Seville Marathon - Official time 4:01:27

Disappointed doesn't even start to describe it.

I had said: I’ll be happy if I go below 3:30 and the closer to 3:20 the happier I’d be.

I went aggressive at the beginning on purpose. I knew I’d have to slow down but I wanted to give it the best shot I had. My plan was to stop running and get back to cycling in preparation for PBP2027. I wanted to set a sub 3:30 PB that I could be happy with.

At km 37 my right knee went, the tendon on the outside. Unannounced. Unexpectedly. Without any warning I had to stop running and walk. Funny enough in front of a friend that was cheating for me.

Walked for a bit. I started to run again and very soon my left leg failed. That was unannounced, it felt just fine all day. But that was not unexpected. My left leg had been playing funny for a while, forcing me to be careful during the last few weeks of training.

Had to walk all the way to the finish. 5 kilometres. 1 hour. I tried to run a few times but not even jogging would work. 

1 hour with my head down, hearing people shouting my name, and runners patting my back.

I managed to “run” the last few meters but couldn’t make it sub 4 hours.

It will take my over inflated ego a bit of time to recover from this.

The run in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/17408177134

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González

Kingston bridge + Hampton Court bridge loop

 

Untuned with myself. Not a feeling I’m used to. Not a feeling I’m comfortable with.

The plan for today’s run was to dress as I’m planning to dress for the Seville marathon. Same shoes, shorts, shirt. Same amount of gels (an amount I wouldn’t dare to confess). 

Run to Kingston bridge as a warmup. Free pace. Based on feeling. Not allowed to look at the watch.

Then, from Kingston bridge to Hampton Court bridge (around 5k) run at what I thought would be my marathon pace. Again, only based on feeling. Not listening to podcasts or music. Not allowed to look at the watch.

If I were successful I should be able to run back from Hampton Court to Kingston at the same pace.

As you can see looking at the run I wasn’t successful. By the time I got to Hampton Court I knew I had gone too hard. Worst of it I knew I had started too hard but I didn’t feel that fast.

To make things even worse my left leg was feeling a bit funny. Something that started after last Saturday’s marathon in the trails (https://www.strava.com/activities/17165873979) and it hasn’t gone away. Who would have thought that a marathon on the trails was probably not the best training for a road marathon three weeks later…

I could have run back to Kingston and tried to adjust my pace but the niggle in my left leg made me think it was safer to call it a day, jog home and try again tomorrow.

The jog back home was 30 minutes of feeling sorry for myself. I was feeling slow, I knew I hadn’t been able to pace myself, and I felt fragile. Not sure which one was worse. Not the best news two weeks before Seville.

And now, I look at the numbers in Strava and I am hugely surprised. I wasn’t expecting it. 

Don’t get me wrong. I know a pace of 4:36m/km is nothing to write home about, but, for me, it is huge. It is a 5k and a 10k PR, which, even if I never really targeted those distances, is significant. 

So, yes, I wasn’t that slow (for my level) but I still had the feeling of not being able to pace myself and being fragile. And that makes me feel untuned with myself. Not a feeling I’m used to. Not a feeling I’m comfortable with.

Exactly two weeks for the Seville marathon now. The fear of starting too hard and legs falling off too soon is now planted in my brain. Not sure if that is good or bad. Doubts start to creep in.

I’ll give it another go tomorrow. Hopefully it’ll get better.

(Apologies for the self-pity report)

The run in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/17236438503/

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González

(cancelled) South Devon (trail) (almost) Marathon

Dumb & Dumber

That is the only way of describing it. 

As we were leaving the hotel, around 7:15am, already in the car, we learnt the event was cancelled.

My first reaction was “fine, we go home and we run tomorrow”.

JFW’s was “nah, let’s go to Dartmouth, grab a tea and we go for a run here”.

I’d swear he said 10 miles.

Despite my strong personality and the suspicion that I was being tricked, I agreed to the plan and that was it.

Nothing would stop us.

A local telling you that if you leave the car (my car) at that place it won’t be there in an hour? Move the car half a mile inland and stick to the plan.

Strong winds and big waves giving you the (salty) shower you didn’t get at the hotel? You keep running.

Heart breaking images in Torcross when you realise how hard the houses were hit by the storm? You keep running.

Only stop running if you need to walk up the hills and to have a pee (I lost count of how many pee stops I had).

To be honest the conditions were not that bad.

