Exmouth Harriers at the start of the Torbay Half Marathon
L -> R: Hannah Dupain, Dawn Teed, Hugh Marsden, Adam Miller, Trevor Cope, Ellie Sutcliffe, Roger Rowe
This did not phase the small band of Exmouth Harriers, however, who lined up along side the other 1400 ish runners for the 2 lap course which takes runners from Paignton out to Torquay along the coast road, then back again and then repeated before finishing alongside Paignton Pier. Weather conditions were close to ideal with the rain having stopped just in time for the start, although some might say it was a little on the humid side, the sea breeze certainly helped to keep the air fresh.
At 9am the gun sounded and we set off on an initial lap of Paignton Green before leaving the town and climbing up the hill on the coast road towards Torquay. The climb does not seem so bad from the Paignton side, but on the return from Torquay it is a lot sharper and steeper and you really had to dig in to prevent your pace from slowing, particularly on the 2nd lap. Due to it being an out-and-back 2 lap course with the roads shut, you keep passing all the other runners at the turn around points. This not only helps you to see how far ahead or behind the competition you are but it also makes for a very sociable run as you keep passing your fellow team mates and shouting encouragement across the road at them... or just giving them a wave or a thumbs up / down once you became too tired and out of breathe to talk, let alone shout!
At the first turn around I could see that Dave Stone was lying in about 15th place and going along quite comfortably, and Adam Miller was really close behind, only about 30s to a minute adrift. I, Ellie Sutcliffe, was next and then Hugh Marsden was about 1 minute behind me at this stage, but with Hugh always preferring to start steady and wind up the pace towards the end, and myself opting to start hard and hope to hang on for as long as possible, I knew it was only a matter of time before he caught me up. He eventually did so at mile 7 and I never saw him again until the finish! On the first lap Marc Cox was going well, as was Hannah Dupain, who was just 20s or so in front of Scott Jordan, who in turn was about 30s ahead of Roger Rowe. Dawn Teed and Trevor Cope were also having good runs and looking fresh further down the field.
By lap 2 Dave had found his rhythm and pulled himself up a few places into 8th. Adam was still having a superb run too and was sat just 2 places and about 1 minute behind Dave and looking strong. Hugh was going like a train at this point and working his way up through the field, picking people off as he went. The surprise was that Hannah and Roger were now neck and neck at the 10 mile point but there was no sign of Scott Jordan. I then went on to pass Marc and Dawn and Trevor but no Scott: where was 2 Trigs?!
In the end these were our finish time and places:
Dave Stone: 1:16:48, 8th place overall and 1st MV40.
Adam Miller: 1:18:14, 10th place and 5th MV35.
Hugh Marsden: 1:23:52, 26th place and 3rd MV50.
Ellie Sutcliffe: 1:25:48, 40th place, 7th female and 1st 25-29.
Marc Cox: 1:30:06, 91st place.
Roger Rowe: 1:35:10, 140th place and 1st MV65.
Hannah Bown: 1:36:31, 169th place and 19th female.
Dawn Teed: 477th place (category placing not yet known)
Trevor Cope: 2:35:34, 1255th place. (Category placing not yet known)
1329 finishers, 479 of whom were females.
Winner: Tewodros Shiferaw of Birchfield Harriers in 1:06:14.
Female winner: Annabel Granger of Bristol and West in 1:21:20.
... You will notice there is one name missing from the above and that is Scott-2-Trigs-Jordan who sadly registered his first ever DNF. Unfortunately 2 Trigs learned the hard way that keeping up an intense training schedule alongside working full-time and being a full-time husband and Dad can sometimes leave you a bit depleted in energy. The disadvantage with a 2 lap race such as this is that if you are physically tired already, it is mentally exhausting to have to pass the finish and know you have another lap to do. On this occasion poor old Scott just couldn't find the mental strength to keep going and so he stepped aside after lap 1... and craftily still managed to get his goody-bag, tee-shirt and medal!! Not wanting to kick a man when he's down but... only doing 2 out of the 4 trigs and now only half of a half? I think the nickname might be lingering on for a while longer...
In all seriousness though, Scott is a tough cookie and he will not have taken the decision to withdraw lightly, so get a good rest Scott and you'll soon have your energy back and will be giving Dave and Marc a run for their money!
I would have liked to have used the excuse of having the Dartmoor Discovery still in my legs to justify the fact that I was over a minute outside my PB and conceded my 5th place at about mile 8 when 2 Erme Valley ladies passed me, who ordinarily I should beat, but Dave Stone's awesome performance kind of prevents me from doing that!! To say Dave ran his fastest ever DD just 2 weeks previously and then comes out and places 8th in such a high quality race, and top MV40, always a hotly contested category, is nothing short of amazing.
However, the performance of the day has to go to Adam Miller who set a new personal best on this, not the flattest nor fastest of courses, and managed to place top 10 alongside some incredible athletes, including 3 Kenyans! Following on from his new PB at the London Marathon, 2012 is turning out to be quite a successful year for Adam. Long may it continue!
Hannah Dupain also deserves a mention as to look at her and see her run on Sunday, you would never know that she had given birth about 6 months ago! Her time of 1:36:31 is not far off the times she was clocking before falling pregnant and there is certainly more improvement to come. Very exciting for next year... but no more babies Hannah!!!
This event also incorporated the South-west vet championships, so some medals will be winging their wee way to Dave, Adam, Hugh and Roger. Very well done guys!
Some find that the entry fee for this event is a little steep at £20, however, the fact that you get to run on closed roads, with ample room, ample water stations, music bands lining the route for entertainment, and a quality tee-shirt and medal at the end makes up for it. All 10 Harriers who ran would certainly recommend this one!
Roger Rowe approaching the finish of the Torbay Half where he finished 1st MV65!
Hugh pushing for the finish line. This is clearly a man who is not trying hard enough.... ;-)
Hannah doing a quick time check as she approaches the finish and is pleased with what she sees!
Adam grinning away towards Carly and his parents as he reaches the finish, and no wonder! A PB and a top 10 finish at the Torbay Half - who wouldn't be pleased with that?
Ellie, very pleased to be making a run for the finish to the cheering crowds who were very encouraging to all the runners!
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