On Sunday I ran my second round at Birmingham half marathon.
It was very different from the last year's event in many aspects but an equally great experience. It's an awesome event and a
race that I really love! Running and atmosphere can't get much better. And I
like the distance too. It's long enough so that the pace you run is tolerable
but short enough so that you won't get any of those problems you might face on a
marathon.
Last time I was running in the masses with runners in their funny costumes and it was really entertaining just to watch people running around you.
This time I got a small number based on my last year's time and started with
the elite by a gunshot. It was very different from last year. No pushing or
elbows, just flowing along effortlessly. And somewhere after half a way it was
so scattered that I was actually wishing to have more backs in front of me to
shelter from the wind. What a strange thought.
I had been ill and hadn't thought of breaking my PB but to
take it as a good training to test my intended marathon pace (4:20-4:30 per km).
To assure that I would follow this plan and not to run any faster I cycled 62km
on the day before, which was definitively a long ride for me since I haven't
done much of cycling. So not really by the book how to prepare for a race... On
the race morning I regretted doing the bike ride because I felt really tired
and my legs were aching. I was wondering whether I could even keep up my intended
marathon pace. However starting with the elite made it difficult to run slow
enough and keep the intended pace in the beginning. After having run the first
two kilometers easily under 4min/km pace along with the wave I started to think
what a waste it would be to slow down and so I decided to run along and enjoy
it as far as it would go. If I hit the wall or got too tired I could slow down
whenever I wanted. Nice plan!
So I just ran it with a big smile on my face. I never pushed
too hard or struggled, just enjoyed the flow. After 10km (40:43) I could feel
my legs getting a bit tired, but by keeping my running as relaxed as possible
and avoiding to run too fast, I was able to enjoy it up to 17km. Then came the
final climb, which felt pretty awful, but it was so near to the finish that after
the ascent I could maintain the pace the final few miles. What an awesome
feeling it was to reach the finish line with a new PB (1:26:55) after some lousy
weeks and such a poor preparation! I was amazed!!! Results
