City to Surf Report...

I love it when a plan (almost) comes together!

I'll note the important statistic first: Finish Time according to my watch was 1:16:35. The official results will be out on Tuesday.

So even though that was 1:35 outside of my target time, I am very pleased with how it all went.

I'd had a good dose of carbs on Saturday evening, thanks to Shirl's homemade spag bol. I was amazed at how well I slept on Saturday night. I guess I should be thankful for the rain in Manchester - i.e. not much play in the cricket - so that didn't keep me awake late. I was up at 6.00am, had breakfast (nutella sandwich), checked the cricket progress (not much), had a wander round - double checking my gear, performed some important body functions(!), thoughtfully moved my car out of the driveway so Shirl could use hers, and headed down to the station to catch the 7.02 to the City.

There were a few other people heading in with the same intention, but I was a bit too nervous to chat to them so kept to myself on the train. Got to Town Hall, walked up to Hyde Park, grabbed a clothing bag, had two attempts at dropping that off with my clothes (forgot to take off my extra socks at the first attempt), thought about having another visit to the loo (declined), then wandered down to the blue group start.

I was amazed that I was so close to the front. Probably about 10 rows back and that was I guess at about 8.00. So I was pretty happy with that. I turned around every 10 minutes or so and realised I was lucky to have got there when I did. It was filling up very quickly behind me (and in front, where some chancers always have to sneak in). There were a couple of footballs (round shaped!) bobbling around - which was a bit annoying, because it meant everyone had to be on their guard to avoid getting one in the face. Anyway, the time passed fairly quickly.

And so it came toward the start time - 9.30. Looking across the junction of College, Park and William Streets, I could see the whole of the 'Back of the Pack' - an amazing sight. Not sure how many people were there but I was happy that I didn't have to get caught up in that!

And then they were off. The first group started at 9.30. I was amazed at how fast the front runners go off. I doubt I could sprint that fast for any distance, let alone for as long as they do and then carry on for 14km! I switched on my Forerunner in anticipation of our start - some 10 minutes later I guessed - but I couldn't get a GPS signal. I guess I was too sheltered by the Australian Museum building - which was also blocking out the sun, meaning that it was a bit chilly standing still for that time. Never mind, it'd lock on (and warm) up when I rounded the corner to William Street.

The next group started a few minutes later, then it was us next. I'd tried to do a few warm-ups and stretches, but too difficult in a mass of people. I was also a bit nervous about a group of people who were just in front of me who looked like they were off for a day of bush-walking. Slouch hats, rain coats, backpacks and camelback water carriers. I just hoped they didn't expect to walk and not get trampled!

So then we were off. I started my watch on the gun, so I'm sure my timing was accurate. I managed to avoid the bush-walkers - although it did get a bit physical in there! As I recall, I was basically running straight away - not held up too much by the mass of people. That would come later!

A good little downhill stretch for the first few hundred metres or so got me warmed up fine and into a good rhythm. It would've been so easy to have got caught up with the excitement and blast off at a faster pace. Thankfully I didn't do too bad and was actually conscious of my breathing!

I kept an eye on the pace for the first few kms. I didn't even see any km posts at the side of the road, apart from 7km and 11km, so I was glad of having the Forerunner. My target time of 1:15:00 worked out at an average of 5:21 per km. But of course that doesn't take into account the hills! So I just tried to keep to around about that 5:20 pace for as long as possible.

The drink stations were where it really got mad. I skipped the first one because it was just too messy. The roads were packed full width coming up to the stations and of course everyone just split off left and right to try to grab a drink - obviously causing a bit of a traffic jam. I guess I made up quite a few places there. But I knew I'd have to drink at the next station.

I got to the bottom of Heartbreak Hill (6km) in about 32 minutes - which was keeping to my average pace. I didn't find the hill too bad. I did slow down a bit, but just kept a nice steady pace - about 6min/km I later found out. I walked through the drink station at the top - partly to have a bit of a rest but also to make sure I got the drink inside me rather than outside!

There was a little rest for the next 2 kms or so, then for me the hardest part was the hill from about 9.5 to 10.5km (see marker on map below). That was tough to keep going and I may have walked another drink station too (can't remember).

The last 3km or so was hard work but I knew the toughest bits were behind me and it'd be over soon! So I just kept going without worrying about the pace or time. I remember how long the run out to the turn back is along Campbell Parade and wanted to leave a bit in the legs for a good finish.

And so I did. I think the official clock read 86 minutes or so. I stopped my watch at 76:35. I can't remember the time on the card I was given. I did see a card on the floor with 82 something on it and was tempted to pick it up! But no, there was nothing to gain from being dishonest.

I walked through the finish area in a bit of a daze. I grabbed some more drinks, a newspaper and picked up my bag. Had a good stretch in the park and then wandered some more. I was tempted to hang around and wait for my sister-in-law and her hubby, but I knew they'd be walking for a fair part of the way so I decided to head for home. I later found out that they didn't take part at all because one of them wasn't feeling well.

I bought a banana smoothy and some water and walked up the hill back to Bondi Junction station.

So that was it. An excellent day. The idea of all this was for me to get into some regular training - and I do intend to carry on. But to have had the added bonus of taking part in this fantastic event gives me that reward too.

I've got the Half Marathon in 4 weeks time. I'll start thinking about a plan for that later this week. I have no idea about how hilly it is.

And I'll definitely be up for the City to Surf next year. My time this year will certainly get me into the A2 start (100 minutes or less) but depending on my official time, I may even squeeze into A1 (75 minutes or less this year). But the main thing is that I'll have to keep up with the training and make sure I get as good a start as this year to improve my time by any great amount.

Thanks to anyone that's been reading this for the last 6 months. I'll keep it going. Hope you will too.