The 78KM Question... Stronger or Weaker?

Somewhere between Maidenhead and Cookham I felt the wheels becoming a bit wobbly on the Reece machine.  The glances at my watch were becoming a little desperate and I found myself willing the GPS data to show the miles ticking over quicker and getting me close to the next break station.  Occasionally I pressed a hand into my abdominal area, grimacing at the stitch pain beginning to emanate.

I’d assessed in advance that I’d find this the toughest part of the Thames Path Challenge.  The stretch from the Eton Wick rest station (62.5 KM/39 miles) to the Cookham rest station (78 KM/48.5 miles) was taking me not just beyond the longest distance I’d covered in training but further than I had ever covered within a single day.  Reaching the 100KM finish line at all was suddenly in question, let alone my aim of finishing in under 14 hours.  No doubt I was getting weaker and I knew things would come down to how I responded to the rest break I would be taking at Cookham.  Could the rest make me stronger or would I continue to weaken?

Until those moments the day could hardly have gone better.  A cab shared with fellow challengers, Caitlin and Anne-Marie, had dropped me near the start area at Bishop’s Park, Fulham in good time and I’d completed registration the day before so had no worries about timing.  Okay, I had a bit of “morning head”, having set the alarm to get up at 4am, but the adrenalin was beginning to compensate nicely and, as I did a short warm up jog, I noted with sheer delight that I was moving fluidly and comfortably, there were no worrying niggles nor stiffness.  I knew I was as well prepared as I could reasonably have expected to be and it would have been greedy to have expected better of the weather, set to be dry, not too bright, not hot and not much more than a breeze.

Incredibly, like much of the rest of the day that was to follow, time disappeared in a blink and there we were being called to the start line.   Caitlin and Anne-Marie were going to be walking the 50KM challenge so with parting wishes of good luck we separated at the start as I pushed on, looking to get up to my intended running pace.  As I had practiced throughout my long runs in training, I settled into a run/walk strategy – 15 minutes of running followed by 3 minutes of walking during which I would have a nibble of an energy bar and a few swigs of water or electrolyte drink.  Within two iterations of the run/walk cycle the field of runners had thinned out considerably leaving the path ahead clear.  I was nicely in my “long run zone” with tunes running through my mind at a beat consistent with my running pace.

I was happy to cross off bridges from my mental list – Hammersmith, Barnes, Chiswick, Kew Rail, Kew –  somewhere in this stretch I just about had awareness to recognize and call out to a group of Bearcat runners, led by Romit, heading in the opposite direction.  A mile or two later and suddenly there was another familiar Bearcat face – Sally – running alongside me and bringing me to the realization that the first break station at Old Deer Park, Richmond, was just ahead.  

And then absolute joy as there was a bigger group of Bearcats cheering me into the rest station.  Among them Jess, extraordinary Ultra-runner herself who had given me so much great advice, and now taking charge of getting me tea and a croissant and filling my water bottles. 

Photos taken, tea slurped and croissant munched, while I could happily have spent more time with my mates, I knew I had a schedule to keep and off I strode but now joined by Jon from the Bearcats who with amazing kindness had offered to run with me for the next 20 miles.  

This has become something of a tradition for Jon who has run this stretch three years in a row to support different Bearcats competing in the Thames Path Challenge.   Even before we reached Richmond Bridge, there was Bernie, another Bearcat, who ran with us for the next 5 minutes and then a little further along, around Ham, yet another Bearcat, Lee came running towards us and slapped hands as we crossed.

The iterations of walk/run cycles were piling up as we went by Teddington Lock, over Kingston Bridge and back over to the other side of the River at Hampton Court Bridge where, before long, we reached the second rest station at Hurst Park.  A slightly longer stop this time as I changed tops, munched crisps and Jaffa Cakes and slurped more tea but we moved on again slightly ahead of the schedule I’d planned.

We were now on a stretch that we had both run doing the Green Belt Relay in May and it was great to be enjoying the views at the more relaxed pace of the Thames Path Challenge.  As we passed a rowing club we were cheered by the sight of another Bearcat, Rob.  Having crossed the River again at Walton Bridge we were soon at the third rest station in Manor Park, Shepperton but this was little more than an in/out stop managed in less than 10 minutes.

