Global Marathon and Century Challenge

[Dino]

Rather than bury this in the "what have you done today" thread, hope you don't mind if I start a new thread for this challenge. Moderators, feel free to move!
Maybe if anyone else is doing a HM, FM, 50k or 100k as part of this challenge they could post here - would then be a useful thread for info in the future for these long distance challenges.

I'll be posting this mornings effort in a bit!

[Dino]

So... it's done... my first FM

Three and a bit months ago I had the crazy idea of trying to do a 3 hour marathon... when I had only done 1 x HM before.
I was drifting along in January after completing the Holiday challenge and surprising myself by not missing a day in the 33 days.
At first I planned to do it on the same day as the London Marathon, but then I noticed the Global Marathon challenge so thought this was a better option... plus it gave me a 2 week window.
I planned for the 1st May to give me a time for a second chance if it went wrong - thankfully it wont be needed as I hit my target with 34 seconds to spare!

I spent a lot of time on the pace calculator and with Excel planning when I needed to pace myself at allowing for some slow down one handed paddling whilst fuelled up.

First the FM numbers:
Distance : 42,195m
Time: 2:59:26.0
Pace: 2:07.5
Calories: 2638 (not sure I believe this or not!)
Average Watts: 169
Calories Per Hour: 880
Stroke Rate: 21
Stroke Count: 3787
Drag Factor: 111

Fuel Consumption during the FM:
700ml of water with a High5 Zero tablet (electrolyte)
4 x High5 Energy Gels
1 x banana!

Blisters:
4 new ones on right hand, but just bubbles - didnt tear open.

I think the water intake was possibly a bit light... I had planned on 1 litre. I meant to weigh myself before an after, but forgot!
What I didnt want to do was run out of energy. The two longest rows I had done was two lots of 2 hours (28k). Thee first one hadnt gone well, then second one slightly better... but they had showed that I would need some energy boost along the way.
I had a gel and 1/4 of a banana and drink at 1hour, 1.5 hours, 2 hours and 2.5 hours. I also had about two other quick squeezes of the drinks bottle along the way. Whilst this did lose me some time, and meant a faster pace was need towards the end, I think without them I would have struggled.
I really wanted a drink with about 4k to go but didnt want to see the projected time go right!


