29 replies to this topic

[KevinCassidy]

I've just received a text from the legend herself, Pink lady [Wendy Crebbin].

Having battled 40 degree heat in Namibia then sub zero temperatures in Spain, she is now in Rome and preparing for the Rome Marathon this Sunday.

Lots of good CR vibes are heading your way, PL.

[Digger]

Keep us updated, she is an incredible lady.

[Tiger Boy]

Go Wendy.
Looking forward to hearing about all the adventures when you get back.

[maryclaire]

thanks for passing that on - I was wondering just yesterday how she was going.  I can't wait to hear of the adventures when she returns home.

[courtlylove]

Yes, please add my best wishes to PL for Rome.

CL

[Dizzey]

All the best PinkLady (Wendy) for a fabulous marathon in Rome.

I look forward to hearing all about Rome and your other adventures on your return!!

[Cato]

Good luck for the run Wendy.
I was in Rome last August and absolutely loved the place, however I noted the number of potholes and cobble stones which are not exactly "runner friendly".
Just keep an eye on the ground and watch where you are stepping and you will be OK.
Hope you have a great run and look forward to hearing how you went.

Buona fortuna
Ci vediamo

Cato

[alisonjc]

Go PL go!! Then tell us all about it!!

[Morley]

Good luck PL. Back to back Rome Marathons. I hope it's a new PB. Cheers.

[KevinCassidy]

I've just had another text from PL.

Marathon completed.  Run was painful at times...long story.

Pleased to have been marginally under my goal of 5hr 30min

33 minutes better than 2007

[Dizzey]

Congratulations Pink Lady.

I hope the "pain" part of the marathon wasn't too bad and hasn't left any residual injury.

Looking forward to your return so I can hear all about it!!

[alisonjc]

Well done PL!!  

[Pink Lady]

Thanks to Kevin for posting my text messages, and thanks to each of you who sent good wishes.

I will report on my adventures in 3 messages over the next few days
tonight - the 5 weeks leading up to Rome
next - the marathon experience
and finally - something about the organisation of a running event that has almost 100,000 participants

Part 1
I probably didn't have the 'ideal' preparation because conditions made it difficult for me to get in longer runs once I left Australia. As time went on I appreciated more and more the friendly assistance that CR's had given me to get some long runs in before I left in mid February.
I spend the first 16 days of my trip in Namibia. Temperatures reached ~30 degrees C shortly after 6 in the morning and were consistantly around 40 C during the day.
After 32 hours of travel and being in transit (plus a 9 hour time difference) I couldn't wait to put on my running gear. Within a couple of hours of landing I was just in time to join in the Windhoek Harriers regular Tuesday evening 5 k run and socal gathering. They are a friendly bunch and I was disappointed not to to be able to join in any of their other activies because of work commitments.
I did go for one early morning outdoor run into a parkland area and was kindly warned by the local constabulary that it was not a safe place for an old lady on her own to be. I also spent a few days in Etosha which is a wonderful wildlife reserve - but not the place to go running if you don't want to get eaten by something.
Because of this, and the heat, I joined the very well equipped gym and did most of my training there. Even-so in one training session I lost 1 kilo in weight running 10k on a tread mill. Other than that my other major source of exercise was a couple of Saturday morning hikes with a local group who go out each week into the hills surrounding Windhoek.

In early March I flew to Spain. I had decided to go to the south thinking that the conditions would be fairly similar to Rome. What I had not counted on was a unique storm system that moved from the Arctic Circle through the UK before hitting Portugal and Spain. This caused all sorts of unexpected situations:- floods, high ocean tides, land-slides, extreme winds, snow down to sea level in the south east, and major power blackouts when the pylons snapped in the cold temperatures.
Considering all that, I was fortunate that I was able to get in one 2.5 hour run along the coast from Malaga. The only things I had to contend with were ~5C temperature, the wind, and debris and some erosion of the pathway from the high tides.
I then moved to Granada, which was even colder (although no wind). I hadn't quite realised that it is the closest city to the Seirra Nevada mountains and a popular spot for skiers and people who want to do high altitude training. Although much of the city seems to be built on very steep slopes I managed to find a pleasant park-garden area which was popular with runners. One thing I did learn in my couple of ~10k morning runs there is that it is really hard to raise a sweat in minus temperatures when running in a teeshirt and shorts.

