My Event Ratings

Overall score		80%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		60%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		80%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		60%

In short: The third year of this marathon - the Portsmouth Coastal Marathon has got to be one of the toughest flat marathons in the country
In full: Unlike last year’s morning after the night before, this year I woke up without a hangover - hooray. For my 60th I celebrated into the small hours following the 1st marathon of my 60 and a great launch party at the Queens Hotel. Last night however, it was a small family get together for a nice meal and one (or was it two glasses of wine) a birthday cake made by my daughter Lussi and a relatively early night. Yes, this morning I had more marathon business to attend to and my chauffeur Ronald and I left for Pompy just after 7.00am, or to be more precise the Pyramid Leisure Centre, Southsea. I had run the inaugural Portsmouth Coastal Marathon in 2010 in a time of 3:47 which I was really pleased with considering it was my 9th marathon in 10 weeks. The idea then was that those 9 marathons were a trial run to see if my body could cope with running a marathon every week. That 3:47 convinced me my body could even though running 9 marathons is a lot different to running 60 - If you would like to read more then check out my full blog here at http://60in60at60.com/2012/12/23/m53-portsmouth-coastal/
Date of review: January 4, 2013

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		60%
PB potential		40%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		100%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		100%

In short: The second year of this marathon and apart from the A20 a great course.
In full: Marathons and main roads don’t normally go together very well (not for runners anyway) so when I first noticed the ‘A20’ in the title of the A20 Path ‘n’ Downs Marathon in Hollingbourne just outside Maidstone, Kent it didn’t seem very appealing. But then neither did the Luton Marathon (with all due respect to people living in Luton) which was the only other marathon option for today. So to help me decide which one to go for I read all about the marathons on the relevant websites. In the end I opted for the Velocity Event’s marathon as it mentioned running along quite undulating country lanes and over the downs as well as paths alongside the A20 – I thought the contrast would be interesting to say the least. I arrived at the race HQ in plenty of time for the 9.00am start and unlike most race HQ’s, which can often be very shabby places, I was immediately impressed with this one as it was the 4 star Mercure Hotel – all very posh. The other good thing was that the start and finish was just on the other side of the A20 with a bag drop tent and even better a burger bar (for post marathon carb replenishment of course). - If you would like to read more then check out my full blog here at http://60in60at60.com/2012/11/18/m47-a20-path-n-downs/
Date of review: November 23, 2012

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		100%
PB potential		40%
Atmosphere		100%
Organisation		100%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		80%

In short: if you haven’t run the Snowdonia Marathon, I can really recommend it - it’s just great! I think entries for 2013 open at the beginning of January so it’s best to enter early as it always fills up.
In full: Out of all the marathons I’ve run this year, this was the one I was really looking forward to the most. The Snowdonia Marathon or Marathon Eryri, which I have run for the last two years, has just about become my all time favorite marathon, even eclipsing the likes of Barcelona, Rome and the VLM. There’s just something about the landscape, the environment, the support and yes in late October even the weather, which for the last two years has been dramatic to say the least, with combinations of torrential rain, sunshine, hail, mist and even rainbows. With the marathon being on the Saturday Patsi and I drove up on the Thursday picking my two brothers up on the way. We arrived at the Legacy Royal Victoria Hotel in Llanberis at about 2.00pm. This is the ideal spot to stay if you can, as it’s right in the middle of the start and finish which are just a few hundred metres away. I had a few hours to relax after the long drive before I was off again, this time to collect a VIP who had decided to combine his first visit to Wales with running the Snowdonia Marathon. If you’re into marathon running big time then you may have heard about Horst Preisler from Hamburg, Germany. Horst, who at 76 is the World Record holder for the most number of marathons completed - this currently stood at 1,796, can you believe that? He was completing a marathon of sorts just to get to the start line, having left Hamburg Airport at 7.00am on Thursday morning his National Express coach was due in at Bangor bus station at 7.10pm and then he had to put up with my driving to get him to his hotel in Llanberis. On the way back from Bangor I asked him about his incredible marathon story. He started to tell me but first apologised for his poor English, I said don’t worry, it’s very good and anyway much better than my German – all I can say is “Dankeschon” and “Auf Wiedersehen, Pet” (I don’t think he got the joke) - If you would like to read more then check out my full blog here at http://60in60at60.com/2012/10/27/m43-snowdonia/
Date of review: November 3, 2012

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		40%
Atmosphere		100%
Organisation		100%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		20%

