The route profile
Peninsula half-marathon
Still smiling at the 7km water stop
Sunday 21 Feb 2010
I entered for the Peninsula-half marathon just a few hours before entries closed on Feb 14th. Being as indecisive as I am, I oscillated for a while, eventually concluding that I was NOT going to do it because it would be too much racing, because of my sore achilles tendon and niggles from trail running; but most of all because it is graded 4 in terms of difficulty, and I thought it would be crazy to attempt such a difficult half-marathon in my current state of fitness. So anyway, when my husband Josh got home from running the route last weekend (the helpers' run) I felt so envious after spending the morning lying on the couch watching TV, that I entered on a whim.
I certainly do not regret it. Make no mistake, it was tough. But having said that, I spent some time doubting that I was actually on Black Hill because I was expecting it to be much steeper. Yes, it was steep, but it was a gradual incline which I could run/walk most of the way. What made it most tough was the wind - the south easter was insane today making it hard to even run on the flats!
It was also a funny kind of start. Traffic congestion meant that I got to the start just 15 minutes before the race, only to realise that it was the start of the marathon (not the half-marathon!) I jumped into a kind stranger's car for the 2km ride to my actual start. Then I lost my sunglasses and also realised 1km in that I'd picked the wrong hat - the one I had still had beach sand in it from the day before. I also forgot my ipod sportsband and stuck my ipod in my pants pocket - which as it turns out later caused the screen to freeze (probably because of sweat)! And it meant I had to carry the gels in my hand!
My new gels strategy by the way is just to take 2 during a half-marathon, one after every hour. It worked well for me today and on the Lion of Africa half-marathon. The race started at the Simons Town station and ended at the Naval Base, 2k from the start. We started out with the sea n the right, then turned left up towards Kommetjie and around up and over Black Hill Glencairn expressway) and back along the main road.
So anyway, nice race. Great views and I actually found myself singing along (out loud when there was no-one nearby) to my playlist! It was great to see hubby at the 7km mark (he was a marshal), and I only started feeling exhausted around 19km. Even better, I feel great afterwards - a little sore, but nothing serious, and all the niggles that have been bothering me seem to have worked themselves out.
And now, back to the triathlon training this week. Tough when you're a race junkie:-)
I entered for the Peninsula-half marathon just a few hours before entries closed on Feb 14th. Being as indecisive as I am, I oscillated for a while, eventually concluding that I was NOT going to do it because it would be too much racing, because of my sore achilles tendon and niggles from trail running; but most of all because it is graded 4 in terms of difficulty, and I thought it would be crazy to attempt such a difficult half-marathon in my current state of fitness. So anyway, when my husband Josh got home from running the route last weekend (the helpers' run) I felt so envious after spending the morning lying on the couch watching TV, that I entered on a whim.
I certainly do not regret it. Make no mistake, it was tough. But having said that, I spent some time doubting that I was actually on Black Hill because I was expecting it to be much steeper. Yes, it was steep, but it was a gradual incline which I could run/walk most of the way. What made it most tough was the wind - the south easter was insane today making it hard to even run on the flats!
It was also a funny kind of start. Traffic congestion meant that I got to the start just 15 minutes before the race, only to realise that it was the start of the marathon (not the half-marathon!) I jumped into a kind stranger's car for the 2km ride to my actual start. Then I lost my sunglasses and also realised 1km in that I'd picked the wrong hat - the one I had still had beach sand in it from the day before. I also forgot my ipod sportsband and stuck my ipod in my pants pocket - which as it turns out later caused the screen to freeze (probably because of sweat)! And it meant I had to carry the gels in my hand!
My new gels strategy by the way is just to take 2 during a half-marathon, one after every hour. It worked well for me today and on the Lion of Africa half-marathon. The race started at the Simons Town station and ended at the Naval Base, 2k from the start. We started out with the sea n the right, then turned left up towards Kommetjie and around up and over Black Hill Glencairn expressway) and back along the main road.
So anyway, nice race. Great views and I actually found myself singing along (out loud when there was no-one nearby) to my playlist! It was great to see hubby at the 7km mark (he was a marshal), and I only started feeling exhausted around 19km. Even better, I feel great afterwards - a little sore, but nothing serious, and all the niggles that have been bothering me seem to have worked themselves out.
And now, back to the triathlon training this week. Tough when you're a race junkie:-)
