Run 79. A third of a half ironman. 22/2/2020.
With my wife planning to do the Geelong Half Ironman the next day I decided that I would run the half marathon that was the third leg of the race. But given the set up of transition was in full swing I decided to start clear of the action and go from there.
Beautiful two lap course with small hills at either end made it feel like running the length of a banana. And while the course was quiet at either end, in the middle was the start / finish and the transition and the main street of Geelong. It was clear to me early on that the course wasn’t open and that made it similar at times to running in the CBD in Melbourne with no one really watching where they were going.
At one stage I was yelled at and called names by someone driving past in a car. Turns out it was a relative calling out my name – small world.
Got to where I thought the first turn around was, but with no markings out yet I had to guess. On the second lap I guessed again at a different spot – one of the two had to be close. At the turn around at the other end I guess again – two different spots.
In the end it was a bit messy but at 1:47:25 not too bad. But true credit on this course was to the triathletes including my wife (Mary) who did the half marathon after a 2km swim and 90km bike ride. Respect.
My Three Learnings
The course is only clear on the day of the race.
Not knowing the turn around points makes it hard to get the distance right.
The Geelong Half Ironman run course is overly complex.