We continued to keep a consistent pace, at the faster end of the range I’d planned for, and were soon counting down the miles to reach Staines where Jon’s 20-mile stint was coming to an end.  Jon’s wife, Sue was there to film our arrival and with an emotional slapping of hands I was off by myself and focussed on reaching the halfway rest stop at Runnymede, now just a couple of miles away.

It was great to be met at Runnymede, by yet another Bearcat, Susan, who was there as an official volunteer and scanned me in.  I reached the 50KM point at 12.39pm in a time of 5h49m which was 10 minutes ahead of the time I’d planned for.

I had planned on having a meal during this break, but this was one thing that had been difficult to model in training and I wasn’t too sure how I was going to cope with the generous mound of pasta that was handed to me.  Nevertheless, once I got started, I found myself munching steadily enough through it, washed down with more tea – a welcome break from energy bars and electrolyte drink.

One of the key things to remember at the halfway break was to collect my “main bag” that I’d had transported from the start.  I was glad that one of the things I’d done in my preparations was to have written a list of all the things I needed to do in this break.  Key things included changing shirt and socks and squeezing into my Ultra-vest a base layer, light fleece and headtorch.  With things swapped over, I dropped off my main bag again to be transported onwards – I was already looking forward to seeing it again at Henley!

Overall, I took about 10 minutes more than I’d planned at the halfway break, but I felt well set as I moved off once more, well and truly focussed on reaching the next rest stop at Eton Wick, about 8 miles away.  I saw this as a crucial stage in the event but one that, at that moment, I was very confident of tackling.  I was running with a confidence born on the back of the recces I’d done that made this next stage of the course recognisable and the fact that my longest training, run just four weeks previously, had gone a couple of miles beyond the 39 mile mark that I would be reaching at Eton Wick.  Nevertheless, I didn’t want to reach Eton Wick feeling as tired as I had felt at the end of that longest training run.

Due to a mixture of the distance I’d already run, a bit of rustiness creeping in because of the near 40-minute break I’d taken and also from an awareness of the need to carefully control my efforts, my pace was a few notches down.  Nevertheless, I was still hovering around the 9m30s per mile pace in my running phases and I was continuing to strictly apply the 15/3 run/walk strategy.  There were moments when I had some doubts that I was sustaining the pace but, on checking my watch, I had the satisfaction of finding my pace was consistent.  And in this section of the course I had to tackle an awkward bridge (Albert Bridge – with a pretty steep run of steps to scale), followed by a tricky section of path (inches wide, laced with tree roots and sandwiched between nettles and thorns), a busy main road to get across twice, another tricky path (not quite so bad), another set of steps to scale a bridge (Victoria Bridge) and then a spell of more relaxed running as I headed towards and then  past Windsor, crossing Windsor Bridge in the process.  From there it was only about 3 miles to the Eton Wick break station and with my strength still intact, I maintained the pace on this far easier section of the course.

My arrival at Eton Wick was officially 2.39pm, over 5 minutes ahead of the time I’d planned for.  However, as with the stop at Runnymede, I didn’t have any particular focus on the time that was elapsing during the break and I dawdled my way through drinking tea, eating crisps, filling water bottles and sending progress update messages on social media.  Overall, I took 23 minutes compared with the 15 minutes that had been in my plan.

Once again, I found setting off after the break a bit more difficult than it had been earlier but after a few minutes I felt comfortable enough.  However, I did find my pace notably dropping, reduced to 10 minutes per mile.  This did seem strange as in the early miles of this stage I still felt strong and without the evidence of my watch I would not have realised my pace was in decline.

While I’d marked the section from Runnymede to Eton Wick as crucial, the section I was now on, from Eton Wick to Cookham, was going to be critical.  This was now taking me beyond the distance I’d run in training and it was also the longest individual section of the course.

Something I haven’t mentioned yet is how quiet the paths were and how infrequently it was that I would see others who were doing the event.  In the 9 mile stretch between Eton Wick and Cookham I doubt I saw more than 10 fellow ‘challengers’.  Near enough everyone I saw appeared to be as equally fatigued or even more so than I felt, something I was able to take some reassurance from!

Maidenhead Bridge was a notable landmark on this stage – another crossing of the river but also a slightly frustrating wait for traffic lights to change in order to get back to the river path.  About 3 miles into this stretch, while still keeping the 15/3 cycle going, the data on my watch showed my running pace notably dropping and this continued over the following miles.  As well as this, I also started to feel a stitch pain building up.  The last couple of run/walk cycles in the lead up to the rest stop at Cookham were tough going and I started to have nagging doubts about whether I would be able to muster anything more than a walk for much of the remaining 14 miles ahead of me.  I come back to the question from my opening paragraphs - could I get stronger with the break or would I continue to weaken?

