The BDO Peninsula Marathon
On Sunday I’m running the Peninsula Marathon which is quite special to me considering it was the first marathon I ever did (although the route has changed). I’m probably about as nervous as I was 2 years ago because I haven’t done any long runs since last November…
Check out the profile below:
Good luck to all the first time marathon runners, despite the look of the profile this is a spectacular run with beautiful veiws which, if you aren’t too tired, you should stop and admire.
Also for the first timers, the last 5km are always the worst so make sure you eat enough during the race to carry you through to the end. I have my trusty second Nicolene waiting at the bottom of Red Hill and again just after The Point, so if you are in need of some energy then look out for a red Polo and trot over to ask for some food.
I’ll send an update next week.
2 Comments / 
February 19th, 2010 / 
First-Timers, Reluctant runner, Running
Comrades Accommodation
I know we have just recovered from the frenzy that surrounded signing up for the 2010 Comrades but today I’m here to tell you that you need to start thinking about accommodation for the night before the race and the night after.
For those of you who don’t really know the lay of the land in Pietermaritzburg and Durban, you need to have a look at a map or ask someone who does (yes, yes you can ask me) so that you can start planning.
There are 2 options here:
- Stay in Pietermaritzburg the night before the race and in Durban after, OR
- Stay in Durban the night before and catch one of the organized buses to Pietermaritzburg on race day
There are a few logistical problems associated with each option – in Maritzburg the Royal Show is on the same weekend as the Comrades, so accommodation is already hard to come by.
If you stay in Durban, the buses to Pietermaritzburg leave horribly early – like 3am kind of early – which makes the already challenging day very, very long.
Luckily my mom is super organized and has already sorted out accommodation for us in Pietermaritzburg, I would suggest those of you who would like to stay as close to the starting line as possible, start looking NOW! Have a look on the Maritzburg tourism website and see what they have listed.
If you would prefer staying in Durban I would suggest you figure out where the pick-up points of the buses will be so that you don’t have to stress about getting there on time – I can guarantee you that the less stressful you make your morning, the better the start to your day!
3 Comments / November 18th, 2009 / Comrades Marathon, First-Timers, Reluctant runner
Comrades 2010 Entries Closed!
I know, I’m as shocked as what you are…
I’d planned on writing a post to remind all you Novices out there to remember to enter for the Comrades 2010 however when I went to the Comrades website to get exactly what the count was on for entries already received, I almost swallowed my tongue when it said that the limit of 5,000 has already been reached…
I even refreshed my page a couple of times hoping that there was some bug or something – but no!!
I really hope all you guys out there wanting to enter didn’t procrastinate… Brian did Team Flash get in?? Sally I know you did, well done!! Anyone else??
2 Comments / November 2nd, 2009 / Comrades Marathon, First-Timers, Reluctant runner
Comrades Marathon Provisions
Yesterday I wrote about the food that can be expected during the Comrades Marathon, so today I’m giving you a list of the non-food items, baring in mind that these things were based on last year and the year before, I am still waiting on what will be available for 2010, however I don’t think the list will change dramatically.
There are extensive medical and emergency stations along the route and at the end. At about 21km into my first Comrades I was getting blisters so had to stop. The people manning the station I stopped at were very helpful and had me patched up in about 2 minutes flat. They are very well prepared and if you want, they will do a blood test right there and then to see if there are any serious sugar problems after which they treat you so you can carry on or lie there until you feel better.
At the end of the race they have an entire Marquis set up with rows of stretcher beds and drips, these guys certainly prepare for any eventuality. My mom has landed herself in this tent before and she even got a free ride in on a stretcher from the finish line:) Once they have hooked you up to a drip and sorted out any other problems you usually start feeling better pretty soon.
There are 8 dedicated physiotherapy stations. These stations are manned by what seems like hoards of physios armed with vats of deep heat and Vaseline. I pulled into one on my first Comrades when my shoulders were aching, 3 ladies launched into working my rock hard shoulder and neck muscles into submission. I know some people who stop at every single station just for the leg massages… yes Brucie, that’s you!!
A fleet of ambulances and emergency vehicles as well as a dedicated emergency helicopter are stationed along the route.
Loads of porta-loos /porta-pottys or whatever you want to call them can be found along the way. As you can imagine the state of these facilities can become questionable after thousands of people have passed through them ahead of you, although its quite acceptable to just duck into the bushes or behind a car if you don’t suffer from stage fright…
My feet with medical attention along the way, imagine what they would have looked like without...
2 Comments / October 29th, 2009 / Comrades Marathon, First-Timers, Reluctant runner
Comrades Entry Newsflash!
As of yesterday – if you were procrastinating with regards to your entry to the Comrades (as a previous participant), it is too late!! The limit of 15,000 was reached yesterday, 4 days before the cut-off which makes me feel nervous for my Novice friends who will need to enter from November 1st.
Another little update on Novice entries – they open at 9am South African time on Sunday, so wherever you are in the world, make sure you make allowances for the time difference – South African Standard Time is 2 hours ahead of the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC +2).
Leave a Comment / October 28th, 2009 / Comrades Marathon, First-Timers, Reluctant runner
Food Along the Comrades Route
This is a list of the food which was available at the refreshment tables for the Comrades Marathon last year – I have yet to hear back from the Comrades Association confirming any additions to this list, however I’m pretty sure it will stay more or less the same.