Finally, the week before the marathon I moved to Rome where, like all tourists, I spent a lot of time walking. My accommodation was deliberately quite close to the Villa Borghese which is a huge area of parkland, and close to the course of the marthon.
On the Tuesday I went out for what I intended to be ~10-12k. Unfortunately within the first 5k I twisted my ankle on a steep dowhill track. For a nasty few minutes I had visions of revisiting the whole broken foot scenario. Having reassured myself that nothing was broken, I proceeded to hobble back to the hotel.
On the Thursday I decided the ankle was OK, and enjoyed a final 10k jog with a bit of additional faster running. I was feeling so good at the end of that run that I restrained myself from going further.

Ready for the marathon. Bring it on!

Edited by Pink Lady, 25 March 2010 - 06:57 PM.

[DuckGirl]

PL you are an amazing woman and a great inspiration. Can't wait to read the next installment.

[Dizzey]

Pink Lady, on Mar 25 2010, 07:54 PM, said:

Thanks to Kevin for posting my text messages, and thanks to each of you who sent good wishes.

I will report on my adventures in 3 messages over the next few days
tonight - the 5 weeks leading up to Rome
next - the marathon experience
and finally - something about the organisation of a running event that has almost 100,000 participants

Part 1
Ready for the marathon. Bring it on!

Looking forward to Part 2.

Wow, what a lead up you had!!

Edit: Gee I wish I could spell!

Edited by Dizzey, 26 March 2010 - 08:13 AM.

[courtlylove]

What a cliff-hanger ... can't wait for Part 2!

CL

[Pink Lady]