It was a massive relief when, finally, I reached the rest point at Cookham.  I needed to find somewhere to get my head straight - preferably dark, quiet and with no distractions… I headed straight to one of the (thankfully clean) portaloos!  I think it was 10 minutes or more before I emerged, now with a little more composure, and headed to the marquee to check food options.  I chose a few slices of pizza and a generous portion of pineapple chunks, washed down with more tea.   My stomach, which had been rebelling against the possibility of any more energy bars or electrolyte mix, seemed to be more accepting of this mix and I began to feel a bit more restored.  Between munches and slurps I posted some brief messages on WhatsApp groups and Facebook and checked for incoming messages. 

All the messages of support were brilliant to read and two in particular stood out.  My daughter Carmella had forwarded me a video message that at the time I couldn’t hear but I could see well enough came from The Gambia – it was the two young sons of Lamin Kinteh (who I mentioned in my last post).  While I didn’t hear properly what they said until later, it gave me a real lift knowing that I was in their thoughts.  The second message arrived literally as I was sitting there seeking inspiration.  This was another video message – with great delight I watched my daughter Chloe, her husband Darren and their three children, Harry, Lila and Evie, all yelling their support… “Come on Grandad… Run Reece Run!”

Feeling lifted, I got on with the chore of refilling water bottles and getting ready to set off. For the first time I felt it necessary to wear the microfleece top I’d been carrying in my Ultra-vest as there was an increasing chill in the early evening (5.25pm) air.

After all my earlier stops I’d set off immediately with a run but this time I felt the need to build up momentum more gradually.  I walked for a minute or two and then, having broken into a very stiff run (‘run’ perhaps being an exaggeration), I came to a very slight detour to go around where a funfair was being set up.   This unfortunately took me into an area with very long grass and I quickly decided there was little point in trying to run through this.  This wasn’t for long but then, having just got back to the path again and resumed running, I reached another bridge crossing and again my running was interrupted.  The rest of that 15-minute spell of running was far from smooth and then, with the sun emerging again and the wind dropping, I decided the fleece had to be taken off which elongated the ensuing 3-minute walking spell.  The answer to the question ‘stronger or weaker’ was definitely still in the balance!

Finally, with the fleece stowed away again, I decided I really had to knuckle down.  This time I had a proper 15-minute running stint and got myself to a slightly better and sustained pace.  Nevertheless, it was still a little slower than the 12 minutes per mile pace I’d set as a benchmark in my planning of this stage.  My next cycle of running was better – now faster than the benchmark pace.  I calculated that the next break station was about 2 miles away and this spurred me on.  In my next phase of running my pace was even better, at about 11m30s per mile.  I saw out the full 15 minutes of running and then took just a minute for the following walk phase that took me over Temple Footbridge.  On crossing the bridge, I picked up the running again for the last half mile to Hurleyford Farm – the rest stop at 88KM (c. 55 miles) – arriving at 6.45pm (11h55m).

Taking on crisps, Jaffa Cakes and two cups of tea and sending a few messages led to a longer stop than the 15 minutes I’d planned but this was nevertheless shorter than my previous stop at Cookham.  Now past 7pm, it was definitely cool enough to warrant the fleece going on.  As I readied myself to set off I checked my timings. I was about 15 minutes behind my planned schedule but I knew that if I could keep the 15/3 run/walk strategy going with a run pace of 12 minutes per mile I would be comfortably inside the 14 hour target time I’d set myself.  Stronger or weaker?  I was about to find out!

Off I went, now in the diminishing light of the early evening. The initial part of the stage once again involved a couple of bridge crossings which inevitably slowed my running pace.  I tried to compensate by taking less than 3 minutes in the following walk part of the cycle. 

Now I was at a more straight forward section of the course and I looked down at my legs… “Stronger or weaker?”  Their response with every stride, “Stronger! Stronger! Stronger!”  

I could feel a renewed energy and I was travelling at comfortably faster than the required 12 minutes per mile pace.  For the first time in 3 hours my predominant feeling was one of energy rather than of just hanging in or worse.  It was quite weird as it felt like I was running again at the pace I’d set at the start of the day although in reality I was actually much slower at around 11 mins per mile compared with the 9m15s per mile that I’d sustained through most of the first half. 