And now the breakdown... with some notes
Time Meters Pace Watts Cal/Hr S/M
2:59:26.0 42,195m 2:07.5 169 880 21
8:26.4 2,000m 2:06.6 172 893 20
8:29.6 4,000m 2:07.4 169 882 20
Hmmm... so not going as planned... the first 10k was supposed to be r19 easy at 2:06.5... but have pain inside my right groin / hip ball joint.
Have been suffering a bit last two weeks with lower back and SI joint pain... I didnt need this today! Had to stop for about 10 seconds to massage the area.. feels like a nerve is impinged. Bugger!
Maybe today is not going to be the day.
8:29.1 6,000m 2:07.2 170 884 20
7k up in a smidge under 30 mins... so on target. The projected time I am trying to keep at around 2:58:30 to give me a bit of leeway for fuel onboarding.
8:27.7 8,000m 2:06.9 171 889 20
At 8k pain was more intermittent, so going to ignore... now starting to have a proper sweat on. Glad I turned on the fan... but wish I had put it on 3! Too late now!
8:28.3 10,000m 2:07.0 171 887 20
OK so quarter distance...
8:32.4 12,000m 2:08.1 167 873 20
Its nice to see meters to go starting with a 2 and not a 3!
8:29.9 14,000m 2:07.4 169 881 21
Hour mark is up... and 14 down - still on target first refuelling... I had cut off the top of the gels and opened the banana ready. Prob about 20 seconds lost.
Bumped up the rate to r21. Got back into the rhythm quickly.
8:45.0 16,000m 2:11.2 155 832 20
8:26.0 18,000m 2:06.5 173 895 21
So if this was a HM, I'd be in the last 10 mins soon... had a good period of about 4k where it was flowing along.
8:28.0 20,000m 2:07.0 171 888 21
8:41.2 22,000m 2:10.3 158 844 21
Second fuel-up. Bit slicker this time... mainly due to not dripping gel on the rail!
HM done. So... its not going so bad. Radio is on. Have to keep concentration high at all times... else suddenly find yourself at 2:09
8:25.5 24,000m 2:06.3 173 896 22
8:33.3 26,000m 2:08.3 166 870 21
1h50m in... OK so now its getting tough. This is where I have suffered in the 28k tests I have done... its not so bad this time.... so the extra training since then has paid off. Thighs definitely starting to feel it.
Did some short bursts of half-slide yanking with arms and this seems to help a bit.
8:30.4 28,000m 2:07.6 168 879 21
2 hours... OK so from here on in this us uncharted territory. Third gel, 1/4 of banana drink. Dropped the handle for 20 seconds this time to grab the gel. Easier than try to paddle one handed.
8:59.0 30,000m 2:14.7 143 792 20
8:24.1 32,000m 2:06.0 175 901 22
Bit of a renaissance! 2:06 for 2k.
Suddenly we are into 4 figures to go... I am going to do this... no way am I going to bail now... bit of a shout at myself to knuckle down and concentrate.
Getting stiff between the shoulder blades... forcing myself to relax and do some shoulder rolls during recovery.
I have Stu's comments in my head... "you are training for the last 10k..." will this is it.
8:30.0 34,000m 2:07.5 169 881 22
OK so bum is getting a bit painful now.... I have a bubble wrap pad ready to grab it it gets too much, but dont want to lose the time for this.
I can feel some blisters coming up on my right hand... doing this without gloves. So long as they dont tear open...
8:39.4 36,000m 2:09.8 160 850 21
Last gel, slurp of drink and bit of banace with 30 mins left. 7k thereabouts.... a walk in the park.... NOT!
Thinking about when I can pick up the pace... maybe 4 k to go? About 10 seconds went during this last fuel stop. Had thought about cutting it, but its gone OK so far so sticking to the plan.
8:26.7 38,000m 2:06.6 172 892 22
4K to go... concentrate!!!... picking up the pace is a necessity... the 2:07.9 required for sub 3 hours doesnt count for the fueling... I need to keep the rate up. Also dont want to cut it too fine and need a real burn up to make it.
Hitting 2:05 now for the last 4k... maybe with 1k to go will see what I can do.
8:21.7 40,000m 2:05.4 177 910 23
2K to go... yippeee!!!!
8:10.0 42,000m 2:02.5 190 955 24
Time to motor with 1000m to go... see if I can get under 2:59:30...
0:42.2 42,195m 1:48.2 276 1250 28
BOOM!!!! DONE IT!!!!
Feeling a bit emotional....

Warm down on the spin bike and 1k on the erg just for good measure

Excuse the overly long read...
I am going to post some more later on the training I did to get here... hopefully some useful pointers for anyone else thinking about stepping up to a FM.

[hobbit]

Congratulations for that fine marathon! I may have a shot later in the year, but I don't think that I'll be reaching 3h.

I thought that I'd get my new season off to a cracking start with a half marathon. I'm 63rd on the overall list for meters rowed at the moment! And top of the 60-69 LWT half marathon rankings. In fact I'm the only person on it .

This effort knocked nearly 3 minutes off my PB. It went smoothly, rowing outdoors in the sunshine. Only one 40s stop with 5k to go - bum was too sore & I gulped a couple of swigs of water. I had dangerscouse's advice not to stop during HM's running through my mind, but I had a moment of weakness.

Afterwards, I could hardly stand up. I was walking like a cowboy after a day in the saddle.

