Race Report - Thames Path Ultra 19th Jan 2008
For the second year in a row I found myself toeing the line at the start of the Thames Path Ultra Marathon. Would I be able to beat my time from last year?
The race started in its usual way, with an unhurried depature of around 170 hardy souls setting out from Reading to head for Shepperton. Within a few hundred yards of the start, it was plain that this was not to be an easy day by the Thames as we got our feet wet in the flooded river for the first time. By Shiplake at mile 7 we had spent at least 4 of those miles wading through floodwater anything up to 3 feet deep, so I abandoned the path and instead followed the main road into Henley.
From Henley (mile 11) to Marlow (mile 17) I was able to stick to roads with the exception of around 1 mile of footpath where a landowners wife refused to let us use her private road and insisted we take the path that crossed a field under 2 feet of water and then followed the non-existent riverbank. It was here I managed to fall into a culvert 4 feet deep got soaked to the chest. Lucky I had my waterproof socks then!
From Marlow I again diverted through little Marlow and rejoined the course at Bourne End, and from here onwards I was able to follow the official route without any further diversions, and occasional soakings aside, there were no problems with the river. It became a lonely trail as I passed only a few runners as we headed down through Maidenhead (mile 25), Windsor (mile 31) so I was pleased to see Darren Johnson just before Windsor and Dave Green just after. I was still running without any walking breaks, and I managed to keep the run going through Staines as darkness fell, and all the way though to the finish at mile 50.
I ended up 5 minutes slower than last year (8:58), but having lost so much time over the early part of the course I really pleased to run the time I did and the fact that I only took walking breaks for food and checkpoints showed I got everything right on the day.
As we discussed food strategies on the e-group a week or so ago, here was my nutrition plan for the day (time/food):
+1:00 Kit Kat chunky, +2:00 Mars bar, +3:00 energy bar, +4:00 bag of peanuts, flapjack, +5:00 sweets, can of diet coke (checkpoint), energy gel, +6:00 mars bar, +7:00 sweets, energy bar, +8:00 Kit Kat Chunky.
Drink: 2 litres PSP, 2 litres water.
Recovery: 3 pints beer and curry (really!)
See you on the trails!
Chris
Some links to a report and pictures are here.
posted by Chris on 20th Jan, 2008