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Post Mortem Melbourne Marathon 2011
Posted by
Caterpillar
,
16 October 2011
·
222 views
Short version:
finished with a net time of 3:10:12. An official boston qualifier for 2013. Best time since my 20s.
Long version:
Bad night's sleep before race morning. Got to sleep okay, but woke within 4 hours. Decided to have my prerace meal then instead of a few hours before the race, which entailed sugared hot drinks and pancakes. Went back to bed but I hardly slept.
Did my best to obey the 'rules' during the carb loading phase. Managed to enjoy some mango sorbet, as well as pulp free OJ during the 2 days of carb loading. Minimal protein, fat and fibre. Rather bland.
Taped the toes with Fixomull, and plenty of bodyglide given the weather forecast was for rain. Still hadn't decided on a race pace strategy by morning, and in the end I didn't print out a pace band. Instead, I planned to start out conservatively, catch up to the 3:10 pacer, and to take it from there, depending on how I felt.
Decided to drive to the venue, parking near Fitzroy Gardens. A few runners were sitting quietly in their cars. Walked to the 'G, dropped my stuff off. Given the wet conditions, had an old coat and poncho. Did some stretches in a quiet place, then headed over to the starting line with a final stop at the little boys room.
Decided to place myself a few metres in front of the 3:20 pacer whilst waiting in the starting area. Wanted to avoid a fast start given the risk of blowing up, injuring myself whilst cold, and used the first k as a warm up.
Two small bottles of sports drink in hand. The plan was to drink one bottle, about 300ml, within the first 10 minutes of the race, then save the second bottle for the next 10km. There were not going to be any water bags/sachets so I knew hydration was going to be a challenge. Only two coffees that morning, not three. Last time I had three drinks pre-race I had to take a brief pit stop at the half way mark.
Took about 35 seconds from gun to cross the starting line. The starting area is wide but there are two narrow bottlenecked corners during the initial 2km.
Spotted the 3:10 pacers after about 10-15 minutes. Clarkey was holding up the rear with Odie at the front, giving plenty of support and advice, eg. not to panick if we fell behind after a drink station and to avoid sprinting too hard back to the bus. Clarkey would keep an eye on this and advise Odie when the group had reformed after a drinks stop.
Felt a bit queasy at around 7-12km,
not that keen on taking much fluid at this stage. I had a worse experience during Willy and wondered if it was due to vegies and protein the day before the race, and a biggish breakfast on race morning. This time, I wondered if it was the OJ, or just way too much food during carb loading...or just nerves? Maybe I'll drink coke or lemonade next time instead of OJ.
Some excitement around Albert Park. A black swan decided to walk across the road in front of all the runners. Odie shouted out to the runners to give way. There were a lot of other less exciting obstacles during the race and Odie was on the ball in giving advanced warning on such things as parked cars, jutting out kerbs, red hats, fences, etc. Another good reason not to wear ipods during a race. Gave a shout out to Grechie who was taking a video at Albert Park.
The esplanade section of the race is very flat and totals 15km. My garmin started making very annoying noises which was probably due to sweat, and distracted me until I was able to lock the bezel.
The north westerly made itself very evident after the turnaround at the most southerly part of the route, showing itself in my garmin splits. Managed to partly mitigate against this by following Odie's advice and tuck in within the pack as a shield. That said, the wind did help to keep me cool after the relative windless condition for the approximately 8km southward section of the esplanade.
At about the halfway mark a minor twinge of my left anterior tibial around the top of the ankle was just barely noticeable, and probably meant that I hadn't broken in my new pair of runners sufficiently. Had done 10km in them prior to the race. Will need to remember to do a little more for the next one. Didn't really bother me that much for the remainder of the race.
The pacers had formed separate 3:10 buses by this stage, around 5-10 seconds apart, with Odie leading the first and Clarkey the second. The turn back into Fitzroy St was coming up, signalling the 30km mark and the banter had been diminishing. Odie warned us that it was time to confront our demons, a process which was hastened by the rise up Fitzroy St. Before we had a chance to recover from that, we were warned that we were about to hit the dreaded merge. Again, plenty of support from Odie through this section.
Stayed on the right on St Kilda Rd, and at Sturt St, Odie advised to run on the left, and along city rd. Here a marathoner went about 10 metres ahead of us and redirected half marathoners to move to the right. Thank you whoever you are!
Next challenge was the Linlithgow Ave/Birdwood Ave rise, which happens at a very vulnerable time of the race given the incline, and I think the group started breaking up once we passed the shrine, and the slight downhill thereon on wasn't enough to pull everyone back in. At Domain Rd Odie asked those of us at the front of the bus to keep going, whilst he tried to regroup some of the others.