In short: “There's tough, and then there's Trionium... the hardest stuff known to man”! That sums up the Greensand Marathon.
In full: Once again, today I was running yet another marathon “In England’s green and pleasant land”. As some of you may know a lot of my running is around the Dorking area and the Surrey Hills, which consist of the North Downs and the Greensand Hills. There’s no easy running around here and as a consequence the local marathons are all tough off road affairs. One of the toughest and, in-fact, claimed to be the hardest marathon in Britain (which I agree with) is the Picnic Marathon. I ran that last year in 2011, it’s a brutal two lap event which goes up, down and around Box Hill. It’s orginised by Robert McCaffrey (AKA Dr Rob) of Trionium who’s strap line is “There's tough, and then there's Trionium... the hardest stuff known to man”! So when planning on running the Greensand Marathon (another of Dr Rob’s) earlier this year I knew exactly what I was in for. Starting on the outskirts of Dorking, the marathon, which has a total of 5,200 feet of ascent and descent takes place on the Lower Greensand Ridge which are rocks formed about 110-120 million years ago during the Lower Cretaceous period for all you Geologists out there. Due to the recent rain it was obvious that conditions were going to be muddy even if it didn’t rain on the day, and of course there were going to be lots of hills. But the main issue for me and I should think a few others was the strict cut-off time of 73 minutes at the quarter way point (6.55 miles) at the top of Leith Hill with its Gothic tower. This is the highest point in Southeast England from where you can see sweeping views towards London in the north and the English Channel in the south. Any runner, who didn’t make it, would be turned back by Dr Rob and his band of merry men, to return to the finish with just a half marathon completed. While not wishing to be disrespectful to half marathon runners, forty one and a half marathons wouldn’t have been any good for me, so the pressure was on right from the start. - If you would like to read more then check out my full blog here at http://60in60at60.com/2012/10/21/m42-greensand/
Date of review: October 30, 2012

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		40%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		80%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		20%

In short: “There's tough, and then there's Trionium... the hardest stuff known to man”! That sums up the Greensand Marathon.
In full: Once again, today I was running yet another marathon “In England’s green and pleasant land”. As some of you may know a lot of my running is around the Dorking area and the Surrey Hills, which consist of the North Downs and the Greensand Hills. There’s no easy running around here and as a consequence the local marathons are all tough off road affairs. One of the toughest and, in-fact, claimed to be the hardest marathon in Britain (which I agree with) is the Picnic Marathon. I ran that last year in 2011, it’s a brutal two lap event which goes up, down and around Box Hill. It’s orginised by Robert McCaffrey (AKA Dr Rob) of Trionium who’s strap line is “There's tough, and then there's Trionium... the hardest stuff known to man”! So when planning on running the Greensand Marathon (another of Dr Rob’s) earlier this year I knew exactly what I was in for. Starting on the outskirts of Dorking, the marathon, which has a total of 5,200 feet of ascent and descent takes place on the Lower Greensand Ridge which are rocks formed about 110-120 million years ago during the Lower Cretaceous period for all you Geologists out there. Due to the recent rain it was obvious that conditions were going to be muddy even if it didn’t rain on the day, and of course there were going to be lots of hills. But the main issue for me and I should think a few others was the strict cut-off time of 73 minutes at the quarter way point (6.55 miles) at the top of Leith Hill with its Gothic tower. This is the highest point in Southeast England from where you can see sweeping views towards London in the north and the English Channel in the south. Any runner, who didn’t make it, would be turned back by Dr Rob and his band of merry men, to return to the finish with just a half marathon completed. While not wishing to be disrespectful to half marathon runners, forty one and a half marathons wouldn’t have been any good for me, so the pressure was on right from the start. - If you would like to read more then check out my full blog here at http://60in60at60.com/2012/10/21/m42-greensand/
Date of review: October 30, 2012

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		40%
Atmosphere		100%
Organisation		100%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		60%

In short: Great that the Clarendon Marathon has been resurrected and long may it continue.
In full: I'm afraid I have some bad news for all my supporters - I'm NOT going to be able to complete My 60 Marathons in 60 Weeks at 60 Years Challenge. It's going to be all over on Friday the 21st December at midnight, when I will have completed about 52 of my 60 marathons. In-fact I'm not even going to reach my 61st birthday on Saturday the 22nd. That is if you believe in the prediction of the Maya civilisation (c 2000 BC to AD 250). According to a Channel 4 documentary a few days ago the Maya's predicted that the world would end at midnight on that date, with a combination of cataclysmic events. So therefore, No 61st BBBB, No birthday cake, and definitely No more marathons. While not wanting to diss one of the greatest, if not the greatest civilisations the world has ever known - I'll just keep going and keep my fingers crossed they're wrong and I'm able to carry on. In the meantime back to the running and the Clarendon Marathon - If you would like to read more then check out my full blog here at http://60in60at60.com/2012/10/07/m41-clarendon/
Date of review: October 16, 2012

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Overall score		80%
Would you do it again?		Maybe
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		20%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		80%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		20%

