Toowoomba Marathon Sunday REPORT: October 21st 2007

         Toowoomba offers a loop course and four run options. 10kms, Half Marathon, 3/4 Marathon and the full Monty. With a little bit          of tweaking each race adds one more loop until the full Marathon competitors are faced with four loops of the flat (read          undulating) course. It's the Full and 3/4 Marathons that get away first with a bunch start at 6am. It was pretty cool and partly          cloudy with a fresh N.E breeze for the start. I would guess there were 50 odd starters in the pack which quickly sorted itself into          running order as they headed out onto the first lap. Gary, Geoff and Alan found themselves running together and there was plenty          of chat and nervous jokes early in the race. Particularly about the fact that there was nobody at the first two drinks tables, and of          more concern no drinks!

         Fortunately the problem had been sorted by the third table at 7kms and the rest of the race organisation went smoothly. The          boys continued to circulate together and kept stomping out about 5 minute Ks. The other races got away at 7am and part of the          way through the second loop the leading male in the 10kms dashed past at what appeared to the boys an impossible pace. The          leading female was also flying when she went past about ten minutes later. The small Marathon field meant that there wasn't much          movement in the race order and it was getting trick with not much to distract your mind. They went through the Half Marathon          distance at 1hr 46mins. Still on 5 minutes Ks.

         Have you run a Marathon ? If you answered yes you know what's about to happen. It started to get tough. That fresh breeze          picked up to a stiff breeze and parts of the course became bloody hard work. The gradual rises looked steeper and the level of          chat dropped away. Gary decided at about 25kms that the pace was a little to hot and eased off the accelerator. Alan ran until          the 28km mark where he decided he'd seen enough. His late decision to enter and his patchy training had proved too much and          he decided not to push on.

         Geoff continued to kept churning out the 5s and through 3 laps was still on target to run 3:32. Gary with his target of finishing in           his first Marathon and hopefully going under 4 hours was way under his goal time but looking a little frayed at the end of 3 laps.           The breeze came in fits and starts but the rises in the course just did not go away. Geoff told me after the race; that with seven           ks to go he made a calculation that if he ran seven four minutes ks he could go under 3hrs 30mins. The sense of this calculation           given that he hadn't run quicker than a 5 minute kilometre in the first 35 ks we may never know. But you do odd things during          Marathons. At 39ks Geoff still looked good and relaxed. (See photos). Soon after however a hamstring cramp started grabbing          at his leg at he tells me it was survival over the last few ks. Reduced to 7 minute ks right at the end Geoff finished his first          Marathon in a very creditable 3hrs and 41mins on a demanding course in a small field on a windy day. (Bloody good work          Geoff!)

         There is also a photo of Gary going through 39kms and he looked to have found something out there on the 4th lap and went          past looking pretty strong and very determined to bury his first Marathon. Gary finished in 3hrs 52mins and was first home in his          age-group. Well under his goal time and having learnt a lot about running Marathons. Gary felt he may have gone out a little too          quickly but as we all know there is no recipe to running a Marathon and during your next Marathon Gary perhaps you can try a          new approach. Tremendous effort Gary and it was an honour to be there and see yourself and Geoff finish your first Marathons.

         Karyn was in the 10ks instead of the Marathon where she had hoped to be but injury had ended that plan. So a not fully fit          Karyn set off at 7am. As you've heard the course is not easy and the wind was up but Karyn still posted a great 45 minute time          and was the 3rd Female home in the event. On behalf of the Boys I'd like to thank Karyn for turning up to see the Marathoners          off and sticking around to celebrate with the guys at the end.

        There you have it! Would I go up and race at Toowoomba next year ? Definitely. It's probably not the quickest course around         and the fields probably not the strongest, but it's well organise, very cheap to enter and the whole event has a great feel. Much         like the comaraderie of the Warwick weekend of running. Races organised by runners, for runners.

WESTFIELD TOOMBUL

PHONE JUDY AND PHIL

3266 9204

Carmichael's Cattery

Yatala

3807 9857 or 0417 625 783

DESIGNED BY:

ALAN.B.