Florence Marathon 2008
Steve has completed marathon number 460 on Sunday in Florence, a new marathon for him and his first in Italy, so that's 22 countries he has now competed in.
A record 9000 runners had entered this 25th Florence Marathon which is considered a fairly fast race as the course record was 2:08. Its pretty flat throughout, however there are parts run on old cobbled and concrete slabbed roads which make it a bit heavier going on the legs. Apart from that though, Steve was looking forward to a half-decent run, that wass until the heavens opened about an hour before the start! This in itself wasn't the problem, it was the fact they had to be lined up in their time-related starting pens 45 minutes before the start or have to go to the back of the field. This meant standing in the pouring rain for nearly an hour in a bin liner, getting wet and cold; certainly not ideal preparation before having to run 26 miles.
Anyway, they eventually got going but it took until about 5km before Steve managed to get his legs moving properly, after that, he didn't feel too bad apart from his stomach not feeling quite right and he got to halfway in just about 1:37. This was slightly down on what he expected, but given the long wait at the start in the rain and his stomach cramping, he was happy to settle for a sub 3:15 if he could just maintain this pace.
After halfway though, Steve's legs really did begin to tire and his stomach wasn't getting any easier, he wasn't sure whether to stop and be sick or just carry on and hope it would wear off. He certainly didn't feel right and he knew it was going to be a slog to the end as he was already starting to count down the Km markers, but at least they were coming round quicker than mile markers do!
Surprisingly, Steve managed to maintain the same pace to reach the 32 Km (20 mile) point in 2:28 and even continued this up to about 39 Km before he began to get a bad cramp in his right foot, which is all he needed. He had no choice then but to slow down as it worsened, but at least his stomach was feeling a bit better. After a slow 40th Km, Steve's foot had eased off and he looked at the watch, he needed to run the last 2 Kms in 9 minutes to get under 3:15. So, it was a case of getting the head down and just forcing the legs to move, he took his last drink at 40Km and just went for it. The last cobbled street after 41Km didn't help, but once back on the tarmac for the final half Km, Steve moved up another gear and really started to shift. He felt like throwing up, but just kept the legs going until the final couple of bends to the finish, back on the cobbles again and finally the long finishing mat to the line.
3:14:51. Job done. (And no, Steve didn't throw up!)
This was a hard fought marathon and in the end Steve was glad to get the sub 3:15 and finish in the top 10% of the field. He has certainly had easier and more enjoyable runs on much tougher courses. So it just goes to show that sometimes, it's what happens on the day and flat courses don't necessarily mean the fastest times. Anyway, that's 460 done and next Sunday, its Luton!
Report Highlights
Steve completes marathon number 460 - and another sub-3:15
Florence was a flat & fast course, but it doesn't always help
Despite poor conditions before the start and not feeling well, Steve showed the strength of character to achieve his goal
No chance to rest; Luton Marathon within the week
Other reports may be found on our recent race reports page.