles and more quality work with more staying injury-free.

Big thanks

To Loretta for getting me fit enough; to Mike for travel-agenting, to Mick and Alan for their advice (took some and ignored some; should have listened more carefully), to Gill for her encouragement and enthusiasm, and to Karen for wanting to know ‘what happened to you; I thought you were going to finish in 3.15?’ - cheers Ka!

Also to the unknown Dutch guy for helping me through the penultimate mile – mutual encouragement as we kept catching each other.  Looks like we are enjoying ourselves!

And best of all, to the unknown Irish guy who in the last mile kept looking over his shoulder and shouting ‘come on Mary; not far to go; come on Mary, nearly there; come on Mary, you’re doing brilliantly’; one last effort to catch him and ask him to stop calling me Mary – ‘stop running like Mary then!’ LOL if ever there was a LOL.

John O’Shea



Austin the Hero Again in Dublin

Last Saturday (13^th November) saw the 23^rd staging of the British and Irish Masters Cross Country International Championships at Santry Demesne, Dublin. The vagaries of the weather meant that the course had to absorb a huge amount of rainfall recently, though the very windy conditions of the preceding days did help to dry the ground out to some extent. This left the parkland in reasonable shape for fast running, though there were a couple of significant soft stretches for the mudlarks. The multi-lap design proved popular, particularly with spectators who were able to see the athletes speed past on at least a couple of occasions per lap.

From a Welsh point of view, the best was left to the final race, and what a titanic battle it proved to be. On the first circuit of five, it was great to see two red vests at the head of proceedings, with a leap group of six breaking away, comprising four green vests of the host nation, plus Huw Evans and Austin Davies. It should be remembered that this race was being contested by three age categories, namely 35-39, 40-44 and 45-49, so that at 46 years of age Davies was conceding up to 11 years to some of the athletes. You would never have known. Whilst most of the proceedings had been held in the dry, the rain was now beginning to fall, and the ground was beginning to cut up. Davies, a farmer, revels in such conditions, and began to make his presence felt. At one stage he managed to open up a twenty metre lead, but it never looked quite decisive enough. Going into the final circuit Austin still had a ten metre advantage, and the excitement amongst the spectators was reaching fever pitch, as there were still 5 athletes in with a shout.

Running can be a cruel game, and in the final 200 metres Austin was passed by two Irish athletes, though to his eternal credit he kept fighting to the end, and in a thrilling sprint finish clawed his way back to second, just 3 seconds behind the Republic’s Peter Matthews. This at least ensured that he took the gold medal in the 45-49 age category, thereby successfully defending the title he won twelve months ago at Perry Park, Birmingham. Huw Evans also held on well for sixth place overall, which secured him an individual bronze in the 35-39 age group.

Wales’ only other individual success came from the remarkable Pat Gallagher, who took silver in the 65-69 ladies age group. Pat competed in the very first Masters International at Moss Valley Park, Wrexham in 1988, where she won the 40+ race, and with five individual age category wins, she remains Wales’ most successful athlete in the history of these championships.

On the team front, Wales won 7 bronze team medals from the 15 age categories contested; the overall contest being dominated by England (with 9 wins) and the Republic of Ireland (6 wins). This left the overall combined scores for each nation as follows:

1.   England 69; 2. Republic of Ireland 63; 3. Wales 34; 4. Scotland 27; 5. Northern Ireland 26.

Next year’s event sees Scotland as hosts, with the venue being Bellahouston Park, Glasgow on Saturday 26 November, 2011.

Wales Age Group Team Positions, together with the individual athletes age positions and times:

F35-39: FIFTH: 10. Joanne Donnelly 24:00; 12. Nicky Lowe 24:12; 16. Satu Haikala 25:09; 18. Kirsty Murray 25:44.

F40-44: THIRD: 6. Ann Thomas 23:39; 9. Sharon Leech 24:20; 18. Jenny Phillips 25:41.

F45-49: FIFTH: 13. Sandra Pinkham 25:14; 15. Susan Davies 25:44; 16. Jane Coker 25:44; 19. Mary Bowen-Rees 26:07.

F50-54: FOURTH: 9. Alison Whitelaw 26:11; 11. Caroline Jones 26:44; 12. Annie Williams 26:44.

F55-59: FOURTH: 10. Dawn Kenwright 27:48; 12. Fiona Davies 28:45; 15. Edwina Turner 29:31; 16. Caroline Dallimore 29:40.

F60-64: FOURTH: 11. Ann James 30:24; 12. Maggie Oliver 32:11; 14. Shelagh Adkins 34:13; 15. Sue Graves 35:11.

F65-69: THIRD: 2. Pat Gallagher 28:41; 7. Brenda Jones 33:11; 10. Carol Farrington 34:49; 12. Clare Johnson 36:01.

M35-39: THIRD: 3. Huw Evans 27:23; 9. Paul Halford 28:04; 13. Desi Damiani 29:05; 17. Iwan Jones 30:01; 26. Paul Coker 32:54.

M40-44: FIFTH: 15. Darren Rowlands 29:17; 18. Lee Jones 29:29; 20. Phil Cook 29:44; 23. Paul Griffiths 30:05; 25. Matt Ward 30:30; 29. Arwel Lewis 32:51.

M45-49: THIRD: 1. Austin Davies 27:00; 16. Peter Coles 30:04; 22. Mike Robbins 30:53; 24. Stuart Penny 31:19; 26. Peter Crane 31:59; 30. Mike Davies 38:01.

M50-54: FOURTH: 11. Ifan Lloyd 29:42; 18. David Davies 31:11; 19. Steve Davies 31:26; 21. Adrian Woods 31:31; 24. Simon Osbourne 31:44; 28. Scott Howell 31:53.

M55-59: THIRD: 6. Kevin Hesketh 31:24; 7. Mick McGeoch 31:32; 14. Elio Lepore 32:31; 16. Mick Tabor 33:56.

M60-64: FOURTH: 11. Sandy Johnston 34:15; 13. Dic Evans 34:32; 14. David Smout 34:44; 17. Eric Davey 37:46.

M65-69: THIRD: 4. Dickie Bowen 24:49; 10 Peter Moody 26:34; 12. Don Williams 27:11; 18. Ken Buckle 28:06.

M70-74: THIRD: 8. David Hughes 30:06; 12. Peter Norman 32:01; 13. Mark Tattersall 32:57; 14. Brian Blandford 33:07.