Week 36 (The Autumn Shakespeare Marathon)

Funky race shorts

Good start to the week with a bash at all 3 triathlon disciplines. Started with a 1,500m swim. I pretty much swam continuously but had to stop every now and then due to the elderly traffic population in the pool. Not a good enough excuse to blame for my slowness - it took me about 53 mins to swim this distance. Next up was a 10k run, interval style. I followed the formula 15 mins warm up; 6 x 400m run (with 400m recovery); could down to finish.

Only I hadn't really finished. Once run was complete, I hopped onto my trainer bike and cycled 35 mins in the small ring. Easy cycling but I was quite whacked at this point.

Whacked or not, it didn't stop me test riding a Cannonade Synapse. This was a lovely bike that I blasted up and down the buss route from the new cycle shop in Redditch. Am very tempted to add this bike (but the disc version with better spec'd groups etc) to my collection. I would also choose a funkier colour, like azure blue. 

Cycle commute to work and back on Tuesday. The return leg was a trifle difficult because I stopped for a drink with my old work chums. Sure gets dark early now.

Wednesday was a nothing rest day.

Thursday was another great tri day. I started with a swim and covered 2,100m - I didn't mean to swim this far but I got my maths wrong. Out the pool and I ran to the lake and back (just over 5k). To finish my session, I spent 55 mins on the turbo trainer just gently spinning in the small ring.

Friday was a rest day. Deliberately rested my legs for the planned marathon the following day.

Saturday was awesome. It saw me complete my 2nd ever marathon - the Autumn Shakespeare 2015 marathon. Fantastic!

The weather was pants! It was cold and raining hard at times. So many people had entered this event though - 100's in fact. Some were running 5k, some 10k, some a half-marathon and 116 the marathon.  The course was very flat being on an old dis-used air field and quite boring too. I had to run around this course 8 and a bit times. It was nice to see a few old planes and the volunteers and supporters were great.

Round and round and round and round I went. On and on. The above photo's would have cost something like 18 pounds if I wanted to buy. Pah - no way! Once I was running the final lap, voices in my head told me to finish with a 'sub 4 hour' time.

My chip time was 3:59:53! Woo hoo - the voices in my head were happy. However, my finish time was 4:00:36. Not sure why the two times were different?! I was pleased with my time and I now had a new PB! Racewise  I came 55th out of 108 (8 did not finish). After all this hard work today (not to mention training) I was awarded with the World's most pants medal!

What an awful medal

The medal didn't even have 'marathon' scribed on it. Mind you, my first marathon only awarded a certificate. Good job (?) I've signed up for the Milton Keynes 2016 marathon with the Grumptoids ...