Part 2 - the marathon experience

Slept well. Woke early. Jogged to Termini station where, along with thousands of others, was shoe-horned into one of the free trains that took us to Circus Maximus station. After doing all of the organisational things – toilet, storing the clothes pack, a quick drink – I entered corral area D, just at the foot of the Coliseum, at about 8.00 a.m (an hour before the start). Even at that stage the corral was filling up quickly.
After some debate with myself about whether I should start with the 4.45 hour pacers (red balloons), the 5 hour pacers (purple balloons), or further back, I decided that I would probably be comfortable starting at just over 6.30 min per km pace and placed myself between the red and purple.
With ~18,000 participants (~15,000 men and ~3,000 women) it was very cosy in the corral waiting for start time. It was interesting to look at all of the people around me and listen to the wide variety of languages. I believe they almost reached the maximum of 7,000 limit for international participants.
Just as we started – wouldn't you know it - I felt the need for a pee. Fortunately there was a bunch of toilets just after the start/finish line so a quick detour was in order. This made my first 5k time a bit slower than otherwise, but 33.35 mins is about my usual time for that distance so I felt that I was travelling well, still with both the red and purple balloons in sight. This section of the course, taking us south towards the Basilica di San Paulo, was slightly hilly.
The second and third 5k sections, in which we turned back towards the centre and crossed the river three times was fairly flat. However increasing the road surface was made up of small cobblestones that required close monitoring and constant small adjustments in the ankles (as per Cato's message – it definitely requires keeping your eye on the road). I was travelling well, going though the 10k and 15k markers in 1.06.45 and 1.41.37 respectively and taking on drinks and food (banana & biscuits) at each point.
At around the 14k mark I paused for a few moments to look over the stone wall on the side of the road, down onto another road below where the lead men runners were just going through the 34k mark. The first 7 runners were all African and several of them were running bare-foot (as was the winner Siraj Gena). This was all very symbolic because this year's marathon was a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the 1960 Rome Olympics where Abebe Bikila ran bare-footed to win the marathon and become the first African to win an Olympic event (it was also for me a celebration of Herb Elliott's win in the mile).
The 15-20k section took us into Vatican City and through St. Peters Square. Here the cobblestone surface – and/or my lack of longer running training - began to cause problems with my ankles and knees as well as cramps in both Achilles tendons. I slowed down a bit, however I determined to push through to the half-marathon distance keeping just in front of the 5 hour bus. I went through the half in 2.27.19 — a new PB by 22 seconds.
The next 10k was really tough going. The course followed the river north of the city and into the suburbs and had a number of reasonably steep small hills. I walked for a while to get rid of the cramps, found I could run OK again on the flat, and downhill, but anything uphill set off the cramps again. Consequently my pace dropped to over 9 minutes a k, my 30k time was 3.45 and I was beginning to despair about finishing under 6 hours.
Perhaps it's all comparative, around about that time my legs seemed to improve and the pain centres moved to my back and in particular the trapezoid muscles in my shoulders. At the same time my hands swelled so that my fingers were like little pork sausages and my feet swelled, causing my toes to jam up against the ends of my shoes. I made very good use of the wet sponges (available every 5k between the refreshment areas) to ease the pain and discovered a very interesting phenomena. Wet skins feel like you have nothing on – to the point that I really had to look a few times to check that I was decent.
From 30-35k the road surface was mainly bitumen and I was able to pick up the pace by running more and walking less. My time for 35k was 4.27 and although slow I regained a little confidence – and more determination – that I would achieve my goal time.
35-40k took us into a very busy tourist area of Rome. Through narrow winding streets (and cobblestones again) we went through Piazza Novona with its Bernini statues, did a circuit of Porta del Popolo (historically known as the place of public executions), and past the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain, to return to the base of the Fora Imperiali. You would think that all of this would have been enough to keep the mind occupied. In reality I don't remember much of this section at all – I was just concentrating on getting through to the end. My time at 40k was 5.09.20.
The last 2.195k was mainly up-hill – through Circus Maximus, around the back of Palatine Hill and the Coliseum and then down to the finish line. At that point I didn't care that it was all cobblestones. I could see my goal time getting closer and closer.
I finished. My throat was constricted so that I could barely talk and I felt like vomiting. Even the medal felt too heavy for my neck. But I finished – 5.27.00 - 3 minutes ahead of my goal and 33 minutes better than 2007.

Would I have been more successful if I had gone out slower?
Who knows, I may well have still suffered from the craps, etc (several other people I met including a guy from Dublin who ran 2.27 and a lady from Boston who ran 3.34 had similar problems) and been less satisfied that I had done my best.

Edited by Pink Lady, 26 March 2010 - 04:21 PM.

[SoLucky]

PL, finishing 3 minutes ahead of marathon goal time deserves congratulations.
Well done.

[courtlylove]

Great report, PL, and a great run from the sound of it. Congratulations!

Looking forward to catching up at a training run sometime soon.

CL

[ican]

Good stuff Pink Lady, that's an awesome achievement.  And quite inspirational, firstly regarding your effort to bust through those pain obstacles along the way and secondly, to read about such an interesting marathon course.

Thanks for the report, will be interested to read Part 3.

[PEEKIE]

Wow what an account, truely inspirational, AWESOME, Well Done Wendy

[maryclaire]

fantastic report - and a great run.  I can't imagine what those cobblestones would be like to run on for hours on end - I bet the feet were trired by the end!  Well done - and you've proven that a PB is still in the wings without being able to complete a "prerfect" training regime.

[Dizzey]

What a sensational run PL.

Running through pain and on cobblestones, awe-inspiring stuff.

I really look forward to catching up for a run soon to hear even more about it all.

PS I've booked our accomodation for GOR - you , Spectre, Julie (for our cheer squad) and me!!

[Pink Lady]

Dizzey, on Mar 28 2010, 08:03 PM, said:

I really look forward to catching up for a run soon to hear even more about it all.
PS I've booked our accomodation for GOR - you , Spectre, Julie (for our cheer squad) and me!!

