The Plan
Between the three years of the ’04 and ’07 run, I did a few Ironman triathlons and started my family. I even managed an ultra distance marathon (Two Oceans 56km). So it was not that I was sitting around doing nothing waiting for my next marathon to come round. I knew it’d come looking. Running the Ultra taught me plenty and it was training for that run that stoked my thinking of what was required for a sub-3 marathon.

I took the opportunity to read as much as possible on the topic of marathon and ultra running. The Lore of Running, Once a Runner, Running with the Buffalos, Ultramarathon Man, The Four Minute Mile, the list goes on. My research indicated that no matter what system you use, run lots and have a plan. Great coaches like Arthur Lydiard focused on the 100 mile run week. Great if you’re a pro, impractical if you have a family and work 45 hour weeks. I tried the 100k run week. It made me strong, but I was never capable of recovering from a 100k-week to repeat it the following week. Trial and error.

Which brought me to other coaches who espoused philosophies I thought reasonable. One such person was an underground coach known as Hadd who put together his battle plan, based on Lydiard’s principles. It was based on huge volume which I watered down to make more palatable. I extracted key sessions which would be good for a sub-3. Get your speed and endurance solid and build your marathon pace run (6m48s) up to just under 20 miles. So when you get to race day, you have the training and all you need is to hang on for the last 3 miles.

It all seems rather easy on paper. It was speaking to Keeto (who has a sub-3 under his belt) that I had a glimpse of what it takes. Key sessions. Speed. Strength. Rest. Repeat. Keeto tweaked my plan and ensured I focused on sensible workouts. Keeto’s-10-Mile-Treadmill-Test™ goes down as one of the most challenging workouts I nearly didn’t complete. Surviving that held me in good stead for the challenges that lay ahead prior to the marathon.

My first test race was the Kingston 16 miler. The aim was simple. Run at sub-3 marathon pace for the 1st 8 miles and then increase the speed. I nailed that race and was able to pull out a 2 minute negative split (the 2nd 8 miles were 2 minutes faster the 1st 8 miles). All this was at a comfortable heart rate (“HR”) of 155 beats per minute. It was a HR I could hold all day and was exactly what I needed to hold for race day.

All went to plan aside from a glitch in my three weeks prior to race day. Extra hours at the office and interrupted sleep, caused me to miss two key weeks of training. After consultation with Keeto and his overtraining formula (which indicated that downtime was required), it was agreed that I needed time off my legs and plenty of sleep. So began my marathon taper.

Race Day & Ego
On the gloriously warm morning of the race, it was one of the first mornings where I felt rested and ready to race. I rode the train from Wimbledon to Blackheath with friends who were also running. For some, quiet Zen time is required before race start. For me sharing the ride laughing with mates is the best way to get to the start-line stress free.

L-R: Belinda, Keeto, RobbyRicc, Houston, Eugene, Dav

I ignored the last few weeks and focused on my race which lay ahead. 6m48s per mile. 155HR. Simple. I’d hit the split button of my Timex at every mile marker and see if I was on pace or not. A flashing HR on my watch would confirm my HR numbers.

We engaged in the usual ablutions, wished each other lack and jumped into our running paddocks.

Howard and Dave would be my running buddies and we opted to run as a group and keep each other honest. I had run the Kingston 16mile run with Dave as preparation for the marathon. That worked out well for us and showed we were on target. At Kingston, I was nicknamed “Metronome”. My ability to hit the mile markers at exactly 6m48s was uncanny. Fellow runners would gawk in amazement as I called out every split spot on. I was thankful no-one ever asked to read my watch to confirm the splits I was calling.

We positioned ourselves to the front and took to the streets of London. The start of the race is not unlike running with the bulls in Pamplona. Some people lose their minds and run like they’re being chased by a herd of toros. Others run in different directions, frenetically bobbing and weaving their way through the masses. What both events have in common, is that the desire to head in the same direction as the crowd and not get left behind is overwhelming. We held strong and focused on reigning back Howard who was chomping at the bit to head out with the front running Kenyans.

It was at mile 5, when I saw 160 on my heart rate monitor that I knew my HR was way too high. It was the equivalent of redlining your engine before the race had even started. At this stage of the race, 160 felt bearable, but would be tough to hold for the whole race.

I had a choice to make at this stage, hold up the pace and allow the HR to settle or continue. The eternal battle of the Ego. Run at a pace you know you can’t handle, or accept that it’s not going to be your day and slow down. And of course, there is always the flicker inside your belly that you are Special. Special in that you can accomplish great feats with less effort than other mortals. I’ve encountered this Special feeling many times and each time it’s caused me to hit the wall in a spectacular fashion. I don’t tend to think of myself as Special anymore. It hurts less.

I held back for as long as I could but immediately fell 20 seconds off the pace. Running 6.48’s at Kingston was a breeze. Today, my heart rate was increasing, the sweat was pouring off me and I was feeling the effort. I wasn’t over exerting yet but I knew that I’d have to pay for the high HR in the 2nd half of the race. Immediately the sub-3 was in question.

It’s at moments like this that a runner is faced with a dilemma. Can I keep this pace for the duration of the run? Should I slow down? Slowing down in mile 6 had a negligible affect on my heart rate. I decided to stay at pace and fight for the time, than sit back and run a slow marathon at goal HR. Better a brave fight to the death than disappearing with a whimper.

Game on.

