So, firstly: UTA: what an amazing event! Bloody loved it! It was brilliant. Hard, long, and left me aching for days: but so very worth it. Such a beautiful part of the world: the race is held in the Blue Mountains, Australia, and was one of the best events of my life. Here are the before, during, and after shots, stay tuned for some more scenic shots from the course (the professional/official pics) coming soon:
After UTA it was on with marathon training for the Gold Coast Airport Marathon (held on 2nd July), in yes, you guessed it, the beautiful, sunny, hot Gold Coast. This was another big goal of mine for the year. Again, it was such a fun time, but mainly for the hanging/banter that took place before and after the race. Thanks again to all the legends who took part in this event and weekend, and especially the 3 legends from Melbourne. You know who you are.
The actual race was tough. Tougher than I remember when I did the marathon there last, in 2015. The heat was pretty extreme (well, compared to chilly/fresh/freezing Newcastle) and this made for a much harder run. I had aimed for a time of 3:20, and at the halfway mark I was on track for 3:16! However my body just said no. It couldn't keep up and it wasn't my day for a new pb. (My pb is 3:26.) However, I got a course pb of 5 minutes faster than in 2015, and this was my second fastest marathon ever, so I suppose it is still a great result and one that I'm pretty stoked with. Finished in 3:31 ish and was oh so glad to cross the finish line. The crowd support in the Goldy is phenomenal too. Thanks again to my friends along the route who cheered my name, as well as other supporters. This helped no end.
Here are the requisite few action shots from the weekend:
Yours, Lou xxx