Adrian rejects London for scenic Wales!

On the same day as the London event, Exmouth Harrier Adrian Kearns opted for a rather more scenic 26.2 mile run in Llanelli, west Wales. The Great Welsh Marathon was arguably not quite so great in numbers as it might have been, were it not scheduled on the same day as London, nevertheless, the route, the organisation and the atmosphere, in addition to the caliber and enthusiasm of the 260 runners who completed the race were definitely great.

Not only is this race lacking in the numbers of runners compared to London, the spectators on the rural route would also have been thinner on the ground, making this the ideal race for someone who prefers to run on a quieter route through some spectacular scenery along the stunning west Wales coast. It's by no means an easy route and has far more undulations than a city marathon would offer, which makes sole Harrier representative, Adrian Kearns' time of  3:10:39 all the more impressive. This was comfortably inside his 3h15m target and gave him a creditable 22nd place overall and 5th of 63 men aged 40-44. Adrian described  this as an enjoyable race on mostly runner-friendly cycle paths but a troublesome wind, which seemed to strengthen as the day progressed, in addition to the hills, made the 26.2 miles that little bit more challenging. Given these factors, this could suggest a time just under 3 hours just might be possible for Adrian on a flatter course, in better conditions. Very well done, and well worth the trip west!