Race report from Sunday – Marathon #9 (London)

The numbers

Time – 3.04.11

Position – 1407th out of 40,255 finishers

First time I’ve not PB’d in a marathon, and first time I’ve failed to PB in any road race since October 2013. All good things need to come to an end and plenty of positives to take from another amazing experience over my favourite race distance. Two weeks ago this never looked like it was going to happen. Training was decimated with two separate injuries in the space of 6 weeks and the decision to have a crack was only formally made 7 days earlier. Incredibly lucky to have recovered in time, and the priority was always going to be getting round safely and make the most of the opportunity to take part in arguably the biggest race in the world rather than run a fast time. In terms of the course itself, easy to see how on a day with more favourable conditions its well known for being conducive to world record attempts. Nice wee tour of the city taking in some famous landmarks and fairly flat throughout. The support from the crowd lived up to the hype, and I found myself turning the tunes off for long periods to soak it up. Made a big difference to what in light of the scorching conditions was always going to be a tough day. The plan was to set out at PB pace, monitor the conditions and how my body felt and decide at halfway whether to push on at that pace or adjust it to allow me to cope with the heat. When I reached the halfway point I took the decision to take the foot off the gas a wee bit and ran a very controlled second half. It turned out to be the right call. Had I continued there was a strong chance the wheels would have come off, especially with the lack of training. As it turned out I had a very comfortable (and enjoyable!) second half while many others out on the course seemed to be really struggling with the temperature. Massive thanks as always to Jacqueline for doing an exceptional job keeping me sane during an incredibly difficult time dealing with injury in the weeks leading up to the race, and for fulfilling her support team duties in her usual brilliant way. Just wouldn’t be the same on a day like this without her to make sure the nerves don’t get too much, and my wee head is in the right place to give it everything. Love you more than life itself beautiful. Great camaraderie with club mates on the day, all of whom done a phenomenal job out there. In keeping with tradition, I always dedicate a race of this magnitude to someone. Unfortunately my wee Uncle Tony is no longer with us, but I thought about him a lot when I was out there and like to think he was up there watching and cracked a smile when I crossed the line. In terms of whats next, I’ll decide that once the legs have had a few days to recover!