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| At Bwlch Penbarras |
I run Excalibur Marathon every year as I love the course and the route and I train on this route all through the year so it is one I definitely don’t miss if I can help it.
Competition was high this year as I had a few running friends to race, first I had a friend called Fast Dave who is basically the fastest runner on fells that I have ever ran with and I have never beaten this guy in our many training runs throughout the years and a friend called Wona who I have never beaten in a race to date and she is always the first or second female in at most marathons, so no pressure and to top things off I went over on my ankle 3 weeks ago at London so I had not done much training for this.
So the Saturday morning came and I had got my normal marathon gear in place and me and Dave drove up to Wales and to the start of Excalibur where I met Wona who on key promptly told me off for drinking Lucozade Sport and not water a normality when we meet at our marathons, the weather was cold and wet and windy which was ideal marathon weather for me as I run better if its rough weather, as always I had arranged to run with Wona at the start which would have been good advice and pace but something I have never seem to accomplish as I always race off at the start only to be overtaken at mile 18 or 20 every time by a laughing Wona.
My strategy with Dave was to run behind him for as much as I could then sprint the last 6 miles up Jubilee Tower at the end and hope my many marathons would counteract his blistering speed and beat Wona in the process, let’s just say that didn’t work.
Anyway of we went first 4 miles is very hilly wide forest track so Dave went off at sub 6:30min/mile pace with me following needless to say we were quite at the front I tried my best to catch up with him but every time I got close off he went again couldn’t touch him up the hills, so we got to the first major fell hill at about mile 5 and I decided to let him go and slow down as I could feel my energy draining really quick and I had a long way to go yet.
Moel Arthur came and went at about 8 or 10 miles then got to half way where you turn back and you can get some good pace running in for about 8 miles until you hit the major hills again at Moel Arthur at about 20 miles and Jubilee Tower the big one at the last 2 miles, funny thing was as time was going on I seemed to be getting fresher and I didn’t have too much problem in the last 6 miles what’s so ever and I was over taking quite a few people up the last hills and I was glad to be feeling as good as I was watching out for Wona to overtake me at any minute and wanted something in the tank in case she did.
When you come to the top of Jubilee Tower it’s a nice 1 mile sprint downhill to the finish and I came over the finish feeling I had done a good race and enjoyed myself in the progress. Obviously I had not beaten Dave but my time was 05:37:31 position 56 / 143 which will do, job done. Thanks to my friends Dave, Sue, and Nick and Wona for a great day.
This is the video I made from last year's race.
This is one of the best marathons that I run due to its dedicated marshals’ that always do such a good job the t-shirt and medal and beer are great, they even send you a Christmas card but let’s not forget they run this marathon to raise funds for Claire House so please run it for charity.
The course is very tough but rewarding and very scenic a must to do put it on your list for next year.
For more information visit the website.
About Claire House
Laughter, positivity and care, that’s what Claire House is all about. Located on the Wirral, our ten-bedded hospice provides respite, end-of-life care and support for children and young adults with life-limiting illness. We’re also there to support the whole family, providing support and counselling for as long as is needed.
Every single day, Claire House Children’s Hospice needs over £6,500 to cover its cost of care. And it’s through the fundraising efforts of some truly amazing individuals, companies and groups that we’re able to keep the doors of our hospice open.
We hope that every participant in Excalibur gets sponsored and raises money in support of Claire House Children’s Hospice. From £30 to £300, every penny raised by Excalibur participants will help us to continue to provide support and care for our families.