26.2
I can officially post the bumper sticker, wear the t-shirt, and bore my friends to death with details. Hip, hip, hooray!
This was one cool race! I traveled to Edinburgh Scotland with a friend (her dream trip, my first trip outside the U.S.A) and then on to Drumnadrochit for the race in Inverness. The Northern Highlands are beyond words. Breathtaking to say the least. The starting point was the middle of nowhere, officially listed as 'between Fort Augustus and Foyers'. Google it.
View of Highlands and Loch Ness
We were running along the Loch Ness River (No, we didn't see Nessie but we heard someone say someone did at some point during the race). It's a one direction course meaning the START and FINISH are 26.2 miles apart. THERE IS NO TURNING BACK. Go strong or Go home.
Several wound up on the bus before we hit the halfway point. A charter bus rides the entire route in a more or less 'vulture mode' waiting to pick up the fallen. I know it's a necessary thing but it's a BUS for crying out loud! Some ruined their IT bands, others tore muscles on the initial 9 miles of sharp downhills mingled with mild uphills. I feel sorry for the injured solely because of the injury but they did not miss a thing as far as the views go. They rode in a very luxurious charter bus for over 6 hrs and got the very best of the scenery.
Just under 2700 runners finished the Marathon. There were no finishers at or near the 8 hour cutoff including myself. The last runners in were at 7:32:05 with 36 persons listed as DNF (did not finish).
Our goal (my friend paced me) was to finish under 6.5 hours. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED. With an average pace of 14:51 I finished my very first marathon...
CHIP TIME: 06:29:21
Post Race Photo
The course is listed as flat and downhill. On a graph, it looks extremely downhill. As far as actual altitude goes I'm sure it is. Your glutes will sing a different song though.
The elevation climb for this route is over 1800 feet and you will know it. The first 9 miles give you your best splits. The last 4 miles are relatively flat. What happens in between is a real workout. I learned a lot about running on this course. A WHOLE LOT. The DNF numbers prove this isn't for amateurs.
Downhill my eye!!
- Always check temps for START location (not finish). We were not prepared for the colder temperature on the mountain top
- Always bring your own hydration and fuel. This course ran out of fuel bars / gel after Mile 6. It would be Mile 20 before we encountered another supply station that hadn't emptied out. I hit "the wall" at Mile 9 and begged a gel pack off a DNF runner on the bus. God bless his generous heart!
- Hydration is only one part of preparedness in a marathon. At no point during my run was I ever under or over hydrated. It was fuel that was doing a number on me. KNOW what fuels (electrolytes, etc) work for you and take them along. Better to have them than not.
- Always charge your Garmin fully the night before. Lost battery at mile 21. I have no accurate splits after that. This race only puts out mile marker signs, no extra timing mats for splits and no photographers except at the Finish
- If you're a run/walker and are trying to avoid the 8 hour cutoff, remember that the cutoff is based on GUN TIME not CHIP TIME, meaning if you finish at 7:57:42 you will get a DNF with no official time. It took us exactly 6 minutes once the gun went off to reach the START line and we were in the 4 Hr group, others were still behind us.
- Know your running shoes. They will all feel uncomfortable after 3 or 4 hours no matter how much gel or cushion. If they are undersized, you will know it on the downhills and hate yourself for it. I wear a Women's size 10 in regular shoes but wear an 11 for running. A local running shop calculated my gait and running style and moved me into a Men's size 10. I disliked the longer length but loved the width. Around Mile 10 while running downward and feeling my feet move forward with the decline and NOT hitting the end of the shoe... I just LOVED the little girl that sold me these shoes! Get fit for your shoes... don't guess.
- Dress for the run. Wear something that absolutely will not chafe you. Although my sweat was limited due to the constant breeze, I was moving longer and farther than normal. Loving my Brooks waffle technical weave shirt (Gasparilla race in Tampa) and well fitting compression shorts, not too tight, not too loose.
The race organizers of this event do an incredible job. There is an Expo, located at Bught Park in Inverness - same location as the Finish Line and it's all in tents on a grass field. Ample free parking. Charter buses to shuttle runners to the Start Line and buses that will drop runners off post race. They offer a free post race meal (keep your tickets) and sell a wonderful carb loading meal pre-race.