Again, I decided to cut the amount of time on the next walking phase to less than three minutes.  On the following run phase I maintained my pace through the full 15 minutes, though it was now getting very dark.  With the last hint of daylight disappearing, in the next walk phase I had to take extra time, rummaging through my Ultra-vest to find my head torch.

With the headtorch in place and about to set off for the next cycle of running, I checked my watch – now at nearly 96KM (59.6 miles) – less than a Parkrun to go!  Setting off again, I soon reached the final stretch of path that I knew would eventually reach Henley Bridge! 

One final 3-minute walk and then, within moments of setting off again, the most wonderful sight - the illuminated arches of Henley Bridge, though distant, were clearly recognizable.  Nothing was going to stop me now! 

Step by step brought the Bridge into clearer definition and there it was!  As I reached the Bridge, I passed what appeared to be a newly married couple and I yelled out a call of “Congratulations!”  I bet they had absolutely no idea that the passing stranger calling out to them had just run almost 100KM! 

Nevertheless, there was still a bit to go and, after making the crossing, I left the welcome light of the bridge and plunged back into darkness as I picked up the river path again and headed in the direction of the finish at Mill Meadows.  This area really was dark and I began to worry that I was on a parallel path taking me away from the finish.  With great relief, suddenly there, unmistakably, was the finish area – quite weirdly only coming into view when I was almost upon it.  

A chorus of cheers called me towards the finish archway and there was Lesley waving from the side and a marshal recording my finish time and another placing a medal round my neck and pressing a glass of bubbly in my hand.  And there was Lesley and Carmella hugging me and Martyn (Lesley’s brother) shaking my hand. 

100KM completed amidst a heady mix of relief, satisfaction and love!  Furthermore, in reaching the finish at 8.39pm, my official finish time was 13h49m, a safe 10 minutes inside the target I'd set myself.

No doubt about it, I was now in an excellent mood but, as I often find, the deepest emotion took about 36 hours to set in.  When it did, I could have almost floated on the sensation of “runner’s high” which seemed to last for weeks!

Some words of credit to the Challenge Events organisers.  I have nothing but admiration for how well the Thames Path Challenge was organised!  Considering the 100KM distance that had to be covered, the course was superbly signed – there were just two points in the dark where I might have wished for one or two more flags or glowsticks but overall it must have been an incredible effort to have put out the number of signs that there were.  The rest stations were well resourced and the marshals in attendance were helpful and enthusiastic.

Will I do another 100KM Ultra?  One thing’s for sure – it won’t be in 2020!  The main issue being the amount of time I felt was necessary to dedicate to training.  Nevertheless, it was certainly an amazing experience and I found (like a good few running mates had said) that the overall physical impact was less than I generally have had with Marathons.

And that’s where I am now - preparing for the last two elements of Challenge 2019. Amsterdam Marathon on 20^th October and my third Thames Meander Marathon of the year on 2^nd November.  I was delighted to find that any residue stiffness from the Ultra had disappeared after 36 hours (thanks to foam roller and stretching exercises).  One of my toes was a bit swollen but by the end of the week it seemed okay (apart from another lost nail!) and I re-started training one week after the Ultra and with 5 weeks to prepare for Amsterdam.

A final word of heartfelt thanks for all the support on my Ultra day.  It was fantastic seeing so many friends come out to wish me well, particularly Caitlin being there at the start, Jon’s 20-mile stint and Lesley, Carmella and Martyn being there at the end.  Then there were the many social media messages of support that lifted me so much when I read them at the rest stations.  Finally, the donations to my fundraising which took off exponentially and enabled me to reach the £1,000 target I’d aimed for.

Nevertheless, while I continue Challenge 2019 the fundraising is ongoing via virginmoneygiving.com/JohnReece.  As ever, all donations are hugely appreciated!

Many thanks again!

I can see for miles...

My last post of Challenge 2019, towards the end of May, concluded with a mention of the training programme I had just started in preparation for the Thames Path Challenge 100KM Ultra taking place on 7^th September.

I had prepared a 16 week plan which started immediately following my participation in one of the Bearcat Running Club teams at the Green Belt Relay on 18/19^th May and 6 weeks after I’d completed the Vienna Marathon.

The plan has been based on a standard pattern of 4 running days per week, usually Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday with a Pilates and swimming evening typically on Wednesday, a bodyweight strength workout on Friday and, on a daily basis, a mixture of stretches and foam roller exercises to get me moving each morning. 