1:34:04.2 21,097m 2:13.7 146 803 26
22:09.4 5,000m 2:12.9 149 812 24
22:05.4 10,000m 2:12.5 150 817 25
22:11.2 15,000m 2:13.1 148 810 27
22:48.2 20,000m 2:16.8 137 770 28
4:49.9 21,097m 2:12.1 152 822 30

[Dino]

Congrats Hobbit! 3 mins is a huge chunk, great PB. Outdoors in Annecy? in the sun beats my garage! What a great place to live

We get two certificates for the price of one... one for the FM/HM and one for the global challenge!

[Minimoof123]

So... it's done... my first FM

Three and a bit months ago I had the crazy idea of trying to do a 3 hour marathon... when I had only done 1 x HM before.

Well done mate, I think my first 1 came in about 3.07 hr so Im glad you managed sub 3 otherwise you would keep thinking I know I can get under 3, I got my PB last year, and my aim this year is to go more SS / controlled rate where as my last couple have been rate 26 (approx) If can maintain SS at 2.05 I should beat my PB, but as you know time will tell......

[Dino]

Cheers Minimoof.
Sub3 for a first go was a bit ambitious, but it was a lot of hard meters in the last few months. Once I got down to 1:27 for the HM I reckoned it was prob on.
I read somewhere that your FM pace should be around HM pace + 3s... I think this is a bit on the low side, I was about HM+4. With your 1H22m HM ... good luck if you go for it again. I think once a year is quite enough!

[MartinSH4321]

So... it's done... my first FM

That's really a great achievement Dino, well done!!
And thanks for sharing the details, this may help me when doing my first FM (so not in near future )

[Dino]

So... it's done... my first FM

That's really a great achievement Dino, well done!!
And thanks for sharing the details, this may help me when doing my first FM (so not in near future )

Thanks Martin
Rest day today and prob tomorrow!

[Dangerscouse]

So... it's done... my first FM

Three and a bit months ago I had the crazy idea of trying to do a 3 hour marathon... when I had only done 1 x HM before.
I was drifting along in January after completing the Holiday challenge and surprising myself by not missing a day in the 33 days.
At first I planned to do it on the same day as the London Marathon, but then I noticed the Global Marathon challenge so thought this was a better option... plus it gave me a 2 week window.
I planned for the 1st May to give me a time for a second chance if it went wrong - thankfully it wont be needed as I hit my target with 34 seconds to spare!

I spent a lot of time on the pace calculator and with Excel planning when I needed to pace myself at allowing for some slow down one handed paddling whilst fuelled up.

First the FM numbers:
Distance : 42,195m
Time: 2:59:26.0
Pace: 2:07.5
Calories: 2638 (not sure I believe this or not!)
Average Watts: 169
Calories Per Hour: 880
Stroke Rate: 21
Stroke Count: 3787
Drag Factor: 111

Fuel Consumption during the FM:
700ml of water with a High5 Zero tablet (electrolyte)
4 x High5 Energy Gels
1 x banana!

Blisters:
4 new ones on right hand, but just bubbles - didnt tear open.

I think the water intake was possibly a bit light... I had planned on 1 litre. I meant to weigh myself before an after, but forgot!
What I didnt want to do was run out of energy. The two longest rows I had done was two lots of 2 hours (28k). Thee first one hadnt gone well, then second one slightly better... but they had showed that I would need some energy boost along the way.
I had a gel and 1/4 of a banana and drink at 1hour, 1.5 hours, 2 hours and 2.5 hours. I also had about two other quick squeezes of the drinks bottle along the way. Whilst this did lose me some time, and meant a faster pace was need towards the end, I think without them I would have struggled.
I really wanted a drink with about 4k to go but didnt want to see the projected time go right!


