#runwithus was the official social media hashtag for this years Royal Parks Half Marathon, a sentiment which really echoes why lots of runners love entering races. Sure, many of us have a competitive angle, but actually the comradery, the community and the fact that there are simply other people out running with you is what gives many races the feel-good factor.
And few do it better than big city races – and being a Londoner, of course London races have a place in my heart! Earlier this year I received a ballot entry for the Royal Parks Half Marathon and I was really glad to have a goal to work towards, using 3 months of coaching from Purdue Performance to help me. Half marathons are a big challenge for me and I’m not the kind of runner that can bash out a 10miler on a Saturday morning like it’s nothing. It is an effort and I have to train my mind and body to be in the right place. Half marathon training is also challenging, but much less consuming than marathon training, so it ticks the right boxes when you want something to realistically work towards whilst fitting in your actual life.
Read on for my pro’s and con’s of the Royal Parks as an event, and of course, my musings on my own run.
My race
I went into the race feeling a little nervous (always!), but somewhat content and confident that I had trained well and I was ready to make the effort. I had a vague time goal in mind, but I wasn’t tied to that.
Race morning was cool and sunny with bright blue skies. I felt well fuelled from my breakfast and the previous days meals, I felt hydrated; I think I had done most things within my control to get to that start line feeling fresh.
The first half of my run was unusually good – I was holding a quicker pace than normal and powering through. I think I knew I was going out too fast but I got a bit overexcited with all the crowds and cheering and my playlist…..and if I’m being real, I knew I’d slow in the later miles so I suspect I was subconsciously pre-empting making up time in the later stages! (Hint: not an official pacing technique).
I’d broken up the run on my watch into 3 x 6km blocks – the first two flew by. The third block from 12km onwards was where it all got a little harder. From around 15k my legs started to slow and stiffen and as those aforementioned sunny blue skies equated to warmer temperatures, I was really feeling that. I took a couple too many walk breaks, but I think I was trying to avoid blowing out at the end.
At miles 5, 7 and 9 I saw my fiancé Rupert and some pals who had come to cheer on which was super nice. The course is really easy for supporters to travel to on public transport and, once they are in Hyde Park, to get around on foot to different points. Big plus point.
The final water stop was at mile 11, where I downed my cup in a bid to freshen up for the final stint. I plodded through to mile 12, where I realised it was really near the end now – so time to fix up. I started to up the effort, saving my real push for the last km where I had already reckoned with myself I was going to push hard and if I didn’t cross that finish line feeling like I’d tried I would be so disappointed. So, off we went. Thought process something like:
“800m – nearly there, let’s do this. Ok not really there….800m is almost a kilometre. Just keep moving to the next sign. Where IS the next sign? Why is this 200m so long? Have they lied to us? There it is – 600m sign. Ok, passed it, onto the next countdown. Are we sure this is accurate? I feel like I’m about to keel over. KEEP RUNNING HARD. This is the part where it counts. Make up for the time you walked earlier in the run. Why is this so long? Ok 400m to go! This is just the distance of the path in the park that you do 400m intervals in. Keep running hard. Let’s push. God my breathing sounds horrendous, I sound like an elephant. Go go go. 200m to go! I can see the finish line! This is it – PUSH – this is what you trained for. Nearly there. This is what you’ll feel proud about when you finish the race. What do the fast runners say on IG? Leave nothing out there? Here we go! FINISH LINE!! I’VE DONE IT! ……….. oh my god I feel sick…………”
My finish time was 2:16:34. I didn’t look at my watch until I’d crossed that finish line, soaked up the feeling, caught my breath, picked up my medal, goodies and t-shirt and taken some selfies. Acknowledge the feeling before obsessing over the numbers. For full disclosure, the time goal I had vaguely hoped for was to come in under 2:15. I was mildly disappointed that I came through just 90 seconds over that. I was a little annoyed at myself for the miles where I struggled and let myself walk for more than I wanted, however you can only act in the moment you’re in and at those moments I needed it.
So, that aside, I was also really really happy with the pace I’d help up to 14km AND the pace I pushed with for the final km. That really was what my months of training had helped with – I may not have been beautifully consistent with no walking, but I had held a strong pace (strong for me, remember) for longer than I normally would and I’d found the legs to do it at the end too.
Perhaps not the best lesson in pacing a half marathon, but I was still happy with my performance none the less. And 2:16 was the fastest I have completed a half marathon race, so it was a PB after all. And we ALWAYS celebrate a PB!
We also celebrate a strong training block, the months of showing up and training that got you to that start line, and the dedication we put towards the goal. The next one will see those 90 seconds off hopefully.
The event
The Royal Parks Half Marathon is generally a great event. The pro’s:
- The route is lovely – it takes you through 3 of central London’s Royal Parks (Green Park, St James’ Park, Hyde Park) as well as a nice few miles on the road past Buckingham Palace, the Strand and the Mall. Lots of tourist sites to behold.
- There was a really good charity presence and the crowds and support was really strong. Very few dead spots. London crowds will do that for ya.
- I didn’t spend a lot of time in the event village, but it was well set up and lots of brand partners, food stands and screens were set up. There were plenty of toilets, although one of my criticisms was that the queues seemed to be never moving before the race! But, I should have probably got there a bit earlier, so I take most of the blame there.
- Strong sustainability efforts which should be commended: wooden medals, the option to forego your race t-shirt, recyclable/compostable water cups instead of water bottles, fully vegan food options in the event village. Every large-scale event like this should be taking whatever steps are in their power to make efforts in favour of more sustainable ones. We shouldn’t let perfection be the enemy of the good – and so in that case I commend the organisers for the steps they chose. Let’s hope more can follow suit.
The cons:
- The race needed more water stations on course. We had 3, which was communicated in advance and which I already thought was a bit tight for a half marathon course, but on the day I really felt a fourth was needed. The day was sunnier and warmer than expected and not all runners want to run with a hydration pack or their own bottles if they’re trying to race. You do expect a race organiser to support their runners hydration as a priority, so I was a little surprised and disappointed at that. I left this feedback with the organisers in my post-race feedback.
- It ain’t cheap to enter. It cost over £60, which I remember being surprised at when I confirmed by ballot place. I would argue that for a race didn’t give us much water, encouraged us to not accept a race t-shirt and presumably wants to encourage accessibility to all, this was a relatively high cost. Not everyone can afford to pay that. This is really something the industry needs to bear in mind.
So all in all, well done Royal Parks – your sustainability efforts are commendable and we hope many other races will follow suit. Your overall event organisation and delivery was also great and, despite my reservations about the cost, I would certainly enter and run this race again.
I, personally, am proud of my training, my effort and the happiness gained from taking part in these events. Running really is good for our soul and so maybe, just maybe, this post has encouraged you to think about entering a race…..let me know if you do!
Ele x
chasingele.com 