Well this is the first race in my rather short 3 year career as a rec runner where I have toed the line with no injuries. It has taken 9 months but Mark and the TBM gang have sorted out running form, dialled in the right shoes with the right cushioning and drop and convinced me that foam rolling is not just medieval torture but actually quite useful at injury prevention. If anyone is considering doing any kind of endurance running, I would consider it mandatory to get a running gait assessment. I literally re-learned to run properly over 6 months.

The taper was a somewhat interrupted affair for me with some travel required in the final week. I managed to pack an esky with plenty of bananas, bagels, cream cheese and white bread. Things that could have possibly been purchased on the road but I like to stick to plain food and what I know works. I re-read Tamara Madden’s article on nutrition and carb loading several times in the lead up to the taper week. Of particular interest was not to overeat. On all other carb loading escapades I would eat anything carb heavy until bloated! Time for a new strategy.

On the line for the start I had some pressure on me to better my previous marathon time set in Canberra in April of 3:30. I wasn’t terribly pleased with that result with my form turning into disarray at the 25k mark and a recurring knee injury (shoes!). Feeling nervous being my first Blackmores and placed in wave 1 I could feel my left hammy tighten for no real reason. So while the crowd was being warmed up by some minor celebrity I proceeded to do some last minute Richard Simmons moves. Almost immediately I had plenty of space around me on the start line.

All good for the start and the only goal I had for the first few kms was to avoid clipping heels and having a spill. Managed that just fine as we ran past Bay 10 Espresso and the home of TBM which immediately reminded me to check my form! Made it up onto the bridge without incident when the guy next to me produced a Go-Pro on a selfie stick and proceeded to wave it around in all directions taking what must have been close to 100 selfies. The guy immediately had an exclusion zone of about 2m around him at which point I lost concentration and veered into the 1km marker that was suspended at head height (why Blackmores, why?). My Garmin chirped at exactly the same time so it was bang on at least.

The race strategy was goal pace of 4:50/k for the first 30k and then see how I feel. First k down in 5:04 and all feeling good and unscathed apart from the head-knock. The first 20k went quickly and was done in 1:34 putting me ahead of pace but feeling good. However, memories of the Canberra implosion were in the back of my mind and I thought I should slow it down. That is until none other than Garmin Man sidled up next to me. He seemed to be doing it fairly easy and only marginally quicker than me so I decided to keep up with him. I paced Garmin Man (AKA Drew Willis, brother of The Commando) and had a great chat with Drew who was looking to beat 3:25 but had tight calves for the first 5k so a bit behind (no such issues for those of us who invested in a Bak-Ball to drive into your calves on a regular basis – thanks Mark my purveyor of pain). I left Garmin Man behind on the way back into the CBD somewhere around Pyrmont. Looking at the watch I noted that 30k was up and would later find out that I ran 20 to 30k in 45 minutes being a good 20 seconds a km faster than anticipated. Thanks Garmin Man you can pace me anytime! Still feeling good at what is considered the half-way mark of a marathon so pulled out my secret weapon. A caffeine filled Gel that I hoped would propel me home. After downing SIS gels all morning this stuff is a bit thicker with a sharper taste. I managed to get it down at drinks station with some gagging followed a few minutes later by a slight tummy upset. Nothing that I hadn’t had in training!

The pace did slow for the 10k section to 40k where I managed 47minutes. With the finish line in sight and passing the 40k marker I seemed to grow an extra leg. Official results show that I ran 4:22k/min for those last 2 km. Didn’t feel like it but I did have in the back of my mind that I needed to catch the 10:25am ferry from Circular Quay or I had another 1 hour wait for the next one! I could hear the crowd building and I figured that I must be close to the finish line. Looking at my watch to get an idea of how far to go, true to form my Garmin advises me that I finished 500m ago… I finally get sight of the finish and managed to pass a few broken runners in the last few hundred metres, including a guy that clearly should have been under the care of a medic but was being followed by an official as he stumbled and staggered probably 200m from the finish.

I pass the finish line and stop the watch, 3:17.22. Stoked! Was gunning for 3:25 and bettered my previous best by around 13 minutes. Was so pleased with the result that I almost forgot to collect a medal and banana. On the down side the ferry had just left. One hour to wait for the next one. Plenty of time to track down a chocolate milk and bathe in the afterglow of a race that went to plan. Nutrition and pacing strategy were spot-on but would have to say that regular gait analysis and input from TBM and regular physio and injury prevention techniques proved invaluable. If you are injured, you can’t train. This is exactly what happened in the lead-up to my previous marathon. Developed a knee injury 2 weeks out and could not run until the day of the event. Psychologically you are damaged before you get to the start line.

I look forward to the next challenge which is looking like will be on the trails with the 6 Foot Track and UTA50. Pretty confident I can now tackle these challenges and train injury free to achieve my best possible result on race day.