Thames Path Ultra Race Report (Read 715 times)

On Saturday 17th Jan 2009 I lined up with 199 other lunatics in Reading, UK for my very first ultra marathon, a 50 mile jaunt along the Thames towpath. At 0730 we were huddled together in the dark under a pathetic "tent" with a howling gale and horizontal rain. I was probably not alone in thinking that the forthcoming 50 miles might not be a great laugh... With the pre-race briefing out of the way, maps and route issued, we made our way gingerly to the start line just as the sun rose. With 5 mins to go, the wind dropped and the rain stopped. OK, this wasn't going to be so bad, the Lord was looking over us! On the sound of the hooter I set off at about 8:30 min miles. With the sun still rising it was a wonderful experience running along the towpath next to the river Thames; a towpath I would come to know very well over the next few hours. I figured I was in about 30th place or so after 5 miles, probably a bit fast, but then I was nowhere near the leaders who seemed to have sprinted off at sub 7 pace. The race was completely unsupported, meaning that you had to carry a backpack containing certain mandatory safety and emergency items (compass, whistle, mapcase, mobile phone, emergency blanket, headtorch, jacket etc etc) as well as all of the food etc you might need for 50 miles of running. My pack weighed about 6kg (about 13 pounds), including a full 3litre bladder. Checkpoints were placed approx every 10 miles - and they did at least allow you to replenish your water here. I carried a tube of Nuun electrolyte tablets and ensured that any liquid I took in contained the right balance - I really think this was key to keeping me strong. A lot of people got badly dehydrated - they thought the low temp, rain etc would mean that they didn't need to worry about rehydration!!! Wrong!!! I think I drank about 10 litres or so. At no point did I feel like my legs were going to cramp up. As for food, I consumed 6 bananas in total, and a carbo gel every 30 mins or so. I didn't feel I needed anything more than this - but definitely would have done in a longer race. That said, I never hit any low points (despite warnings that this would happen somewhere around 30 - 35 miles). I can genuinely say that I only had highs, and higher highs. It was a truly wonderful feeling to be passing people throughout the race and feeling strong until the end. I had planned to run easily until 20 miles and then to use a 25/5min run/walk strategy. In the end I didn't adhere to this at all. I ran without break (apart from refilling water and having a stretch at the checkpoints) until about 28 miles and then just walked when I needed to - enough to get a really decent drink of Nuun and a gel or two, to give the legs a bit of a break and to recharge mentally. I kept my walking breaks to under 3 - 4 mins so that it wasn't too difficult to get back into my stride. Didn't have any dramas with sore or tired legs (until the day after). A great race. Finished in 7:47:05 for 17th place out of 200. Not too bad for my first ultra, and for an off-road 50 it is a fairly respectable time. Plenty of room for improvement though. Interesting/notable points: Winner ran a 6:11 (recognise his name as being a GB international) I passed 14 herons, 47 fishermen sitting by the river bank, 32 rowing eights and countless scullers (unsurprisingly these were mainly around Henley and Marlow), ran past the Team GB rowing camp and practise lake (saw the team bus but didn't see any Steven Redgraves). Passing cyclist asked me how far we were running, I told him "50 miles" and he asked "over how many days"!!! Finished before dark, so headtorch was redundant. Carried loads of food that I didn't need - but better to be safe than sorry, but the extra weight did not help. Neck, shoulders and back are MUCH more sore than my legs, probably due to above. Didn't get chicked. Only avoided the above by 15 mins though. Women run well at long distances - as if we didn't know this! In hindsight feel I could have run it a bit quicker - but happy that it was a very positive learning experience. Absolutely loved it and can't wait for the next one.

Awesome race report. Sounds like a good day. Great time. Totally agree with the use of electrolytes. I use Nuun also and think that my ability to run extreme distance would be highly reduced without it's use. Damned convenient stuff too. Just a little tube that doesn't weight too much.

Nice run Purdey, To be honest I don't know what a good time is for 50 miles! But this sounds like an impressive ultra debut to me. I've run a few miles along the Thames so I'm not surprised by the Heron/Fisherman count! You must have been tempted by a few of the pubs along that route though!

Well done you nutjob!

Wow! That is frickin amazing! You felt strong at the end? nice.

Nice run - I think its great when your first effort at a distance goes so well. It has to give you loads of confidence for future endevors. A little lighter pack would have been nice - The 50s that I have done (2) have been well supported, all I had to carry was a hand held or camel back / gels and eletrolytes. The 12 hour and 24 will be interesting - 24 is truly about pacing and perseverance + ability to eat and run. Cool that the weather cooperated - recovery well.

hopefully I'll be down in the 6es when I return to running 50 miles.

I would put good money on it.

Finished in 7:47:05 for 17th place out of 200. Not too bad for my first ultra, and for an off-road 50 it is a fairly respectable time.

I think this would be an understatement even if there was support on the course, covering that distance in that time with a pack on your back is amazing. Congrats! Hope you get the issue with your foot sorted quickly, looking forward to future reports.