Our second consecutive year of running of the Torro Pacheco Maratón. We like to arrive early which means getting up at 6:30 for our tea and porridge. An easy drive taking about half an hour gets us to the race start area where we are able to park near to the start finish area. We had to pick up our chipped numbers (Dorsals) before settling into the nearby tennis club where we were able to get a coffee.
The morning was cool and dry and conditions for the race were good. Neither of us has really been running enough to feel confident about running this distance well, but we knew we would have no problem getting round.
We both had reasonable runs with difficult bits in the middle, however, we both finished well, Lesley in first place in her category with a time of 2:01 and me in a controversial second place with a time of 1:34. I say controversial because at one point I was declared first and then they awarded first place to another runner, who completed the course in 1:19, a time that would have been the second-fastest time in Great Britain this year.
After the race, as last year, the organiser had provided a substantial goody bag, with technical T-shirt, socks, boot bag and a whole range of food and drinks, including sports recovery types. They also put on a live rock band and many tables of food and drink. There we limitless supplies of drinks including beer. The prize-giving was the usual comprehensive affair with prizes for the first three finishers in each category. All in all, another good day.
