2008 Canberra Marathon
Arrived safely in Canberra mid morning Saturday, alas my suitcase did not. Along with about a dozen others including Rob the Runner my bag was missing in action. I wasn't too concerned, I had my running clothes in my carry on bag and was wearing running shoes (albeit an old worn pair). I only started panicking Saturday evening when I thought about having no Blistershield or anti-chafing stuff.
Mat had two pairs of socks already filled with Blistershield so gave me one pair to shake the stuff out of into mine - that's a true running buddy! And I went to the 'adulty' part of Coles and got some lube ... in a tube that glows in the dark :-)
Qantas said they would call about delivering the bags (when they located them) but by 8pm we hadn't heard from them, so it was a relief to get home from dinner and find them in our rooms. Whew!
Now, on to the race ....
Hoping for a 3:25 I took off and wanted to stick around 4:55 pace for the first 8k or so before ramping things up a little. Some kms were a bit faster, some a bit slower. It seemed pretty easy though. That is, on the breathing. For some reason my quads were heavy from the word go.
The rain (which continued for a couple of hours) started maybe 20mins in to the race, didn't really bother me though. I had my iPod in a plactic bag :)
Got to halfway in just under 1:44, a tad behind schedule (I was planning on 1:42). I doubted I could do a negative split though thought I may be able to salvage a sub 3:30. But the quads were still bothering me, and from about 32k onwards were threatening to cramp. I refused to let them!
My pace slowed somewhat, and then a blister I could feel forming started to hurt a little. It felt like a doozey, and it was ... about the size of a 20c piece. Anyway, the way my legs and the blister felt there was no way I was going on to complete the 50k.
Turning that final bend and approaching the the finish line I could see 3:33.xx on the clock and put the foot down, I wanted a 3:33, its such an easy time to remember. And I got one, gun time of 3:33.59 (net 3:33.48).
Oh well, not quite the 3:25 I hoped for. Perhaps if I started out more conservatively I could have done a 3:29. I'd rather my 'gave it a red hot go' 3:33 thank you.
Thanks so much to all out there who gave me encouragement and advice via my blog. Keep it coming though, I will need it for the Gold Coast :-)
Mat had two pairs of socks already filled with Blistershield so gave me one pair to shake the stuff out of into mine - that's a true running buddy! And I went to the 'adulty' part of Coles and got some lube ... in a tube that glows in the dark :-)
Qantas said they would call about delivering the bags (when they located them) but by 8pm we hadn't heard from them, so it was a relief to get home from dinner and find them in our rooms. Whew!
Now, on to the race ....
Hoping for a 3:25 I took off and wanted to stick around 4:55 pace for the first 8k or so before ramping things up a little. Some kms were a bit faster, some a bit slower. It seemed pretty easy though. That is, on the breathing. For some reason my quads were heavy from the word go.
The rain (which continued for a couple of hours) started maybe 20mins in to the race, didn't really bother me though. I had my iPod in a plactic bag :)
Got to halfway in just under 1:44, a tad behind schedule (I was planning on 1:42). I doubted I could do a negative split though thought I may be able to salvage a sub 3:30. But the quads were still bothering me, and from about 32k onwards were threatening to cramp. I refused to let them!
My pace slowed somewhat, and then a blister I could feel forming started to hurt a little. It felt like a doozey, and it was ... about the size of a 20c piece. Anyway, the way my legs and the blister felt there was no way I was going on to complete the 50k.
Turning that final bend and approaching the the finish line I could see 3:33.xx on the clock and put the foot down, I wanted a 3:33, its such an easy time to remember. And I got one, gun time of 3:33.59 (net 3:33.48).
Oh well, not quite the 3:25 I hoped for. Perhaps if I started out more conservatively I could have done a 3:29. I'd rather my 'gave it a red hot go' 3:33 thank you.
Thanks so much to all out there who gave me encouragement and advice via my blog. Keep it coming though, I will need it for the Gold Coast :-)
posted by Tesso at 3:14 PM
29 Comments:
Isn't 333 the number of the beast? No...wait that's 666. Anyway that number isn't fitting cause I reckon you're not half bad ;)
Gold coast eh? Full or half?
Well done Tesso, blisters and all! I'm looking forward to following your training to the Gold Coast. Are you going to do Noosa too?
You are lucky you got your bags, my mother in law is still waiting for Qantas to deliver hers from Xmas.
Good on you Tesso, that is a great time. Not what you hoped for but like you said you gave it a red hot go and that's all you can ask for. Congrats :-)
What was it about the quads? My quads were heavy from the start (and that was before my calves got into the act). I put it down to running so fast in the rain that the quads were cold from wind-chill.... ;)
I can't believe you finished with a blister that big! I would have sat down and cried!