Where I’ve done a long run on the Saturday, I’ve tended to run with the Bearcat Running Club on the Sunday, usually a run of about 10KM or sometimes something more technical such as hills or intervals.  Alternatively, if I’ve done my long run on the Sunday, I’ve tried to do some faster work on the Saturday, usually at a 5KM Parkrun.  The Tuesday runs have developed over the training period with the latter weeks moving up to runs of 10 miles or more with half an eye on preparing for the Amsterdam Marathon in October.   Thursdays, where possible, have been interval sessions usually running with Ranelagh Harriers at Isleworth Track.

The long weekend runs are the cornerstone of the plan and I’ve been absolutely thrilled with how well they’ve gone following the first two or three when I was still getting used to the run/walk strategy I’d adopted for the Ultra.  As I explained in my May post, when I first used this approach I found myself stiffening up towards the end of 16 mile runs.  Not great when I still needed to find a further 46 miles in order to complete the Ultra!

By the third or fourth long run, I began enjoying the strategy a lot more and have really taken to the rhythm which allows more time and energy to enjoy the surroundings I’m running through.  I stick very rigidly to a cycle of 15 minutes of running (starting off at about a minute a mile slower than my marathon pace) followed by 3 minutes of walking during which time I have a bite from an energy bar and a few swigs of water or electrolyte drink.  At intervals of about 7 to 9 miles, depending on things such as the location of cafes and public toilets, I’ve taken a break of about 5-20 minutes, depending on the stage I’ve reached and my needs at the time!

I knew I’d made a breakthrough on the fourth of my long runs when I ran from home to Windsor, covering 26.5 miles.  This was on a really hot June day and, though I’d started  in the relatively cooler temperature at 7am, by late morning and into the afternoon it was getting close to 30°C.  A week later, in similar weather conditions, I stretched out to 31 miles and one week after that I had the best of the series in notably cooler conditions and covered 32 miles in 6 hours.  This was yet another breakthrough as my running pace showed only a modest decline in the second half of the run whereas in the previous two weeks I’d found myself slowing noticeably in the latter miles.

Since that series of runs I’ve changed the intensity a little by doing a “mega-run” only every second week to achieve a further 31 miler and most recently a run of 41.7 miles undertaken through an initial run of 15.5 miles followed, after a 1 hour break, by the Thames Meander Marathon.  This was always marked out in my plan to be the longest run but over the weeks I’d changed my mind a number of times about exactly how far it was going to be.  In the days leading up to the run I increasingly felt a psychological need to get past 40 miles so I committed myself to running about 15 miles in advance of the marathon. 

It seems I am fated with the Thames Meander Marathon!  I have now run in this event three times (having done so previously in November 2015 and March this year) and each time it has blown an absolute gale!  I’ve run along the Thames so many times now over the last six years and can only think of possibly a couple of occasions when the wind conditions have been as difficult as they have been on the three times I’ve run the event.  Nevertheless, on this occasion the run went pretty well, though I was a bit more fatigued than I would have liked by the end.  Even so, on reflection, I have convinced myself that with the better resourced break stops there will be on the Thames Path Challenge (and hopefully better weather conditions) I will be less tired at the comparable distance.  I think I was too tired in the immediate aftermath to feel too much satisfaction but I’m becoming increasingly pleased with myself that, inclusive of all stops, I completed the 41.7 miles in just over 8 hours 20 minutes (my official time for the Thames Meander being 4 hours 45 minutes).

Over the twelve weeks of the training I’ve done so far, I have had a couple of minor concerns with injury niggles but thankfully both issues seem very well under control.  The first was a week of feeling twinges to my left ankle – a body part with which I have a lot of history!  This having dissipated, a few weeks later, I had a week with a bit of a groin problem but again, mainly by temporarily slowing the pace intensity of runs rather than reducing mileage, I seem to have overcome the problem.  A thing that has really pleased me is how quick I have generally been to recover following my long runs so any aches and pains in the aftermath have largely dissipated by the following day. 

I have used most of my long training runs as opportunities to recce the Thames Path Challenge course.  So far I have run the stretches from Fulham to Richmond and Hampton Court to Windsor three times each, and many more times the stretch between Richmond and Hampton Court.  The final stretch is Windsor to Henley (about 25 miles) which I am planning to do this weekend as my final 20 mile plus run of the training plan.  This will then lead to the three weeks of tapering before the big day.