In short: Beauty - the magnificent surroundings of Stonor Park and the Beast the bloody hill you have to go up at the end of each of the 6 laps.
In full: Another inaugural marathon (they're becoming a bit of a habit) and another one that does exactly what it says on the tin. Beauty - the magnificent surroundings of Stonor Park and the Beast the bloody hill you have to go up at the end of each of the 6 laps. To give it its correct title 'The Helly Hansen Beauty and the Beast Marathon' was held just north of Henley-on-Thames (all very posh don't you know) in a small valley of the Chiltern Hills. Stonor is one of England’s oldest manor houses, situated in one of the most beautiful settings and is the home of Lord and Lady Camoys. It is a place steeped in 850 years of history and is magnificent. To get to the start from the car park you have to climb up a stonking great hill which Patsi and I did so I could register and pick up my number and chip. The mistake I made is that I should have been changed and ready to go (they had a bag drop tent) but of course I wasn't, so had to come back down the hill, change at the car and then rush back up to the top again. Still it was a good warmup and a taste of what was to come and Patsi said she needed the exercise. As it was, the start was delayed for a few minutes while a few late runners were still trudging up the hill. Starting at the top was nice as we had a long descent to get our legs moving but I was very cautious and made sure I didn't get carried away, knowing full well that pay-back time was literally just around the corner - If you would like to read more then check out my full blog here at http://60in60at60.com/2012/09/23/m39-beauty-and-the-beast/
Date of review: October 3, 2012

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		100%
PB potential		20%
Atmosphere		100%
Organisation		100%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		20%

In short: 100% in every department. It's going to rapidly become a classic marathon, right up there with the likes of Beachy Head, New Forest and Snowdonia.
In full: After a restless night in the tent with my ribs still hurting and Thomas waking up a few times, I was not very confident about stage two of my marathon double. Unlike yesterday's marathon this one had a 7 hour cut off time and I was a little bit concerned about being pulled out (never happened before) and ending up a DNF (has happened before). I was even in two minds if I should run or not, but eventually convinced myself that there was only going to be one way to find out if I could do it and that was to run the thing - I'm so, so glad that I did. This was the inaugural Purbeck Marathon (I seem to be doing a lot of those this year) and I knew it was going to be as tough if not tougher than yesterday's, having trained on some of this course with my Littledown Harrier club-mates. I have also run the Swanage half marathon twice and the infamous Beast five times which follows some of the route of the Purbeck Marathon. Like the Swanage half the finish was right on the sea-front, but unlike that event the start was high up on the downs with fantastic views over the surrounding area and the Isle of Wight - If you would like to read more then check out my full blog here at http://60in60at60.com/2012/09/18/m38-purbeck/
Date of review: September 24, 2012

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Overall score		80%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		100%
PB potential		40%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		60%
Value		100%
Beginner-friendliness		60%

In short: Organised by Nina Hanger and her team of volunteers and all proceeds were going to her small charity 'Hangers Heroes'.
In full: As I was still two weeks behind schedule, this weekend was an ideal opportunity to try and catch up at least one of those weeks without having to travel too far. Saturday was The Challenge 2012 South Dorset Marathon, starting and finishing near Chickerell and on Sunday The Purbeck Marathon with the start and finish in Swanage. Knowing the areas these marathons were in, The Jurassic Coast and The Isle of Purbeck quite well I knew it was going to be a tough weekend of running, and just to make things just a little bit harder (I don't do easy) Patsi and I decided to go camping for a long weekend. We set off on Thursday with the car (a Ford Mondao estate) groaning under the weight of all our equipment, in the boot, on the back seats and on the roof rack - we even had our 15 month old Grandson Thomas in there somewhere and of course the kitchen sink - well two washing up bowls anyway. The weather was lovely and we drove straight onto the Sandbanks ferry and were soon on the other side in Studland and on our way to Nordon Farm campsite just on the outskirts of Corfe Castle. - If you would like to read more then check out my full blog here at http://60in60at60.com/2012/09/18/m37-challenge-2012/
Date of review: September 24, 2012

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		100%
PB potential		40%
Atmosphere		100%
Organisation		80%
Value		40%
Beginner-friendliness		80%

In short: The Bacchus Marathon is the English equivalent to the famous Le Marathon du Medoc in Pauillac near Bordeaux, France. The Bacchus is a great local alternative for us Brits.
In full: Back for my hat-trick of runs at the Bacchus Marathon and the third year of this fabulous event which is fast becoming a regular on the marathon scene. Organised by Runners and Triathletes Alan and Nicky of ‘Events to Live’ the marathon, half marathon and fun run are based at the marvellous 'Denbies Wine Estate' near Dorking in Surrey and fancy dress and drinking wine is definitely encouraged. The Bacchus Marathon (named after the Roman God of Wine) starts and finishes in England’s largest vineyard and is a two lap undulating and multi-terrain course with a heavy bias towards off road, using footpaths along the North Downs Way and the Pilgrims Way. I completed the inaugural event in 2010 with a time of 3:56 which I was really pleased with - If you would like to read more then check out my full blog here at http://60in60at60.com/2012/09/10/m36-bacchus/
Date of review: September 12, 2012

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