New Forest Middle Distance Triathlon, 13.1mile Run

As I start the run the legs are in a mess. The pace will come but I’ve got to take the next 15mins or so steady, quick feet but just ease into it. The plan is 9min pace for the first 5 miles, then into 8’s and if there’s anything left a sprint finish. That should see me around 1:50.

As I set off I’m pretty happy, the early pace is there and I know the legs will find themselves within a few minutes. We’re downhill and then, in front of me, is a 1 in 4 climb. People are walking and moaning. I keep running and get a few words of encouragement but that was slow and tough climb.

I keep going and don’t look back. Ok, back on pace and don’t panic, the legs will be alright in a minute. At mile 3 I see the drink station ahead. I need some water but at the same time I feel like I could be sick. I’ve energy drink and gels swishing around in my stomach. I take a sip and push on. I pass a couple of guys, talking to both for a few minutes before pushing on again.

More hills and the pace is a struggle. My legs are in agony, calves haven’t cramped but they feel tight and I can’t find any more pace. This is not fun.

Mile 9 and the hill of death appears. I have kept moving, refused to walk when others were but this one has me. My pace is pathetic. There’s a guy walking and I can’t catch him. My legs have seized up, I can’t push them. I might be sick. I walk.

At the top I try to get going but they’re in a bad way. I can’t get any pace going and the pain is pretty excruciating. It’s not an injury, they’ve just decided to seize up! I’ve never felt this before. I feel ok, I have energy, I have will power but my legs are finished. I ease off and decide to do the pace the legs can cope with. It’s weak.

I chat to a walker, he says there are 3 more hills. What? We’ve 3 miles to go. He’s right. Hill 1 and 2 are bad but 3 is the killer. At mile 12 a steep, sandy climb up to the main road. I end up walking again. Totally impossible to even shuffle.

I decide to do some maths. This is bad, 13.1 miles, oh well at least I won’t be over 2:30hrs, that’d be embarrassing.

Eventually the Garmin clicks 13miles and I’m not anywhere near the finish. Oh come on!! This happened at the London Marathon, this is cruel. At 13.78miles I come round the corner and wobble over the finishing line. The run is bang on 2:30 but nearly 0.7miles too long. Oh dear.

Adrian is at the finish. He’s changed out of his kit. The lad’s been worried. I should’ve been breathing down his neck. He finished in 5:54 and had a perfect race. 34min swim, 3:17 bike and 2:02 run. That’s a perfect execution.

In the end my run was 40 mins longer than I wanted. My final race time was 6:40, so that 40mins was why I missed my target. Why it went wrong I’ve no real idea, probably a combination of not enough long running in training, possibly a nutrition problem with my drinks or maybe the swim and bike just took too much out of me? Anyway, who cares!

I finished standing up and had a smile on my face for most of it. It was a great event to participate in, a good weekend away and well, there’s always next year.

Final Results:
Adrian Hampstead 5:54 (King of the Mountain)
Ken Murray 6:40 (longest ever swim award)
Rob Shillinglaw 6:59 (Continental award for most punctures)
Tom Shillinglaw 7:30 (Goldfish award for forgetting his drinks)

New Forest Middle Distance Triathlon, 13.1mile Run by kdmurray65 at Garmin Connect - Details