The April post in Challenge 2019 provided further details about the work of Kaira Konko Scout Active Support, the charity I am fundraising for.  One of the key people that makes KKSAS work so well for the community of Soma in The Gambia is Lamin Kinteh and I am pleased to say that I met up with him last month on one of his visits to the UK at an event hosted at the school of my daughter Carmella. 

These pictures with us in front of an African Roundhouse were in fact taken in the grounds of Carmella’s school in Fleet!

As ever, any support for the fundraising I am doing for KKSAS gives a massive boost to my motivation for getting to the finish line.  Donations can be made through my fundraising site and are very gratefully received:  https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/JohnReece

Closing for now, I feel I’ve given myself the absolute best chance I possibly could to complete the Thames Path Challenge and I hope that I will be posting in Challenge 2019 again in September with news of doing so with a finish time of about 14 hours!

In for the long haul...

My last post building momentum left things at a bit of a cliff hanger… I pressed the publish button with hardly a moment to spare before the cab arrived to take Lesley and me to the airport for our flight to Vienna!  I’ve struggled for time to pick the story up since then but having now just started a training plan that I hope will have me ready on 7^th September to complete my first 100KM ultra, I felt I could put it back no longer.

How do I start my reflections on Vienna?  After much deliberation, I simply say… it was absolutely fabulous!  Lesley and I had a five night stay, flying out on the Friday, completing my registration for the Marathon and doing a bit of a recce on Saturday, focussing on the Marathon on Sunday and sightseeing for two days before our return journey on Wednesday.  We stayed in an Airbnb apartment and we struck lucky in it being not only very comfortable but also brilliantly located.  On the Saturday, as we started to get our bearings in the city, it was great to find how close we were to an underground train station and how easy it was to use the underground to get around.  We were also in a fairly central location so plenty of culture and amenities within a reasonable walking distance.  The credit for this is all Lesley’s with the painstaking research she put in. 

With the benefit of Saturday’s recce, Marathon day went very smoothly.  Getting to the start was no problem and we had worked out five points on the course that that we thought Lesley would be able to reach in time to see me, either by walking or using the underground.

I’d read some reports of runners complaining about the organisation of the event in previous years, particularly about the start being congested.  I could see the potential for problems with three events all starting together, the Marathon, the Relay Marathon and the Half Marathon.  Furthermore each starting pen covered quite a broad range of pace.  My pen was for Marathon runners looking to complete in 3h30m to 4h and Half Marathon runners looking to complete in 1h45m to 2h.  Furthermore, reports I’d read seemed to imply that control of entry into the pens was ineffective with many people starting in faster paced pens than they had been allocated.  I decided to minimise the risk of being held up by getting as near to the front of my pen as I could.  The main problem with this approach is that I have an annoying tendency to need about 4 visits to the toilet in the last hour before a Marathon!  Balancing this with the competing aim of getting into the starting pen as early as possible formed quite a challenge.  This wasn’t helped by the fact there was no information of exactly when my pen would start.  I thought I had entered the pen with about 30 minutes to go but it turned out to be more than 40 minutes.   The main thing was that, with a bit of determination, I was able to weave through the crowd in the pen to find a waiting spot about  10 metres from the front.

The start, when at last it came, went pretty smoothly.  Nevertheless, even though I was near the front of the pen there were some very evidently slower paced runners right up at the front.  However, within a few hundred metres I’d done all the weaving I had to worry about and, with a clear enough road ahead I focussed on finding my target pace.  I was aiming for a pace around 8m15s to 8m20s per mile and found my groove after reining myself back a little following a slightly fast first mile.

Having got off to a good start I went into careful self-monitoring, particularly of my left calf which as per my last blog entry I had strained just 10 days previously.  To my massive relief, I  could feel no pain nor stiffness in those early miles.

As planned, Lesley had taken a one or two stop ride on the underground to be in place to see me at about the 2KM point.  From there she had a relatively short journey, cutting through to the 9KM point, while for me to reach the same point involved an extended loop in the course.  Our next intended rendezvous at near halfway should have worked but somehow neither of us saw the other.  I was a bit distracted at this point, making sure I didn’t head off in the wrong direction with the Half Marathon finishers.  The rules of the event provide the option for those doing the Marathon to decide on the day if they want or need to cut their race short and finish at the Half Marathon stage.  My calf was still holding up well and on I went with the Marathon course. 