And now the breakdown... with some notes
Time Meters Pace Watts Cal/Hr S/M
2:59:26.0 42,195m 2:07.5 169 880 21
8:26.4 2,000m 2:06.6 172 893 20
8:29.6 4,000m 2:07.4 169 882 20
Hmmm... so not going as planned... the first 10k was supposed to be r19 easy at 2:06.5... but have pain inside my right groin / hip ball joint.
Have been suffering a bit last two weeks with lower back and SI joint pain... I didnt need this today! Had to stop for about 10 seconds to massage the area.. feels like a nerve is impinged. Bugger!
Maybe today is not going to be the day.
8:29.1 6,000m 2:07.2 170 884 20
7k up in a smidge under 30 mins... so on target. The projected time I am trying to keep at around 2:58:30 to give me a bit of leeway for fuel onboarding.
8:27.7 8,000m 2:06.9 171 889 20
At 8k pain was more intermittent, so going to ignore... now starting to have a proper sweat on. Glad I turned on the fan... but wish I had put it on 3! Too late now!
8:28.3 10,000m 2:07.0 171 887 20
OK so quarter distance...
8:32.4 12,000m 2:08.1 167 873 20
Its nice to see meters to go starting with a 2 and not a 3!
8:29.9 14,000m 2:07.4 169 881 21
Hour mark is up... and 14 down - still on target first refuelling... I had cut off the top of the gels and opened the banana ready. Prob about 20 seconds lost.
Bumped up the rate to r21. Got back into the rhythm quickly.
8:45.0 16,000m 2:11.2 155 832 20
8:26.0 18,000m 2:06.5 173 895 21
So if this was a HM, I'd be in the last 10 mins soon... had a good period of about 4k where it was flowing along.
8:28.0 20,000m 2:07.0 171 888 21
8:41.2 22,000m 2:10.3 158 844 21
Second fuel-up. Bit slicker this time... mainly due to not dripping gel on the rail!
HM done. So... its not going so bad. Radio is on. Have to keep concentration high at all times... else suddenly find yourself at 2:09
8:25.5 24,000m 2:06.3 173 896 22
8:33.3 26,000m 2:08.3 166 870 21
1h50m in... OK so now its getting tough. This is where I have suffered in the 28k tests I have done... its not so bad this time.... so the extra training since then has paid off. Thighs definitely starting to feel it.
Did some short bursts of half-slide yanking with arms and this seems to help a bit.
8:30.4 28,000m 2:07.6 168 879 21
2 hours... OK so from here on in this us uncharted territory. Third gel, 1/4 of banana drink. Dropped the handle for 20 seconds this time to grab the gel. Easier than try to paddle one handed.
8:59.0 30,000m 2:14.7 143 792 20
8:24.1 32,000m 2:06.0 175 901 22
Bit of a renaissance! 2:06 for 2k.
Suddenly we are into 4 figures to go... I am going to do this... no way am I going to bail now... bit of a shout at myself to knuckle down and concentrate.
Getting stiff between the shoulder blades... forcing myself to relax and do some shoulder rolls during recovery.
I have Stu's comments in my head... "you are training for the last 10k..." will this is it.
8:30.0 34,000m 2:07.5 169 881 22
OK so bum is getting a bit painful now.... I have a bubble wrap pad ready to grab it it gets too much, but dont want to lose the time for this.
I can feel some blisters coming up on my right hand... doing this without gloves. So long as they dont tear open...
8:39.4 36,000m 2:09.8 160 850 21
Last gel, slurp of drink and bit of banace with 30 mins left. 7k thereabouts.... a walk in the park.... NOT!
Thinking about when I can pick up the pace... maybe 4 k to go? About 10 seconds went during this last fuel stop. Had thought about cutting it, but its gone OK so far so sticking to the plan.
8:26.7 38,000m 2:06.6 172 892 22
4K to go... concentrate!!!... picking up the pace is a necessity... the 2:07.9 required for sub 3 hours doesnt count for the fueling... I need to keep the rate up. Also dont want to cut it too fine and need a real burn up to make it.
Hitting 2:05 now for the last 4k... maybe with 1k to go will see what I can do.
8:21.7 40,000m 2:05.4 177 910 23
2K to go... yippeee!!!!
8:10.0 42,000m 2:02.5 190 955 24
Time to motor with 1000m to go... see if I can get under 2:59:30...
0:42.2 42,195m 1:48.2 276 1250 28
BOOM!!!! DONE IT!!!!
Feeling a bit emotional....

