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PENINSULA MARATHON Sun 21 Feb 2010 - written by Lisa Baumann
When you think of a race where things just all go right and the body just behaves the whole way and you sometimes wonder if races like that actually ever happen... it just did for me!
I had no expectations going into the race at all! I just wanted to qualify for Oceans and my first Comrades and finish up somewhere around the 3.20 mark. I knew that a fast time was not possible due to the toughness of the course, and I knew that I was up against some of Cape Towns best runners, so didn't realistically think a placing would be possible. |
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| It was still dark at the start at 6:00 and the wind was already blowing strongly in Simonstown. We headed out towards Fish Hoek and it wasn't long before we headed straight into the wind over Black Hill. The wind was so strong on the downhill section towards the ocean that sheltering behind another runner didn't help much and I kept losing my hat... so eventually took it off as I was spending more time chasing it than running straight! |
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The bottom of Black Hill saw us turn into towards Simonstown and the the big climb of the day - Red Hill. Deep down, I have to admit to looking forward to this challenge just a little bit! It was a TOUGH effort, but having a fairly solid knowledge of the climb from riding it on my bicycle on numerous occasions helped a great deal! At this stage, I also had the 1st Lady bike with me, so there was some additional motivation to keep up the effort, as I figured Farwar, or Joanna or Ursula would not be far behind. I felt surprisingly strong at the top of the climb and the downhill worked in my favour, for once, allowing me the chance to recover, take in some GU and regain my strength.
I was extremely grateful at this point to have taken the decision to run in the more cushioned NB 769's (rather than the racing 904's) as my feet were feeling great and the usual marathon 'footache' had not occurred yet! I am so happy that there is finally a well cushioned running shoe out there that is actually light enough to race with! I will be running Two Oceans and my first Comrades in this very shoe without a doubt! |
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| I knew that from the bottom of Red Hill to Cape Point was going to be the toughest section of the race. We faced a strong head wind, there was a slight incline for most of the section and the hardest kilometers of a marathon are often from around the 28km mark to around 35km. I did what I normally do when it gets tough - put my head down and disappeared somewhere else in my mind! It did get tough and I did get tired, but I did not get sore - a first for me! This enabled me to really pick up the pace on the descent of Cape Point and open up the gap that was closing between Farwar and I. Once again, I reckon my ability to do this was largely due to having feet that were totally happy! From the bottom of Cape Point it is just a matter of holding on and getting to the finish as fast as possible! |
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| I had never won a major marathon before and it was really only the next day that it sunk in properly! I didn't even lift up the tape when I crossed the finish line and actually looked back to see who it was for, before realising that it was for me! Quite possibly I was a little more tired than I thought I was! All in all, it was a fantastic experience and one I will not forget. I think I can honestly say now, that quality and not quantity, is the key! I am pretty much recovered now and almost ready to tackle the next section which is the preparation for Two Oceans and ultimately Comrades! In between those two though is the best event of them all... the African X trail race which Moyra and I will be heading off road to prepare for, starting this weekend! I'll be in NB trail shoes for this one too! |
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