I was in need of a new challenge when I found myself on the Beachy Head
marathon website. My philosophy? Enter now, worry later. So that’s what I
did.
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| The START Line! |
Absolutely wonderful, 59th marathon and by far the toughest but
best one I have done.Great support from marshalls and fellow runners.
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| Ruth, John, Me, Lisa, Ellen & Heather - At the START! |
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| The hills, the hills... are alive with the sound of runners |
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| Checkpoint ONE |
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| Very hard and challenging terrain! |
Forget London, run a real marathon. This is one hard race and I swear all the way round I keep asking myself, why?
Would hate to do this race in the rain as you are extremely exposed on
the hills...It also take you through some lovely forests, quiet little
villages and right to the top of every steep hills.
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| Checkpoint TWO |
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| Ruth and I at Checkpoint THREE - Before I nearly LOST my Camera again!! |
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| Wardens and organisers were fabulous support throughout. |
Hard to think of any other situation where such pain would produce such smiles.
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| Checkpoint FOUR |
Best tea and hot cross bun I've ever had
Be WARNED - There are two sets of steps that hurt all the way!!
An amazing challenge that leaves you with the feel good factor.
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| The course was extremely hard but awe inspiring and wonderfully scenic. |
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| Tough but very enjoyable! |
Really enjoyed this race. Great route, well organised and hard as nails.
I love a scenic route and this is one of the best especially the last 6
mile over the seven sisters. Also it's tough very tough. I was trying
to save some energy for the Dublin Marathon 2 days after but no
chance of that.
If you are feeling a bit fed up with life do this event. It will leave
you feeling 100% knackered but special. You just go with the flow and
enjoy the freedom of running and the stunning scenery. It's tough but
worth the effort.
The weather was perfect!
Well stocked Check Points!
This run is perfect. You feel high on the fun and exhilaration of it,
the madness of it, the charm of it, the stunning scenery, the supportive
marshals, and the crazy food they provide at each stop. Do you fancy
tea and cake, or a hot soup? Everyone is so friendly. It's such a
wonderful atmosphere.
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| Checkpoint FIVE |
At Beachy my opinion is that the race
starts as 19.5 miles when you hit the coast and start the sharp ascents
and descents of what are called the Seven Sisters, the iconic cliffs which are the South Downs Way.
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| Great course views countryside/hills/white cliffs/sea |
To give you an idea of my race plan, it went:
- Run as fast as I can to 19.5 miles
- Walk the ups, run the downs and get to the finish as quickly as I could
- Keep away from the edge of the cliffs
- Come back in one piece
I was too busy
trying to keep my lungs in on the way up and trying to stay up on the
way down.
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| But the buzz you get from finishing makes me want to come back for more -
a real sense of achievement once you cross the finish line. |
Seven Sisters at the end is a killer
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| Thank You Eastbourne, I'll be back! |
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| Davinia (A Hastings Runner) & Myself finished Beachy Head Marathon together hand in hand! |
Getting to the finish was special
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| Brilliant - First time on this course and I'm hooked - although I can hardly move all day! |
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| Oh and a big thanks for the free jacket potato, sausage and beans! |
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| My favourite albeit one of the slowest marathon out of 59 done so far but I wasn't too worried about time on this one. One to savour. |
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| Chipped Time Event! |
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| Chip |
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| A Burst BLISTER after running Beaching Head! |
It was outstanding. It hurt. It was fun. I will be back next year. Forget road races, this is the nirvana for me.
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| FINISH Medal - Chip Time 7 Hours, 9 Minutes & 54 Seconds (Happy with that!) |
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| The Elevation - Starting at 181 feet above sea level it
rises to 567 feet (asl) after just 3.2 miles. You can see by the
elevation chart above that it is, in the best British tradition, called undulating! |
The Run has a total ascent of 476.0 m and has
a maximum elevation of 195.0 m.
From the weather, the views, the wind in our faces to the amazing
marshalls, food and villagers along this way this race has it all.
Don't bother with London, this is what Marathon running should be about.
DO IT!!
