Again, as per last year I took the 30th of April (my birthday) off. I spent the morning relaxing, running errands and going for a divine Thai massage. A fitting way to spend a birthday I think.
Unfortunately I started feeling like I had a cold half way through the day and my throat got really sore, but I OD'ed on vitamin C and after school the boys and I packed up and headed off for Wellington regardless. I was actually not feeling great that night and was less than keen to run a long race the next day. Still we had dinner and donuts etc for my birthday, and I went to bed early and decided I'd see how I felt the next morning.
When I woke up I had a niggling voice trying to get me to give in and stay in bed instead of doing the race, it was tempting! But in the end duty called and it was after all the very reason we'd gone out to Wellington. Also this year the weather was good, so there really was no excuse, and I felt ok. So up we got, got ready and headed off to the start.
I found a spot for boys and dog just above the start, where they could watch us all set off (before going into the stadium to play and wait at the finish). I also bumped into Bennie and some of his friends. Bennie was running his 100th 1/2 marathon. Impressive.
Before long it was 07:15 and time to go. I set off up the steep hill, whch wasn't so bad this year. The first 3km were ok. Clinton passed me at that point (he didn't see me), and I didn't see him again until the end, as usual. I didn't see anyone else I knew en route. But there were several people I played tag with the whole race. I'd pass them and then they'd pass me and vice versa. I mostly enjoyed the race until about 7km in where I realised I was struggling. It was hot and the road felt long , hard and endless. I walked a good 5-6 different times along the next 15 km trying to catch my breath and get some strength back into my legs. I was clutching my trusty safety blankies... I mean water sachets as if my life depended on them. It was sheer will power which made me keep going, that and not wanting to delay FINISHING the damn race.
I was so tired by the time I got to the finish. I was convinced I'd done quite badly, but when I finally got into the stadium and saw the clock it was on 1:56:40, I was thrilled and surged forward so I finished at exactly 1:56:50, just a little slower than last year but still pretty good!
The boys were right there at the end to greet me, and said I'd come in a lot sooner than they expected, so they were impressed. After a 5 minute lie-down on the lawn, to prevent an imminent cardiac arrest, I saw Leon and his friend, who had just finished, so I beat them. YES (not that I am competitive or anything...) ;). I later found out that one of my beer challenge buddies Steve, the very dude who had challenged me to this damned race and then stood me up last year had run too and had finished at 2:10:00! Oh sweet victory! YEAH! :)
The Official Results have been released, they were out within a week, I was very impressed.The full listing can be found HERE.
This is how I faired this year:
The winning man:
1 SONQIBIDO NKOSINOXOLO 1791 23 M O TNETAGN 1:04:20
The winning lady:
37 AMUKOTO ANNA 3101 27 F O MPWP 1:18:47
Me:
1144 FRASER JANE 4217 36 F O TEMP 1:56:52
Last year:
1241 WEIDEMAN JANE 3884 35 F O TEMP 1:56:36
Steve:
1940 DE VILLIERS GRAAFF STEPHEN 1073 40 M 40+ TEMP 2:10:50
The last person in:
3809 BAKER ZAHIR 4491 28 M O TEMP 4:49:21
Last year I came 1241th out of 3762, and was 224th female.
Pics below:
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