Warm down on the spin bike and 1k on the erg just for good measure

Excuse the overly long read...
I am going to post some more later on the training I did to get here... hopefully some useful pointers for anyone else thinking about stepping up to a FM.

That's a really great effort Dino! An FM is very tough session and there's loads of moments of doubt and weakness that can derail you all too easily.

It's a great idea to break it down into chunks so it doesn't seem so daunting and proper fuel is the key to finishing.

Rest up as I guess you will be feeling like you have been hit by a train over the next few days. It really does sap you mentally and physically. Love the write up too, and I'm sure if my will help others.

Congratulations for that fine marathon! I may have a shot later in the year, but I don't think that I'll be reaching 3h.

I thought that I'd get my new season off to a cracking start with a half marathon. I'm 63rd on the overall list for meters rowed at the moment! And top of the 60-69 LWT half marathon rankings. In fact I'm the only person on it .

This effort knocked nearly 3 minutes off my PB. It went smoothly, rowing outdoors in the sunshine. Only one 40s stop with 5k to go - bum was too sore & I gulped a couple of swigs of water. I had dangerscouse's advice not to stop during HM's running through my mind, but I had a moment of weakness.

Afterwards, I could hardly stand up. I was walking like a cowboy after a day in the saddle.

1:34:04.2 21,097m 2:13.7 146 803 26
22:09.4 5,000m 2:12.9 149 812 24
22:05.4 10,000m 2:12.5 150 817 25
22:11.2 15,000m 2:13.1 148 810 27
22:48.2 20,000m 2:16.8 137 770 28
4:49.9 21,097m 2:12.1 152 822 30

And this is another very good effort. Well done Hobbit, that is a big improvement

[Neorticros]

Great effort and awesome time !!! that 3 h is something I should aim at I remember doing my first FM with just 1/2 l. of water.
God it felt so good afterwards.

[Dino]

That's a really great effort Dino! An FM is very tough session and there's loads of moments of doubt and weakness that can derail you all too easily.

It's a great idea to break it down into chunks so it doesn't seem so daunting and proper fuel is the key to finishing.

Rest up as I guess you will be feeling like you have been hit by a train over the next few days. It really does sap you mentally and physically. Love the write up too, and I'm sure if my will help others.

Thanks Stu.. and thanks for all your advice over last few months.
Fueling was definitely important.. think I got it just about right- maybe a bit more hydration before and during, and a slightly bigger breakfast but didn't feel like I was out of energy. It also helped break up the time as was really only counting down each half hour (after the first hour), plus ticking off the distance milestones. Aiming for 3 hours broke down the distance nicely into 7k/30m chunks too. Only a couple of times I caught myself thinking about how much to go... once at about 10k in, wishing it was 10k to go!

[Dino]

Great effort and awesome time !!! that 3 h is something I should aim at I remember doing my first FM with just 1/2 l. of water.
God it felt so good afterwards.

Thanks very much

[KeithT]

Great job Dino! I enjoyed the write-up as well as it gives a good description as what to expect. I still haven't done a FM but was thinking about it for the challenge and just to do it. I worry that I wont be able to pace correctly as I have never done any workout or my HM above a 2:00 split which I think I would need to for the FM - but I really need to try it.

[Dino]

Great job Dino! I enjoyed the write-up as well as it gives a good description as what to expect. I still haven't done a FM but was thinking about it for the challenge and just to do it. I worry that I wont be able to pace correctly as I have never done any workout or my HM above a 2:00 split which I think I would need to for the FM - but I really need to try it.

Thanks Keith!

I am sure you have read into the FM already, but some things I picked up along the way anyway...

