One week ago I ran my 16th
Canberra Marathon. It doesn't get easier as the years go by but I am gradually
getting nearer to my ultimate goal of running 20 Canberra Marathons and
becoming a Burley Griffin.
Training started seriously from 1
January as it does every year for me, my longest run this time being 37km. A
couple of my training weeks were well over 100km and I felt reasonably well
prepared in spite of a constantly niggly hamstring.
My alarm was set for just before
4am on marathon day and I woke to the sound of the rain steadily falling. It
also felt very cold - not a good omen.
However by the time I arrived at the start line the rain had stopped. It
was still cold but that's not a bad thing when running 42.2km and there was no wind at 6.25am. The first 5km felt
tough as there is a slight hill heading to Parliament House which feels like a
mountain at the start of a long run without a proper warm-up but after that I
found my rhythm and began to feel comfortable.
It is a pretty course running past
many of Canberra icons including Old Parliament
House, new Parliament House, the High Court, the National Art
Gallery Canberra
At about the 10km mark I ran with
a lady who last year ran seven marathons in seven days and in June will do it
again. She is raising money for Bravehearts, a charity to help abused children.
We ran together for about 10km and she was loads of fun calling out our names
to spectators and keeping me entertained. It certainly helped the time go by. I
lost her when she ran ahead at a water stop but at about 35km I saw her again
and surprisingly I ended up finishing about ten minutes ahead of her.
During the entire course my Dave
rode his bike and appeared whenever he could calling out encouragement and
keeping me smiling. It was also exciting to be joined by speedygeoff when I had about 7km to go. He ran a few
kilometres with me which boosted my spirits considerably.
The spectators and volunteers are
what makes a marathon doable. They are the people who keep the competitors
going, who really get us to the finish line. I cannot express my gratitude
enough.
At about 25km the temperature
dropped even more and the rain returned. It was light and refreshing for a few
kilometres and then the heavens really opened. The last few kms were difficult
especially as the course had been altered a little bit to create an extra loop
which also created an extra 550metres to the total distance! I was very happy
indeed to reach that finish line in the pouring rain and with a huge relieved
smile on my face.
 |
| Griffins (those who have run at least ten Canberra Marathons) |
Finish time: 4:43:25 (2 minutes slower than last year)
Place in age group: 3rd
