RT Journals: Jeff Hunt - World Half Marathon

It takes such a long time to get from Sydney to Birmingham. That is the longest time I have ever spent on a plane. The fourteen hours from Sydney to Dubai on an A380 was not bad because I slept the middle seven hours or so. However, the seven hour flight to Birmingham just dragged on, probably because it was daytime outside.

 

Trying to slip into the normal training routine without knowing where to run was a little tough, but because of the myriad of canals throughout Birmingham, running away from traffic could happen. Unfortunately, running on the canals, its best to go out and back, or risk getting lost and finishing miles away from the hotel, or running for longer than planned (like Cassie managed to do).

 

Being one of the first athletes in town, it kind of felt like I was on holiday and not here for a World Championships. However, as the days passed by, more and more athletes were appearing. Before too long, we (the athletes) went from being the minority to the majority.

 

On race day, it was a bit of a gloomy day but what can you do. Went through my normal breakfast routine, then went back and watched telly for about an hour before heading over to the athlete area near the start. I warmed up for around 15 minutes or so over the last 500-600m of the course. A lot of well wishes were yelled out from people. I guess it was because I was donned up in the Aussie tracksuit, but it kind of added to the nervousness. Seeing others warm up, it was interesting to note that there was nothing anyone did that was really any different to me. Run for a period of time, do some drills, do some strides, get the track suit off and race.

 

I started near the back of the pack as I figured we’ve got 21.1km to run, I think I can handle being a little slow off the line and not having to throw elbows. The opening 5km was predominantly downhill, but it was surprising that the pace wasn’t really on. I ran at a comfortable pace, running fairly even splits to reach 5k in 14:38, at the back of a big pack of 50. I felt like I maintained the rhythm I had, but when I turned the corner to reach 10k, I saw the clock already over 29 minutes, and I had an uphill climb to contend with. 10k in 29:54, slowed a bit, but I was still feeling pretty good. Now I was into the back half, it started to be easier on the mind. 10k through to 15k was a series of false-flats with a sharp downhill thrown in about 13k, I think. When I hit the 15k mark in 45:18, I thought to myself “stop stuffing around, and pick it up, try and pick up places.” Trouble is, I think everyone ahead of me had the same idea.

 

The last 5k, being the opposite of the first 5k, had 3km of overall climbing to the finish, which is tough in itself, let alone the end of a half marathon. I managed to keep it rolling to about 1km to go when it really started to hurt. It’s hard to will the body on when it is screaming at you to stop. I hit the last 400m and tried to let fly. I told myself to run hard all the way in, because I can’t lose any places now. Finished in 64:16 in 43^rd place. I’m happy but, like all athletes, wish I’d done better.

 

Racing against such a quality field makes you realise the jump from being at the top domestically, to get to even just mid-pack internationally. That first international race, you just aren’t sure of how to race against these people you’ve never raced before. You don’t know if they will blow up or not. I passed a lot of athletes who were almost walking with 3km and 4km to go. These were guys who had been right up the front in the opening 5km setting the pace.

 

This race has made me hungrier to succeed and become a better athlete. I’m looking forward to doing my Marathon in February, as I think that I can run very well if I get it right. This second half marathon has made me respect the full marathon distance a little more, but it has solidified the belief Ken and I have that I will make a good marathoner. But for now, I will focus on NSW 3000m and then Zatopek 10000m. I want to run two PBs before the end of the year in the only 2 races I will get to do on the track this season.

 

Looking forward, I’m hoping that I can qualify for the Commonwealth Games in the Marathon, and possibly the 10000m. I think to be a good marathoner, you also need to be a good 10000m runner. Zatopek will allow me to see exactly where I’m at in my preparation for Beppu, and I always enjoy that race. I hope that by the time London 2012 rolls around, I can stand on the start line of the marathon and really feel like I can mix it with the best.

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