Rob Burrow Leeds marathon: DNF

The event

Before I get into anything on my race yesterday and general ramblings, I wanted to say despite how it turned out for me it is a great event. Run For All did a great job organising and the crowds were excellent. Well done to everyone who took part and thank you to all the volunteers who made the event possible. Also, I hope everyone who took part is okay, as there looked to be some sorry states due to the heat.

I don't want to take anything away from everyone who completed it yesterday, but it had me thinking there will be people like me in every race. Those who face some form of disappointment, that's exactly where I am at the moment. I sit here the day after race day disappointed, not with anyone else but myself.

Going into this one I knew it was going to be a warm one and I knew it was going to be tough. My training had gone well, looking at my strava in comparison from training for the Yorkshire marathon in October I was maybe a little slower on my interval splits but there was nothing concerning.

I was really looking forward to this one, the chance to finish on a rugby pitch is like a dream finish for me. Also I knew the crowds would be brilliant and they were, there's something really special as a runner who does it for enjoyment to be cheered on like an Olympian. My family had come to support me and I knew they'd be waiting at the finish for me.

My race

Ultimately yesterday I got my first ever DNF, this is what I'm working through at the moment. How? Why? What did I get wrong? What do I need to look to do differently next time? These are all questions that I have been asking myself over the last twenty four hours and will continue to do so.

I started off and felt ok, tried to keep out of the sun while waiting for the start, had my hat, sunglasses, sun cream and tried to drink enough. I tried to relax into the run as best I could as knew the second half of the race was going to be the tough part. Yes, the crowds were brilliant as I worked my way through Leeds and then the climbing started. For context, I train in and around Newcastle and in hindsight should've probably trained on more hills than I do.

Me prior to the race.

I could feel myself starting to struggle a bit from maybe mile nine, things that never usually happen like a slight stitch in my right side and I was definitely feeling the effects of the sun. In the back of my head I was thinking if I'm struggling now then what will I be like come the hard part as it literally felt like I was going backwards. I hadn't had this feeling in any of my other five marathons. From about 16.5km to when I stopped at mile twelve it was all downhill but I could feel myself going backwards, just before mile twelve you were going downhill on an out and back so I knew I had some more uphill to go. It wasn't going to be a lot of uphill but I thought to myself I'm not feeling this at all, my head had won the battle on the day.

So I got to mile twelve, pulled off the course, stop my watch and lent on a wall in disappointment with myself. There was some medics close by who were great and told me not to be disappointed and I'd made a sensible decision given the conditions, they also gave me some ice for my neck which was needed. I think if I'd tried to have pushed on yesterday then it could've ended very differently and not in a good way, so I know I made the right decision for me on the day.

Race control were great and took me back to Headingley Stadium where I was surrounded by jubilant runners who had completed their run. I'll admit that was a struggle for me, I walked to bag storage to collect my bag and rang my wife who was waiting for me to finish to tell her what had happened. That started a debrief that hasn't really stopped yet, her advice to me this morning as I continued on my moping from yesterday was why don't you write about it? So here I am on my day off writing about it.

I know I'm in decent enough shape as yesterday was my third fastest ten mile effort according to strava ([probably means I went off too quick then). So I sat in the car on the way home looking at races next weekend to get this out of my system but couldn't find anything suitable.

So what's my plan now?

My plan was going to be a couple of weeks off and then start to train for the Richmond Runfest marathon in September. My new plan will look to be get out this week and get back on my feet pounding pavements. Maybe I need to find my enjoyment of running again a little bit, sometimes I get so wrapped up in time chasing that it becomes beyond a hobby. Ultimately, I need to pick myself up and get back on the horse. Running is my hobby, I put a lot of effort into it but yesterday wasn't my day.

So what do I think went wrong?

This is what I'm working through, but I think I got my fueling wrong including hydration. Also for a couple of reasons, I don't think I was mentally in the right head space for a marathon yesterday coupled with the heat.

Why write this?

I've been there on the other side with the sheer elation of finishing a race and that sense of achievement (for me a lot of my achievement comes from running). I've never thought about the other side and certainly never felt the disappointment I feel after yesterday. I know there'll be others out there in a similar situation, disappointed for many reasons including injury, DNF etc and wanted to share my experience so that others can see an alternative view. At some point I guess this happens to everyone.

I'll pick myself back up and go again, I'll learn from my experience yesterday and be better for it and the next time I cross the finish line I'll probably appreciate it even more!

After thought

While writing this, I've read of the sad death of Jon Devereux who sadly died after collapsing during the Bristol half marathon yesterday. My thoughts are with his family and friends at this difficult time. That's perspective.