Berlin 2013

After a long summer of running, it was great to land in cool Berlin, ready to run through some of the most historic sites of the century.

My training had gone well. Some niggles in between which went away shortly before run. And I was all set, confident of doing a sub-4 hour run, maybe even a 3:50.

The weather was great, maybe a little too cold but comfortable enough once warmed up. 

So, what went wrong? (The beer, if anything, should have helped.)

For one, we started near the back of the 40,000-odd crowd. Everyone upto 4:15 hr finishers were in the earlier corrals, the last of which departed 15 minutes before we did. So I was in the midst of all kinds of casual runners, run-walkers, etc. most of whom were out to have a good time and not worry too much about timing. 

So it was very difficult for me to run at my own pace. To overtake, I had to weave in and out like Vettel, or get onto sidewalks, which meant I was running longer than I had to. Or I had to speed up whenever I saw open spaces. All this wasn't good for my rhythm, and I gave up the effort of constantly looking for overtaking spaces. So, soon enough, I was also running with the pack, enjoying myself and the atmosphere. 

Though I kept to my target time till 21k, I had somehow lost my focus. I had been running casually till then. And now, even with the field a little more spread out, I continued to run casually. I did look at the Garmin regularly, and I did know I was slowing down, but that I was within my goal pace. I also felt I had enough in me to push if I needed to, so kept it easy till 35k. At that point, I thought I should push a bit as I was getting perilously close to falling above 4 hr pace, plus the course seemed to getting significantly longer too - my Garmin was already 500m ahead of the km markers.

But now, I felt other problems cropping up. My quads and hams were starting to tell me they wanted out. Through my training runs, the main worry I had was how my legs would hold up in the final Ks of the race. And that worry was starting to manifest as well. 

I wasn’t fully cramping yet, but all kinds of tightening was happening. In Mumbai, I had such signals but could will myself to keep running. This time, with my more care-free state of mind, I stopped. And then my legs seized. I hobbled to one side, stood still for maybe a minute, and gingerly started walking. And then, running. Maybe I should’ve kept running. But, overly cautiously, I decided to take 30-40 second breaks every couple of minutes. And by now, I had slipped below my 4 hour target, even per the Garmin.

Crossed 42.2 on my Garmin at 4:02 something and the actual finish at 4:06:16. 

And I didn't really feel too bad about not finishing on target. Enjoyed the run too much to have any regrets.

But, there are learnings. I need to focus more. And do more strength training for my legs. And, do some 'tired legs' runs at fast paces. And be more consistent in my training.

Oh well, next time.