Talkers
I’m not certain what it is, but I always attract talkative runners. Like anyone, I’m up for a bit of banter during the run with my fellow competitors. In fact being able to talk is a sign that my pace isn’t too fast. However, a few words usually suffice. When 52-year old Dave from the Clevedon Running Club pulled up alongside me I knew there would be trouble. Older athletes are much tougher than us young guns and could crush us quite easily with their toughened years of experience and endurance. Wearing the South African flag had inspired a flurry of questions from Dave who asked me if I knew “this SA runner from this club” and “this other guy from another club”. In his friendly manner, he asked me about races, running splits, who I was running with, expected times, the list goes on. After spotting a friend of his in the crowds, he’d head off, returning a few minutes later after opting to run with us. I’m not certain what etiquette is required in such cases so I introduced English Dave to our running trio and explained that I didn’t have much energy for talking. Thankfully the questions stopped and English Dave settled into a quiet rhythm and I was able to get my breath back.

Round mile 9, Dave Lombard succumbed to the pace which had become rather taxing and dropped off our group. English Dave had also disappeared from the scene. Dave Lombard would go on to run a 3.20 and English Dave managed an incredible 3.07 marathon putting him near the top of his age group.

Just before the half way mark at London Bridge, Howard and I met up with Amy Dale. With our New Zealand and South African race tops we had effectively cornered the vast majority of supporters. Living in Southfields with the other thousands of Saffers, I though that we were clearly the majority in London. Running alongside Dale, I realised that there are far more Kiwis out there in London than us Saffers.

The Second Half
As we crossed the half way line, the clock read 1h29m. I was stoked. We were spot on sub-3 pace. I checked my vital signs to see if I could manage another 1h29m half marathon. My heart rate at this stage was sky high, however I had been fuelling well and enjoying my run so chose to ignore any doubts and niggles that were blistering to the surface. There wasn’t much I could do about it and I’d rather go as hard as I could than settle back. Bravado has its price, as I would soon find out.

The support which I experienced from the half way point to the finish was incredible. Aside from all the South Africans out there, my local London crew of friends were awesome and inspired me to ignore the lactic acid which had begun to filter into my legs.

The pace seemed reasonable and I marked off the sub 6.50 miles as the HR climbed. The body was however faltering. My quads were filling up with lactic acid and the pain was becoming unbearable. I’d ignore it and threw back a few Power gels, dousing myself in water at each station. Howard was running strong without any falter in his stride and led the way trying to make use of the little shade that the course offered.

At mile 19, Dale dropped off the pace. At this stage runners were dropping like flies. The stream of runners was fizzling as cramps and fatigue claimed their victims. I managed a few words to Howard:

As we headed up on Embankment, the pain was affecting my stride and I was mis-timing my foot strike. Each jolt would be a needle shooting up my left quad, causing me to grimace and tense up. I tried to maintain form and smooth out my style, but my body was having none of it. At the time I needed my body most, it declared mutiny.

My HR figures indicate that somewhere between mile 22 and 23 my body capitulated. I promised myself I wouldn’t walk. What I managed to eke out of my body could not really be considered a run. A glorified hobble, possibly. A run, barely.

At around mile 24, the sub-3 group with their little sub-3 flag came hurtling past me at an incredibly fast speed. There were two of them and it seemed as though they had abandoned hope with the rest of the sub-3 runners who were falling off the pace. At this stage, I bowed my head and gave up hope on the sub-3. I went too hard for too long. Time to call it a day and try not to cry.

Dale, who miraculously came back from the dead, came by me a few minutes later, looking as effortless as ever, a hundred or metres or so behind the sub-3 runners. Her race and sub-3 quest was not yet over. Amazing to see her resilience and strength. Dale went on to a 3.04 as one of the top female runners. That’ll give Elite status at her next London marathon. What a legend.

Houston went on to a 3.02. So close to his goal, but on such a tough day, it was not to be. He’s a tough and quick runner. He has the quality and mental stamina to take it out. He’ll get the sub-3 soon enough. No doubt about that.

And I limped to the line in 3.06. Happy as anything with another good race on my belt. Slightly peeved with my effort, but wisened up as to what is required for my next attempt.

Analysis
It may have been a hot day, but that didn’t seem to bother me all that much. I think my pace crumbled in the end because I didn’t put in enough mileage in the legs. I averaged less than 3 hours running per week in my 16 week build up to the race. That’s pretty low mileage, but with cycling and swimming to complement those 3 hours per week I don’t think a sub-3 on that mileage is impossible. I was impressed to see that I could run at such a high heart rate for so long. The legs and heart are definitely getting stronger. My longest runs were a 32k run, the Kingston 16miler and the Fleet Half Marathon.

I’ve debriefed Keeto with my thoughts. Next time we’ve agreed I’ll throw in an extra 32k run and a treadmill test. Those were the sessions I’d missed in the build up to this race because of tiredness. They won’t be missed next time. The Quest for the Sub-Three is still alive!

And to finish here's a quote from my friend, Brett, post-race: “Fatherhood has only cost you 6 minutes.”

Thanks for your support. See you out there.
~RobbyRicc

Full results are here

References (all available on Amazon):

• Lore of Running, Timothy D. Noakes
• Once a Runner, John L. Parker, Jr.
• Running with the Buffaloes, Chris Lear
• Ultramarathon Man, Dean Karnazes
• Running with Lydiard, Arthur Lydiard
• The Four Minute Mile, Roger Bannister

Hadd’s Approach to Long Distance Training is available here [PDF].

Below is a table which sets out my (1) Kingston splits and HR numbers; (2) Flora London Marathon splits and HR numbers (target marathon pace = 6:48 per mile = 2:58:18).