Eddie Fletcher's marathon training plan reckons that the FM could be conducted at between 60-70% of 2k watts if you want to set a 'best ability' FM. Taking the lower end of this, with your 2K PB then 60% translates to ~1:56 pace. This is with an already very fit person doing the 14 week plan.

The Concept2 training guide v2 says to add twice the difference between your 500m paces at 5,000m and 10,000m to your 500m pace for 10,000m to give you an approximation of your likely 500m pace for the full marathon, which based on your PBs comes out at ~1:59.
This is based on a much longer plan starting fairly low but ramping up to either 80 or 110km per week.

You are obviously a very fit guy(!) and I guess it comes down to what your goal is.
My instinct based on what I learnt on my journey is that if you were to plan the fuelling and hydration, then just sit down and do it now, then a 2:03 average would be eminently achievable (slow for you I know!) with a nice low rating. This would give you a 2h53 time - pretty darn good for a first attempt! Judging by how much time I lost for 4 x refuelling during the row, then you would actually be rowing around 2:02 to achieve this. If you get to 30 mins to go and all going good, then ramp up - you could probably cut another minute off for a 2h52. Its a long haul, just don't burn up the first 10k! No disrespect meant if this a very low-ball target!

Go for it!!! Be great to read about the end other of the spectrum and an impromptu marathon!

[DavidA]

So... it's done... my first FM

Three and a bit months ago I had the crazy idea of trying to do a 3 hour marathon... when I had only done 1 x HM before.
I was drifting along in January after completing the Holiday challenge and surprising myself by not missing a day in the 33 days.
At first I planned to do it on the same day as the London Marathon, but then I noticed the Global Marathon challenge so thought this was a better option... plus it gave me a 2 week window.
I planned for the 1st May to give me a time for a second chance if it went wrong - thankfully it wont be needed as I hit my target with 34 seconds to spare!

I spent a lot of time on the pace calculator and with Excel planning when I needed to pace myself at allowing for some slow down one handed paddling whilst fuelled up.

First the FM numbers:
Distance : 42,195m
Time: 2:59:26.0
Pace: 2:07.5
Calories: 2638 (not sure I believe this or not!)
Average Watts: 169
Calories Per Hour: 880
Stroke Rate: 21
Stroke Count: 3787
Drag Factor: 111

Fuel Consumption during the FM:
700ml of water with a High5 Zero tablet (electrolyte)
4 x High5 Energy Gels
1 x banana!

Blisters:
4 new ones on right hand, but just bubbles - didnt tear open.

I think the water intake was possibly a bit light... I had planned on 1 litre. I meant to weigh myself before an after, but forgot!
What I didnt want to do was run out of energy. The two longest rows I had done was two lots of 2 hours (28k). Thee first one hadnt gone well, then second one slightly better... but they had showed that I would need some energy boost along the way.
I had a gel and 1/4 of a banana and drink at 1hour, 1.5 hours, 2 hours and 2.5 hours. I also had about two other quick squeezes of the drinks bottle along the way. Whilst this did lose me some time, and meant a faster pace was need towards the end, I think without them I would have struggled.
I really wanted a drink with about 4k to go but didnt want to see the projected time go right!


