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There is more to running a
Marathon
than the running
We started
our Gold Coast campaigns about Easter time. All summer we had
watched the Canberra Marathon guys build up their mileage and
take the front running in our 3k time trials. David L, Scott,
Ciaran, Theresa, and Nicholas had worked hard and deserved to go
well. Ian and I did a long run with David L and Dan. The day was
hot and I struggled to keep up after two hours. The others
seemed to do it easily.
Pat C went
with them to Canberra. The rest of us searched the web site for
results. They all went well and we enjoyed catching up with them
all over the next few weeks.
Glenda was
on fire
Glenda and
Pat M ran the London Marathon. Glenda had run under 37 minutes
for 10000m and we knew she would go well. Pat was injured and
when I spoke with him he said he had a great time and was happy
to finish.
Most of us
ran the Lest We Forget events. Matthew and I went out hard in
the ‘half’ and ran constant kms for the whole event. Coming back
along Coro Drive I tried to collect a drink, but dropped the
cup. Matthew was a few paces ahead and after a quick drink
passed his half full cup back to me. We both ran close to record
times and finished in the top dozen. Dan ran top three in the
marathon.
The size of
the group swelled
Our twice
weekly group sessions continued to build in tempo and
popularity. The monthly time trials were drawing close to 50
people at the end. We all pushed hard and encouraged each other
to drop off seconds. Andy went under 9mins30sec and broke the
course record. He did a great half marathon on the tread mill on
his ship in the Arabian Gulf while we ran at the Gold Coast. He
will still be quick when we see him in November.
We should
have been in church but......
Our Sunday
long runs became the highlight of the week. David Y, Aaron,
Glenn, Pat C, Mark K, Mark J, Rick, Glenda, Jo, Phil, and the
Langmack brothers all came to run for times between 1hr30mins
and 2hrs50mins. For our final long run Rick and I ran the hills
in Daisy Hill Forest. I was seriously tired after 2hrs40min.
Rick had fruit in the car which we both enjoyed.
Aaron and
Ian dropped out with injuries. Ian was finally forced off the
road – Aaron came back over the last five weeks.
Wednesdays
became group runs too and I joined Rick, Pat C and Aaron for an
hour and half before breakfast. Rick and I ran Coro Drive a few
times and Ian and I ran locally before his injuries took hold.
Aaron took me to Toohey Forest in the last couple of weeks. The
local runs would often be brightened by a friendly wave from
Dale or Christine or Linda. Dale has qualified for the Hawaiian
Ironman Triathlon.
I had a
great support crew
Others
were supporting me too. My good friend Ben is an Ironman
Triathlete and knows what it is all about. He took me bike
riding every week for months before I had to use Saturdays as a
rest day. My wife Heather has always been supportive and has
given me every chance to try for my goals. My brothers, Tom and
Will, are cyclists who encouraged me every week.
Time to
deliver
Finally
the day had come. Phil went out hard and had a mighty run.
Matthew and I settled into Pat’s three hour group. The pace was
stiff and at 36kms we were 3minutes ahead of time. The last five
kms were very hard until the support network took over. Rick saw
me coming back from Runaway Bay and called to me to get my head
up. It gave me a real boost but the km rate had now dropped
below 4:30 pace.
Aaron and
Jo were waiting for me somewhere between the 38 and 39k marks.
Both had run strong halves and had then run down to offer
support. As I came past with my head down they jumped in and ran
me most of the way home. Aaron paced himself just ahead of me to
break the wind a bit. He spoke to me right through to the
finishing chute in the park. Jo picked up the person beside me
and ran with him (somebody she did not know) but from time to
time called out to me in support.
Pat gave me
a high 5 in the finishing straight
I was told
later several people were cheering me through at the end. Pat C
was waiting close to the finish to give that final push at the
end.
Peter (just left of the guy
giving the thumbs up)
This
camaraderie.......
This
camaraderie in the group is one of the main reasons I continue
to enjoy my running to such an extent. It is a culture which has
continued to build and the connections have developed into close
friendships. Most of Sunday after the marathon was taken up with
speaking with people from the group and exchanging encouragement
and stories about each person’s experiences.
Thank you all!
Peter
Hallahan
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