Dublin Marathon

26 October 2009

Val Brown

As many things seem to happen - I entered this race way back in May, with Julia and I egging each other to give it a go - it really really seemed like a good idea back then. I really wanted to do a marathon at some stage in my life - and Dublin being labelled as "the friendly marathon" seemed like a good bet.

Things did not exactly go to plan over the intervening months, with Julia suffering from a calf injury which she has been unable to shake off. In the end, Richard agreed to enter late on and jog around with me.

We have been to Ireland for this weekend a couple of times (previously heading for Cork for the Jazz Festival) - on each occassion becoming stranded over there due to severe weather conditions - gales and heavy rain - so our expectations were not great. As it turned out, we experienced unseasonally warm (17 degrees) weather and next to no wind for the weekend.

This year was the 30th anniversary of the Dublin Marathon, and a record 12500 people had entered. I think its fair to say - the organisation was brilliant - especially given the number of cometitiors. Registration happened over the 2 days leading up to the race, with an excellent expo with running stands, information on other races, massage areas and lots of other things to keep you occupied for a while.

We were given duffle type bags at registration, including an informative programme with tips on coping with the race and motivation ideas to keep you going. The bags also contained mini packs of Cheerio cereals, water and other bits and bobs.

On the morning of the race, we were divided into sections according to your predicted time to complete the race. There were bands playing, balloons and we did several Mexican waves. The race started pretty sharp at 9am, although it did take a couple of minutes to get past the start line. Saying that - we were pretty much at our target pace within a mile or so.

The route takes you initially through the north of the city, then through Pheonix Park. I found this very enjoyable, with deer in the distance, and the roar of lions from the zoo. The course then heads out south and east, eventually working its way back to the centre of the city to finish. There are loads of official "cheer zones" along the way - but to be honest - these are not necessary because there's lots of encouragement from spectators all the way, with many offering sweets, bananas, energy bars etc. I think Richard felt obliged to sample as many offerings he could get his hands on, while I went for the High-5ing with children option.

The course is largely flat, with a few shortish climbs in places - and I would agree with Brian's report from last year - the last five miles are definately not all downhill! It is well marshalled with plenty of water and a few gel/energy drink stations - although probably not enough of these - we did, however, go prepared with our own gels to keep us going.

In terms of the race - the first half went excellently - we were pretty much spot on pace until about mile 15 or so. Then I started to get cramp - this hadnt been a problem in training so I dont quite know why it happened. This became increasingly painful - and being told at mile 20 that there was only 10k to go didnt do much to lift my spirits. I think I walked for a bit for each mile from there on in - but forced myself to run (or should I say shuffle!) most of it. I have never been more pleased to see a 400m to go sign, and the finish gantry in my life. The crowd for the last mile was amazing - must have been 6 people deep by the end, with bands playing music - it was fantastic.

The finish area is as well organised as registration, and the start. Each finisher got a medal, an excellent long sleeve technical t-shirt, a goody bag with yet more Cheerios (I think they must have got a job lot from somewhere), water and some massage gel. We also go a plastic lunch box with a cheese sandwich, apple and some sweets. The final offering in the finish area was a team of physio's offering cool down, stretches and advice for any injury concerns.

After finishing - we went back to our hotel (which was at around mile 25 of the route!) for a shower, then hobbled back into the centre for some food. When we got back hours later - there were still plenty of people still out on the course - I think some people took 8 hours to finish - good on them I say.

All in all - I am really pleased to have done it - OK - so I didnt make my target 4hours - but I am sure that without the cramp I would have done.

Will I do another? - immediatly after I said no way - but the niggle that I didnt do my time does start to creep in. Dublin is definately a great place to give it a go - as they say - the craic is terrific and the Guiness definately tastes different!!

Now - where did I leave my bike ......................................

Our times:

Pos	Name	Time
5261	Richard Brown	4.14.27
5262	Val Brown	4.14.29

 

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