ALL SWAGGER MUST BE EARNED. These Scots are serious about their races. The winners, male and female, of this event receive National Titles thus all shirts, medals, goodie bags, etc are given out AFTER you cross the Finish Line. NO EXCEPTIONS. You must earn it. Volunteers meet you along the Finish Coral with shirts, bags, bananas and water. Again, a great setup. Gear Check is handled by truck pre-race at the Start Line, post-race on the park field. Works quite well, lots of friendly volunteers.
ALL SWAGGER MUST BE EARNED. These Scots are serious about their races. The winners, male and female, of this event receive National Titles thus all shirts, medals, goodie bags, etc are given out AFTER you cross the Finish Line. NO EXCEPTIONS. You must earn it. Volunteers meet you along the Finish Coral with shirts, bags, bananas and water. Again, a great setup. Gear Check is handled by truck pre-race at the Start Line, post-race on the park field. Works quite well, lots of friendly volunteers.
Finish Line Coral during Expo
Speaking of pre-race... I'm going to digress and go "All American" here and talk about the different culture I was in. I have never ever seen as much public... errrrr... relieving of oneself (both male and female) as I did at the start of this race. Mind you, there were ample 'Portaloos' and the line moved very quickly but no one thinks much of taking a 'public piss' or walking behind a bush. Men simply stepped 10 or 15 feet off the roadway, turned their backs to you and rained on the scenery. No one laughed, called out obscenities or took pictures.
We watched hundreds of runners (solely a personal choice) walk behind the nearest tree and 'take care of business'. There was no 'gents to the right, ladies to the left'. It was a 'find your own tree' deal and no one minded who passed by whom. The entrance and exit areas were all the same so you know they were passing others as they sought their own 'spot'. Even the charter bus had a toilet, center of bus, with no enclosure. Just how it was. At the Expo, one young man was being measured (and by young I mean 30'ish) for winter leggings and he simply dropped his pants, stood there in his gray boxer style underpants. No one stared. No one cared. Just wasn't a big deal to them. There are public toilets just like in the U.S. everywhere. Mens. Ladies. With doors and privacy. This was just in a remote area but it was not by any means 'unusual' to anyone.
Understand, those from the United Kingdom, they are a very civil people, a real joy to meet and their country is truly a pleasure to visit. This incident just makes me realize how oversexualized America is as a nation. Not that I'm desiring to convert but that I appreciated the general acceptance of human need without anyone thinking to make fun or take too much notice of it. They have a similar view about cars and driving. Driving is a privilege. Cars are a means of transportation not an expression of personal interest or narcissism, thus all cars are functional, conservatively colored and only decorated with license tags and brand names. Period. We saw no traffic accidents while there and only one car pulled over by police and honestly, we weren't sure if the motorist had violated a traffic law or was simply stranded. They are very mature about driving, public behavior and physical needs. It was interesting to see.
Loch Ness
Back to the race. The shirt and medal were great. The shirt was a Brooks solid black technical tee made out of the waffle weave material (top notch) and short sleeved. The expo sold a hoodie version with the same race logo and date. Limited sponsor info on the back. The expo sold out of the hoodies and the event organizers hope to restock quickly as many still wanted the hoodies. The medal is a goldish brass color and has an area on the back for engraving your name and time. Again, top notch.
Highlands along Course
The course was just amazing. Even if I had finished at 7:59:59 I would have enjoyed it. The scenery along what was predominately single tracks (one lane roads) was worth every sore muscle and aching foot! The Loch Ness, centered amongst the Highlands makes this a destination race, meaning an International event. The male winner was from Kenya and the female winner was from Edinburgh Scotland. Lots of top competitors!
Techie Stuff: Timing results were text-ed to runners that supplied mobile numbers. Race Results were available same day via the website. Finish Line Photos were available same day as well as video Finish clips. Prices were very reasonable and the photographers took multiple shots hoping to get the best shots for everyone.
Next year's race is September 28, 2014 - Mark your calendars!