Park 2 Park Half Marathon

Yesterday I ran my fifth Park @ Park Marathon in Ipswich. The event is organiised by the Ipswich Hospital Foundation. It would have to be one of the best organised events in which I have run. I really enjoy participating even though it is a very tough run, being 4 laps of a hilly course.

It was quite chilly at the start line and it seemed like an eternity before the gun went off . The first lap is 6.1K followed by three 5K laps. I got off to a slow start, my feet were numb and it took me a while to get moving.

My splits were 28:36 (6.1K), 23:57, 23:39, 23:36. My Net time was 1:39:50, 2 minutes slower than last year. Must be old age.

It is disappointing that more people from Brisbane don't make the effort run this event. Tigger ran it for the first time yesterday and enjoyed it. There were a couple of guys who came all the way from Tweed Heads.

Not Much in 2 Weeks

It is now more than two weeks since the Gold Coast Marathon. I haven't done much running since then. On Sunday and I Tigger and I did 28k at a nice steady pace and I have seem to have pulled up OK after that. Last weekend I was in Perth visiting my new Grand-daughter, Lily Rose. She is absolutely beautiful. While there, I a did couple of 7K runs on tracks around the Swan River. What a beautiful city and environment to run in. At one point I stopped to watch several Dolphins feeding on a school of fish. They put on a great show.

Next Sunday I will be running in the Park 2 Park Half Marathon in Ipswich. It is a tough run, 4 laps of a hilly course. I love it though. It is a well organised race in a very friendly atmosphere.

A Few Days Away

Robyn and I are off to the Perth tomorrow to visit my son, Anthony, and his wife, Kym, and our new grand-daughter, Lily Rose. We will be returning on Monday.

Anthony is a Health and Safety adviser for Rio Tinto Minerals. This will be our first visit to Perth. We are really looking forward to seeing Lily Rose for the first time.

I am recovering well from the marathon. I did not realise until I checked my records that my time of 3:20:51 was a course PB for me. That's the icing on the cake.

Post GC Marathon

Well I did it! I went much better than I expected with a 3:21 finish. I had a lot of pain in my right foot for most of the race, which took a lot of concentration to manage. that took away some of the pleasure of the run. However, I managed to keep a fairly steady pace and averaged 4:45. After I reached 35K I was feeling fairly good and was able to relax a bit and run with with a degree of confidence that I wasn't going to blow up. I was very pleased with the result.

Tigger did a mighty fine job in getting her brood in under 2:20. Well done Tigger!

Craig had a horror marathon and started cramping after 20K. This combined with stomach problems caused him a lot of grief but he soldiered on and finished. Congratulations Craig!. Don't give up mate. The next one will be great.

Congratulations to Robert Song! 3:12! Fantastic!

Great 10K Ewen! Congratulations. Thanks for the encouragement from the sideline.

Thanks for your encouragement and company out there Toasty. You did a great time considering your recent injury history. Congratulations.

Plu and the CR cheer squad were in fine form. Thanks so much. It sure makes such a difference.

Thanks to everyone for your support and encouragement.

Last Post before the Marathon

I was listening to the radio in the car onthe way to the railway station this morning at 6:50 am and heard part of a live phone interview with a 99 year old female masters athlete. I didn't hear much nor get her name but what stuck most in my mind was that she had just come in from training. I thought, " OMG! How slack am I"

I better start doing some real training.

All the best for a great run on Sunday everyone.

Update: Tigger's comment:-

There's no more to say,
Sunday is the day.
The weather could be better,
But we've trained in wetter.
So it's time to be bold,
Go out to the cold.
And whatever the pace,
Enjoy the race.