Congrats on sticking it out in horrid conditions for a good time. Can't wait to hear the GC report already!
I agree with Scott, Noosa? I'm thinking of Noosa (do ya reckon we could convince Scott?).
I've got some advice for you Tess... keep the "plactic" bag for the iPod. Isn't Queensland "wet one day, monsoon the next"?
Hey, nice work mate. 3:33 after going for it like an adult is much better than a wimpy 3:29.
By the way, nice abs. I'll test them again at the Gold Coast.
Great Run by a Great Lady...
Tesso it was great to see you at Canberra ~ What a gutsy effort too, with the 20c blister.
Enjoy your next race, will keep my eye on the CR pages :o)
GRIFFIN
Watch those AO areas of supermarkets. Hope you had ID. Well done on the 333. The GC is a mere 3 months away, so get that blister down to a farthing...
Congrats... and GC is a lot closer to home, there will be no probs with airlines for that one!! :-)
You want advice? Well, I'm all out of advice, but I'm chock full of admiration! Good on you. That was a gutsy run :-)
Gnome
Well done Tesso, Watch out Gold coast here comes the 3:25
Great stuff Tesso. One thing for sure - you're a tenacious lass. Yeowch with that blister !
3.33 sounds fine to me!
Bugger about the blister though. Roll on GCM - but I'll see you before then 'cos I'll be helping out this weekend too.
Good run Tesso. The quads maybe sore because you don't step the same in the rain for fear of slipping. I thought you may have been quicker though. Could be 8mins of rain off on the GCM run. 3:24 awaits.
3:33, daughter of the beast. congrats. i enjoy watching you run a race. it's different than just watching you lap me at pat's.
It was great catching up with you in Canberra. It seems so long since I'd seen you and the rest of the gang.
A PB and a JDPB to aim for at GC now. The pressure, the pressure!
Congrats Tess. All the three's, it has a certain ring to it.
I thought you were looking strong, more so when I thought you were doing the 50 km version.
I'll see you the GC.
Your race sounds a bit like mine in the fact that you were off your desired pace from the start as well as your quad troubles. You did well to hang onto a 3:33. Look forward to seeing you up at Gold Coast.
Bevan says hi. LOL! Sorry I didn't get to catch up with you at Canberra but glad I got to cheer you on!
Another good marthon time for Tesso. Not as good as you planned but still good. Excellent preparation for the Gold Coast. I enjoyed being in the Nation's capital with you again.
Pity not to get the 3:25, but sounds like you ran the best time you could for how you were feeling on the day. Heavy quads and blisters are enough to put up with any time let alone for 42km! I'm just picturing the moment you take off your sock to reveal that big sucker! All the great training behind you Gold Coast will be a shoe in.
Still a very solid race time. Well done. All the vibes obviously went to JD.
cheers PLu
Top run Tesso.
I'll get in early with advice for Gold Coast. How about we increase our 'Tess-Ups' after speedwork from 40 to 45?
OMG haven't I commented yet? You gave it a real red hot go and that's all anyone could ask. Great effort, great inspiration, as always. Now the best way to improve is to move to Canberra along with the rest of Queensland....
Oh that blister! I know what a 20c blister looks & feels like & once was enough.
Great marathon run, Tess,& so good to have a chat with you in Canberra. I was really worried when you said your luggage hadn't arrived. You handled that, as you do your running...stylishly & with good humour.
just a few secs too slow for 3.33.33!
dont move to canberra: too cold and obviously too much rain as well :)
cu at gcoast tesso!
Well we did get to see each other if only for a few seconds. :)
You looked great out there Tess. Nice time too, I'm sure you'll see the other side of 3.30 at GC.
Cheers!
Nice work Tesso 3.33 is a fantastic time - well done mate.
Tesso, it was great seeing you out there running like the wind and looking fantastic. Well done! Looking forward to seeing you at the GC and this time I'll be running the marathon although MUCH much slower than you! Let's hope you can provide better weather than what we did!
Well done on the 333! despite the bags hassle and other obstacles. I had a major blisters experience very early in the 2007 Perth marathon, so I know how it feels. Gutsy effort to push through that by the sounds of things. All the best with some R and R, and will follow your progress towards a very likely successful GC 08!
But do move to Canberra or I might never see you again except in virtual form via blogs. It was a lovely cool 9 degrees max today and it's only halfway through autumn! Perfect for running. (Away.)
Post a Comment
<< Home