On Saturday morning I got up earlier than I have ever gotten up for any race in my life, cycling included. The alarm buzzed at 3am and by 3:45am we were ready to collect 2 more crazies for the 1/2 marathon.
We stopped outside the Baxter just as the last party goers left the clubs after a big night out. I tried to get into my race routine before the time, but with 3 ladies in the car, it was impossible to go through my visualization routine. We made our way to the start at about 5, with about an hour for the race to start. A 30 minute wait for a toilet saw me starting right at the back of "E" group, meaning that there were roughly 16 000 runners ahead of me.
At 6 the gun went off and at about 6:09 I crossed the start line with a slow walk. The first 4km was a stop-start affair, but once we were on Wynberg Hill I could get into my stride. This being the first climb I was taking it rather slow, but to my surprise I kept passing other runners and with some weaving through the traffic ahead of me I managed to string a few sub 7min/km kilo's together. With the turn onto Ladies mile my pace was steady and I was feeling quite good, but the persistent weaving to make my way up the field was starting to grate me.
With the turn onto Southern Cross Drive the heavens opened and in a matter of 5 minutes the roads were flooded with the first winter rains and we were all drenched. The cold would set in later. The immediate challenge would be to keep momentum up Southern Cross Drive. I knew that slowing down or walking would bring with it stiffening muscles and my core temperature dropping.
As we turned onto Rhodes Drive I started to feel the cold for the first time. I made a quick calculation and realized that I needed to run the remaining 6.1km in 33 minutes to get to the sub 2h30 mark.
GAME ON!
I lengthened my stride and kept looking down to my Garmin unit. A few 5:50min / km kilo's gave me renewed hope for that 2h30min. The road narrowed at places and now I was not weaving anymore but simply shoving my way past runners that was walking 4 abreast after obviously starting out too fast. A few dirty looks my way made me even more determined to get to UCT within my goal time.
As I turned in onto the sports field at UCT I saw the time on the stadium clock at 2h29m flat. The next 300m felt like 3 miles as I went from my brief jog into a full sprint for the last 200m.
I crossed the line in 2h29m53s. After getting my medal the search started to find my wife. With the ensuing rain the big screen where we were supposed to meet was taken down. So I had time to reflect on my accomplishment as I grazed on the rugby field looking for my wife.
As after every race I had a good think about what I could take from this event. Here is what I have learnt:
- Training is important, but getting to the start chute early is even more important. With no staggered start the first 4kms of the event could best be described at chaotic.
- Be prepared. What saved me in many ways was having an energy bar with me as I came up Southern Cross Drive. A few bites made sure that I would get to the end. When I got to the car I could change into dry, warm clothes that surely saved me getting a cold (fingers crossed on this one) and knowing where to find good coffee in times of peril is a life saver.
- Fixed meeting points are way more reliable than temporary ones. My wife stood in the rain for another hour while our 2 passengers to the race were grazing looking for her. By the time they got to the car, they were frozen stiff.
- Reliable weather forecasts helps with preparing for events. Thanks yr.no for an up to the minute prediction on the rain. SA Weather - why are you bothering?
- Acknowledge the support on the side of the road. Thanks to all that braved the rain to come out and cheer us along. You feel like a champion with people shouting your name as you passed (OK - so our race numbers had our names on, quite nice I thought!)
Next big challenge is surely Sani2C, which promises to be bigger and better than last year. With 5 weeks of training time left I have some hard work to do, but at the same time I am looking forward to 3 days in the saddle on what must surely be sacred ground in mountain biking circles.
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