The Ups and Downs of Marathon Eryri
It’s been 5 days since the Snowdonia road marathon and I’m still not sure what to say about it…the weekend certainly had its highs and lows.
It all started with the drive up there, it almost killed my car. It seemed to take offence at the hills and mountains though Brecon and Snowdonia National Park. By the time we got to Llanberis to collect our bib numbers the car was screaming that it had had enough.
The buzz of the event centre was electrifying (nothing to do with the fact that HQ was at the Electric Mountain Visitor Centre). We are given our Brooks tech t-shirts, bib number and free high five samples and offered a pre-race massage. There was a small expo, with Brooks, Buff, Cowbois t-shirts and hoodies, all very tempting but we had a meal booked at 7pm back in Betws Y Coed where our B&B is for the weekend, so we make our way there with the car groaning all the way.
Arriving at our B & B and unpacking, disaster was about to strike, as I unpack I notice one obvious error. I only unpack 1 trainer- 1 bright neon orange nicely bedded in New Balance trainer……even to this day I still have no idea where that left trainer is. I do know it cost me one sleepless night and a brand new pair of Brooks trainers to run a marathon in. However, it turns out I wasn’t the only numpty (technical term used by the event staff and organisers) who needed new treads, another 4 people had arrived minus their runners that morning.
Having run Snowdonia the previous year as a first marathon I was pretty confident I could knock a good few minutes off it. So much so I actually went ahead and said it aloud, to anyone who would listen, I was going for a sub 4hr run! And I was looking good for it…at the start.
With a few of my Lliswerry Runners for company and support, I Knocked at least 5 mins off my first climb up to Pen Y Pass, another 2 mins off the decent on to Llyn gwynant, I fell into an easy pace. Taking in the views, Llyn Dinas reflecting the mountains like a mirror and the sun just peeking out above Moel Ellio. It was here at 18 miles that I noticed things weren’t going to well. My pace has slowed, my legs feeling heavy and the soles of my feet burning. I could already feel blisters on my left foot. Not sure what was going on, my breathing was fine but I just felt I could have closed my eyes and slept walked the rest of the route. I plodded on and counted down the miles. At this point I was actually looking forward to that last climb, an excuse to slow the pace and walk it out. As it happens, it was at Groesion one of my club buddy’s caught up, just as I was getting ready to throw the towel in. With his “gentle” encouragement we made that final climb together. I’d realised that my sub 4hr finish had fallen by the way side…………a pb was still on the cards though. With that in mind we ploughed on. It was at the top of Bwlch y Groes that I felt first my right calf and then my left start to spasm. Now I’ve had the odd cramp before but this was horrific (slightly dramatic I know but it really was the worst case I’ve ever had) so much so I stopped while my new best buddy Kardiff Kev massaged my legs. By now I just wanted to finish and I ran the last mile in a hop skip jump kinda fashion with strict instructions from Kev to “just keep smiling” as we came into the finishing straight and in true Lliswerry Runners fashion we crossed the line together (He could of easily left me for dust at the top of the beast but as he declared “we started togever, we’ll finish togever”). As grateful as I am to Kev for getting me my pb I did however, leave the finish line press ups to him, I was done!
I’d made the decision earlier in the month that I would give Marathon Eryri a miss in 2017, I’d set my sights on a different run in October in 2017 but now after dissecting it, wondering the ifs and buts and still not seeing why it went wrong I feel I have unfinished business. Snowdon is described one of the UK’s toughest marathons, brutal in some instances but it’s natural beauty and the challenge itself far outweighs any of the nastiness (It’s funny how you can forgive and forgot a run so quickly) so I will be back again and yes I will be going for a sub 4.
Footnote: My car never quiet did make it back, not in the conventional way anyhow. We got to Brecon before it totally gave out and we were towed back to Cardiff by a very nice man.
As for my left shoe…..it’s still MIA. I live in hope that it will return to me one day.
