Richmond Marathon Countdown

In just over 24 hours I’ll be lining up on the start line of the 2007 Richmond Marathon, just 13 days after completing the Marine Corps Marathon in 2:54:01. Richmond will be my 20th marathon since my first in 1984, although the bulk of them have been in the last 8 years.

My fastest time was recorded in Charlotte last December – a 2:51:00 in cold conditions on an undulating course. My slowest time was at the London Marathon in 1996, where I slipped on a water bottle around mile 18 and limped home the last 8 miles. I finished in 4:01:01 and could barely walk for days afterwards!

Above is a simple graph of my marathon performances over the years. Despite turning 40 in 2006, I’m hopeful I can shave off 61 precious seconds and one day break 2 hours 50 minutes. Just as breaking the magic 3 hour mark was a long time dream, ducking under 2:50:00 is my new goal. Being realistic I doubt it will happen at Richmond tomorrow – it’s way too soon after my last marathon attempt – but with a solid training plan over the winter, anything could happen in 2008.

For anyone interested, here’s how my times have progressed over the years….

• 1/1/1984 3:40:00 Cardiff Marathon
• 4/12/1992 3:27:13 London Marathon
• 4/21/1996 4:01:01 London Marathon
• 12/1/1996 3:36:25 Lanzarote Marathon
• 11/13/1999 3:05:52 Richmond Marathon
• 3/18/2000 3:00:35 Shamrock Marathon
• 4/17/2000 3:04:12 Boston Marathon
• 11/10/2001 2:59:36 Richmond Marathon
• 10/19/2002 3:19:33 Trigon Bay Bridge Marathon
• 3/15/2003 2:57:43 Shamrock Marathon
• 3/20/2004 3:07:30 Shamrock Marathon
• 3/19/2005 3:01:47 Shamrock Marathon
• 5/1/2005 2:59:26 Frederick Marathon
• 3/19/2006 2:55:35 Shamrock Marathon
• 4/30/2006 2:54:51 Frederick Marathon
• 10/29/2006 2:53:56 Marine Corps Marathon
• 12/9/2006 2:51:00 Charlotte Marathon
• 3/18/2007 2:52:55 Shamrock Marathon
• 10/28/2007 2:54:01 Marine Corps Marathon
• 11/10/2007 2:57:12 Richmond Marathon