What's the most basic "schoolboy error" you can make when running a
marathon?
A. Start off too fast and collapse towards the end!
I was trying to beat my 3:45:33 pb, from London 1992. 8:35 miles
would give me 3:45, I reckoned. I decided to make it easy for
myself by following the 3:45 pacemakers.
Mile 1: 8:12. Mile 2: 8:20. A bit fast, but settling down. At 2.5
miles I passed my family who had made a short cut from the start.
They told me later that I was with the last of about half a dozen
3:45 pacemakers, and that a 4:00 pacemaker was in the middle of
them. I knew I had a decision to make. Slow down and start doing
8:35 miles on my watch, or stay with the pacemakers. I decided to
stay - I was feeling quite comfortable. I checked just the
occasional mile when I felt my watch
vibrate, and we seemed to be averaging 8:20 to 8:25. Mile 12 was an
8:10, which was a bit concerning.
It was cold, about 10°C, and the initial drizzle had turned into
steady rain, which by this time was beginning to make some big
puddles. The spectators were magnificent, 1000s lining the route
all the way round shouting Heya, heya! At about 17 miles I lost
contact with the pacemakers, and collapsed.
Despite this, I would still highly recommend the Stockholm
marathon. It's a pretty flat, two lap course alongside the
waterways, across the bridges, past all the main sights of
Stockholm. The second lap is longer as it starts out with a lap of
the island of Djurgården - countryside in the city. The
organisation and the support was top class. You start just outside,
and finish inside, the 1912 Olympic stadium. Perfect, except for
the rain and the pacemakers.
John
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