Ards Half Marathon - Barefoot

Race Report - Ards Half Marathon

So Friday night was the Ards Half Marathon.
I ran the same race a few years ago in my shoes in 2:11. Terrible time I know but I was happy just to finish.
The course is a brutal 13miles with an horrific two and half mile hill climb at mile 2, which you climb again at mile 10 from a different angle. Yeah, the mile 10 hill they named heartbreak hill (I'm guessing after the Boston Marathon hill). They go out the night before and spray "Welcome to Heartbreak Hill" on the road for a nice demoralising welcome message, for right when you're thinkin about giving up.
Let me describe this hill to you. There are about 8 or 9 hill crests on the way up. Over each crest from about crest 3 you're thinking "I can see the end if this, keep going!" Only to clear the crest and see yet another climb...
It is never ending!
Yep, whoever designed the course was one sick puppy.
Though I'd ran the course a few years ago, I had no idea of the terrain. I obviously knew it was a road race but going over all these back country roads, I didn't know what condition the roads were in. Rough and worn? Stony? Or smooth and clear like a marshmallow? Yeah right!!... I was worried about the back country roads up the hill.
So I brought my Sockwas as back up, though pride was never gonna let me use them.
I was running this race for charity. My friend's daughter has Ulcerative Colitis (diagnosed at age six) and I decided to run it for the charity that supported them through it. The problem though, was that my friend works in PR. She sought the opportunity to contact the press about a "runner running in his barefeet for charity". I had several journalists call me and photographers sent out. I got a lot of local coverage. Great to represent but, man, the pressure was on! There was no way I was gonna throw the Sockwas on!

I should also mention this race was the official half marathon race for the Northern Ireland Athletics Championship. Ie there were a LOT of serious runners there. I'm talking competitive running clubs with their own uniforms etc... and me... charity runner...hobby runner... with no shoes on...
They had pacers for finishing times and my plan was to stick with the two hour pacer as much as I could in the hope I might get close to my previous time on this course of 2:11.

So enough babbling here's the race report.
It started with the inevitable sea of questions and comments at the starting line up. People asking was I actually going to run like that? Was I mad? Did I know how stony the course was? Have I actually run before? I fielded all questions with light humour and professionalism. :)
I was excited and ready to go! I looked down at my feet and thought let's do this thing!!!
At the off I realised I had started too far back in the field. It was good for keeping my pace down and me not burning out early before "The Hill". I was trying to take it easy but was passing people all over the place. I wasn't pushing, these guys were just slow. Those guys that run 5 or 6 side by side in a wall of impassable runners. I shake my fist at you!! Lol.
Anyway as we approached "The Hill" I took a big breath and went at it. You know what, it was epic! The comparison to running this hill barefoot to running it in shoes was night and day! I loved it! I just nimbly moved up the hill like a gazelle! I was passing heaving, wheezing club runners all the way to the top and I hardly broke a breath. The back country roads I was concerned about, up the hill, had been resurfaced! It was smooth as a baby's bum. Not a stone to be seen! Barefoot runner's dream!
I kept thinking back to me a few years ago pounding up that hill, breathing hard, then having to walk the top 5 ish crests. It was almost effortless this time in comparison, up on my toes! Though I should mention, this hill was also like a sea of spit and snot rockets. Tired runners spit... lots... but I was feeling fresh and dancing round the spit like some sort of shuriken dodging ninja! In my head anyway! (Lol, just thinking what that might have looked like to the other runners! Me dancing round spit, singin my own ninja theme tune! :) )
I love barefoot running! :)
But hey, you know what they say, "Pride always comes before a fall". Yep! They pretty much all nailed me back on the downhill section.
I've not yet mastered soft downhill running. I've tried. I've tried the Ken Bob, bend the knees and let gravity do the work perpetually accelerating, but I've found this only works for me on small hills. This hill is a monster and requires a level of controlled deceleration. Abrasive on the ole feet. And to top that off, halfway down the hill, that wonderful smooth resurfaced road ended... it became a surface akin, it felt to me, to some sort of volcanic rock! Karma, eh!?
Nope not yet. Disaster struck on this downhill section. I'm not sure what exactly happened but I just didn't lift my foot right. I raked the top of my big toe on lift off. Oh yeah, it hurt!!!!! I've done this before but it's just been a quick "Aghh" and back at it. But this time, oh this time, I lifted a lump of skin off the tip of my toe and it started bleeding. Gutted! I trained for a whole year with no injuries, NONE, and on race day I cut my toe.
I felt fine, but looking down, it looked kind of dramatic. Where people before we're going "wow, he's got no shoes on!" now I was thinking they'll be saying "What an idiot running with no shoes on. He's cut his foot! What did he think would happen". But hey, no one seemed to notice and support was great the whole way round! I just kept going and hoped I'd get close to my previous time. I passed the chip pad at the halfway point and didn't hear the beep of the chip registering my time. Only to realise, in a pulling focus, Jaws type camera shot, that I'd left my chip at home on the hall table. NOOOOOOOO! No chip! No time!!
So I did what everyone would do. Said, out loud, "Ahhh f**k it!" and just kept running. I would still have my official marathon photo at the end, with crossing the line, timing board above my head. Hopefully. At the halfway point there was a van with the speakers outside and some pounding music, giving out water and jelly beans. There was a guy with a loudspeaker on top of the van cheering everyone on and making smart comments. I knew I was in for a comment or two. I could hear him cheering as I approached and as I passed him... Silence... Then "number 168 is wearing no shoes!!". I was already past him and all I could do is hold both hands up. Then a few seconds later I heard him say "Come on guys! You're beaten by a guy with no shoes!!" I heard a sea of people behind me upping their pace. I'd no choice then but to do the same! Had to represent!!!!