So I left the peleton of the official bus behind me, but I was probably only around 5-10 seconds ahead of it. Far better scenario than the usual case of hearing a stampede of runners who are in a bus encroaching upon you. A second shocking merge
with another bunch of runners around St Kilda Rd, through Flinders St and to the finish. At this stage of the race, I lose some awareness for both myself and my environment. I can only usual focus on what is immediately in front of me. Have trouble reading my garmin too. I think my cadence started to drop a little bit without the pacer, and slowed down a little more, especially with the rise on Flinders St.
The finishing area after the race was badly congested, mainly with half marathoners and 10km runners who had just finished. Had to ask for directions to get my medal, then the showbag, then slowly made my way back to get my bag of clothes, get into some warm clothing. A lot of grumpy people annoyed with the congestion. Too right. Hydrated a bit, and then tried to negotiate back through the crowd to get back to my car. That took a long while. It was ugly.
Fantastic support from the volunteers and spectators, and of course the pacers. I often heard "go 3:10" from spectators and other runners. A few people held up signs with supportive comments. The most memorable was "run as if you just stole something" ! There were also two women dressed up in cheetah costumes.
Lessons I've learned on this one:
1. 10km on a new pair of runners may not be enough to loosen them up. Will try to wear them in a little bit more
2. My garmin settings were set to display average pace, time, and distance. In future I will need to set up a second screen with current cadence, cadence for last lap, and pace for last lap. Hopefully I will be able to pick up any slowing of cadence and rectify before it slows me down. Also, given my reduced awareness, I am unable to pick up on the two seconds when the garmin flashes my last lap for the last bit of the race.
3. Will need to bezel lock my garmin shortly after race start.
4. avoid OJ during carb loading, even if it's pulp free; just lemonade or coke or sports drink instead. Should I also eat a little less?
5. the best predictor of my time were the speed sessions I undertook in the month prior to the race, in particular a time trial about 5 days before the day. Will use that as a guide for the next race. Regulation long pace runs did not correlate so well.
6. I've also got to learn to rest the legs the day before and stay sitting for as much as possible for the preceding 24 hours.
7. It can be tough to negotiate drink stations when with a pacing group. I would try to move quickly to the middle of the road after getting my drink, but failed to realise that I was obstructing other runners who were not getting a drink.
In hindsight, I think the persisting virus impacted on my preparation, although I think I had essentially recovered from it by race day. However there wasn't enough time to catch up on lost training opportunity, although the weight loss probably helped me get a better time compared to the Willy marathon, and an evenly run race, with the help of the pacer, also helped give me my best time since returning to the sport a few years ago.
Have already paid my entry for my next marathon: The Sri-Chinmoy Williamstown Marathon on the 27th May 2012.
finished with a net time of 3:10:12. An official boston qualifier for 2013. Best time since my 20s.
Long version:
Bad night's sleep before race morning. Got to sleep okay, but woke within 4 hours. Decided to have my prerace meal then instead of a few hours before the race, which entailed sugared hot drinks and pancakes. Went back to bed but I hardly slept.
Did my best to obey the 'rules' during the carb loading phase. Managed to enjoy some mango sorbet, as well as pulp free OJ during the 2 days of carb loading. Minimal protein, fat and fibre. Rather bland.
Taped the toes with Fixomull, and plenty of bodyglide given the weather forecast was for rain. Still hadn't decided on a race pace strategy by morning, and in the end I didn't print out a pace band. Instead, I planned to start out conservatively, catch up to the 3:10 pacer, and to take it from there, depending on how I felt.
Decided to drive to the venue, parking near Fitzroy Gardens. A few runners were sitting quietly in their cars. Walked to the 'G, dropped my stuff off. Given the wet conditions, had an old coat and poncho. Did some stretches in a quiet place, then headed over to the starting line with a final stop at the little boys room.
Decided to place myself a few metres in front of the 3:20 pacer whilst waiting in the starting area. Wanted to avoid a fast start given the risk of blowing up, injuring myself whilst cold, and used the first k as a warm up.
Two small bottles of sports drink in hand. The plan was to drink one bottle, about 300ml, within the first 10 minutes of the race, then save the second bottle for the next 10km. There were not going to be any water bags/sachets so I knew hydration was going to be a challenge. Only two coffees that morning, not three. Last time I had three drinks pre-race I had to take a brief pit stop at the half way mark.
Took about 35 seconds from gun to cross the starting line. The starting area is wide but there are two narrow bottlenecked corners during the initial 2km.
Spotted the 3:10 pacers after about 10-15 minutes. Clarkey was holding up the rear with Odie at the front, giving plenty of support and advice, eg. not to panick if we fell behind after a drink station and to avoid sprinting too hard back to the bus. Clarkey would keep an eye on this and advise Odie when the group had reformed after a drinks stop.
