By Ian Grimshaw

"3:13!… 3 hours and 13 minutes… That's 4 minutes slower than last year and I hit the wall again. What about all that training…. Right, I need to find another marathon that takes place 6 months from now." This was my frame of mind the day after the London marathon! I searched around for a marathon in October; Liverpool and Chester were on my short list. Both were near my parents, but I preferred Liverpool. The course looked good: starting on the Wirrel, through the tunnel, finishing in the city near Albert Dock and it looked well organised. (Not that Chester didn't meet either of these requirements I hasten to add). With a stroke of luck I won the entry prize draw too, more to come later.

My training went well. After a few weeks of recovery from London I started to increase my Sunday mileage and added another midweek run. I was soon pushing 40 miles per week with 15+ on Sundays. Training over summer the Sunday runs could be hard in the heat, I actually hit the wall after 17 miles on one run and Lynn had to come and pick me up 4 miles out from home! On reflection a couple of beers at the Paralympics and the best part of a bottle of wine (the contents) the night before may not have been the best preparation… And running at midday didn't help either! Even a week's hiatus for our summer hols lounging on a beach didn't cause too much problems. I managed two 22 mile runs after my hols and started a long tail with my last 22 miler 4 weeks before the run. This was a longer tail than I'd done before and I only ran 6 miles the Sunday before and 4 miles on the Tuesday before the big day. By Friday 12^th Oct I was raring to go!

So to Liverpool. Leaving Friday after work we drove north to my parents near Wigan and St Helens. The first part of my prize was a 2 night stay in The Hard Days Night hotel in Liverpool city centre, so after unloading the kids we made off down the East Lancs road into Liverpool. The hotel was very comfortable, right in the centre of town and just a short walk from the finish line. We spent a very pleasant Saturday scoping out Lynn's spectator points in the city: the exit from the tunnel, 16, 17 and 26 miles. After visiting the marathon event centre we toured (aka I was dragged round) the shops in Liverpool One and visited the museums in the Albert doc. Although I grew up 20 miles outside Liverpool and used to be quite familiar with the city centre I hadn't been for 10 years and things had changed.

I was up and breakfasted by 6am on marathon day. We went for a quick stroll around the deserted streets of the city centre. The sky was clear blue, there was no wind and it was cold, it felt like perfect running conditions. Already I could see runners gathering at the shuttle bus stops that would take runners from the city centre to the start over the water. We however returned to our hotel, I was to be picked up and driven to the start, another part of my prize! At 8am the M5 BMW arrived and I was whisked to the start in comfort.

The start in Birkenhead Park (the template for New York's central park) was well organised, but a bit wet under foot. There was plenty of room, lots of toilets and changing facilities, the ground away from the road was soggy from the recent rains but otherwise a good set up. Lined up for the start at 9.30 with music pumping we were started by the mayor of Birkenhead and a blind runner with an Olympic torch. The first mile of the course traversed the park before heading out on to the streets. We passed through an industrial area and across some docs before heading along a high street towards New Brighton. Before long we were at New Brighton looking out into the Irish Sea. At this point the 10k runners peeled away before we turned back to run along the Mersey. For the next 5 miles we ran along a wide promenade on the Mersey overlooked by Victorian terraces and great views across the water to Liverpool, plenty to take your mind off the running. I was doing a steady 7.10 pace now, which was my plan, and to this point the course was pretty flat. The field had thinned out and I was with a group of 5 or 6 people with whom I ran with most of the race. All along the course was well attended with marshals, mile marker signs and water stations. There were also quite a few spectators cheering us on. At about 11 miles we left the water front back through the docs and through a rather stately square before suddenly plunging into the Queensway tunnel under the Mersey.

The Queensway tunnel is two miles long split roughly evenly between a winding descent, long flat straight and a winding ascent. I quite enjoyed the change brought by the tunnel, but others around me didn't like it. Half way through the tunnel was the halfway point of the run. As we ran approached the tunnel exit the sounds of the crowds and drums started to filter through. We emerged into the light to be met by a crowd of spectators where I saw Lynn and a couple of old friends cheering me on. The hill out of the tunnel seemed to continue for another mile as we headed out towards the docks, the second half of the course was to be much hillier than the first.

At about mile 15 we turned back towards the city the route took us past the Liver buildings, skimmed the edge of the shopping area and then led us out of the city centre towards Sefton park. Around mile 18 we hit the killer hill on Parliament street, this was all I needed, but I managed to keep on. The hill soon levelled out and we made it to the parks at mile 20. The route through the parks undulated quite a bit and was tough going. There were a few walkers around here, but I felt good. As always there were plenty of water and energy drinks stations and various marshals and cadets to point us in the right direction. Somewhere around here I think Batman shouted 'go Leighton… I'll see you at the dirt half'… I was a little tired but I don't think I was hallucinating. 

Mile 22 to 23 seemed constantly up hill, I calculated that if I could stay at 7.05 I would make it just under my target of 3.10, but it was hard now and I was struggling to keep at my pace. Mile 24 soon came though and suddenly we were running down Parliament hill to mile 25. I felt very strong and upped my pace to what felt like a sprint, but was more like 6.30. Over the last straight I passed a handful of people; I should have started this fast running business a mile earlier! Eventually I turned into the finish area and crossed the line in 3.11, just over my target. I was a little disappointed, but I'd run all the way and finished strong on a hilly course. After the race I went to the event centre where there was lots of food and refreshments for runner plus a load of physios for sports massages.

I had a very enjoyable run, the course was great, a good mix and challenging. There were lots of support from officials and just enough from crowds. I enjoyed it much more than London, which although is a great day does get a bit crowded! I would definitely recommend this marathon and I plan to enter again next year.