Through the centre of the next town went well. Loads of supporters out, kids all in a line, giving high fives. Adults telling their children, that man's a barefoot runner (instant injection of pace and confidence for me!) :) followed by another "toe rake" on my open cut. :( ouch! Seriously, what is with the toe rake!! Lift your feet!!!
Out the other side of town, down the dual carriageway towards Heartbreak Hill. Miles 8 and 9.
Now the Dual Carriageway, I thought, would be great. Two lanes of busy road, being constantly pressed and flattened by car after car, would be smooth and stone free, right!?!? Boy was I wrong. Worst section of the whole course! The road was ice damaged. Many many holes, craters and changes in depth of about 5ml. The pavement was no better, covered in shards of stone. Shards!! Razor sharp shards. It's the only way I can describe it. Like someone had taken ordinary stones, thought these aren't anywhere near sharp enough, and shattered them with a hammer, before scattering them merrily over the footpath like a virgin dressed in white scattering my path with rose petals. Pointy pointy rose petals.
I took to the white line! Ah old faithful, that wouldn't let me down. Well you'd have thought. The white line was at the side of the road and was ridged so that any sleeping drivers who drift to the side of road are woken with the shuddering car.
There was no respite anywhere through those two miles. I jumped between pavement to road to white line. Probably added a good mile to the overall distance with my weaving, jumping and hopping.
It was at this stage I started to fade and I turned the corner to see Heartbreak Hill... The last time I ran this course, I walked the most of Heartbreak Hill but there was no way I was going to walk any of this.
My pace was seemingly at a crawl. I was passing plenty of people, the hill had broke, but I was also getting passed plenty by some of those damn athletics club people. But hey, I kept it moving and somehow made it to the top. I'll not lie, I was close to quittin right there but when I got to the top I was presented with a long line of happy cheering spectators roaring me on. More kids lining up for a high five and runners swerving in to take advantage of said high fives. Hilarious. This perked me up a bit! Then I was joined by one of those athletics club people. She began asking me about barefoot running, how I got in to it, how I find it, etc. This was just brilliant. I could talk all day about it and it took my mind off things, really picked up my spirits and my pace lifted dramatically! I tore down the other side of Heartbreak Hill pain free. Guess I forgot about trying to run and just ran. She ran with me for about a mile and a half before we caught up with an older man and his daughter. She'd a brief chat with them before tearing off for a grand finale finish. I ran with them for a while. They were telling me this was their third half marathon in three weeks! Que more run chat and morale lifting conversation. (Thanks Norman). So I'd pretty much forgotten about my cut toe, tender feet and tiredness and was just running. I'd pretty much given up all thoughts of beating my 2:11 previous time (in shoes) of a few years ago and was just enjoying the movement.
However as I turned the last corner towards the finish I saw the timing board at the finish line! 1:55 was showing!!! 1hr 55mins! I was stunned! Whaaaaaa! I just opened up, focused on my knee drive and passed just about everyone between me and the finish line! I was like Forrest Gump! Lol. I actually crossed the line with my hands raised high, triumphant!! 1:56:52 I couldn't get over it! Delighted!
A friend's friend happen to be at the finish and snapped a shot of me finishing. She didn't know me, just saw a crazy man in his barefeet and decided to take a pic. Told my friend who said "I know him!". I got a copy of the pic.
:)
After the run, I wandered over the medical guys to seek a simple plaster for my toe. Figured they'd just hand me a plaster and I'd wander off but nope. I'd to hop up on the gurney whilst they cleaned my toe and stuck a plaster on. Great, I thought... until the cramp set in! I nearly kicked the girl in the face with cramp!! My toe was sitting off at the weirdest angle you ever saw. Then my calf on the left leg cramped up!!! All I could do was yell "CRAAAAAMP!!" Like some sort of abandon ship call! The medic was Polish, I think, and didn't know what I was on about! She just laughed and said "Yesss". It took her a 10-15 lonnnng seconds to realise what I was saying before she kindly massaged my calf muscle. Lol.

So what did I learn from this race?
1. Remember your timing chip!!
2. Try not to rake your toe four times in a run.
3. Wait for the cramp to pass before going to the medics.

I ended up finishing 355th out of 582 runners. Most of them serious athletics club runners.



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Comments

That's a good report, Darkand. I've shared it on the home page for all to see. Congrats on the half. Nice press coverage for you too. That pavement looked brutal. Thanks for sharing! -TJ
 
Oh, and check out the looks on the faces of the spectators in the finishers' chute. Priceless! -TJ
 

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