And now the breakdown... with some notes
Time Meters Pace Watts Cal/Hr S/M
2:59:26.0 42,195m 2:07.5 169 880 21
8:26.4 2,000m 2:06.6 172 893 20
8:29.6 4,000m 2:07.4 169 882 20
Hmmm... so not going as planned... the first 10k was supposed to be r19 easy at 2:06.5... but have pain inside my right groin / hip ball joint.
Have been suffering a bit last two weeks with lower back and SI joint pain... I didnt need this today! Had to stop for about 10 seconds to massage the area.. feels like a nerve is impinged. Bugger!
Maybe today is not going to be the day.
8:29.1 6,000m 2:07.2 170 884 20
7k up in a smidge under 30 mins... so on target. The projected time I am trying to keep at around 2:58:30 to give me a bit of leeway for fuel onboarding.
8:27.7 8,000m 2:06.9 171 889 20
At 8k pain was more intermittent, so going to ignore... now starting to have a proper sweat on. Glad I turned on the fan... but wish I had put it on 3! Too late now!
8:28.3 10,000m 2:07.0 171 887 20
OK so quarter distance...
8:32.4 12,000m 2:08.1 167 873 20
Its nice to see meters to go starting with a 2 and not a 3!
8:29.9 14,000m 2:07.4 169 881 21
Hour mark is up... and 14 down - still on target first refuelling... I had cut off the top of the gels and opened the banana ready. Prob about 20 seconds lost.
Bumped up the rate to r21. Got back into the rhythm quickly.
8:45.0 16,000m 2:11.2 155 832 20
8:26.0 18,000m 2:06.5 173 895 21
So if this was a HM, I'd be in the last 10 mins soon... had a good period of about 4k where it was flowing along.
8:28.0 20,000m 2:07.0 171 888 21
8:41.2 22,000m 2:10.3 158 844 21
Second fuel-up. Bit slicker this time... mainly due to not dripping gel on the rail!
HM done. So... its not going so bad. Radio is on. Have to keep concentration high at all times... else suddenly find yourself at 2:09
8:25.5 24,000m 2:06.3 173 896 22
8:33.3 26,000m 2:08.3 166 870 21
1h50m in... OK so now its getting tough. This is where I have suffered in the 28k tests I have done... its not so bad this time.... so the extra training since then has paid off. Thighs definitely starting to feel it.
Did some short bursts of half-slide yanking with arms and this seems to help a bit.
8:30.4 28,000m 2:07.6 168 879 21
2 hours... OK so from here on in this us uncharted territory. Third gel, 1/4 of banana drink. Dropped the handle for 20 seconds this time to grab the gel. Easier than try to paddle one handed.
8:59.0 30,000m 2:14.7 143 792 20
8:24.1 32,000m 2:06.0 175 901 22
Bit of a renaissance! 2:06 for 2k.
Suddenly we are into 4 figures to go... I am going to do this... no way am I going to bail now... bit of a shout at myself to knuckle down and concentrate.
Getting stiff between the shoulder blades... forcing myself to relax and do some shoulder rolls during recovery.
I have Stu's comments in my head... "you are training for the last 10k..." will this is it.
8:30.0 34,000m 2:07.5 169 881 22
OK so bum is getting a bit painful now.... I have a bubble wrap pad ready to grab it it gets too much, but dont want to lose the time for this.
I can feel some blisters coming up on my right hand... doing this without gloves. So long as they dont tear open...
8:39.4 36,000m 2:09.8 160 850 21
Last gel, slurp of drink and bit of banace with 30 mins left. 7k thereabouts.... a walk in the park.... NOT!
Thinking about when I can pick up the pace... maybe 4 k to go? About 10 seconds went during this last fuel stop. Had thought about cutting it, but its gone OK so far so sticking to the plan.
8:26.7 38,000m 2:06.6 172 892 22
4K to go... concentrate!!!... picking up the pace is a necessity... the 2:07.9 required for sub 3 hours doesnt count for the fueling... I need to keep the rate up. Also dont want to cut it too fine and need a real burn up to make it.
Hitting 2:05 now for the last 4k... maybe with 1k to go will see what I can do.
8:21.7 40,000m 2:05.4 177 910 23
2K to go... yippeee!!!!
8:10.0 42,000m 2:02.5 190 955 24
Time to motor with 1000m to go... see if I can get under 2:59:30...
0:42.2 42,195m 1:48.2 276 1250 28
BOOM!!!! DONE IT!!!!
Feeling a bit emotional....

Warm down on the spin bike and 1k on the erg just for good measure

Excuse the overly long read...
I am going to post some more later on the training I did to get here... hopefully some useful pointers for anyone else thinking about stepping up to a FM.

Congratulations! Both on finishing a marathon, as well as beating 3 h!

David