48 Refreshment tables, roughly 2- 3km apart are stocked with the following:
- Water sachets
- Powerade sachets (non-carbonated energy drink)
- Coke and Cream Soda (green, sweet carbonated drink) poured into plastic bottles
- Bananas cut into chunks – they leave the skin on so I usually grab an end piece and just squish it into my mouth without fiddling with the skin.
- Oranges cut into segments – also still with the skin on but I usually just suck the juice out and ditch the rest
- Energy sachets (I never get to see these because I’m too far at the back
- Chocolates – Bar One which is a South African brand of chocolate
- Baby Potatoes – boiled and sprinkled with salt, only available at every second table from the half-way mark
- Biscuits – these are the equivalent to cookies in the USA
There are also spectators who stand on the side of the road handing out food which they have prepared. Salt is readily available, just make sure that if you hold out your hand for some, you have enough water to wash it down with, I saw a guy try and dry swallow a handful of salt and felt so sorry for him based on his facial expression that I donated the extra water I had taken, to him…
What my mom and I have done in the past is have our trusty second (better known as my dad) meet us at strategic spots along the route with food which we like to have on a long run. I usually stock him with GU’s (this is my energy gel stuff of choice), jelly babies and cooked sweet potato with butter. My mom likes cooked chicken and some people give my dad sandwiches and even eggs.
I can’t stress enough how important it is to eat at EVERY opportunity!! I try and get something down my throat at each table I get to. If you start feeling nauseas it is almost too late and the only way to stave it off is to eat – so be very aware of what your body is telling you. If you start feeling sick then force something down your throat, jelly babies do very well because they are small and palatable. Just water or energy drinks are not enough!!
There are other things available along the route too which I’ll write about in my next post…
Me and my lunch box
2 Comments / October 27th, 2009 / Comrades Marathon, First-Timers, Nutrition, Reluctant runner
Comrades Sign-Up
I know I’ve said this before and you guys probably have November 1st highlighted in your diaries (yes Sally that’s you and Michelle and Team Flash) but I can’t stress enough how quick you are going to have to be off the mark. The Comrades talk I went to last week, of the group that was there (they had to bring in more chairs to accommodate us all) roughly half were novices, that was just one talk at one club…
5,000 Novices is the limit (unless the 15,000 isn’t reached for previous runners) which isn’t much considering this is an international event – so here are the ways you can enter:
- Online at http://www.comrades.com/OnlineEntry.aspx
- Any Mr Price store – this is advised if you can’t access the website
- Hand it in at Comrades House in Pietermaritzburg
- Pay at any Nedbank branch and then mail the payment confirmation and entry form
- By mail
Obviously for those of you who are not South African your options are limited, I wish I had alternatives for you because there is nothing more annoying than trying to get onto a website which is struggling to handle the traffic, although I’m sure the Comrades Association has made provision for this. Also to you guys NOT in our time zone, if entries open at 12am South African time, then remember to make allowances for whichever time zone you are in. I use this time converter thingy…
2 Comments / October 22nd, 2009 / Comrades Marathon, First-Timers, Reluctant runner
Comrades Talk
On Wednesday last week I went to one of the Comrades Road Show talks – I went to one before the first Comrades I did and I found it quite interesting. If you have one in your area then I’d urge you to attend, even if it is just for some motivation, if not then here are a few interesting facts they parted with:
- The 2010 Comrades medal is 20mm bigger than the regular one (which still makes it the smallest medal I have) – if you aren’t sure what to do with another medal then make sure you read this.
- The Guinness World Records guys will be out to see if we set a new one for ‘The Most People Running an Ultra Marathon’ – so you will be part of that record, what a great bragging opportunity!
- Women traditionally only make up 18% of the field – so come on ladies, you know you can do it you grow human beings for heavens sake!!
- 17% of the field won’t finish – so make sure you train your body with running and train your mind by reading Reluctant Runner
- The average age in 2008 was 41 for Males and 40 for females – where are all the younger generations?? There are no excuses, I’m 28 and have a full-time job and I’m in a relationship (no kids but there are dogs, 2 of them) so get your bums into gear!!
- Wally Hayward was 80 years and 10 months old when he completed his last Comrades Marathon – again, there are no excuses!!
- If you fancy winning an entry the Comrades association is giving away 10 free entries – all you have to do is sms 2010 to 38275, you can do this now before Novice entries open on November 1st. Oh and sms’s cost R10 just to warn you.
The Comrades Medal is on the bottom left in the corner.
One Comment / October 20th, 2009 / Comrades Marathon, First-Timers, Reluctant runner
Calling all Comrades Novices
Novices, Noobs, Newbies, First-timers – whatever you want to call yourselves, I’m speaking to YOU!!
Over the past few weeks I’ve had some correspondence from people who are planning on making Comrades 2010 their first attenmpt at the Ultimate Human Race and to tell you the truth I’m flattered that there are some of you who are looking for any advice or just want to muffle those little voices which are saying “You’re crazy, you can’t do this” – by reading my musings…
In light of this I’ve decided to create another section here on Reluctant Runner for those of you who are planning on doing the Comrades for the first time in 2010 – it will be called First-Timers (I know, so totally original), where I will be writing posts dedicated to the first-time runners of this amazing race.
So, if you have anything you’d like to contribue, questions about the race or if you just want a place to vent or if you need some motivation then feel free to do so here!!!
2 Comments / October 14th, 2009 / Comrades Marathon, First-Timers, Reluctant runner, Running