As I looked ahead to my upcoming 6th participation of the Vectis Marathon the weather looked unseasonably warm but I was not overly concerned as I was combining the race with a weekend camping.
The prep for the race was going well with short jogs on the Friday and Saturday mornings. I was confident that I would finish and even thought my time would be OK. This was despite an injury that meant I had not been able to put in as many miles as I would have liked, same old story!
So, Sunday morning was very very warm, more excuses I love them, and my expectations were beginning to waver.
We set off at the agreed time of 11 with the usual IOW low key friendly cries of support.
The support team were at 11 miles and I said this was a breeze!
I settled into the race well and was keeping to a reasonable pace that I thought I could comfortably sustain and at 16 miles had been running for 2 hours 29 minutes.
Then after 17 miles things went a bit downhill, unlike the course!
I finally limped in at 4 hours 40 minutes.
This is a great marathon with a few hills but nice scenery in parts and was at the bargain price of £25. There is the cost of the ferry but combining it with a trip to the island makes it bearable.
I will be back again.
Wessex forever!
Wessex Road Runners 