Felt a bit queasy at around 7-12km,
not that keen on taking much fluid at this stage. I had a worse experience during Willy and wondered if it was due to vegies and protein the day before the race, and a biggish breakfast on race morning. This time, I wondered if it was the OJ, or just way too much food during carb loading...or just nerves? Maybe I'll drink coke or lemonade next time instead of OJ. Some excitement around Albert Park. A black swan decided to walk across the road in front of all the runners. Odie shouted out to the runners to give way. There were a lot of other less exciting obstacles during the race and Odie was on the ball in giving advanced warning on such things as parked cars, jutting out kerbs, red hats, fences, etc. Another good reason not to wear ipods during a race. Gave a shout out to Grechie who was taking a video at Albert Park.
The esplanade section of the race is very flat and totals 15km. My garmin started making very annoying noises which was probably due to sweat, and distracted me until I was able to lock the bezel.
The north westerly made itself very evident after the turnaround at the most southerly part of the route, showing itself in my garmin splits. Managed to partly mitigate against this by following Odie's advice and tuck in within the pack as a shield. That said, the wind did help to keep me cool after the relative windless condition for the approximately 8km southward section of the esplanade.
At about the halfway mark a minor twinge of my left anterior tibial around the top of the ankle was just barely noticeable, and probably meant that I hadn't broken in my new pair of runners sufficiently. Had done 10km in them prior to the race. Will need to remember to do a little more for the next one. Didn't really bother me that much for the remainder of the race.
The pacers had formed separate 3:10 buses by this stage, around 5-10 seconds apart, with Odie leading the first and Clarkey the second. The turn back into Fitzroy St was coming up, signalling the 30km mark and the banter had been diminishing. Odie warned us that it was time to confront our demons, a process which was hastened by the rise up Fitzroy St. Before we had a chance to recover from that, we were warned that we were about to hit the dreaded merge. Again, plenty of support from Odie through this section.
Stayed on the right on St Kilda Rd, and at Sturt St, Odie advised to run on the left, and along city rd. Here a marathoner went about 10 metres ahead of us and redirected half marathoners to move to the right. Thank you whoever you are!
Next challenge was the Linlithgow Ave/Birdwood Ave rise, which happens at a very vulnerable time of the race given the incline, and I think the group started breaking up once we passed the shrine, and the slight downhill thereon on wasn't enough to pull everyone back in. At Domain Rd Odie asked those of us at the front of the bus to keep going, whilst he tried to regroup some of the others.
So I left the peleton of the official bus behind me, but I was probably only around 5-10 seconds ahead of it. Far better scenario than the usual case of hearing a stampede of runners who are in a bus encroaching upon you. A second shocking merge
with another bunch of runners around St Kilda Rd, through Flinders St and to the finish. At this stage of the race, I lose some awareness for both myself and my environment. I can only usual focus on what is immediately in front of me. Have trouble reading my garmin too. I think my cadence started to drop a little bit without the pacer, and slowed down a little more, especially with the rise on Flinders St. The finishing area after the race was badly congested, mainly with half marathoners and 10km runners who had just finished. Had to ask for directions to get my medal, then the showbag, then slowly made my way back to get my bag of clothes, get into some warm clothing. A lot of grumpy people annoyed with the congestion. Too right. Hydrated a bit, and then tried to negotiate back through the crowd to get back to my car. That took a long while. It was ugly.
Fantastic support from the volunteers and spectators, and of course the pacers. I often heard "go 3:10" from spectators and other runners. A few people held up signs with supportive comments. The most memorable was "run as if you just stole something" ! There were also two women dressed up in cheetah costumes.
Lessons I've learned on this one:
1. 10km on a new pair of runners may not be enough to loosen them up. Will try to wear them in a little bit more
2. My garmin settings were set to display average pace, time, and distance. In future I will need to set up a second screen with current cadence, cadence for last lap, and pace for last lap. Hopefully I will be able to pick up any slowing of cadence and rectify before it slows me down. Also, given my reduced awareness, I am unable to pick up on the two seconds when the garmin flashes my last lap for the last bit of the race.
3. Will need to bezel lock my garmin shortly after race start.
4. avoid OJ during carb loading, even if it's pulp free; just lemonade or coke or sports drink instead. Should I also eat a little less?
5. the best predictor of my time were the speed sessions I undertook in the month prior to the race, in particular a time trial about 5 days before the day. Will use that as a guide for the next race. Regulation long pace runs did not correlate so well.
6. I've also got to learn to rest the legs the day before and stay sitting for as much as possible for the preceding 24 hours.
7. It can be tough to negotiate drink stations when with a pacing group. I would try to move quickly to the middle of the road after getting my drink, but failed to realise that I was obstructing other runners who were not getting a drink.
In hindsight, I think the persisting virus impacted on my preparation, although I think I had essentially recovered from it by race day. However there wasn't enough time to catch up on lost training opportunity, although the weight loss probably helped me get a better time compared to the Willy marathon, and an evenly run race, with the help of the pacer, also helped give me my best time since returning to the sport a few years ago.
Have already paid my entry for my next marathon: The Sri-Chinmoy Williamstown Marathon on the 27th May 2012.
Regards
Steven