Captain’s Blog – November 2007

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CHIG Captain fails to break 3 hours in Luton marathon and swears, “Never again”!

Battling against strong wind, hills and the monotony of the A6, I finished my first (and most definitely last) marathon on Sunday 2nd December in an uncomfirmed time of 3 hours, 2 minutes. I confess I was aiming to beat 3 hours and my running speed was pretty much spot on target, only slowing significantly in the last mile. However, beating “the wall” by ensuring I was hydrated at all times came at the cost of at least two minutes spent in the portaloos. Perhaps I should have tried Paula’s approach! And time lost stopping to tighten my triple-knotted laces probably out-weighed the benefit of a minute’s rest. There, those are my excuses.

Why, “Never again”? Because it hurt too much! It was a 3 lap course. By the end of the first lap, my calves were hurting, by the end of the second lap, my quads had joined in. When it came to the last few miles I was grunting with every breath and couldn’t keep my head from lolling backwards. Give me a 20k Long-O or a Mountain Marathon any day. I don’t want to be too hard on the Bedfordshire countryside, but it doesn’t compare to the pleasure of running in even the most mundane of orienteering areas. With orienteering, the weather’s all part of the challenge, or enjoyment; with a marathon, unless it’s perfect it just gets in the way. To me, a road marathon is just a long, hard slog. Orienteering’s fun!

Notable Performances

We had a good turnout for the 40th Anniversary November Classic and a good proportion of those won prizes:

November Classic, New Forest, 4th Nov

  • Kostya Lutsenko 2nd M21S
  • Jeff Green 1st M35L
  • Tim Pribul 1st M55S
  • Robin Campbell 1st M70L
  • Carol Pearce 3rd W60L
  • Ruby Campbell 3rd W65L (running up)

Follow this link for photos including some of our trophy winners.

OK Nuts, Devil’s Punchbowl, 25th Nov

  • Jeff Green 1st M35L
  • Tim Pribul 1st M55S
  • Robin Campbell 1st M70L
  • Ruby Campbell 1st W65L (running up)