Race Date: Sunday 26 April 2026

Background

After last year’s shameful effort (Poorly Prepared: Manchester 2025) it wouldn’t have been a good feeling for the final attempt at the marathon distance to end with a dnf so for 2026 it was ‘once more unto the breach’ as the saying goes. Over the years disenchantment with big City Centre events has grown. Organising transport, crowds of competitors plus families with pram and the dog, starting pens, the ubiquitous pacers (how can you have pacers on a race with starting pens?) whilst all the noise doesn’t do my tinnitus any good. Running London in 2024 the number with “Official World Record Attempt” pinned to the back carrying bicycles, fridges and other junk was just plain silly. Although now closer to seventy than sixty, racing is still a serious business or is it just that the affinity with Victor Meldrew is deepening.

Last year one of the lads reported back on a good experience at the Shakespeare Marathon in Stratford Upon Avon. It’s not flat but having been held since 1982 they should have the organisation sorted although RunThrough, responsible for recent catastrophes at the North Lincs Half and Wolverhampton 10k, now have their finger in the pie. There’s a Travelodge just up the road from the start with Sunday night also booked for an extra £35 for recovery and a kip driving home that evening or the following morning as desired. Pre-race nutrition was sorted by tuna pasta bake prepared earlier on Saturday. It’s not that bad, even when cold.

Training

With a delay over Christmas due to a rather snotty cold, training had otherwise gone well with seven twenty milers and averaging fifty to sixty miles per week. This was complimented by a diet of lactate threshold and VO2 Max work with occasional faster stuff. We ignore speed at our peril, even with the marathon. Mileage topped out at seventy miles in seven days when, with three others from the Thursday track group, we had a week’s wet weather training on the Algarve. There were a number of easier weeks for tune up races although these didn’t really bring good tidings.

Then, with about three weeks to go, despite wearing the same shoes and socks as ever, there was a massive blister on the big toe on the left foot. Compeed usually sorts these out but it started to get really sore. This called for regular footbaths with Epsom Salts as the vet had told us to do this with Montmorency when his paw became infected. With three days to go it had seemed to clear up but the Compeed was still required on race day. Then, on the day before the race itself, the nail on the big toe of the other foot came off. A trip to the chiropodist can be added to the growing list of post marathon tasks.

Race Day

Arriving in Stratford on Saturday afternoon it was scorchio and we were surely going to get toasted but Sunday morning was initially quite cool with a slight breeze. It would be nice to beat Dave Beech’s M65 club record of 3:46:43 although this would be difficult with the terrain and the heat whilst there are a lot of other players in the field now as we all get older. Strategy was to set out at intended pace (8:30 miles for easy maths) before it got too hot but on this undulating course it’s more about judging effort and not going into the red on the inclines with actual pace yoyoing considerably.

A sign of a good night’s sleep was actually being woken by the alarm with even time to watch last night’s Match of the Day before waddling down to the start. Breakfast was cardboard, just add boiling water, porridge. Disgusting but functional. All very relaxed but with 4700 in the half and full marathons it was busy. With competitors being funnelled into a narrow start it took five minutes to cross the start line but at least this thinned out the field. After a few twists and turns we were soon out into the Warwickshire countryside, with pretty thatched cottages, enticing inns and dealing with a few lumps and bumps. The big challenges come at seven and eighteen miles with the biggest hill although these things always look worse on Strava than they really are. Would it feel the same second time around? Interestingly, Pfitzinger talks about eccentric motion and the uphills did seem to bring some relief, stretching the quads but the steeper downhills were quite unpleasant.

A major feature of this event are the two sections along the Stratford Greenway, a repurposed section of the Honeybourne to Stratford Railway. In ‘Out of Thin Air’ author Michael Crawley mentions the coroconch, gravel trails used by the Ethiopians which are great for training but not so great for racing. Being quite narrow in places made overtaking difficult having to deal with cyclists and walkers too. It wouldn’t be great in poor weather.

Part of the strategy was to get to the top of the second hill in decent shape and try to push on. After dropping a water bottle earlier it was better to slow/stop to get the stuff down but there was a faux pas at twelve miles when taking the first gel. Instinctively the watch was paused, as would have happened in a training run, so the watch was now wrong. A sticky second gel at twenty gave me gutsache. Going through twenty in about 2:52 (8:36 pace) and with the heat building along the second stretch of trail the pace dropped taking 55 minutes for the last 10k (8:51 pace). Slowing, although not quite blowing up, a third gel at twenty three would have helped but this was declined considering the reaction to the previous one. Even so, being able to chase and pass others slowing even more was great encouragement.

Back on the road, the last mile was just  as unpleasant as the trail, a reminder of Ormaleau Road at the Belfast Marathon. The last section from the 26 mile marker seemed longer than 352 metres although the mile markers were well generally well placed earlier. Still, better to be long rather than short.

Results