Kirikiriroa marathon was number 5, it was a tough one which got me back in to longer distance running.
Not long after Kirikiriroa marathon we moved to Newcastle Australia for a new job (probably a few blog posts int that).
A few things about moving to Newcastle meant I was able to do more running. First of all there was the warmer weather. A new job gave me an opportunity to reset some of my priorities, I was able to carve out a bit more time for running. Add to this the kids were getting a older and so I was able to spend more time running and not feel guilty. Finally, the numerous waterfront running paths made it a pleasure to run.
So the conditions to get fit were right. So I started running a bit more and before long started to think about another marathon. I decided to have a go at the Newcastle Marathon which was to be run in April. Mum and Dad have planned a visit to Newcastle which would coincide with the marathon. Unfortunately, just as I was hitting my strides I strained my hamstring. Had to go to the physio who said it wasn't bad but I probably should try to run the Newcastle Marathon. So, I had to skip that one, I did still manage to run the Newcastle Half and did alright.
After Newcastle I had set my sights on Noosa and we had friends coming over from NZ, one of whom was planning on running the Noosa marathon too, so I really had to see this one through. I trained steadily but without pushing too hard. I was hoping to do sub 4 hours so needed to be fitter and faster than Kirikiriroa. I managed to get my training to a spot where I thought I'd be ok.
The trip to Noosa was an adventure in itself. Great fun for the kids.We flew from Newcastle to Brisbane and picked up a rental car in Brisbane (after a ridiculously long wait). On the road to Noosa we made it to our AirBnB where our friends were already settled in.
The day before the marathon was pretty chilled.
Marathon morning, woke up super early, I think it was 4 something, way earlier than I needed. We got to the start in good time. Did the bag check thing for the first time ever. Security seemed pretty lax but the risk was pretty low.
The marathon started at 6:15, before sunrise. Was best to get started early because it gets pretty warm in Noosa even in May.
I figured if I did every km under 5m40s then I would be just under 4hrs. The issue as always was not going to be the first 30k but the last 12. I started out with a pretty steady pace, mainly around 5m35s. A bit of a hiccup when I needed to take a toilet stop around 11k but I managed to catch up the lost time pretty quickly and was pretty consistent in the 5m30s per km territory.
Noosa marathon is very flat by the way, some very small hills for the bridges which go over the waterways. It's a 3 lap run, so support is good. There were a couple of local supporters who were particularly good and supporting every runner that went by.
It's also one of these runs where the half marathon and 10k runners start afterwards and are on the same track, this can mess with your pacing a bit but I managed to keep consistent.
I was feeling pretty good throughout the run and after getting through 30k with no trouble I thought I'd lift the tempo a little bit for the next 10k I kept my pace will under 5m30s. I was starting to feeling suitably shattered by 40km but still managed the last 2k in under 5m 40s pace and finished strongly down the chute, Strava said my time was 3h52m50s. Can't remember what my official time was, around about the same. I was thrilled with my time and while I was pooped at the end wasn't injured.
Unlike Kirikiriroa, where I was a absolutely shattered at the end, I felt at Noosa like I had run a very measured pace to give me the best time I was capable of on the day. I was pretty chuffed, and ready for the next one!
No comments:
Post a Comment