Team JMC Dynamic Duo and experienced triathlon/marathon men Paul Bowie and Steve Green have once again been trying to beat each other in the Clitheroe triathlon and in the Manchester Marathon. Daniel Robinson has been having a go as well.
Paul takes over…
It was nice to start off the season with my home Tri in Clitheroe, especially when of all three disciplines have at some point been on my training route. The wind and rain together with a start time of 11:30 helped the nerves build strongly but then watching colleagues Daniel Robinson and Steve Green go off before helped engage race mode ! 11:30 came and that was it, I proceeded to set the fastest swim time I’d ever done in competition and didn’t slow down for the bike. The run came around an hour later and with 85% of the run off road through fields, the fell shoes were a good choice and helped me accelerate to hold off the competition even down to the last 5 metres and I finished in a truly awesome 70th place in 1:53, setting a time to smash next year !
A few weeks later on the 28th April 2013 and I’m heading off to run further and longer than I’ve ever done before.
08:55 – Steve Green and I are stood amongst the 13,498 other competitors waiting for the gun to go off trying to zone out the noises of the crowds….. BANG we’re off. We’re running up one side of the dual carriageway, within 400 metres the elite runners are already coming past us the other way. 1 hour 43 and again the Elite are starting to come past on their way back this time.
2 hours and 15 minutes and we’ve hit the halfway mark and everything’s still good and going strong. 3 hours 38 minutes, mile 21 and I’ve been in hell for the last 2 miles. Unfair of me to hold Steve back, I tell him to go and I’ll see him at the finish. Shortly after I find a pace that keeps the cramp off and run the last 5 miles with the suffering behind me and the finish in sight.
At 4 hours 52 minutes I cross the finish line having now ran further and for longer than I have ever done before and completed the most physically exhausting, mentally torturing activity I have ever experienced.