Thanks Dizzey I was wondering whether we were still on for the GOR. I had better get my entry in. Hope to see you real soon.

[Pink Lady]

Thank you for all of your responses. I really appreciate the fact that you have been following me through my rather long-winded reports.

Here is the third and final part - a few comments about the efficent and effective organisation of a running event that had almost 100,000 participants

The Rome marathon event seems to be embraced by the city in a way that I would like to see happening more in local events. And it is not just a single day event. It is actively promoted amongst a number of groups throughout the year to encourage participation by the widest possible demographic.
For example, throughout the year they organise a series of training events for different groups including children in primary schools, members of elderly citizen groups, and people with 'disabilities' and/or medical conditions such as autism, to encourage them to develop their fitness so that they could participate in either the marathon, or the 4k funrun. The result of this promotion was that, alongside the marathon with ~18,000 participants, the 4k fun run involved about 80,400 participants of whom 38% were under 20 year old and 15% over 61.
They also offered free entry, free accommodation, and prize money for 'disabled' participants including wheelchair; hand bike, blind and deaf.
Also, within the marathon, grouped together behind the slowest runners, was a corral for what they called 'active walkers'. Their participation was greatly facilitated by the time limit or 7.30 hours. The roads were not only closed to traffic and tourists until 3.30 p.m. they were kept clear for participants (well almost clear) by volunteers and police. This was quite a feat, especially in the section between 35-40k. To assist in the control of tourists they had constructed solid barricades all the way along both sides of this whole section. These barricades and volunteers not only ensure the safety of the slower runners/walkers, they also ensured that even the slowest participant was not going to get lost in the labyrinth of streets.

The marathon village was open for four days prior to the actual event. This was obviously so that they could actually process all of the participants – they didn't mail out race packs and considering there were people from 83 different countries (besides Italy) that makes some sense. The thing that I most appreciated in the village was that, as well as all of the merchandising, there were a number of groups offering free testing of feet, running gait, etc and free advice without any products to sell.

This year they used a race chip which was different from anything that I have seen before. It was constructed of two interlocking pieces of plastic (about 3cm X 2cm) which was securely inserted into the number bib. At the end of the race the chip was removed with a small device that separated the two parts then clicked them back together again so that they could be recycled.

The event was extremely well resourced. They must have an extraordinary number of volunteers, supplies of food and drink, etc. There were drink stations every 5 k, with wet sponges being handed out mid-way between each – and there was no sign of them being likely to run out of food, drinks or sponges. There were also first-aid tents at each drink station with 'mobile first aiders' travelling along the route on motor scouters looking out for people who may have needed help.

The overall effectiveness of the organisation was really confirmed for me when, within 36 hours of the completion of the event – I received two e-mails, one with a link to a video of me taken at various points along the course. The other contained a table detailing my clock and real times every 5k, and at the half mara and 'arrrivo', plus links to all of the results, the overall rankings, age group rankings, etc.

Edited by Pink Lady, 30 March 2010 - 05:30 PM.

[Rell]

Fantastic PinkLady!! What an amazing effort...for someone who is about to complete her first marathon in 6-7 weeks (GOR) it is really inspiring to read your report. THANK YOU

[courtlylove]

Fantastic report, PL - makes me wish for similar organisation/support here, though I suppose with the smaller demographic that's not likely.

Looking forward to catching up at a run soon.

CL

[running sweetlee]

Congratulations Pink Lady!!  Thanks for your thorough reports, I have really enjoyed reading them.  

You truly are an inspiration!

[Pink Lady]

Thank you all once again for your interest and support.

I cannot acknowledge often enough just how much inspiration I have gained from being part of CR, and from all of the individuals who have encouraged me.



Next goals: 5k less than 30; 10k less than 60; 15k less than 90; half less than 2.15; and probably longer term - mara in 5 hours.

[Morley]

I'll look forward to catching up with you at Princes Park on the 25th. Cheers.