I took a careful reading of my two watches as I reached the half way marker.  Slightly annoyingly the watch I usually use for judging pace was being more generous on the amount of distance I’d completed than my second watch and that in turn was more generous than the official distance markers.  So my pace watch was implying I was comfortably under 8m20s per mile but the official time was right on the mark of 8m20s per mile. 

At around 17 miles I felt in fantastic form and went past Lesley at the 27KM point feeling very optimistic about my chances of a PB.   What wasn’t helpful were the growing anomalies between my two watches and between them and the official distance markers on the course.  Between miles 14 and 17 the two watches moved apart by 56 seconds.  Between miles 13 and 20 the disparity between the more reliable of my watches and the official marker grew by nearly two minutes.

Despite these distractions, at the 30KM point (18.6 miles) I was still on course for my target time of sub 3h40m but soon after that I began to feel the fatigue hitting me pretty hard.  A lack of energy or will on the day had me succumbing to a conservative pace as my focus changed from chasing a PB to just making sure I finished in a reasonable time. 

I saw Lesley one more time at about 39KM and she says I was still looking strong though that’s not how I felt as I nudged 10:00 minutes per mile.  Nevertheless, I must have had a bit more in me at that stage than I thought at the time as I pulled myself together for a good run in over the last half mile.

My finish time was 3h45m16s.  My second fastest Marathon and just 3½ minutes outside my PB from Dublin last autumn.  I was absolutely delighted with this after the serious doubts there had been over the previous 10 days as to whether I would be able to finish at all.

Some further observations for anyone considering Vienna as a possible Marathon:

-        Apart from the concern at the start about being caught behind slower paced runners I didn’t find any other problem with bunching on the course.

-        Support on the course is fairly limited and either I was particularly focussed or the people who were out were fairly muted in their support though there were various points  on the course where live or recorded music was being played.

-        Visually the course was one of the better I’ve done but I still put Paris ahead by a fair margin.

-        The course was pretty flat and the road surfaces very reliable.

-        There was a good bustle in the finish area but not as congested as London, Paris or even Brighton.

-        There were some pretty good vendors near the finish (“hot dog stalls” certainly wouldn’t do them justice) and the queueing time was reasonable.  We might have stayed longer there if we’d been in a larger group but with the beer supply looking more difficult than the sausage supply we started a walk back to our apartment (about 30 minutes away) and at half way took a break in one of the street bars/cafes.  Plenty of space and easy to get a beer!

That was the Marathon done and still with two clear days ahead to take a more laid back view of the city.  It certainly didn’t disappoint!  Overall, a fantastic Marathon mini break and I’d definitely recommend Vienna as a place to visit whether or not as a Marathon entrant.

So the 2019 Challenge has been well and truly launched.  I’m not too disappointed at missing out so far on my sub 3h40m Marathon target.  I’m hoping to be in reasonable shape for another crack at it at Amsterdam in October.

Very importantly, a big thank you to the donations made to the fundraising for Kaira Konko SAS.  If you missed it, further details of Kaira Konko were set out in my last instalment of Challenge 2019: https://runreecerunchallenge2019.blogspot.com/2019/04/ . 

As things currently stand the figure has reached £320.  That's  32% towards the target I hope to reach of £1,000 and, in terms of event mileage, I still have about 73% of my total distance still to complete in the 2019 Challenge.   

As ever, all donations through my fundraising page  are greatly appreciated:

https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/JohnReece

And this brings me to the training for the Thames Path Challenge, the 100KM Ultra that I am aiming to complete in September.  I’ve scheduled a 16 week period for the training though I’ve had a good lead up to this having only taken a fairly brief recovery period after completing the Vienna Marathon and then getting myself ready for taking part as a member of one of the Bearcat Running Club teams in the Green Belt Relay earlier this month.

The general shape of the programme is pretty similar to what I’ve done in my last two marathon training campaigns but the long runs will eventually be going longer, involve running with a back pack and consuming more food and water on the move than I’m used to and also employing a run/walk strategy that is very different to what I’ve done before. 

My first 16 mile run went pretty well but I’ve got to get myself better used to the strategy of moving in a cycle of running for 15 minutes followed by walking for 3 minutes.  I was surprised how I seemed to stiffen up in the latter part of the run.  More so, it seemed, than  when running the same distance at a steady pace.  