Yes, a huge wave surprised us in Torcross and put water up our calves (so much for running on gore-tex shoes), it was windy enough to have to be very careful at points and it rained enough that you wouldn’t care anymore. Certainly conditions that justified the cancellation of the event but, still, good enough to enjoy the experience.

But we still were dumb & dumber. I’ll let you decide who was which.

“Oh, look, a lighthouse over there". “Let’s go and visit it”. “But it is out of the route”. “Yeah, let’s go there anyway…”

“10 miles and 2 hours running”. “Let’s carry on for a little bit”.

“Oh, this bit is slippery…” next second Javier is down, then JFW is down and Javier goes down again…

“How much further do we go?”. “Just a mile and a half”.

(3 miles later) “Oh, look, the boxes from what was a checkpoint. They have bananas and crisps (who knows what else)”, “Yeah, we are fine, we take something if we need it on our way back”.

“Half a marathon and 2 hours and a half running”. “Ok, let’s turn around, I am starting to get cold”. “I’m not cold, I'm having great fun”. “Don’t talk to me with your positivity…”

Of course, the boxes from the checkpoint weren’t there by the time we were returning, but that wasn’t a problem. I had enough gels to survive for 15 days and JFW had a pack of gummies. Enough for him to also survive 15 days.

By the time we were back to Torcross the locals were already working on the reparations of their houses. It felt wrong to be there running.

We jogged back to the car, now with tail wind, and we called a day. 

We didn’t quite make a full marathon.

Dumb and dumber.

The run in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/17165873979

More pictures: https://photos.app.goo.gl/NVmxB1uRhR8p1Mjr7

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González

Reverse La Belga loop

Why did I run it in reverse?

I woke up around 9am, which, to me, is fairly late.

But I went to bed yesterday at 2am, which, to me, is very, very late.

I also had drunk a fair bit. Which, to me, means I had drunk around three glasses of wine. 

All this to say that when I woke up I didn’t fancy going for a run.

I still put my running shorts on. That is one of the brain games I play with myself. Taking tiny steps in the right direction.

I had breakfast while I was wondering what to run. I couldn’t make up my mind. I didn’t feel like running.

Lethargic was probably the best way to describe how I was feeling so I had a coffee while looking outside. It was a cold but sunny morning. It would have been a shame to miss the opportunity of going for a run.

That is when the idea crossed my mind. Probably triggered by the caffeine. Run La Belga loop in reverse and it will feel like running something completely new. If it feels completely new it is easier for me to relax, just run slow, enjoy the run and focus on not getting lost.

Boom! 

Five minutes later, almost two hours after I woke up, I was out of the door enjoying the jog.

Happy to report I didn’t get lost a single time.

A very nice way of starting the year.

The run in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/16901636765 

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González

Forgive me father for I have sinned (2)

Last time I committed this specific sin (https://www.strava.com/activities/6430407945/), running a San Silvestre, a popular run (aka. race) that happens in every village towards the end of the year, I run a 6:12/km pace and in my report I wrote "It would have been perfect if my legs were not so painful by now that I know that tomorrow I won’t be able to walk".

I was so bad at this specific sin (I’m very, very good at pretty much any other sin) that, back then, I recorded the run (aka. race) with my Garmin 1030 (for those of you runners, that is a bike computer).

This year I wore a running watch but I did the whole run (aka. race) based on feeling. 

I thought I was doing well. Running at a good pace, showing a fantastic running style.

Then a member of my family shared a video where you could spot me for about five seconds at the end of the second kilometre and I realised my running style was very far from gracious. The video is now censored, I have a public image to maintain.

What caught my attention was how hard I was gasping for air. From outside I looked like I was dying.

From the inside I was feeling like a perfect machine. Keeping a sustainable pace. Passing runners. I was smashing it.

That feeling took a hit when in the long straight I saw the first runner coming back when I was still running out. 

My god he was running fast. And his running style was fantastic. I realised the gap to the front of a local popular run (aka. race), and it was huge. My ego also took a hit. 

But my ego was destroyed when in the last 100 metres I was passed by a boy and a girl. I estimated they were 10 or 12 years old. They were sprinting against each other and they beat me even if I was sprinting myself trying to get under 19:30. 

They both beat me and I got 19:31. 

Guess who is going to sin again in the future.

The run in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/16868196033 

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González

KW - Henley

13 signed up for the ride. Add to that JFW that showed up unannounced.

