On Sunday, I ran the Sussex Marathon, to finish off a 50 mile training week.
Sussex is a really hilly course around beautiful countryside, supported by excellent marshals, with really impressively stocked aid stations, which I made sure I took full advantage of! It's a great race - quite small, but the better for it, and very well organised, and I don't think there's anything I'd hope they change about it - even the medal is excellent!! :)
I did find it hard work though - as I always seem to, I went off unrealistically quickly, and paid for it later on as I found myself having to walk up most of the hills in the second half of the race. It was my slowest marathon for two years, but to be honest, I'm still pretty pleased with my time when I think how much I walked and what the elevation profile of the course must look like. I didn't do too badly compared with the rest of the field either - 10th woman and 2nd in my age group...but then, it was a very small race ;) Mimi Anderson was running too, and I got totally starstruck when I saw her before the start - I wanted to go and say hello but didn't want her to think I was a nutcase fan! ;) Mimi finished in 3:41:44 compared to my 4:26:37, and then she ran on to turn the marathon into a 30 mile ultra, which she finished in 4:19:54 - absolutely awesome!
Lots of friends were running (and supporting) at Sussex, and it made it really special to see so many of them. Getting to know people on the running circuit has really has taken my running onto a totally different level - it's just so much fun to see everyone :D I hung around after I finished, instead of jumping straight in the car and going home, and it was brilliant to see the others finish and cheer them across the line. All in all, I think it was a great day out, and it was Kaz's first race in her 100 Marathon Club vest! :D One day that'll be me! ;)
Sussex is a really hilly course around beautiful countryside, supported by excellent marshals, with really impressively stocked aid stations, which I made sure I took full advantage of! It's a great race - quite small, but the better for it, and very well organised, and I don't think there's anything I'd hope they change about it - even the medal is excellent!! :)
I did find it hard work though - as I always seem to, I went off unrealistically quickly, and paid for it later on as I found myself having to walk up most of the hills in the second half of the race. It was my slowest marathon for two years, but to be honest, I'm still pretty pleased with my time when I think how much I walked and what the elevation profile of the course must look like. I didn't do too badly compared with the rest of the field either - 10th woman and 2nd in my age group...but then, it was a very small race ;) Mimi Anderson was running too, and I got totally starstruck when I saw her before the start - I wanted to go and say hello but didn't want her to think I was a nutcase fan! ;) Mimi finished in 3:41:44 compared to my 4:26:37, and then she ran on to turn the marathon into a 30 mile ultra, which she finished in 4:19:54 - absolutely awesome!
Lots of friends were running (and supporting) at Sussex, and it made it really special to see so many of them. Getting to know people on the running circuit has really has taken my running onto a totally different level - it's just so much fun to see everyone :D I hung around after I finished, instead of jumping straight in the car and going home, and it was brilliant to see the others finish and cheer them across the line. All in all, I think it was a great day out, and it was Kaz's first race in her 100 Marathon Club vest! :D One day that'll be me! ;)
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