So, here it is, the final write up albeit very delayed as usual!
In some way i think i've been putting the write up off for as long as possible to avoid having the challenge be over as it has been such a large part of my life for the last 14 months or so, but, onwards and upwards as they say!
The final marathon came up quicker than I was anticipation and I suddenly began to wonder whether I had done enough for it. I was confidence that the distance wouldn't be a problem, but I really wanted to go out with a bang and achieve something special for the last run. The age qualifying time for london is 3:10 and so I really wanted to get as close to this as possible. I was a bit ambitious, but, I really wanted to aim high.
I made the journey from Cardiff to Portsmouth on the morning of the race, having to leave home at about 5am to make the journey and get there in time. The roads where thankfully clear and the weather had cut me a break and the rain had eased up for the race.
I had heard that a few of the WRC runners were going to be running so I triedt o keep an eye out for them whilst flitting around the registration room trying to pick up my number and sort myself out. Unfortunately, I hadn't manage to spy any of them before the race started which was a bit disappointing, but I was sure that I would glimpse them at least once during the out and back race.
True to my recent form, which is becoming an unfortunate habit, the race started without me! I had been waiting by the start line waiting for my watch to pick up a GPS signal, but unfortunately the race started before it could find one! Luckily the race was chipped timed so it wasn't too big a deal, but further into the course the pathway narrows into single file which I had hoped to make it to before the bulk of the runners.
I still managed to get a slightly confused applause as i dashed over the start line, and with a smile and wave I began the final 26.2 miles of my 2012 challenge,
The course itself is a mix of concrete, trail, mud and a sang/pebble/bog mix. There had been a fair amount of rain in the week prior to the race and so a fair amount of the run surface wasn't entirely firm and provided minimal grip.
I had settled into a comfortable stride in the first few miles along the waterside promenade before hitting the first muddy path and the single file running. At around the 5 mile mark I had the first of two falls as my footing slipped on the muddy path but I managed to recover reasonably quickly and chalked it up to experience that I would need to be careful on the way back as the path would likely be in a worse state.
The course itself was one of the more enjoyable runs that I had done over the year as the run consisted of views of the sea, rather than just pure tarmac as some of the other runs have been.
The first half of the race passed without much further event and by the halfway point turnout I was feeling strong albeit I noticed that fatigue had started to niggle at the back of my mind.
I hadn't been able to eat much the previous day and had been worried that this may have an impact if I tried to push too hard at the outset.
I passed John from WRC and shouted a hurried hello and wished him well. John has certainly come along strong over the last year and was running with apparent ease despite the toughness of the course.
Emma and her dad, Dave, had come down to cheer me on and I managed to catch a fair few glimpses of them prior to the turn around and it was a godsend to have the cheers and encouragement as I made my way through the twists and turns.
At the halfway turnaround, they commented that I was making good time, but the familiar hunger was starting to set in and I began to wonder how much further I could keep up my pace for. I made the mistake of stopping for too long at the 13 mile point and for the next few miles it was a mixture of running and stopping as I tried to summon some life into my legs.
In part, I think there was an element of emotional exhaustion that had built up in the anticipation of the race that the challenge was finally coming to an end and I was over half way to the end.
Around mile 18 or 19 I had my second fall. The muddy paths had become slick with the footfall of the other thousands of runners and the mild drizzle that had begun. My left foot caught the back of my right leg and I simply my balance faulted for a split second too long.
At that point the realisation dawned on my that I only had to reach the finish line at it would all be over. I had given up on the 3:10 target by this point as I realised that it would be highly unlikely that I would be able to make up the time that I had lost in the first half.
This year has been a thoroughly enjoyable journey for me, but tiredness had set in to the point of a residual exhaustion and I was definitely looking forward to some time away from exercise before the triathlon training begins for next years challenge. (Ironically enough, I only made it a few days before venturing into the pool for swimming!!)
The last 6 miles of the run were conquered more by brute force than any running proficiency that I had built up over the countless miles and as i returned back onto the waterside promenade, the end was finally in sight!
I wanted to push harder, to sprint over the line to bring an end to the challenge, but I simply couldnt! By this point I was exhausted and managed a mild jog to reach home in a very reasonable 3 hours and 36 minutes, my second fasted time of the year!
Em and her dad met me at the finish and shared in the realisation that 14months of planning, training, blood, sweat, tears, injuries, victories, set backs, step forwards, discoveries, miles and miles of tarmac and hundreds and thousands of steps had finally paid off and I had achieved what I never thought I would be able to do.
All i could really say as I was plied with the standard cup of sugar with a dash of tea (a highly underestimated post race drink!) was:
"never again. ever! well, almost defintely never. perhaps one, one day, in the future. at some point. well, perhaps after a few months off....."