A roster full of sprinters. I knew GC Denis was focused on GC so didn’t have to worry about him. Grant was clearly the most dangerous one, but JFW, Will R., and Nigel also to be considered. Andy L., Oliver and Peter L. were a bit of a question mark. I needed to be clever playing my cards.

For me, being clever in cycling is synonymous of wheel sucking. And that is exactly what I did. 

It helped that five riders DNS’d. Being a group of nine riders I was the odd one at the back of the group.

As always JFW was the protagonist of the first couple of sprints. Grant and Will R. played ball with him. I didn’t. Clever cyclists don’t bother with minor points. That’s a loser's game.

I’m sure they will come with a list of excuses, but the pace was so hard that by the time we got to Windsor we dropped JFW and Will R.. 

Good for me. Although I was still a bit worried about Grant.

He rode steady in the first three “climbs” and I got to experience what riders feel riding next to van der Poel. Happy to be there, almost at your limit, praying to God he doesn’t accelerate.

 

Getting to Henley I got a puncture in my rear wheel. That was my opportunity!!!!

I told them to carry on, I’d catch with them at the coffee stop. 

But I knew Grant was pressed on time. If I took a bit too long to fix my puncture he would have to skip the coffee stop and would DNF the race.

I was riding tubeless and, of course, I didn’t have my saddle bag with me. All part of the plan. Unable to pump up my wheel I was forced to ride very slowly to Henley and find a bike shop in Henley to pump up my wheel (thank you Henley Cycles).

To be on the safe side I lost a bit more time pretending to be trying to find my riding mates in Henley when I knew all too well the race plan was to stop at Twyford for coffee.

My plan worked to perfection. By the time I got to Twyford Grant had DNF’d. 

Not all was ideal though. My riding mates had finished their coffee and cake so I felt compelled to skip mine. 

No caffeine for the critical part of the race is a huge disadvantage but I am always up for a challenge.

At Drift Rd. we agreed to ride through and off. 

Position in a through and off when you ride towards the second most important sprint of the day is critical. 

I decided to sit on Nigel’s wheel. 

My plan was to wait until the last time he would lead me to the front. And as soon as he moved left I’d go for the sprint. The idea was to take everyone by surprise and Nigel was “tired” after his turn. 

I wanted GC Denis on my wheel to make it very difficult for anyone to jump after me as GC riders don’t take part in sprints. Unfortunately it was Andy L. who was on my wheel. Not ideal but not much I could do about it.

I was unlucky because the last time I was hitting the front was a bit too far away from the line but it was then or never so I went for it. 

Boom!!! The plan worked wonders. No one jumped after me. I was leading the points competition.

The problem was that by Virginia Water I knew my legs were empty. Time to play the team card.

I sent Nigel in a suicidal breakaway to force Peter L., Andy L. and Oliver to chase while I took a free ride sitting on their wheel.

When they caught Nigel Andy L. moved to the front preparing the sprint for Peter L. and Oliver. That was the situation for most of the approach to the sprint.

At the right time GC Denis came from the back allowing me to get into position. Only the great GC riders do that.

I had to wait until the last second to launch my sprint and I took it.

Being so heavily competed made the victory even sweeter.

One more proof that I am a master strategist. 

The ride in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/16731033762/ 

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González

"2 hours" of "easy" running in the hills

 That is what I asked for. "2 hours" of "easy" running in the hills.

What JFW delivered was two and a half hours (25% error) of not that easy running (for me anyway).

Definitely not the best run organiser out there. 

Especially if you consider that it was me who told him that we were one hour and a half into the run, time to start thinking of heading to the finish. And now, when I look at the route, I see we were the farthest we got in all day from our finish point. 

And I’m not surprised at all. I suspected it as we were stopping at every crossroads for him to decide our way home. That, inevitably, means running longer and more climbs.

Great training on how to deal with uncertainty. You are running tired, you don’t know which way you are going, you don’t know how many climbs are left, you don’t know for how long you will have to run.

I finally recognised the last climb (“Love lace bridge ascent” in Strava). I knew then there were no more climbs left, I knew exactly how long I’ll have to run for. A shame I was still tired and, somehow, I went for the sprint a bit too hard and a bit too early.

I, obviously, ran out of steam miles away from the top. JFW took the sprint, put country music in the car all the way home and made me pay for the coffee at Cobham.

Proper torture I went through today.

The run in Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/16674082133/

Take care of yourself

Javier Arias González