The next few weeks will hopefully see this getting easier as I get increasingly acquainted with the path along the Thames.  I'm definitely in for the long haul and looking forward to the miles ahead...

Building momentum...

In my last post getting to the start line I set the scene of my 2019 challenge and now I move on to say some more about the charity I am supporting - Kaira Konko Scout Active Support, reflect on the Thames Meander Marathon that I completed in March and look forward to the Vienna Marathon.

Kaira Konko SAS is a Hampshire based charity within Hampshire Scouting.  Since 1989 it has been fundraising to help the people of Soma in The Gambia, West Africa.  My daughter Carmella first became involved with Kaira Konko SAS in 2008.  Then in her second year as a teacher she was thrilled to be given the opportunity by her school, All Saints Junior School in Fleet, to be one of two staff funded to undertake project work in The Gambia during the February half term. 

When I met Carmella on her return it was very evident that she had been inspired by her visit.  This became all the more clear in the following months as I saw her make presentations to the All Saints and wider community about the work she had become involved with.  At least once per year since then Carmella has made self-funded visits to Soma supporting the work of Kaira Konko SAS and fostering links between her school and schools in Soma.  

In 2015 through a successful bid for funding from the British Council she was able to undertake a six week visit to Soma that involved wider outreach work with a number of schools in the area. This marked my previous fundraising support for Kaira Konko SAS which I did in conjunction with running the 2015 Paris Marathon.

I was also able to make my own visit to The Gambia at the end of Carmella’s six week stay and saw for myself examples of how funds raised by Kaira Konko SAS had been used. 

Kaira Konko SAS has:

• ·       Built the Kaira Konko Scout Lodge.
• ·       Built 18 classrooms, a library/resource centre and provided clean drinking water at Soma Lower Basic School.
• ·       Repaired and rebuilt homes.
• ·       Distributed mosquito nets in the community.
• ·       Repaired wells. 
• ·       Provided rice for the poorest families.
• ·       Provided tools and fencing for growing food.
• ·       Sponsored children through school and college.
• ·       Promoted annual visits from Hampshire teachers and other groups who work in local schools and within the community.
• ·       Promoted expeditions of Hampshire Explorer Scouts who fund and implement projects in the community.

 

Carmella’s most recent visit with some of her colleagues involved supporting a school in a more remote area.  They worked on the renovation of the library and supported fundraising for improvement of teacher accommodation at the school.

The work Carmella has done is an inspiration to me in seeking to raise funds for Kaira Konka SAS and has given me an added motivation to raise the bar in terms of the running challenges I have set for myself this year.

I made my last post on the eve of running the Thames Meander Marathon and I am pleased to say that despite a concerted effort by the weather to put me off, I completed it pretty much to target.  I seem to be jinxed by this event as both times I have run it I have found myself running into the face of winds blowing at 40mph plus.  I don’t find this much fun at the best of times let alone in the last 5-10 miles of a marathon! 

On an out and back route the first half (with the wind mainly behind me) seemed pretty good and my heart was telling me that a PB time was a possibility.  Thankfully my head (now with a good few years of running experience) knew otherwise, calculating that the second half was going be pretty tough.  I kept reminding myself that while this was a marathon it was nevertheless meant primarily as a preparation for my main spring event, the Vienna Marathon.  With this in mind, I didn’t castigate myself for taking a few breathers in the final few miles and overall I was pleased to come in with my third fastest marathon time of 3h55m.

So, with the Thames Meander completed I had four weeks to go to prepare for Vienna.  In that time I squeezed in one further 20 mile training run and up until last week I was confident that I was in great condition to have a real go at a PB in Vienna on 7^th April. 

However, one thing with marathons I’ve found is that almost always there’s a twist.  This time it came 10 days before marathon day when on the final lap of a track session I had to pull up with a very nasty pain in my left calf.  The next morning I was really down in the dumps as my calf had stiffened up badly and I was limping around with a very forlorn look on my face.  On a brighter note, by the afternoon it was much improved.  Since then I’ve just done two very modest runs and had lots of rest.  As things stand, I’ve lowered my expectations for Sunday but I think I’m in with a reasonable shout of completing the event even if I have to settle for a less ambitious time. 

I have to remember that there is hopefully much more to come in Challenge 2019 - a lot further to go and hopefully faster!

I am greatly appreciative of the support that has got my fundraising campaign off the ground.  Contributions can be given through my fundraising site: 

https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/JohnReece